Useful Reading
Spine School or Spine Clinic?
At the beginning of a new year, it’s common to set goals and make resolutions. We usually want to be more diligent, better, healthier, and more successful. But why do some people succeed while others don’t? I’m more than convinced that it comes down to learning. No matter how old you are – if you don’t constantly learn something new, the outcome won’t change. And the best part: you can learn absolutely anything! And when you apply what you’ve learned, your quality of life improves more and more. In every sense
People often ask me why I created Spine School and not Spine Clinic.
But precisely for this reason, learning is much more effective for back pain than visiting a clinic. True – ideally, they should go hand in hand. While there are quite a lot of clinics, there are almost no schools. But now there is!
Modern chronic pain management increasingly emphasizes that the most important skill is the patient’s ability to self-manage pain. Yes, how we perceive, approach, and manage our pain can be learned. Although this may seem difficult at first, everything in life is much simpler than we imagine.
Spine School offers all of this, so you can live pain-free!
Exercises and Movement for Reducing Back Pain
Humans are designed to move. When we hold static positions, we put strain on our bodies and create tensions that can turn into problems over time. Have you ever noticed how after a long car or bus ride, your joints feel stiff when you stand up, and you want to stretch? This is a sign that to keep your body functioning properly, you need to stay active.
Joints enable us to move, and humans have over 300 of them! To maintain overall body health, we must care for all of our joints and keep them moving. However, it often happens that some joints work too much while others not at all, leading to overuse, fatigue, and pain. Sometimes this is due to the nature of our work (jobs that require specific postures), but more often, it’s simply due to convenience!
Observe your body position when sitting at the dining table, behind the computer, on the couch, or in the car. Does your daily job involve sitting or moving? Do you take enough time to move all your joints periodically?
There are countless movement break ideas available online. My favorites (in estonian) are the clever short breaks created by the Labor Inspectorate for people with sedentary and standing jobs.
When dealing with back pain, you can’t avoid exercises and muscle training. It’s certainly not the only key to a pain-free life, but it does play an important role in recovery. There are quite a few back-friendly exercise methods. Everyone should find the one that suits them or try them all in turn to prevent routine from taking over. In today’s open world, you can find exercise instructions online, in libraries, or at gyms. Choose something that resonates with you and just start! Even one exercise every morning is a good start. It only takes a few minutes, but in the long run, it’s more valuable than you might think
For beginners, specialized back muscle exercises (in estonian) can be found in ProFysio’s repertoireThe University of Tartu Hospital has created an 8-minute exercise plan for office workers.
You can definitely find a lot of different exercise plans on the Internet (for example, YouTube). Just pick one up and get started! HERE!.
If you're unsure about choosing the right exercise plan, doing the exercises correctly, or whether they are safe and beneficial for you, I recommend seeing a physiotherapist. They can provide you with a personalized plan and teach you the correct technique. Your family doctor can refer you to a physiotherapist.
Sedentary Work and Back Pain
Machines are doing more and more of our work. This makes our lives easier, but it also means we’re sitting more. We can now pay taxes, work, watch movies, and order food without leaving our desks. The reasons to get up and move are becoming fewer.
While in our free time we can choose whether to sit, lie down, stand, or walk, at work, we often don’t have that choice. But we can use tricks to increase our movement. The Health Insurance Fund’s back pain patient guide provides a great list of small tips for people with sedentary jobs to follow for their health. Here they are:
- Use the stairs instead of the elevator
- Walk or bike to work if possible
- Stand during shorter meetings (standing reduces pressure on spinal discs by 30%)
- Try walking meetings – great for creativity
- Instead of calling a colleague in the same building, walk over to them
- Use an adjustable desk and work standing up for 30 minutes at a time
- Try sitting on a stability ball while working
- Sit with a straight back (your desk, screen, and chair should support this) with both feet flat on the floor
- Go for a walk during lunch breaks
- Maintain the correct sitting posture
- Use a computer or phone app to remind you to take breaks
- Every 30-40 minutes do exercises or move, circle, stretch or stretch for 5 minutes
Start by choosing one of the above suggestions and incorporate it into your daily routine. Is it hard to choose? What seems easiest to implement?
Physical Work and Back Pain
After a full day of physical work, it’s often hard to find the motivation to go to the gym instead of sitting on the couch. Physical work might seem like a justification for rest that doesn't involve using any muscles. However, physical work often involves holding static positions, overloading one side of the body or certain areas, requiring repetitive movements and non-physiological postures. People who do physical work need to be in good physical condition to maintain their health, but this is usually not achieved through work alone. Often, it’s the opposite. To endure physical work, you need to regularly engage in both aerobic and strength training, as well as stretching.
In addition to regular exercise, it’s important to focus on workplace ergonomics. Ergonomics is the science that studies people in work processes and aims to find solutions that protect the person. There can be dozens of ergonomic factors in one person’s work process: desk height, foot position, workbench distance, chair type/height/position, viewing distance, lighting, tool selection, and more.
Employers are responsible for ensuring ergonomic working conditions. While this might be hard to believe, favorable working conditions benefit employers as well—employees stay healthy and can work more efficiently.
- If you feel your work environment is not ergonomic, be sure to inform your employer
- Take short breaks during the workday to give your muscles and joints rest
- Find a physical activity you enjoy that fits your routine, even after a long workday
- Injuries caused by physical overuse can be prevented, but are very difficult to treat
- If you already have an overuse injury, address it immediately, as continued strain can lead to a permanent issue
There is always something to learn.
Spine School's mission is to share knowledge and advice on overcoming chronic back pain. Back pain often seems like a mysterious problem for people, one that no one seems to have a solution for. While we search for solutions outside, many of them are actually within us.
No matter what the problem is (such as frequent or chronic back pain), you must first look in the mirror, recognize your role in it, and take responsibility. Once this step is taken, everything that follows becomes easier.
I have always told people who come to Spine School that starting to address the issue of pain is the most important step. Once you've taken that step, a whole world of options and possibilities opens up, ones you never knew existed before.
The world is full of endless knowledge and opportunities, you just need to be ready to notice and see them!
You can find the solutions offered by Spine School HERE!
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Don't face your pain alone!
Seljakool OÜ
Registration code 16608376
E-Mail: seljakool@seljakool.ee
