Using Exercise to Help Your Back - Patients' Advice: Part II

My best form of exercise for back pain is swimming. After my surgery, I started swimming as soon as the cast was off and the exercise helps keep me flexible. It has been 15 years since surgery. Right now I am only swimming on my back because I get pain in my feet. It still helps. When I cannot swim there is a big difference in the level of pain.

From: Rita

I have chronic back pain, to the point where it becomes paralyzing. I was approximately 110 pounds overweight, which complicated matters. I joined a health club and with the help of their instructors, worked out a fairly decent workout regimen. I eliminated ANY exercise that compresses the back (strict curls, front legs raises, squats, running, etc.) and concentrated on mostly the "fat burning" exercises (biking, and the glider). I have lost 78 pounds in just over a year. However, the pain has NOT really diminished. If I don't take 3 to 5 oxycodone before and 3 AFTER my exercise workout (along with an icepack), I am in so much pain I literally want to die! I am not suicidal, I just wish there was a way to put a permanent stop to the pain. I find from my own experiences, saunas and whirlpools don't help, as I believe the warm temp of the water causes swelling in my back muscles. My problem is not musculatory, it is spinal. I am trying to avoid surgery, and will continue to exercise and lose the weight. I DO feel better, and can at least walk for approximately 1-1/2 "klics" before the pain becomes unbearable. When I started this exercise walking routine I couldn't walk 50 feet. For the record, yoga and stretching simply don't work. I find the low-impact glider to be of the best benefit. DON'T stop exercising, it does help.

From: Warren

Exercise is the main remedy for lower back pain. I experience lower back pain one to two times per year and stretch and use stationary bike immediately. I am back on the tennis court within days, and find the more I play, the quicker the symptoms of sciatica and leg numbness subside.

From: Jan Farrah

I am a secretary in a company and always sitting before the computer, so I nearly do exercise everyday. For my back pain and neck problems, I do some exercise, for example, walking and twisting my head and waist. At the same time I use a kind of device which is called Necktraction Fixer.

For my pain, the doctor told me that I must regard it and cure it immediately, or else it will be more serious. So according to the doctor's suggestion, I took some medicine, did some exercise, was massaged by a doctor and later the doctor suggested to me to use something called a Necktraction Fixer. And now all is OK and I feel very happy.

From: iceberg

It has been a long, long road recovering from a 2 level fusion L4-S1. I experienced nerve damage in my left leg and finally ended up with a spinal cord stimulator and an intrathecal pain pump. Through all this the dog still needed to be walked twice a day so I actually forced myself to do this.

Once the pain was more controlled, I began to ride a recumbent exercise bike daily. At first I did just about 15 minutes of exercise each day. As I became used to this amount of exercise I increased to almost 2 hours daily (my exercise bike is beside the computer so I can exercise and search the web at the same time).

Do I still have pain? YES! But I have lost almost 50 pounds and have realized that even with the pain I am more functional than I have ever been. My doctor says there is nothing more to do but control the pain, so I continue with pain management for some relief and continue to ride the exercise bike to retain what I do have. Good luck to all other back pain sufferers and thank you Dr. Macielak and Dr. Colantonio!

From: Anelia

After a laminectomy (levels L3 thru S1), I had a great deal of pain, due to a new problem resulting from the surgery, spondylolisthesis at L4/L5, which was pushing on the disc. I was also told I needed a spine fusion and that I should exercise by swimming. The swimming was the final stress which led me to not be able to walk at all. I realized that no one could really know what I needed except for me. I lay down on the floor and slowly began to move until I felt the radicular pain activate. Swimming exercise motions were the worst. Every time I raised my right arm above my head, the nerve in my right calf would scream and the muscles tighten.

I began upright biking for exercise and did core strengthening exercise by doing pull-ups and sit ups. I did downward facing dog, a yoga exercise, and rolled over an exercise ball on my stomach, while contracting my upper abdominals. I also continued exercises to stretch my hamstrings and my other muscles, which were tight. Currently, I am riding a bike in the gym and in the woods and walking up to two miles a day for exercise. I still need to be careful of how long I sit and to not walk very fast.

My advice is: learn everything about back exercise - yoga, Pilates, bioenergetics, Feldenkrais and the MacKenzie method. But in the end, you are the expert. Listen to your own body. It will be your guide.

Using water therapy with regular slow movement workouts in a pool or hot-tub has seriously decreased my lower back pain. For six years I have suffered from a degeneration of a disk in my low back which recently ruptured. I began swimming after surgery with amazing results.

From: Braxton V. Lewis

A physical therapist certified in the Mackenzie Method has helped me with back and leg pain. Simple back exercises make all the difference. Chest push-ups and lying on my stomach have relieved pain from a herniated disc and sciatic nerve problem. I now have the knowledge about exercises to manage my back pain and treat myself should it happen again. No need for medication which does nothing anyway.

From: Tara

I have found that the best thing to do to strengthen your back is to exercise your abs. The stronger your abs, the stronger your back. However, you need to position your head and neck properly so as to use your ab muscles and not pull with your head and neck. I don't know why it is, but when I slack off and don't exercise my abdominals my back will start to hurt. Also, climb stairs to strengthen your rear. I use my lunch break to climb stairs where I work (5 floors). I can really tell a difference in my lower back because of these exercises.

From: Sharon Nicholson

Communicate with others about exercise for back pain relief

* Note: This page expresses the experiences and opinions of patients, not doctors. The Back-to-Back forum is provided because we think people often have very practical advice and insights to share that can benefit other patients who have similar back problems. This section has not been peer reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board, and is provided for your informational purposes only.

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