by chibo

Created on: February 19, 2007   Last Updated: May 14, 2007

The best way to help ease back pain is to altogether alter the foundation of your movement. Many of us support our posture with our backs almost exclusively, which is why it is so often in pain. Tuck your pelvis a little when you stand and use your core to hold yourself up. Your back should be able to relax significantly if you do this correctly.

Otherwise, there are a number of excercises to help relieve pain and tension. Try standing with your feet parallel and slightly less than shoulder-width apart, and your knees bent gently. Bring your arms out in front of your chest a minimum of six-inches and let the arms cross. Gently, at first, press one hand towards the ground with the fingers pointed towards your center. Simultaneously, let the other hand push upwards, also with the fingers pointing in to your center-line. Make sure to keep both hands in front of the body slightly. If you can, gently raise up on the toes and press the arms a little further. Keep a gentle bend in both elbows and make sure the shoulders are relaxed.

Another excercise which might help is this: stand with your feet slightly apart, then raise your hands above the head and around to the back, placing the palms on your kidneys. Lean back gently with an exhale. Come back to standing position and bring the arms up and around the front in a nice flowing manner with a deep inhale (try to bring this breath deep down into your body, not just in your lungs). Then, with another exhale, bend the knees slightly (or as much as you find neccessary for comfort) and bend forward at the waist reaching for your toes. If you can, grab underneath the big toes and look up slightly. With an inhale, straighten up and bring the hands back around to the back, repeating the first step. Do this cycle several times.

There are many more helpful excercies like these in qigong and yoga practice. If back pain is persistent or chronic, TaiChiChuan or yoga could prove to be extremely beneficial.

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