3 Stretches to Get Rid of Back Pain

Like it or not, whether you’ve had to deal with it or not, back pain is the most common complaint when it comes to physical pain.  Whether it’s from taking a bad fall, spending most of your day in a seated position stuck at a desk, sleeping in awkward positions or sitting in awkward positions, lower back pain and often associated hip pain, is just no fun!

If you’ve been following my blogs for any length of time, you already know that if you have pain, getting rid of it is often a two-step process.  The main goal is to calm the tight over active muscle(s), and the second is to strengthen the muscles that are not working properly.  Explaining it this way helps to remind you about the importance of keeping your body in balance.  Excesses in any area don’t typically serve you for very long.

I’ll spare you all the $10 words and complicated muscle explanations and start off by saying let’s first get those tight muscles loosened up with some solid self-myofascial release techniques.  Then I’ll ask you to do your first 3 stretches, illustrated below, to get you on the road to eliminating lower back pain.

This is Stretch#1 (1/3).
This stretch is often called Child's Pose. From a kneeling position, toes pointed straight back, sit backwards so that you are sitting on the heels of your shoes. Reach forward with both arms, far enough to feel a stretch in the lower back and shoulders.  Hold for 7-10 seconds

This is Stretch #1 (2/3)

Keeping your legs where they are at, engage your abs and move both arms to the right until a stretch is felt on the left side of the body. Think of making your body into a half circle. Be sure to remain seated on your heels.  Hold for 7-10 seconds.

This is Stretch #1 (3/3).
Now do the same process you did for the above picture for the left side.  Hold for 7-10 seconds

This is Stretch #2
Begin on your knees, with your knees out wide, resting on forearms. Then straighten one leg out to the side. Be sure that the toe of the straight leg is in line with the knee of the kneeling leg. If possible, reach out to touch toe of straight leg with same side hand.  Repeat movement 3 times on both sides.

Stretch #3

From a standing or kneeling position, step back with one leg so that the back knee is resting on the floor. The front leg should be bent at 90 degrees with the knee directly over the ankle (see image above). Slowly push your hips/zipper down and forward so that you feel a stretch in the thigh on the back leg. You may also feel a stretch in the groin of the front leg. Hold this position for 5-7 breaths. Then switch to the other side. Repeat this stretch 2-3 times to relax the hips.

These stretches will start you on your journey to getting rid of back pain.

Please be sure to check back in to get more stretches to keep you feeling good and out of pain.

For All The Parts That Hurt, Here's The Solution

Since May of this year, I've been sharing with you various stretches and exercises to help you get out of pain and stay that way.  From the questions and emails I've been receiving it seems as though a reminder of the blogs would be really helpful.  As I promised early on in my blog post, I am committed to providing reliable, useful, practical information that will assist you in getting out of pain and staying that way.

If your having Shouler Pain:

Try these stretches and exercises to get rid of pain and stay that way:

Shoulder Stretches Group 1

Shoulder Stretches Group 2

Shoulder Exercises Group 1

Shoulder Exercises Group 2

Having Wrist Pain, don't forget these tried and true movements:

Painful Wrists Stretches and Exercises

Lower Back Pain, remember these stretches for the hip and lower back:

Back Pain Stretches Group 1

Back Pain Stretches Group 2

Back Pain Stretches Group 3

Knee Pain have you limping around? Try these:

Knee Pain Exercises

So there you go. The body part where you're experiencing pain listed just above the stretches and exercises. It doesn't get much easier than that.

With this well outlined group of stretches and exercises you should have no problem getting out of pain and staying that way.  But I feel I have to remind you, you have to do them consistently if you want them to work. Doing these movements once in a while will not get you results. Make the commitment, get out of pain and go do what you already enjoy doing . . . . better!

Have a great Labor Day Weekend.

Energy F/X -- Get Out Of Pain Now -- Knee

For some strange reason I've been approached several times this week regarding knee injuries.  Not quite sure why this has been the issue this week, but thought I would share with all of you some tips on how to get rid of that nagging knee pain.

First though, let me help you better understand how the knee ends up being in pain.  If you have a habit of sitting to one side while at your desk, cross your legs under your desk and/or chair, or if you sit on one leg, all of these create misalignment in either the hip and/or the ankle.  Guess what joint sits right above or below this now misaligned hip or ankle -- the knee. 

When you sit in a posture that is not legs at 90 degrees, feet and ankles underneath knees, shoulders back and chest up, you are increasing the chances of muscles running from the hip to the knee or the knee to the ankle becoming strained. And as you know if you've been reading my blogs, muscles under strain will pull on the joints.

Now let's be honest. Almost none of us sit upright in the position I described above all the time; But if you're in pain you already now that. If you're having knee pain, please download this free Knee_Injury_Rehab_Level_1_(blog_8-27-2010).pdf and get out of pain now!

If you've been lucky enough to avoid pain so far, I would encourage you to begin rolling on an Energy F/X Tube or other roller to alleviate muscle tension, and decrease the chances of developing knee pain. If you have any questions on how to begin using an Energy F/X Tube to avoid or alleviate knee pain click here. And if you need to purchase a roller that will last, try the Energy F/X Tube.

Life is too short to live in pain.  Don't let bad habits set you up for pain.  Either get in the habit of sitting in an upright position on a regular basis, use a Swiss Ball as a desk chair, which aids in maintaining good posture, or get yourself an Energy F/X Tube and, like drinking a glass of orange juice to avoid a cold, it'll help alleviate the symptoms that cause knee pain.

Or you could just ignore all of this. . . . . .  and see what happens.