by Dr. Stan Marcus, SpineCare Chiropractic –
Well, it’s that time of year again.
The weather is approaching spring-like and we are almost desperate to get to our spring chores. OK, so perhaps “desperate” is a slight exaggeration: maybe “dreading” would be more appropriate.
In either case, it’s that time of year when the yard and garden need attention, as do the the inside of our closets, basement and all the other household responsibilities we tried to ignore during the winter months.
This is why spring is such a busy time in my chiropractic office: everyone wants to tackle those seasonal challenges, but most people aren’t physically prepared. In other words, you are about to put your back muscles through some intense workouts. So ask yourself: “Is my back ready for all this?”
In order to prepare for any type of workout, whether it be at the gym, on the bike or heavy lifting around the house, muscles MUST be warmed up. If you know that you are going to be busy in the garden for several hours, or spending the day cleaning the house, I always strongly recommend my clients take a few minutes and do a few simple stretches to get the blood flowing through the muscles. Lower back muscles are particularly important to focus on, as they’re the muscles that will absorb most of the brunt of the stresses from all the bending and lifting that is involved with gardening, cleaning, etc.
Simple movements such as a few minutes of walking, touching your toes and slow upper body twists are effective. One super important stretch involves lying on your back on the bed, couch or floor, pulling one knee up to your shoulder and holding it for 15 seconds to stretch the lower back muscles. Then pull the same knee to the opposite shoulder to stretch the gluteal – or bum – muscles. This is tougher and will likely make you groan a bit, but it’s amazingly effective for stretching out those important, strong muscles. Then do the same with the other leg. These few stretches should only take five minutes and will help prepare muscles for the task that they will be performing.
Once you have finished your activities, it’s even more important to cool down these same hard-working muscles. So, do the same stretches again when you are done; this will help get rid of the lactic acid that builds up in muscles after they have been used. It’s a normal by-product of muscle activity, but you don’t want it to sit in the muscles or it will result in stiffness several hours later. That’s why so many people complain of stiff, sore muscles following prolonged activity. It’s also a major cause of back aches after gardening and spring cleaning … and what keeps me and my fellow Chiropractors so busy at this time of year!
Another way to help avoid those nasty back pains is to see a Chiropractor for a spine checkup, before you start at those spring chores. Chiropractors are experts at checking all the bones and muscles in your spine and correcting any misalignments that might lead to potential problems. Don’t wait until you have problems!
OK, that’s my lecture for now. Remember: you only have one, irreplaceable spine, so take care of it as well as you can. And if you have never had your spine checked, then call a Chiropractor!
For more information, call 778-351-1215 or visit www.spinecarechiro.ca.
