10 Ways to Relieve Lower Back Pain

10 Ways to get Lower Back Pain Relief

Daily self-care is a great way to find lower back pain relief between appointments. Here are 10 tips and exercises you can try at home to relieve your pain.
Keyword(s): lower back pain relief
Around 31 million Americans experience lower back pain at any given time. Back pain can be dismissed as just a part of getting older or as a result of stress, but even if those are contributing factors, it doesn't change the fact that lower back pain can be debilitating.

In fact, it's the leading cause of disability worldwide. The good news is that chiropractic adjustments are an excellent way to provide lower back pain relief.

But you can't have an adjustment every day, which means that between appointments you might experience discomfort or pain. We are going to give you some at-home tips that will provide you lower back pain relief on days you don't have appointments.

1. Core Strengthening Exercises


Your core muscles are the muscles in your midsection. These include your abdominals, your obliques, your lats, and your erector spinae. If these muscles are weak, it can cause you to overcompensate certain movements and actions with the muscles in your lower back.

A weak core can lead to increased lower back pain. Specifically training your core muscles will help strengthen them and reduce strain on the muscles of your lower back.

Let's go over some of the best at-home core exercises to help you strengthen those abs. And who knows: maybe you'll get lower back pain relief and a six-pack!

Planks. This is a simple at-home exercise that will make your core feel like it's on fire. Simply get into a push-up position and hold yourself there for 30 seconds to a minute. If that's too hard for you, just hold it for as long as you can.
Wall Sits. This move is exactly what you'd think it is: start by standing a bit away from the wall and lower yourself into a sitting position with your back resting against the wall. Hold yourself there for a count of 15. Repeat this 5-10 times.
Knee to Chest. Start by laying on your back. Bend your knees and keep your feet flat on the ground. Lift one knee up to your chest. Be sure to keep your lower back flat on the ground. Hold the position for around 15 seconds before repeating the movement with your other leg. Repeat 2-4 times.
These movements will help strengthen your core while keeping pressure off of your lower back.

2. Posture
Whether you're walking, sitting, or lounging, try to maintain good posture. It's easy to slump forward when on the computer or slouch when walking around.

This not only makes your grandmother cringe, but it can also cause muscle cramping and overcompensation of certain muscles, which leads to lower back pain.

Focus on keeping your back straight and keeping your back supported when in a sitting position.

3. Ice and Heat
Both ice and heat therapy can provide lower back pain relief.

Icing the muscles will help reduce inflammation, which will provide pain relief. Besides reducing inflammation, ice can also numb the muscles, which will reduce pain as well.

Heat therapy can help tense and sore muscles relax. Heat stimulates blood flow, which will increase the amount of oxygen and nutrients getting to the muscle. This can help the area heal and feel better quicker.

Both ice and heat therapy have their place in helping back pain; studies suggest switching between the two can be beneficial.

4. Anti-Inflammatory Foods
Studies show that inflammation is one of the leading causes of back pain. Besides ice therapy, you can also reduce inflammation with your diet.

Processed and high sugar/fat foods can increase the inflammation in your body. Try adjusting your diet to cut out processed stuff and incorporate more anti-inflammatory foods.

Some of the best anti-inflammatory foods include:

Green vegetables (broccoli, kale, greens, etc)
Beets
Blueberries
Pineapple
Salmon
Chia Seeds
Tumeric
Fitting these foods into your diet will provide your body with key nutrients. These can help reduce inflammation and help with lower back pain relief.

5. Hydrate
Drinking water can prevent muscle strain/spasms and help your blood pressure. Hydrating properly will keep the discs in your back hydrated and working properly. If the discs or your muscles become dehydrated, it can result in lower back pain.

Try to drink 8 glasses of water per day.

6. Essential Oil Rubs
Both peppermint and wintergreen essential oils can help ease your lower back pain. They help relax inflammation and reduce pain.

You can get lotions or simply mix the essential oils with lotion or coconut oil and apply it directly to your lower back.

7. CBD Oil
CBD oil is derived from the cannabis plant. Hear us out: this won't get you high. CBD is an isolated component of cannabis that has a number of helpful properties, including being an anti-inflammatory and a pain reliever.

CBD can be applied via topicals like lotions, oils, and creams. You can even get it as a bath salt to help soak away your lower back pain.

8. Dietary Supplements
Adding supplements to your new anti-inflammatory food diet can contribute to lower back pain relief.

Fish oil is one such supplement. This will provide you with high doses of omega-3s that will help reduce inflammation.

We already mentioned turmeric as a great anti-inflammatory food. Supplementing your diet with high levels of turmeric will help reduce inflammation and pain.

Some other helpful supplements include magnesium and potassium. These two nutrients are heavily involved in muscle contraction and movement; adding them as supplements will help your muscles function properly.

9. Stay Active
Back pain makes it easy for you to want to stay put to avoid moving your back. However, staying active is a crucial part of relieving back pain. Besides doing the core exercises we mentioned early, try staying active with light cardio like taking quick walks or doing soothing yoga.

10. Rest
Around 50-80% of back pain sufferers experience sleep problems and disturbances. Besides feeling tired, this can make your back pain even worse, creating a cycle of no-sleep and pain.

Try and get as much good sleep as you can. This will help you feel better and can provide lower back pain relief.

These Tips Will Give You Lower Back Pain Relief !
Consistent pain affects your daily life: it can make you unable to work, sleep, and do things you enjoy. Besides visiting the doctor or a chiropractor, these tips can hopefully provide you with some relief.

If you're experiencing constant or chronic pain, contact Smith Chiropractic. We can provide you with fast relief and help you get back on track to a normal, pain-free life.

Hope this helps!  Dr Smith - Chiropractor

10 Ways to get Lower Back Pain Relief

Daily self-care is a great way to find lower back pain relief between appointments. Here are 10 tips and exercises you can try at home to relieve your pain.
Keyword(s): lower back pain relief
Around 31 million Americans experience lower back pain at any given time. Back pain can be dismissed as just a part of getting older or as a result of stress, but even if those are contributing factors, it doesn't change the fact that lower back pain can be debilitating.

In fact, it's the leading cause of disability worldwide. The good news is that chiropractic adjustments are an excellent way to provide lower back pain relief.

But you can't have an adjustment every day, which means that between appointments you might experience discomfort or pain. We are going to give you some at-home tips that will provide you lower back pain relief on days you don't have appointments.

1. Core Strengthening Exercises


Your core muscles are the muscles in your midsection. These include your abdominals, your obliques, your lats, and your erector spinae. If these muscles are weak, it can cause you to overcompensate certain movements and actions with the muscles in your lower back.

A weak core can lead to increased lower back pain. Specifically training your core muscles will help strengthen them and reduce strain on the muscles of your lower back.

Let's go over some of the best at-home core exercises to help you strengthen those abs. And who knows: maybe you'll get lower back pain relief and a six-pack!

Planks. This is a simple at-home exercise that will make your core feel like it's on fire. Simply get into a push-up position and hold yourself there for 30 seconds to a minute. If that's too hard for you, just hold it for as long as you can.
Wall Sits. This move is exactly what you'd think it is: start by standing a bit away from the wall and lower yourself into a sitting position with your back resting against the wall. Hold yourself there for a count of 15. Repeat this 5-10 times.
Knee to Chest. Start by laying on your back. Bend your knees and keep your feet flat on the ground. Lift one knee up to your chest. Be sure to keep your lower back flat on the ground. Hold the position for around 15 seconds before repeating the movement with your other leg. Repeat 2-4 times.
These movements will help strengthen your core while keeping pressure off of your lower back.

2. Posture
Whether you're walking, sitting, or lounging, try to maintain good posture. It's easy to slump forward when on the computer or slouch when walking around.

This not only makes your grandmother cringe, but it can also cause muscle cramping and overcompensation of certain muscles, which leads to lower back pain.

Focus on keeping your back straight and keeping your back supported when in a sitting position.

3. Ice and Heat
Both ice and heat therapy can provide lower back pain relief.

Icing the muscles will help reduce inflammation, which will provide pain relief. Besides reducing inflammation, ice can also numb the muscles, which will reduce pain as well.

Heat therapy can help tense and sore muscles relax. Heat stimulates blood flow, which will increase the amount of oxygen and nutrients getting to the muscle. This can help the area heal and feel better quicker.

Both ice and heat therapy have their place in helping back pain; studies suggest switching between the two can be beneficial.

4. Anti-Inflammatory Foods
Studies show that inflammation is one of the leading causes of back pain. Besides ice therapy, you can also reduce inflammation with your diet.

Processed and high sugar/fat foods can increase the inflammation in your body. Try adjusting your diet to cut out processed stuff and incorporate more anti-inflammatory foods.

Some of the best anti-inflammatory foods include:

Green vegetables (broccoli, kale, greens, etc)
Beets
Blueberries
Pineapple
Salmon
Chia Seeds
Tumeric
Fitting these foods into your diet will provide your body with key nutrients. These can help reduce inflammation and help with lower back pain relief.

5. Hydrate
Drinking water can prevent muscle strain/spasms and help your blood pressure. Hydrating properly will keep the discs in your back hydrated and working properly. If the discs or your muscles become dehydrated, it can result in lower back pain.

Try to drink 8 glasses of water per day.

6. Essential Oil Rubs
Both peppermint and wintergreen essential oils can help ease your lower back pain. They help relax inflammation and reduce pain.

You can get lotions or simply mix the essential oils with lotion or coconut oil and apply it directly to your lower back.

7. CBD Oil
CBD oil is derived from the cannabis plant. Hear us out: this won't get you high. CBD is an isolated component of cannabis that has a number of helpful properties, including being an anti-inflammatory and a pain reliever.

CBD can be applied via topicals like lotions, oils, and creams. You can even get it as a bath salt to help soak away your lower back pain.

8. Dietary Supplements
Adding supplements to your new anti-inflammatory food diet can contribute to lower back pain relief.

Fish oil is one such supplement. This will provide you with high doses of omega-3s that will help reduce inflammation.

We already mentioned turmeric as a great anti-inflammatory food. Supplementing your diet with high levels of turmeric will help reduce inflammation and pain.

Some other helpful supplements include magnesium and potassium. These two nutrients are heavily involved in muscle contraction and movement; adding them as supplements will help your muscles function properly.

9. Stay Active
Back pain makes it easy for you to want to stay put to avoid moving your back. However, staying active is a crucial part of relieving back pain. Besides doing the core exercises we mentioned early, try staying active with light cardio like taking quick walks or doing soothing yoga.

10. Rest
Around 50-80% of back pain sufferers experience sleep problems and disturbances. Besides feeling tired, this can make your back pain even worse, creating a cycle of no-sleep and pain.

Try and get as much good sleep as you can. This will help you feel better and can provide lower back pain relief.

These Tips Will Give You Lower Back Pain Relief !
Consistent pain affects your daily life: it can make you unable to work, sleep, and do things you enjoy. Besides visiting the doctor or a chiropractor, these tips can hopefully provide you with some relief.

If you're experiencing constant or chronic pain, contact Smith Chiropractic. We can provide you with fast relief and help you get back on track to a normal, pain-free life.

Hope this helps!  Dr Smith - Chiropractor

Smith Chiropractic

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