Try this Seated Chair Stretch for back tension
Posted: Tuesday, January 19, 2010
by Phillip Meilbeck
http://www.mensbackhealth.com
Most people carry about tension in the lower back, both men and women. This may feel like a noticeable pain on a regular basis as you go about your day, or may be unnoticeable. Iit can be a hidden potential for a flare up of back pain, or a subtle injury waiting to happen when you move the wrong way. Here is a gentle, basic and telling method for finding out if your lower back has pent up tension in it, and is also a way to stretch and eliminate that tension and potential pain. This is an exercise for both women's and men's back health.
I have found that this mild exercise is best done first thing in the morning. Now that may not sound like the most appealing or first thing you do in the morning (OK, grab your cup of coffee first, and do this mild back exercise while you enjoy your morning coffee!).
1. Grab a chair with a hard, flat seat chair, like a wooden dining or kitchen chair.
2. Place you feet flat on the floor, with your ankles and calves aligned perfectly straight up and down, not tucked underneath you or extended in front of you.
3. Sit up straight, and extend your spine perfectly straight.
4. Slowly loosen your neck muscles, lower your forehead and allow your chin to drop toward your chest.
5. You may start to feel a tight pulling sensation in your lower back, below your waistband. That's OK; we want to find out how tight your back is in that location.
6. You can place your hands with finger interlaced around the back of your skull, not your neck, and apply some added tension with the weight of your arms to go deeper into the position.
7. Keep your back straight, and keep applying more pressure with your hands and arms. Breathe into any discomfort, and hold for 3-5 breaths.
8. You can slowly let up on the pressure, and slowly bring your head back up to normal forward looking position.
9. Repeat this 4 to 5 times slowly, depending on the amount of pain or tension you feel.
10. You should notice a great feeling of relief in your lower back, even if there was tension when you first began.
For some people, this will really not indicate much tension, which is a god thing. For those people just remember this, and try it once a week or so when your days vary in amount of physical workload, if you are ill or healthy, the amount of exercise or sitting you have been doing recently, and even weather.
For other people, you will immediately notice tension and mild pain, and for some a very acute pain. That is OK also, this is intended to be a therapeutic stretch to relieve that pain by stretching and training the muscles and tendons back there. Your body has more power to heal itself that you may give it credit for, but sometimes that takes effort, and pushing a bit beyond what is comfortable.
I simply caution you to go slowly, and try performing this exercise 3 to 4 times per week in the morning, going just a bit deeper into the stretch. If you have something serious going on with you back such as recent surgery, it may be best to discuss or try this with your doctor or caregiver.
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