Lifestyle Management for Lower Back Pain
It can be managed through lifestyle changes. Improve posture, stretch, engage in activities, walk properly, focus on breathing, and use hot/cold therapy for pain relief. Consult professionals for personalized guidance.
Achieve a healthy weight
Being overweight or obese makes it more likely you’ll suffer from low-back pain. Excess weight, especially in your midsection, shifts your center of gravity forward so you end up straining your back muscles.
Exercise regularly
A sedentary lifestyle results in weak muscles in your core, poor posture, and increased low back pain. Being active helps you achieve and maintain a healthy weight, but also brings muscles into balance to support your spine and promote good back health.
Stop smoking
Your tobacco habit contributes to degeneration of the disks that cushion the vertebrae in the spine. Nicotine interferes with blood flow and reduces calcium absorption so your body isn’t as good at growing new bone tissue. Heavy smokers who cough a lot or develop emphysema can also experience low back pain.
Perform daily chores correctly
Acute low back pain can develop from simple activities, such as twisting to close a car door or moving the couch to vacuum. Be smart when you lift heavy items. If you have to pick up a big box, bend your knees and use your legs to pick the weight up. Keep the item close to your body with your back straight. If you’re faced with an unusual chore, such as shoveling snow, go slowly. Twisting and lifting a heavy item — such as a big pile of the white stuff — can cause an acute muscle strain and serious back pain.
