How to stop back pain ruining Christmas

A leading UK back specialist is urging people to put in place some simple strategies this festive season to help prevent back pain from ruining the celebrations.

From decorating the tree and wrapping presents, to spending hours sat down watching movies or travelling to see family and friends, the season is wrought with activities that can trigger back pain.

Mr Michael Fatica, Lead Osteopath and Co-Founder at Back in Shape, says: “Many of us do not give our back health a second thought until we experience pain or injury that disrupts our daily life. At this time of year in particular, the priorities and interests associated with the season often take precedent, and can be the catalyst that triggers an episode of back pain or sciatica that becomes an ever bigger challenge as the weeks progress.”

“The intense nature of the holiday season means that established routines often fall by the wayside as a constant cycle of social events, shopping and overindulgence take over. “

“For example, long spells slouched in front of a device or on car journeys can compromise the natural ‘arch’ of the spine aggravating underlying spinal disc issues, and result in muscles beginning to seize up. Excessive pressure can also be placed across the back as a result of carrying over-loaded shopping bags and wrapping presents in all manner of awkward positions.

“To make matters worse, those extra few pounds typically gained in such a short time frame adds further strain to the already overwhelmed low back. This has the effect of worsening the status quo, further exacerbating an existing lower back issue or contributing to the triggering of a new flare up.”

Michael shares his ‘top 5’ preventative strategies for ensuring a pain-free Christmas and New Year:

• Festive movie marathons – Avoid sitting for more than 60 mins at a time. Get up, fidget, stretch your legs. Anything to prevent the body and back from seizing up. If you have a low back issue, get up mindfully after prolonged sitting.
• Christmas shopping – Switch totes for backpacks. Rushing around, carrying heavy bags and waiting in long queues can cause issues. A backpack, as opposed to multiple ‘hand held’ bags, is advised for even-weight distribution across the back. Frequent, smaller shopping trips are also recommended instead of long, drawn-out trips that last the whole day.
• Long journeys to see family and friends – Take a towel. Long car journeys, sat in the same, slouched position in the car, can often be aggravating, particularly if you have an existing lower back issue. Use a small, rolled up towel to support the natural arch in your lower back and help you sit optimally.
• All wrapped up – Use the kitchen table for gift wrapping. This may seem obvious, but this activity is frequently carried out with the shoulders, neck and back hunched over whilst sat on the floor. This can place intense strain across the back, so switch to the kitchen table, the height of which is far more ‘back friendly’.
• Staying away from home – Take your own pillow. Unfamiliar mattresses and pillows when staying overnight with guests can cause unexpected back niggles. Take two of your own pillows, one of which can be placed between legs to by realign the spine, pelvis and, in turn, help take pressure off your spine.

“I typically see a sharp rise in the number of people with back or neck problems in January. Many have triggered an issue over the festive period, but have held on until the New Year before seeking help. Unfortunately, by then any issue has had ample time to ‘bed in’.

“This can also be further aggravated in those with a determination and over-eagerness to get back into shape come January. An aggressive fitness regime following a spell of over-indulgence and sedentary behaviour will simply ‘shock’ the body and is when injuries, particularly involving the back, are likely to occur.”

Michael also recommends the following ‘relief strategy’, encompassing simple exercises to perform at the end of the day, to help counterbalance stress and strain placed on the back and manage any ‘flare ups’ over the festive period:

Bed Decompression for 3-5 minutes: 

1. Lie across or off the end of the bed with the edge of the bed in your armpits, arms dangling down at the sides. Your back and legs should be relaxed
2. Simply press your arms into the side of the bed to gently stretch the length of your spine
3. Hold this stretch for 5-10 seconds, relax and repeat. You can do this repeatedly and even play around with some deeper belly breathing to decompress your spine in a gentle and rhythmical way
4. When finished, slowly get off the bed – do not rush! Try just a few times at first, then build up to the full 5 minutes

This is a really effective way to relieve the pressure placed on the spine, particularly after a long day spent travelling.

Towel exercise for 3-5 minutes:

1. Roll up a bath towel tightly to approximately the size of a foam roller
2. Lie on your back with knees bent
3. Engage your core and lift your bottom and back off the floor
4. Place the towel in the small of your back
5. Relax slowly onto the towel – it should support the natural arch of your back
6. Place your hands on your tummy and relax
7. Afterwards, engage your core and roll your body to the side to dismount, do NOT lift your bottom

This exercise flows nicely after the bed decompression to support the natural lordosis, curve, in your lower back. 

For a step-by-step routine to help with back pain over the festive break, please visit: www.backinshapeprogram.com/2024/09/back-pain-relief-routine-you-can-do-at-home/

For more information, please visit www.backinshapeprogram.com.

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