Stretch to Strengthen Your Back and Eliminate Back Pain

Have you ever noticed a house cat, dog or one of the great cats at a zoo stretch? They wake up from a nap and stretch every muscle, tendon, ligament and joint in their bodies. The results of all this stretching is a strong and supple body. Here are some things we can learn from these animals and apply to our own lives.

I am always fascinated by my little house cat. He will stretch and stretch his little body after awakening from a snooze and after his exercises is ready to play, jump, run and pounce with amazing quickness. I'm not sure whether these animals suffer from back pain, but I have not seen a cat or dog with a back brace. I believe we can learn a lot from these animals and have found in my own situation that proper stretching can relieve my back pain and strengthen my back muscles so that I stay pain free.

So what happens when an animal or human stretches and what can we learn from our furry friends that will help us to be fit and pain free? Stretching does have three major benefits.

1. Stretching increases circulation: The movements involved in a good stretch squeeze our blood vessels pumping blood to the parts of the body being stretched. This is important for anyone suffering from back pain. Increase blood flow helps to relieve inflammation and pain.


2. Stretching is a great way to relieve muscle tension and muscle tension and tightness cause back pain.


3. Stretching makes you more flexible, stronger and limber, increasing your range of movement.

There are many more benefits to stretching, but the above are especially important to anyone suffering back pain.

We all naturally know how to stretch and like a cat do it all through the day most of the time without thinking. The key to eliminating back pain and aches is to do specific stretches design to address the causes of our back pain and strengthen the muscles supporting our back.

This is where we need help. I recently read an article which claimed that most of us do not perform stretches properly or the stretches we do are not the right ones. Because they are so many different causes of back pain it is important to perform the right movements to address your specific situation.

One way I have found to be most beneficial is first to analyze your posture and look for muscle imbalances. Muscle imbalances put undue pressure on you back and many times is the root cause of your backache. Once your body has been analyzed then the proper exercises can be designed for you and proper instructions can be given.

My daily routine always involves proper stretches design for my specific body imbalance and back problem. Even though I have eliminated my back pain and enjoy a very active life which includes rigorous body weight exercises, I make sure to include my stretching routine as part of my workout.

Like my cat daily stretching has resulted in a strong and pain free back. The routine I do has given me the added benefit of strengthen my entire body, making me limber, flexible and strong without most of the aches and pains many people my age suffer. I encourage anyone experiencing back pain to try stretching and like the great cats of Africa you too can be limber and strong. Just make sure you identify the correct stretching movements for your back condition.