The thing that concerns me most about exercise and neck pain, back pain, and sciatica relief strategies is the number of myths and misinformation concerning exercise and pain relief.
Myths and Back Pain Relief Strategies
This is even true of many medical practitioners, particularly medical practitioners who have never experienced neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica for themselves. The number of medical practitioners recommending exercise programs that are either ineffective or contraindicated is more than a little disconcerting. Fortunately, in recent years, things have started to change and many medical practitioners are a bit more current when it comes to appropriate, and alternative, neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica relief strategies. Meaning, many more medical doctors, doctors of chiropractic medicine, physical therapists, and even athletic trainers are aware that there are alternatives to conventional medical intervention and back surgery (including neck, upper and lower back surgery) for spine-related pain.
One of the most pervasive and long-standing myths concerning neck pain, back pain, and sciatica relief strategies and exercise has to do with swimming.
The swimming myth dates back quite a few years and was reinforced in the early 1960s by President John F. Kennedy, who has rumored to swim daily in order to deal with his back pain. The injury to John F. Kennedy’s back, an injury that plagued him the rest of his life, was sustained during the destruction of PT 109, in the World War II Pacific Theater.
It was said that President Kennedy would swim daily as a pain relief strategy, a story that was picked up by the press and gained mythic proportions over the years, particularly after President Kennedy’s assassination in 1963. The fact is, President Kennedy often resorted to pain medication (narcotics), his back pain was so severe…something kept out of the press until long after his death. The back pain was also rumored to be the real reason for President Kennedy’s afternoon “power naps,” although the historical record has been protected by those closest to him for more than 4 decades now and the entire truth may never be known. Regardless of the public spin, the basis and the historical accuracy of the swimming myth may never be fully explained.
Returning to the idea of swimming as a neck pain, back pain, and sciatica relief strategy, the data from several research studies seems to contradict popular mythology. The fact is, swimming is not a good first step in anyone’s back pain relief strategy; and, I am lumping in neck and sciatica nerve pain when I refer to back pain in this context.
The best overall exercise for neck, back, and sciatic nerve pain sufferers is water walking. In many instances, water walking, because of the low-impact nature of the exercise, may even be better than walking in any form. Water walking is an excellent first step and may be done year round with an inexpensive YMCA membership and a bathing suit.
Ultimately, as the spine and associated core muscles (back, obliques, and abdominals) become stronger, other water-related exercises can be integrated into your neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica relief strategy, to include water aerobics. Eventually, and this is after months of consistent and gradual improvement, swimming may be in the picture. However, as an initial pain relief strategy, swimming is not appropriate and may actually exacerbate your neck, back and/or sciatic nerve pain.
So remember, take things slow, if you are ready to get in the water, great! Just make sure you walk in the water, particularly at first. Long term, swimming may be in the picture, but not as an initial neck pain, back pain, and sciatica relief strategy.
Before you begin an exercise program, particularly if you are still dealing with a great deal of neck pain, back pain, and/or sciatica, go to:
It can change your life and it will definitely get you off on the right track. If you want to live an amazing life, one free of neck pain, back pain, and sciatica check out the link above…it can change your life, it did mine!
John
Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr., The Bad Back Guy
216-712-6526
Skype: johnzajaros1
johnz@ultimatebadbackstrategies.com
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