I've read and participated in several posts on this board about back pain, and thought this "educated crowd";-) would be interested in this article.
The November issue of Shape has an article on back pain and exercise. Recent research conducted by sports-medicine/rehabilitative specialists indicates that back-pain sufferers may benefit from a concentrated back-muscle workout that may increase their pain initially, but over the long run decrease the flare-ups of pain and the incidence of back surgeries.
By increased pain, they're not talking about agony, or not being able to walk, or sharp pain. They mean the achiness that comes when you exercise muscles that haven't been worked in a while, or haven't been worked hard enough to strengthen themselves.
This research differs from the "old" common wisdom - "if it hurts, don't exercise" - and the "new" common wisdom - "it's OK to exercise, but stop exercising when your back starts to hurt."
There are lots of examples and specifics in the article; I'd encourage anyone who's interested to read it.
As a back pain sufferer with recently-diagnosed degenerative disc disorder, I'm already in full medical mode with a Pilates instructor, chiropractor and orthopedist, and am heading to a sports-medicine physical therapist on Wednesday. So far only my Pilates instructor, who had major back problems of her own, is in favor of an all-out exercise program to combat back pain. My chiro initially told me to never perform squats again, and he's not thrilled that I work out with heavy dumbbells ("it puts a lot of stress on the spine"). My ortho, on the other hand, didn't even ASK me about my exercise regimen when he evaluated me!
YES, I'm looking for some other medical advisers; but it's nice to know that some experts are getting on board with aggressive exercise instead of pills to treat pain!
Allison
The November issue of Shape has an article on back pain and exercise. Recent research conducted by sports-medicine/rehabilitative specialists indicates that back-pain sufferers may benefit from a concentrated back-muscle workout that may increase their pain initially, but over the long run decrease the flare-ups of pain and the incidence of back surgeries.
By increased pain, they're not talking about agony, or not being able to walk, or sharp pain. They mean the achiness that comes when you exercise muscles that haven't been worked in a while, or haven't been worked hard enough to strengthen themselves.
This research differs from the "old" common wisdom - "if it hurts, don't exercise" - and the "new" common wisdom - "it's OK to exercise, but stop exercising when your back starts to hurt."
There are lots of examples and specifics in the article; I'd encourage anyone who's interested to read it.
As a back pain sufferer with recently-diagnosed degenerative disc disorder, I'm already in full medical mode with a Pilates instructor, chiropractor and orthopedist, and am heading to a sports-medicine physical therapist on Wednesday. So far only my Pilates instructor, who had major back problems of her own, is in favor of an all-out exercise program to combat back pain. My chiro initially told me to never perform squats again, and he's not thrilled that I work out with heavy dumbbells ("it puts a lot of stress on the spine"). My ortho, on the other hand, didn't even ASK me about my exercise regimen when he evaluated me!
YES, I'm looking for some other medical advisers; but it's nice to know that some experts are getting on board with aggressive exercise instead of pills to treat pain!
Allison