Why does my back hurt? How can HEFY help?
The causes of back pain vary widely. Use your fitness as a tool to heal your back and keep it strong and healthy for years to come.
Back pain is associated with:
Stress
Poor Posture
Sitting too much
Standing too much
Tight Hamstrings
Weak Gluteal Muscles
Hunching over a phone or device
Muscle Weakness
Muscle Tightness
Injury
Strain
Disease
What can you do about it?
Um, one. You can see a medical professional if you are in pain. This article does not take the place of medical advice.
The solution to your back pain may have to be as varied as the causes. You need to incorporate a regular exercise routine that addresses your back pain issues. I will break up the areas of the back into three sections with suggestions for each.
The High Energy Fusion Yoga Recipe for a Stronger Back
The upper back: This area includes the neck and is especially tough for people who look down at a computer screen all day. (This is most of us nowadays) The best thing for shoulder weakness do to desk work is Adult Tummy Time! You read that correctly. Get onto your belly, lift your chest and raise one arm up towards the ceiling and then the other. Keep your feet on the ground. Add light weights if you want more of a challenge. Try 30 repetitions.
Middle Back: The average person has don hundreds of abdominal crunches in their lives, but how many crunches does anyone ever do for their middle back? Nowhere near as many! Repetitions of baby cobra and forearm plank are perfect for anyone looking to stabilize their middle back muscles. Alternate 10 baby cobras/30 second forearm plank/10 baby cobras/30 second forearm plank for 3-5 rounds. Feel the muscles spring back to life.
Lower back: Lower back pain, among other reasons, may stem from tight hamstrings or weak gluteal muscles. Sitting or working out without stretching may make this type of pain worse. Three easy exercises to strengthen the gluten and get your hamstrings nice and chew are Tummy Time leg lifts, air squats, and reclined or standing leg abduction exercises. Thirty repetitions of each for three rounds is a great way to wake up sluggish gluteal muscles and make your back stronger.
Now we stretch. Once your body is warmed up with this back routine. Log on to a High Energy Fusion Yoga class and start moving. If you suffer from back pain, don’t be afraid to do extra work on it before class. It will help you move more easily through the rest of your yoga class.
Don’t shy away from walking, riding a bike, or using an elliptical if you are having back pain. Even 10 minutes of gentle cardio vascular movement will help keep your muscles supple and strong for years to come.