How Motion Can Actually Lead To Back Pain

Category: Back Pain | Author: Stefano Sinicropi

Sports Spinal Injury Myths

Your body was designed to move, but that doesn’t mean it’s immune to injury when it’s in motion. The same can be said for your spine. Movement and motion help your spine develop key muscles and maintain valuable range of motion, but movement can also be hard on your spine. This doesn’t mean you should stop moving, but it does mean that you need to be cognizant of how you move. Below, we take a look at some ways that movement can actually contribute to spine pain, and how you can work to prevent it.

How Movement Can Lead To Spine Pain

Normal movement is typically great for your spine, but other types of movement can increase your risk of a spinal issue. Here are some ways that motion can serve to injure your back.

  • Twisting Motions – If you’re twisting from side to side, you’re putting a lot of stress on your spine. More specifically, the muscles and soft tissues that help to support and stabilize the spine. It’s not uncommon for muscles to strain and ligaments to tear due to forceful twisting of your back. Be mindful of your spine when you’re twisting or moving heavy objects so that you don’t twist your spine beyond a healthy range of motion.
  • Excessive Motion – Any type of motion that is excessive can lead to spinal injuries. Excessive twisting, bending, stretching on the spine can all overload muscles, ligaments and bones and lead to injury. Excessive motion can lead to strains and sprains, but it can also increase your risk of other spinal issues like herniated discs or bone spur formation.
  • Repetitive Motion – Another common way that motion can lead to spinal issues is through repetitive motion. Doing the same actions again and again stress the same areas of your body, which can lead to wear and tear on specific joints or vertebral discs. It’s often why manual laborers like machinists and assembly line workers are at risk for back or hand injuries, because they may be performing the same task for hours a day, a number of days each week. If you’re going to be performing repetitive motions, strive to have good posture throughout the process and strengthen your spine with exercise so that it is better able to handle stress that you throw at it.
  • Forceful Motion – A final type of motion that can cause problems for your neck and spine is forceful motion. Most people don’t put forceful motion on their spine on their own, rather, forceful motion is thrust upon their spine. If you’re in a rear-end car crash or tackled during a football game, significant force can be applied to your spine. This can result in whiplash injuries to your cervical spine or traumatic injuries to other areas of your back. Wearing protective gear can help to lessen the blow of forceful trauma to your back.

Normal spinal motion is great, and something that should be pursued each day, but excessive, repetitive and forceful movements can leave their mark on your spine. If you’ve been affected by any of these motions, or you’re dealing with a different spine issue altogether, reach out to Dr. Sinicropi and the team at the Midwest Spine & Brain Institute today.

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