Are you full of it? Blame it on your bad habits! Julien Montagnon, Velpeau orthopedic technical advisor, orthopedist-orthotist, explains to us what mistakes to avoid to limit pain.
Who is affected by back pain?
“First of all, when we talk about back pain, we group together all the areas of the spine, at the cervical, dorsal or lumbar level.”, specifies the orthopedist. “Contrary to what one might think, it is not necessarily only people who carry heavy loads or elderly people who may be muscularly deficient who are concerned..” The truth is, back pain affects absolutely everyone.
Sitting uncomfortably at your desk for a long time: a cause of back pain
Your posture at the office is most certainly inappropriate, therefore causing pain. First of all, because, generally speaking, prolonged sitting is already a Source of back pain. The ideal would be to walk at least three minutes every hour, to get your body moving, activate the muscles and reduce the load on the vertebrae. We can also advise alternating during the day with a classic armchair and a large gym ball on which we sit to work at the office, the objective being to further recruit the back and abdominal muscles in order to stand up straight and balanced!
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- Neck posture at the office
Next, scan your posture when you are at your post. Is your neck tilted? Red card ! The neck and head should be straight, and the gaze slightly downward. To do this, remember to properly adjust your chair and the orientation of your screen. If it’s a laptop, you can lower your seat and raise your work tool with a thick book or a suitable support, for example.
- Back posture at the office
Is your back exposed? Disaster: he must be against the file! Lean your lower back against your chair (why not using a cushion), bend your knees and keep your feet on the floor.
Looking at your phone with your neck down: Source of back pain
When we look at our phone, our head is facing downwards, the neck is drooping, the back is rounded. And the head weighs a certain amount: between 5 and 6 kilos for an adult. So, when we lean it, we increase the stress on our vertebrae, muscles and nerves, which can cause pain in the long term. The more the neck is tilted, the more it weighs on our muscles, as highlighted by a study conducted by the University of Texas Southwestern. Over time, this can lead to muscle stiffness, arthritis, or in the worst case, a herniated disc. To scroll safely, the ideal would be to hold the phone at eye level.
Lying down without moving promotes back pain
When we are in pain, our first instinct may be to remain still and lie down, in order to avoid reactivating the pain. However, it is counterproductive! Static posture, whether standing, sitting or lying down, does not provide any reliefr. “Back pain is favored when the surrounding muscles are not working”, explains the expert. According to each person’s possibilities and as far as possible, you must move and put your body in motion to limit pain.
Putting a baby to bed causes back pain
Julien Montagnon shares that putting a toddler to bed can be harmful to the back: “ In a cot with bars, the mattress is low, you carry the child at arm’s length, you lean over to give him a kiss… And as soon as he gets up and asks for something or fidgets, you have to start all over again!” Faced with this reality, the expert unfortunately has no alternative. “In general, when we carry a load, we must reduce the distance between it and ourselves, and therefore bring it closer to our chest. This is what we do spontaneously, but in certain situations, it can escape us.” Some beds can be adjusted in height, remember to check this as long as your baby cannot stand up alone.
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