How to Treat Back Pain : 5 Ways to Beat Back Pain

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How to Treat Back Pain  : 5 Ways to Beat Back Pain

Banish soreness from your body!

By Denny Watkin

Do you have a “bad back”? Phooey. More likely, you just have bad habits. Back pain is one of the most common medical problems—experts say it affects about 80 to 90 percent of Americans at some point—but also one of the easiest to avoid.

The pain is usually due to a muscle spasm, which can be set off by all kinds of things: Constant strain from poor posture, a sudden bout of repetitive motion such as shoveling snow, chronic inflammation, or a single twisting move at just the wrong angle. “Finally the muscle contracts but it doesn't release, and those muscle fibers lock up, like if you lace the fingers of your hands together,” says Michael Neuwirth, M.D., director of the spine institute at Beth Israel Medical Center. That constant tension can lead to soreness. 

(Click here for the 7 Best Exercises for Low Back Pain.)
While injuries generally heal with rest in a couple days, damage to your disks or the nerves that radiate from your spinal column can require surgery. What's the difference? “The pain might be severe, and it can radiate down your leg,” says Neuwirth. Another warning sign: You seem to pull the same back muscles often, which might indicate a problem with your vertebrae is pinching the nerves that communicate with those muscles. If it doesn't improve in a few days, head to the doctor.

Before you get to that point, here's how to keep your back in shape and pain-free.

 

Stretch before you exercise. 

Don't neglect your back as part of your warmup. Stretch out your lumbar region by lying on your back and pulling one knee to your chest and holding it for 5 to 10 seconds, then repeat with the other leg. Relax for 10 seconds, then repeat the cycle.

 

Loosen tight muscles. 

 “Using a foam roller can work out muscle kinks before they cause more problems,” says Neel Mehta, M.D., director of outpatient pain medicine at the Weill-Cornell Pain Medicine Center. (You can buy one for about $20; it’s one of the best purchases you’ll ever make.) Set the roller lengthwise on the floor and use your body weight to massage your upper back, lower back, hamstrings, and hip flexors. (Sports trainers all over the country are encouraging their athletes to foam roll. 

Pick up your copy of The Athlete’s Book of Home Remedies for more feel-better secrets every athlete must know.)

 

Take up yoga. 

You only need to go once a week. When 228 people with chronic lower back pain practiced a 75-minute yoga routine weekly for three months, they saw a 50 percent improvement in their pain compared to merely following a pain relief book.

 

Treat with cold and heat. 

First, apply an ice pack for five minutes, then take it off for five minutes. Repeat for up to half an hour. “The cycle of cooling tricks your body into increasing blood flow to the sore muscle, which promotes healing.” Meehta says. The next day, you can use a heating pad or a hot towel, which will help to relax any remaining tightness.

 

Get back on your feet. 

Sure, a cramped or pulled muscle needs time to recover. But it is possible to rest too much. “Being completely inactive for anything more than 48 hours, and you start to see muscle atrophy, which makes you weaker and more prone to injury,” says Neuwirth. If you're still in pain after two days, see a doctor. (Don’t have the time to move? Stop making excuses! 

Here’s How to Find 15 Minutes in Any Day for Exercise.)

http://www.menshealth.com/health/5-ways-beat-back-pain