What Are The Top 4 Chiropractic Approved Activities For This Summer
It is nearly upon us, the Great British Summer. Having said that the last 3 summers since we have been very lucky here in the UK. Starting in 2020 the covid year, who remembers the 4 months of glorious weather when we were in lockdown? Made it a lot easier to be outside and enjoy the weather.
We get this question each year, what can I do and what can I not do this summer? It is great as we want all our clients to be as active as possible, without causing damage to their backs.
- Walking or light hiking: Walking is a low-impact activity that can improve your cardiovascular health and help relieve stress. Hiking is also an excellent option, but we advise hikers to watch their footing for stability and take breaks often to stretch tight muscles. These are my go to rules for commencing walking following a back injury:
a) Improve your posture: Stand tall with your shoulders back and relaxed, and your head level. Keep your spine in a neutral position and avoid slouching forward.
b) Wear comfortable shoes: Choose shoes that provide support and cushioning to your feet. Skechers or Hoka trainers are great for walking.
c) Take it slow: Start with short walks and gradually increase the distance and intensity of your walking. Don’t push yourself too hard, especially if you’re experiencing pain.
d) Stretch before and after walking: Stretching can help loosen up tight muscles and improve flexibility. Focus on stretching your lower back, hips, and thighs.
e) Use walking aids: Consider using a cane or walking poles to help distribute your weight more evenly and reduce the pressure on your back.
f) Avoid carrying heavy loads: Don’t carry heavy bags or backpacks while walking, as they can strain your back muscles. Give the backpack to your partner (as long as the don’t have back pain)
g) Wearing orthotics can help to give stability to the foot and thus the knee and hip will evenly distribute the weight through the body.
- Swimming: Swimming is an ideal summer activity as it offers a full-body workout, and water buoyancy minimises joint trauma while improving flexibility and range of motion. The best stroke is back stroke as it extends the shoulders and doesn’t cause flexion of the spine or doing a hybrid stroke, breaststroke arms with kicking legs. This means you don’t put pressure on the hips when doing breaststroke legs and you don’t need to turn your head to breathe which can cause rotation in the spine.
- Cycling: Whether cycling indoors or outdoors, this activity is an excellent way to stretch and strengthen muscles, especially the glutes and legs. However, it’s essential to remember good posture and correct bike fit for spinal alignment. You don’t want to completely hunch over the bike as this will put pressure on the back but keep upright and generate the flexion from the hips.
- Yoga: Yoga combines stretches, breathing, and relaxation techniques to improve mobility, balance, and mental well-being. Chiropractors recommend that yoga enthusiasts limit themselves to moderate poses that don’t require them to twist their spine excessively. How does It help:
a) Strengthening the core muscles: Yoga strengthens the muscles of the core, including the abdominals, lower back, and pelvic floor. This helps to support the spine and reduce strain on the back.
b) Improving flexibility: Yoga poses help to stretch and lengthen the muscles of the back, which can improve flexibility and reduce tension in the muscles.
c) Reducing stress: Stress can contribute to tension and tightness in the back muscles. Yoga practices such as meditation and deep breathing can help to reduce stress and promote relaxation.
d) Improving posture: Poor posture can contribute to back pain. Yoga can help to improve posture by strengthening the muscles that support the spine and promoting awareness of body alignment.
e) Increasing circulation: Yoga poses can promote blood flow to the back muscles, which can help to reduce inflammation and promote healing.
If you want anymore information about specific exercises or activities please let me know and I can offer advice on how to do them whilst limiting the impact they have on your body.
If you do know someone who wants to get more active this summer, please send them our details. You can send them this blog and they can request a free copy of our book which has posture related exercises in it as well. Click here for FREE book.
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