Posture’s Role in Your Back Pain
Low back pain is our number one complaint we see in the clinic. This complaint is often described as “feeling stuck,” a pain that is “like a band across my lower back,” one-sided pain in the lower back, a feeling of tightness/stiffness in the morning or just general feelings of overall stiffness anywhere in the back. It is hard to say that there is one quick fix, as with any pain, back pain has a multitude of sources that goes beyond what is just happening at a tissue and joint level. Blaming your posture is one thing we want you to refrain from.
However, a lot of the time a big piece of the “back pain puzzle” is that we get stuck in patterns/postures where we are constantly in similar positions and performing similar tasks such as: lifting, reading, sitting, looking at our phones, picking up the kids, cleaning, laundry, sleeping, etc. We rarely do motions where we break that repetitive cycle. That feeling of stiffness in the morning can be explained by simply being in one single position for (hopefully) close to eight hours of sleeping. It is always great to vary positions/postures–both in our sleeping and waking lives–yet the reality is that a lot of us do not end up doing that in our normal day-to-day lives.
We fall victim to our pain and we become afraid to move into positions that are fundamental, natural motions of our body–such as arching at your low back or rotating your back. We should be confident in every motion our back and body is capable of doing!
One tip that Quincy PT would like you to take from this blog post: think about the times where you get up for bathroom breaks, when you get up to take a walk during the day because you know it is good for you, when you take a break from work, etc. Make sure that all of those opportunities more purposeful by putting your back in opposite motions that you have currently been in, that way you are not falling into that repetitive cycle and you are giving your body a variability of motions. Give your body a reset so that you can continue on with your day and not have to focus on if you are sitting correctly or if a posture correction device is truly working. A rule of thumb: Your next posture is your best posture. There is no perfect posture! As with everything, keep it consistent and listen to your body. Here are some examples of Quincy PT’s favorite exercises for these strategies:
Literature on posture and back pain is summarized here: Science Behind Blaming Posture for Pain.
Schedule a FREE Consultation and Discovery Visit Today to learn how to program these strategies into your day and to answer any questions you may have regarding your back pain. There is a lot more that goes into your back pain but contacting Quincy Physical Therapy is a great start!