The very things that make you feel like a woman spell trouble for your back, such as hormones, pregnancy, raising children and sky-high heels.<\/p>\n
Plus, \u201cwomen bend more than men,\u201d says Esther Gokhale, author of 8 Steps to a Pain-Free Back (Pendo Press). \u201cWe\u2019re putting the baby in the crib, leaning over the bathroom sink to apply makeup and bending forward to pick up kids.\u201d<\/p>\n
What\u2019s the harm? \u201cBending incorrectly [from the waist instead of hips] is the No. 1 activity that causes back problems,\u201d Gokhale says.<\/p>\n
Doing all these dips while wearing stilettos and carrying a fully loaded purse doesn\u2019t help either.<\/p>\n
The back just isn\u2019t built to cope with women\u2019s lifestyles. Putting too much strain on vertebrae can squeeze the shock-absorbing discs between them, causing them to bulge (herniate), pinching the nerves that run through the spine and leaving you bent over with pain.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s a woman to do? Find out what\u2019s making your back ache \u2013 and how to keep pain away:<\/p>\n
1. A weak core.
\u201cPeople do a bunch of abdominal exercises, but they aren\u2019t really accomplishing anything,\u201d says physical therapist Suzanne Martin, DPT, author of 15-Minute Better Back Workout (DK Adult).<\/p>\n
The strength of your core (the section of your body from groin to shoulders) comes not just from your abdominal muscles, but also from stabilizer muscles around your trunk: gluteal muscles in buttocks and hips, the lower trapezius muscle in your back and many other smaller muscles.<\/p>\n
To develop your core and support your back, you have to target all these muscles.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe whole idea behind a strong core is to get many muscles a little bit strong for greater overall strength, instead of a few muscles overly strong,\u201d Martin says.<\/p>\n
That means your regular workout of arm weights and the leg press machine isn\u2019t cutting it.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople often emphasize strengthening prime movers \u2013 quadriceps, pectorals, biceps, triceps \u2013 and ignore stabilizer muscle strength,\u201d says Justin Lau, certified chiropractic sports practitioner and strength and conditioning specialist.<\/p>\n
Instead, do exercises like walking lunges, which engage not only the larger muscles of the legs but also stabilizers in your buttocks, hips, back and abdominals.<\/p>\n
2. Monthly flows woes.
That dull, nagging ache you feel leading up to your period? There\u2019s a good reason for it.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust before a period, your body secretes relaxin,\u201d Martin says. This hormone relaxes the pelvic joints in preparation for childbirth.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, it has one big drawback: Relaxin affects all the body\u2019s joints \u2013 including the ones in your back \u2013 making them more flexible.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re prone to back flare-ups, the week before your period is when it\u2019s most likely to happen,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
So don\u2019t take extra risks with your back those days, she advises. Switch to sensible heels, lighten your loads, and bend carefully and correctly from the hips.<\/p>\n
3. Baby\u2019s on board.
A pregnancy weight gain and baby bump throw off your posture and normal center of gravity. The result: a back out of whack.<\/p>\n
\u201cWomen lose their ability to maintain normal body posture, and the lower back takes on an abnormal amount of weight from the torso,\u201d Lau says.<\/p>\n
Relaxin is also a culprit here, because it\u2019s secreted in much higher amounts during pregnancy.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, abdominal exercises like sit-ups and crunches, which help most women build back strength, can\u2019t be done when you\u2019re pregnant, Gokhale says.<\/p>\n
You\u2019ll have to rely on your \u201cinner corset\u201d for core stability, she says. This deep abdominal muscle, the transversus abdominis, wraps around your waist just like the old-fashioned undergarment.<\/p>\n
When this muscle and your internal and external obliques are strong, they hold your core upright and protect your back \u2013 even as baby grows, Gokhale says.<\/p>\n
An exercise program emphasizing balanced core strength (check out our slideshow on back exercises) will build this inner corset and keep the back supported.<\/p>\n
4. Holding more than your share.
Women carry the weight of their worlds \u2013 usually on one side.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey have heavy handbags, unwieldy children and balance loads on their hips,\u201d Gokhale says.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s bad news for your spine, putting it out of alignment and making muscles too tight on one side and too loose on the other.<\/p>\n
Hauling uneven loads can also inflame the sciatic nerve, which begins in the lower spine and travels down the back of your thighs and lower leg.<\/p>\n
\u201cResting items on your hips increases tension in your external hip rotators and places pressure on the sciatic nerve,\u201d Lau says.<\/p>\n
As anyone with sciatica can tell you, the shooting pain it sends down the legs is crippling and debilitating. It\u2019s well worth whatever it takes to avoid it in the first place.<\/p>\n
But you don\u2019t have to stop toting toddlers or those hot hobo bags. Just use core strength and don\u2019t rest heavy items on lopsided hips, Gokhale says.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything we do, whether carrying a purse or child, becomes a way to exercise and strengthen your body,\u201d she says. \u201cIf you do it poorly, you put wear and tear on your body. Do it correctly and you become stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n
5. Wearing 9-inch heels.
Those killer high heels make your legs look great, but they\u2019re back-busting. The problem: They create tight hamstrings, the large muscle group on the back of your upper legs.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf women wear heels all the time, hamstrings adapt to a shorter resting length,\u201d Gokhale says.<\/p>\n
This makes you tuck in your pelvis and bend poorly, which leads to back pain.<\/p>\n
The fix is bad news for stiletto devotees: Switch to shoes with heels under 2 inches, Gokhale says.<\/p>\n
6. Menopause is hard on your bones.
It\u2019s bad enough that menopause brings on hot flashes, memory lapses and sleepless nights. The hormonal changes also increase your risk for osteoporosis \u2013 and that\u2019s bad for your back.<\/p>\n
Dwindling levels of estrogen in menopause accelerate bone loss, leading to osteoporosis. Poor posture and careless bending can also foster thinning of your bones.<\/p>\n
Years of bad bone health can create a \u201cdowager\u2019s hump,\u201d an exaggerated curvature of the upper back often seen in older women that results from an osteoporosis-weakened spine collapsing on itself.<\/p>\n
The solution? Again, a strong core that supports a naturally curved spine \u2013 and a calcium-rich diet.<\/p>\n
\u201cCorrectly stacked vertebrae prevent calcium from leaching out of the bone and into the bloodstream,\u201d Gokhale says.<\/p>\n
7. You\u2019re in a slump.
We spend hours hunched over steering wheels and computer keyboards.
Then what do we do? Work out and bend forward some more.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany people sit slumped all day and then go to the gym and do crunch-type abdominal exercises,\u201d Lau says.<\/p>\n
All this bending forward hurts the lower (lumbar) spine, which is naturally curved backward, and forces it to move out of its natural curvature.<\/p>\n
Working on your posture and developing that core will get you back on track.<\/p>\n
8. The dreaded secretary spread.
We work in a sit-down world, especially 9-to-5 types. The position puts excessive pressure on your lower back.<\/p>\n
\u201cSitting, especially in poor posture with a rounded back, reverses the normal lumbar curve,\u201d Lau says. That not only places a lot of strain on your lower back, it also encourages core muscle weakness.<\/p>\n
To prevent damage from a sedentary job, avoid slouching in your chair, which tucks the pelvis and strains the lower back.<\/p>\n
Also, take regular walk breaks \u2013 to the bathroom, break room or up and down stairs for a quick, head-clearing calorie-burner.<\/p>\n
If your company allows it, sit on an exercise ball (a 1- to 3-foot-wide air-filled ball used for yoga, weight training and physical therapy) for part of the day. The instability of the ball forces you to engage your core muscles to sit upright, challenging the inner corset and strengthening your back.<\/p>\n
9. Standing at attention
Just like sitting all day hurts your back, so does being on your feet.<\/p>\n
\u201cWomen tend to stand for long periods,\u201d Gokhale says. \u201cWe\u2019re cooking, standing in line while shopping and waiting for our children.\u201d<\/p>\n
Prolonged standing compresses the spine and aggravates the discs and nerves between your vertebrae. This is especially true when you stand with poor posture \u2013 which many of us do, thanks to a weak core and years spent slouching.<\/p>\n
Take a much-needed sit break whenever you can and do core-strengthening exercises, specifically working the muscles of your inner corset. Then, when you have to stand around, your back is properly supported.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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Originally posted here: <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
We all want great curves. But did you know the most essential ones are in your spine? <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":410941,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-410940","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment"},"yoast_head":"\n