When working with clients that have chronic low back pain, I find that teaching them to take care of themselves outside of the gym is just as important as the training and soft-tissue regimen. If a client comes into my clinic and performs one hour of great work but goes and landscapes their backyard the following day with bad lifting technique and goes overboard, our success will be shortchanged. The following five tips will assist in decreasing the amount of stress on your back, whether you are in pain or not.

1. Always try to use your legs when lifting. I know this one sounds redundant, but I still catch many of my clients doing just that. Flexing your back while trying to lift a heavy load will increase disk pressure dramatically and also stress important spinal stabilizer muscles. Maintain an upright position and squat down to pick up the load. If your legs are too weak to lift in this fashion, either get started on a strengthening program or get someone else to do it!

2. When lifting objects try to keep them as close to your body as possible. I can,t tell you how many people come to see me because they blew their back out trying to reach for a heavy load that was far away from them. The closer the weight is to the body, the less weight is imposed on the spine. This, by the way, also includes that extra belly weight!

3. Avoid rounding or flexing your spine for prolonged periods of time. Activities such as brushing your teeth or washing dishes can quickly create fatigue in the spinal stabilizers in the individual with back pain. The best choice to make in this type of situation is to squat down with your feet wide apart and keep your back straight. This will move you closer to the activity and make your legs do the work!

4. Distribute loads equally between each side of the body when possible. This rule can be applied to individuals that carry a briefcase or mothers that carry their children. Holding a weight on one side of the body increases the stress on the spine and its associated muscles. This can quickly lead to overload and also muscle imbalances. Many mothers frequently have an elevated hip on the side that they carry their child on. When carrying something heavy, if possible try to carry something equally heavy in the other arm or carry it in the center of your body.

5. Stretch and move your back after prolonged sitting or inactivity. Moving around every few minutes will serve to "pump nutrients and blood flow to stagnate areas. Sitting on a swiss ball, for example will keep your body's stabilizer muscles activated and will decrease compressive loading on your spine.

By taking the steps outlined above you can effectively decrease the amount of stress that your back endures throughout the day. I am known for telling my clients that you only have one spine and body, so take care of it!

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Sam Visnic is a licensed Neuromuscular Therapist and Corrective Holistic Exercise Kinesiologist in Redondo Beach, CA. His specialized approach has led to success with hundreds of back pain sufferers that have failed to get results with traditional medicine. For free online reports, articles, and weekly news, visit his site: www.EndMyBackPain.com