02/22/2013
"Ow! My aching back." How often have you heard that from a friend or colleague, or you've said it yourself? It's been a long day. You run to the store and heft that big bag of dog food into your cart and boom, you've tweeked your back. It's stiff or it hurts or both. Happens to all of us. When it's severe and it's restricting your daily movements, you can't bend over or you can't reach out, it's best to see a holistic chiropractor (not a back or neck cracker) to be treated. But if you want to relieve the tension, tightness and decompress the low back and sacrum, here's a great thing you can do at home. If you have any fused vertebrae, bulging disk issues or any other serious medical issues with your lower back and spine, check with your physical therapist or other medical professional before doing this.
Here are some ideas - the best option is where you use a squishy 'Core Ball' made of soft expandable plastic. They are sold at Sports Authority. I've ordered them on Amazon and they're called Core or Slo-Mo Balls that I use regularly with my clients to challenge their abdominals. In this instance, we're going to use the ball to decompress the low back and sacrum.
1. If you don't have a ball, lie down with your bum close to where a wall and the floor meet and extend your legs up on the wall. Relax your arms out to the sides in a T and let your legs relax out to a V. You can stay there for 5-8 mins. and breathe
2. Lie down on the floor and place the Core Ball underneath your sacrum and bend your knees in toward your chest, then extend your legs straight up and say Aah.... You'll feel everything open up in your sacrum and decompress in the low back. Relax your arms by your sides and make sure you are not putting any pressure on your neck as you are lying flat with your pelvis elevated by the ball. You can certainly keep your knees bent if that feels better. Just listen to your body. Stay here for 5 - 8 mins. and breathe.