Ball work for a healthy back
August 2007
Lower back pain is the number one reason for employee absenteeism, and while lower back problems can stem from injury or trauma, the majority of lower back problems are lifestyle related, or rather, physical de-conditioning. Therefore, the treatment for lower back pain is simple - start moving. And the best type of movement to do is ball work. Here's why.
Back pain, stiffness, or injury occurs with a poorly functioning nervous system. (The term 'back' includes the neck, shoulders, upper back, and lower back.) When the nervous system isn't able to effectively 'fire' or communicate to muscles to contract in an appropriate way, pain or injury occurs. One of the best ways to alleviate this is to train the body's two types of muscles, the stabilizers and mobilizers, to fire more efficiently.
Mobilizers are the visible, superficial muscles of the arms, chest, back and legs. They're designed for one-all, powerful movements of brief duration (i.e. traditional weight training exercises like chest press, bicep curls, rows etc use mobilizer muscles).
Stabilizers are the deep, inner layer of muscles, also called the postural muscles. They are designed to contract over longer periods of time to provide stability and mobility. They are usually smaller, deeper muscles that fix the spine joints in place and support the sockets and joints (spine, hips and shoulders).
The cure is in the exercise ball. (Also known as Swiss ball, stability ball, physio ball and blue ball). While mobilizers naturally get a lot of attention with traditional weight training exercises, stabilizers need attention too, especially in people who suffer from back pain. Pilates and ball-based training helps tone and program the stabilizers, but it doesn't stop there. There's evidence that working on a moving surface such as a ball wakes up inactive motor units and enables them to fire successfully. (The body is lazy and only works as much as it has to). Working on a moving surface throws the body off balance and forces your brain to confront the unfamiliar, resulting in sensory nerves becoming better trained and our body organizing itself better for function and power.
You may have to start with going back to basic breathing techniques to start, and using simple movements (remember, less is more, the focus is on low level, gentle movements) so they become ingrained in the body's muscle memory. Using breath appropriately also ensures the lower back and abdominals are firing appropriately. Be patient, most of us aren't used to training the invisible, inner muscles. Find a good personal trainer that is familiar with spinal stabilization to help.
Remember, our bodies are meant to move. Movement keeps muscles and joints supple and flexible. If we don't do some form of vigorous movement every day, muscles atrophy and joints lost their flexibility. What results are imbalances in the body - tight hamstrings, tight lower back muscles, weak abdominals, and shortened hip flexor muscles - which can cause structural misalignments and further imbalances. So grab a ball, and get moving!