.

In my ‘One Thing’ series, experts in back pain from various fields share their one best piece of advice for preventing or eliminating back and neck pain. Today, physical therapist Meghan B. Tierney, PT, MPT, OCS shares her one thing. Meghan is the founder and proprietor of  One Physical Therapy and Wellness in Bryn Mawr PA.

Back Together DVD program now available from Amazon. Click here to order!

Thanks for visiting,

-Andy

Enjoy!

yoga

(In the first take of this video, the woman behind me was waving into the camera. I asked her to please stop- but by golly she made sure her arm was featured in the video anyway. Congratulations lady- you now have a famous arm!)

Here are your tips to avoid yoga related back and neck injuries:

-As always, hydrate before, during, and after yoga. Even slight dehydration will increase the likelihood of straining or even tearing a muscle, and the enhanced fatigue that comes with dehydration will increase your chances of using poor body mechanics.

-Before a class, take a brisk 10-15 minute walk. This will warm up your muscle groups and prepare them for the challenge ahead. This helps even when getting read for a ‘hot yoga’ class.

-If you are new to yoga, work up to doing multiple classes per week. Your enthusiasm may push you to try and do 5 classes per week, but slow down. An NFL team I worked with brought in a well known yoga instructor to help with flexibility, and I cannot tell you how many low back sprains, neck strains, and groin pulls I wound up treating as a result of pushing too much, too fast.

-Listen to your body. If a new posture is painful- back off that posture. If you feel your discomfort is simply due to it being ‘new’, build up to it slowly. If pain continues, be sure you are approaching the posture with correct body mechanics (your instructor should be able to guide you.) If the pain persists, it may signal that something is wrong- see your doctor.

Thanks for stopping by!

-Andy

I love getting questions and comments from viewers like you, as this helps me to direct the blog in ways that will be the most useful. If you have or have had back or neck pain, share your experiences with me. What worked for you? What didn’t? Are you considering some sort of treatment or alternative approach to your pain? Share it here with me, and with other readers who may benefit from your experience, or offer you thoughts on their own experiences.

There are many ways for you to access the information here on Back Together:

-Visit my main website, www.backtogether.org- here you will find videos of TV appearances, links to articles about Back Together from various publications, and links to places to purchase Back Together books & DVD programs.

-Please become a fan on Facebook. On the Back Together fan page, you will find links to articles posted here on BackWords, as well as my posts on Martha Stewart’s Whole Living Daily and Lance Armstrong’s Livestrong blogs. Also, you will get additional tips and announcements.

-If you are on a device which does not support Flash, you can go directly to the BackTogetherTV page on YouTube to watch the most recent video blog posts, as well as archives of previous posts.

-Lastly, get your Back Together Tip ‘o the Day (B.T.T.o.D.) via twitter by following BackTips.

Thank you so much or visiting, and for your questions and comments. It is your contributions which help to make the site interesting.

Be Well!

-Andy

-If you need to wear heels for work, or an occasion- try to keep them no higher than 1 to 1.5 inches in height. Higher than this, and you will alter your pelvic tilt, and compromise your body mechanics.

-If you must wear heels higher than that, try to stick with ones that have a wider, more supportive heel (mules for example.) These will provide lateral support and put you at less risk than stiletto types.

-There are no dress shoes (for women or men) that are particularly supportive, so really try to wear them only when you need to. Good shock absorption and arch support can to a lot to protect your back from harm. I love when I see folks walking to work in a suit wearing sneakers, and changing into their shoes when they get where they are going.

As a guy who wears cowboy boots most of the time, I take my footwear seriously!

Just a few thoughts. Be Well!

-Andy

Honestly- these shoes are HEINOUS!

-Invite your mom to pick a day, and help her organize her closet- putting the most frequently used items at non-bending, non-reaching height. Get her a back-of-the-door shoe bag (Target $9) to get her shoes off the floor so she won’t have to bend all the way to the floor first thing in the AM to get at them.

-If it is geographically possible, pick one day a week when you can take a good long walk with your Mom. As always, if you rest- you rust, so getting out there will help burn a few calories, mobilize your spine and other joints, and give you an opportunity to reconnect.

-If your Mom is like mine, her refrigerator is full of all kinds of stuff she doesn’t even remember is there- forcing her to stand hunched by the fridge door hunting for what she actually needs. Grab a bag and ditch everything in there that’s not been used in more than a while, anything you cannot identify, and anything you don’t anticipate using (The folks at IKEA had you pretty well convinced that lingonberry jam would become a part of your daily breakfast!) When the stuff you don’t want is gone, give some thought to organizing what you do want in ways that make sense, and minimize the deep bending.

-One of my favorite tips- one which I cannot stress enough: If your Mom carries a briefcase,  handbag or purse, encourage her to take a moment and purge the contents of anything that she doesn’t absolutely need. My briefcase routinely accumulates so much extra junk- and that junk weighs a LOT. DECLUTTER!

-If the weather is good this Sunday, take a few minutes, and wash your Mom’s car. Honestly, when is the last time she did it?

My best wishes to all of the Moms out there- I hope you all have a fantastic Mother’s Day.

-Andy

To my beautiful wife, Donna- Happy Mother's Day!

Today, Matt Dubrow, D.O. presents his ‘One Thing.’ His recommendation, to stretch first thing in the morning, is a great one. You are far more likely to injure your back in the morning before you have adequately warmed up, than at any other time during the day. You would be surprised how many people throw their backs out while sitting on the edge of their bed putting on a pair of socks! Thank you again Matt!

I have asked stretching expert Jorden Gold to provide a follow up to this post, and give us his 3 best first-thing-in-the-morning stretches. Look for that post early next week.

Thanks for visiting,

Andy

Sciatica is a blanket term for pain associated with the sciatic nerve- the nerve which exits your spine between L5 and S1, and innervates part of your leg. Irritation of the sciatic nerve can cause pain which radiates down the back of the leg. If pain radiates down the front or side of the leg, you are talking about a different nerve.

Now, there are a few things which can irritate this nerve, most predominantly a bulging or herniated disc, or compression of the  nerve by the piriformis muscle. It is this piriformis spasm or piriformis syndrome which is the focus of this stretch. Lets talk about the anatomy for a moment.

The sciatic nerve goes down the back of your leg, through your buttocks, where it passes beneath the short, thick piriformis muscle. The space through which this nerve traverses is kind of small, so when the piriformis is in spasm, or contracts- it reduces the size of the space through which the nerve travels- and compresses or irritates it, causing sciatic pain.

For this stretch, find a comfortable chair without too much padding, and which allows you to sit evenly with good lower back support. Take the painful leg, and cross it over the other, with the ankle resting on the knee of the non-painful leg.

Slowly lean forward with your upper body, resting your arms on your legs, until you feel the beginning of the stretch and then go just a little further. Hold this position for a few seconds, then return to a neutral position.

Repeat this a few times each session for 2-3 sessions a day. Give it a shot- you may surprise yourself how much this simple stretch can help. This stretch should not exacerbate your discomfort. If it does, it is possible that your pain is coming from a different source. If your pain lasts more than a couple of days, and you haven’t had it accurately diagnosed- you should definitely see your physician.

Be well, and have a fantastic weekend!

-Andy

I am on a serious Alphonse Mucha kick- I think I may start Summer painting early this year.