Back Pain Relief

Back pain may be caused by a wide variety of problems like disc degeneration, herniated or bulging discs, and muscle tension. But one of the most important steps in eliminating your back pain is to discover what MOVEMENTS cause you pain.

Just because pain exists, and an injury exists, does not mean that you will be in pain because of that injury. Back pain is often not directly caused by injury, but rather by movements that make pain worsen, which are specific to the individual.

Identify the Cause of Your Pain

Test: Stand tall and start to drop your head. Continue into a full forward fold with your feet still on the ground and your back rounded.

Test: Stand tall and place your hands on your low back. Lift your chin and bend back, gently arching your back into hyperextension.

Test: Sit tall in a chair. Grab the bottom of the chair and pull yourself down. Try first in an upright sitting position. Then try in a forward flexed position and then in a hyperextended position.

Results: Do any of these actions cause more pain? If so then you must identify what daily activities you do that involve that action and perform the action better (i.e. with a light core brace, more mindfully, or with a different movement pattern).

Example: If I do a full forward fold and feel that my pain increases, I need to make sure that each time I bend down to pick something off the floor (laundry basket, etc.) I do a proper hip hinge with a light core brace, as demonstrated in the video.