3 easy exercises to relieve back pain and improve your movement

Each of us comes with our baggage of life and history of pains and aches, and for this reason we need our unique way to deal with our problems.

However, for as much as the experience of pain is completely personal, we know that pain is incredibly common, and there’s millions of people experiencing almost the same trouble as ourself. Millions. Easily.

Especially when we talk about the most common musculoskeletal issue that affects the human race: back pain.

So let’s be greedy and use the tricks and the advice that worked for other people. Let’s thank them for their past pain and take advantage of the knowledge they gained in their journey. We don’t want their effort to go to waste! Also, if you’re reading this you might be ready to start the journey to recovery yourself.

Sometimes pain can be excruciating or so deep and constant that it doesn’t let you sleep. Sometimes people rely on pain medication for an awful lot of time, maybe before even trying different methods to reduce it. If you’re experiencing this, you’ve got to know that you’re not alone.

What you’re experiencing is so common but at the same time so damn debilitating, frustrating and tiring that it can make you feel like you’re on your own and nobody can understand you: many people are in similar conditions like you and they’re improving by talking and asking for help to friends, doctors and health professionals. I totally encourage you to do so too.

If you’re struggling a lot, reach out!

If you’re doing kind of alright, and having the usual tightness, the usual flare up every now and then, the usual “oh heck no I’d better not lift that cos it’s dangerous”, just know that you can likely do better, especially if you haven’t really tried anything yet.

Give a shot to these 3 tricks and if you want to know more about what you can do, just ask us.

1. Find this spot and push on it (KI3 point)

Kidneys in traditional Chinese medicine are the "root of life and vitality". This meridian or energy pathway controls the growth and development of bones and marrow; it's linked to the sexual and reproductive system and is responsible for water, fluid and waste metabolism in the body. 

KI3 ("Tai xi" in Chinese, which means "great stream") is a great point for tonifying the kidneys; it’s useful for back pain, knee pain, Achilles and heel pain. It's a great point for giving general invigoration of energy.

It's located in the inner ankle, in the depression between the inner malleolus and the Achilles tendon. Watch the video and go look for it!

2. Cat - cow

This exercise requires no strength at all, just a little bit of perseverance and concentration. Try to keep the upper part of your back still, while slowly lifting up and lowering down your lower back. Congratulations, you've just performed a cat stretch.

3. Child’s pose

The child's pose is very famous in yoga, and it's great for back pain. It gives an instant feeling of relaxation and stretches and loosens off especially the muscles of the lower back.

To give it an extra twist, push your arms a bit further by walking with your fingers, then gently pull them backwards, focusing the action on your shoulder blades. Remember to keep your back steady and your elbows stretched!

Keep 5-10 seconds each position and repeat for at least one minute. Go to the nearest park to do it, you'll have a free soft surface where you can practice: it's called grass! Get out there when it's a bit cooler in the evenings or early in the morning, you'll surely enjoy it

Don’t forget, we’re here to help you

If you still feel like this is helping just a little bit, it might be time to book yourself in for an assessment and treatment to figure out what can work best for you with one of our physiotherapists.

*NB the above recommendations are loose guidelines and for anyone with specific low back pain, we recommend consulting with your registered practitioner to ensure that these are right for you and your condition