I’ve suffered back pain for the majority of my life, thanks to early back problems starting before I was twenty, to more back and neck pain thanks to two accidents where I got whiplash in my early twenties.  I’m sure that I’m predisposed to back pain anyway, and that is part of the reason that I’ve experienced so much back, shoulder and neck pain.

One factor remains constant though. I have always noticed  dramatic improvement in my back and neck pain when I am working out regularly.  Actually, studies have shown the low impact activity helps to decrease back pain.  This is because when you get up and move around, your muscles have less opportunity to get stiff and cramp up.

When I sit down all day long at my work desk, or if I’ve had a really lazy day at home, I notice that I’m totally stiff and have a hard time getting comfortable. Whereas, if I’ve worked out that day, everything feels looser, and more limber and flexible.

There is also the element of heat. When you exercise, your muscles actually get warm. This makes them more pliable, and certainly may also lend itself to muscle tension relief.  When the muscle fibers are warmer like this, they tend to help us feel more relaxed, and the muscles to let go of that stored up tension.

In addition to actually stimulating the muscles and helping to warm them and prevent stiffness, exercise also produces endorphins. Why would these “feel good” chemicals matter for pain?

Well, endorphins are actually sort of like the “antidote” to pain, so exercising will also help reduce the chemical reactions that cause pain, or offset them by producing their natural antidote, endorphins.

Plus, endorphins just make you feel good all the way around, so they help lift your mood and take your mind off of the pain that might have otherwise been bugging you.

Doing this can help you to avoid other common remedies for back pain and neck pain relief which unfortunately involve dangerous drugs and OTC pain killers.  Many OTC (Over the Counter) pain relief pills actually can harmful effects on the stomach, the lining of the digestive tract, and the liver over time.

Additionally, topical numbing creams absorb into the skin with their active ingredients, which aren’t the healthiest thing either. If you want something totally natural that can help ease the pain, try either using those microwaveable bags that help heat the pain away, or a sauna or hot tub to help penetrate the muscles with soothing heat to loosen the muscles.

My husband and I have owned our infrared (FIR) sauna now for about 4 years. We keep it in our basement. It has been the source of endless comfort for tired muscles, and for both of our backs and necks since we’ve both been in car accidents where we sustained injuries to these sensitive body parts.

For me it has been great in the winter time especially. I’m naturally quite the freeze baby and don’t have the greatest circulation to begin with. I can’t sit still for any period of time without getting cold hands and fingers.  So for me, our infrared sauna provides me with a much needed respite from the freezing cold, bone chilling winters we tend to have here in northeast Ohio.

A FIR sauna is an excellent gift for anyone who has frequent muscle and joint aches or back or neck pain a lot.  Both of these types of pain actually can ruin your day when they are pervasive, and are the source of much of the muscle pain that Americans suffer.

Since an infrared sauna penetrates the muscle and tissue more deeply than a regular “surface” heat sauna, it is great for people with circulation problems and muscle aches.  It is even recommended for those with arthritis and other joint problems as well.

For the sports enthusiast or active person, and infrared sauna appeals to the health benefits side of things too. Sweating for a length of time is thought to help promote a faster metabolism (while one is sweating). It is also thought to help remove toxins from the body since one of the major ways our body rids itself of toxins is through sweating.

Anyone who participates in vigorous sports or exercise activity can appreciate the deeply penetrating and soothing heat that a FIR sauna offers as well. It is a great way to end a workout or a long jaunt into  the world of sports.  It actually helps to de-stress and soothe the nerves, as well as to loosen up the tight muscles and headache tension that tends to come from stress and anxiety at work or in life.

You can actually get an infrared sauna for a very reasonable price these days. They can be shipped to your home and are relatively easy to assemble and get working. They’re also very attractive, so it’s not a major eyesore like some other recreational amenities. Oh, it’s also great for your complexion!

I recently did something to my poor hammies (affectionate term for hamstrings, although it’s kind of cringe worthy I admit).  I ran for a long time the other day at the track, and I’m thinking that the distances and the fact that I’m not used to running for so long may have been the culprit.

At any rate, I can only really feel the super tightness when I bend over or utilize my hamstrings in small ways, so it’s not a contstant pain or discomfort. You will find this a lot with hamstring pulls. You don’t actually feel the discomfort until you go to utilize this particular part of the leg agin.

What I tend to do when this happens is a lot of yoga inspired moves, and also a lot of pre-running stretches that I’ve done for my hamstrings in the past. I am very careful not to over extend this delicate muscle when it is too tight, so I really ease into these stretches and don’t force them at all.

The first one is the dive. This is a yoga inspired stretch. I take my hands at my sides, and come up to a point, like a diver, at the top of my head. I then bend over at my waist, taking my hands back down again to the sides, exhaling.  I make sure to keep my legs completely straight, and this means that I feel a fantastic sort of stretch in the back of my legs (hammies).

It’s a great, releasing sort of stretch, and I also use this stretch to calm my mind and loosen up my body if I’m stressed out or I’m having trouble breathing correctly or am nervous about some event. It brings with it a sense of calm, and the correct breathing also brings more oxygen to the backs of the legs, which helps your muscles to relax.

Your hamstrings can be very delicate, so it is important to never force a stretch here.  I also do some of my pre-running stretches to try to get them loosened up. I take my leg and put it up to about trunk level, and gently lean forward to my ankle, breathing out as I stretch the muscle.

This one is easy to over do, so just make sure you exhale as you exert the stretch, and take it easy when you lean forward (don’t go too far) or you may be in too much pain or make the strain worse.

Many of us suffer from back pain. Whether it is from an injury we had, or from simple stress and genetics, back pain can be an all encompassing pain that really is life interrupting if you don’t know how to manage it.

Many people think, intuitively, that when you are in pain, you should stay still and this will help. That is exactly opposite of what is true. Staying still, and leading a sedentary lifestyle where you get little movement and sit in a chair a lot is the WORST thing you can do for  back pain.

Moving around helps to loosen up the muscles, get the blood flowing, and perhaps most importantly gets enorphins and pleasure chemicals released in the brian, which helps to offset any of the pain you might be feeling in your back. The same goes for neck pain, and often times back, neck and shoulder pain go hand in hand.

Think of moving as lubing up the body. It helps to loosen the joints, and also helps to keep you mobile and agile as you age and  your joints, bones and muscles inevitably become less elastic and more prone to injury.

Exercises like yoga, swimming and water aerobics are excellent for those that exeperience back pain. The elliptical machine is a great way to get your cardio in if you have a sensitive back or joints in your leg that act up, since it has almost zero impact on the muscles and the joints.

Walking is an excellent workout for those with back pain. In fact, just walking and standing in the upright position helps us to stay mobile and flexible, whereas sitting and laying down really allow the muscles to atrophy and to become inflexible.

It’s all about maintaining movement and flexibility in the body.  If you have a desk job, make sure you get up and walk around once every hour. If you can’t actually get up and walk around, make sure you at least stand up from your chair and move around your cube or office, or stretch your back.

If you are going to do yoga for your back pain, be mindful that some poses are not back friendly if you are not flexible enough yet, and must be eased into instead of forcing your body into them. This can actually create more pain or result in injury, so take it slow.

Many exercises for flabby arms also help to ease back pain, such as supermans and kickbacks, all of which help to strengthen the lower back and help prevent back pain and weakness.