80% of people feel this

I want to talk about something today that probably has affected you or someone you know!

It’s low back pain.

Did you know that as many as 80% of us deal with it at some point or another?

My low back pain started after I had all my babies!

I’ve got some tips for you to help prevent back pain from interfering with your life.

So, let’s talk about low back pain. Do you know someone who has experienced it?

There are two basic types of back pain:

The first is acute, which often is caused by an injury. It comes on fast and it usually heals on its own with some rest.
The second is chronic, which hangs around for a long time. 

It also can be caused by an injury but other factors include postural problems, muscle weakness, structural issues with your spine, illness, and sometimes the cause can seem like a mystery.

So … what can you do about low back pain? 

Prevention is everything! And a big part of that is making your core muscles as strong and resilient as you possibly can.

That way both your low back and core are better prepared to tackle all the tasks they are called to do every day to keep your body stable, strong, and balanced. 

Important note! If you’re currently experiencing back pain, I highly recommend getting it checked out by a chiropractor to see what’s going on, and to get their go-ahead before you make changes in your routine or start doing exercises for it. 

OK. So exactly how do you make your core stronger and more resilient?

By doing exercises that challenge your muscles just enough to build both muscular endurance and strength. 

To start with, I’m talking about exercises like planks and glute bridges. 

It can be tempting to “go for the burn” and really push yourself with these exercises, but this is one time you get a pass on all that!

In fact, you’ll get better results if you slow down, focus on form, and really listen to your body. It also might mean making modifications in the exercises until your body gets strong enough to handle more challenging versions.

For example, you might start out by doing planks from your knees instead of your toes, and maybe even doing a 15-second version, slowly increasing how long you hold the plank as you get stronger.

But also, here’s something you might not realize: 

Almost every exercise you do can become a core exercise if you make sure your abdominals are engaged. 

Things like squats, pushups, and lunges all work your core. You also can sneak in some core stability work by balancing on one foot while having your core muscles engaged.

Here’s a quick way to make sure your core muscles are engaged: think about “zipping up” the area just below your belly button before you do every exercise, like you are zipping up a pair of jeans. This is an analogy used a lot BUT my favourite thought on this think about flattening the area between your hip bones and bringing your hip bones closer together.

If you start paying attention to those core muscles, you’ll be amazed at what a difference it makes – and how quickly you’ll feel the payoff in improved core strength.

In the meantime, it is not fun dealing with back pain of any sorts so I want to share with you my “go-to’s” at home for providing relief and relaxation in those nasty areas.

My favourite tools to hand on hand are foam rollers, “tune-up” balls, a coregeous ball, and essential oils!

Foam rollers, tune-up balls, and coregeous balls all play a role in stretching, relaxing, releasing tight, tense, sore areas.

doTERRA essential oils are incredible at soothing, cooling, supporting a healthy inflammatory process, and providing relief. My favourites that I have on rotation include:

Deep blue rub or deep blue oil, copaiba, turmeric, deep blue polyphenol complex, and turmeric capsule just to name a few.

You can check out and grab some of these products HERE.

If you are looking to make some changes in your fitness/wellness,  I’m here for you!  Stay tuned later this month as I share some more on core and specific exercises - better yet - get on my email list for even more tips!