Yes, your spine is amazing, okay. Designed to allow optimal mobility while still protecting your central nervous system, your incredible spine is nothing short of a biological masterpiece. But it can only survive with your help.
Back pain will affect around 80% of us at some point in our lives; and low back pain accounts for more hours lost than any other type of occupational injury. So the human spine tends to have a lot of stiffness! But many times, it is our habits that are to blame for our back problems; and more specifically, how we tend to neglect the needs of our spine.
The problem is, we don’t always use our spine the way nature intended. Poor posture, prolonged sitting, and inactivity are behaviors our spine absolutely hates! And these bad habits are thrown at us in the form of back pain.
Your spine is made up of 33 bones stacked on top of each other. The 4 bones of the coccyx are fused, as are the 4 bones of the sacrum. Among all the other bones there are two small joints called facet joints. These joints facilitate movement in each spinal segment.
We are born with fully functional and healthy spines, but as life progresses, our movement tends to slow down. Of course, this has traditionally occurred with age, but these days even some younger generations are guilty of leading somewhat sedentary lives. In fact, modern life can lead to all kinds of muscle imbalances around the spine, including tension and weakness. Experts say that “sitting is the new habit of smoking”; And they are not exaggerating! When you sit up, the intervertebral discs absorb fluid and become tighter, allowing less range of motion and promoting injury. Your body was simply not designed to sit for long periods of time, so you will inevitably suffer as a result of doing so. Prolonged postures often lead to weakening and lengthening or hardening and shortening of the muscles. The end result is often less movement and pain.
The facts are simple; The more you move your spine on purpose, the better range of motion you will have and the less chance you will have of developing back pain. Ensuring that your spine gets the movement it needs will allow it to get the nutrients it needs to stay healthy.
Movement is one of the best recipes for back pain. Stay active and healthy!