If the summer holidays are supposed to be synonymous with rest, it is not uncommon for them to also rhyme with back pain. A few tips to follow to prevent your weeks of summer break from being ruined by stiff necks or lumbago.
- It is essential to choose the right positions to prevent our cervical and lumbar muscles from accumulating tension.
- Whether you like sunbathing on the beach, reading in the garden or hiking, chiropractor Thierry Legagnoux gives you some tips to avoid back pain on vacation.
With their sessions of idleness in the sun, their games of volleyball on the beach or their long hikes on mountain trails, one might think that the summer holidays are conducive to recovering their health and treating their back pain before to face the return to the office.
However, the summer period is not always kind to our lower back and neck. Between long journeys by car or plane, the practice of intense sports activities, but also tanning sessions on the beach, our backs undergo tensions which can last until the start of the school year and spoil our holidays.
How do you take care of your back, whether you’re spending your holidays by the sea, in the mountains or in the countryside? Chiropractor Thierry Legagnoux gives us some advice.
At the sea, sunbathe comfortably
If you like to bask in the sun, pay attention to the position you adopt so as not to end up with persistent back and neck pain. The position to absolutely banish? On your stomach, head turned to the side. “Place a rolled-up towel under your stomach to restore balance.” at the cervical level, advises Thierry Legagnoux.
Also beware of tanning sessions on your back, where you end up with your neck bent. To avoid the risk of ending up with your neck blocked, the ideal is to “keep slightly elevated using a cushion and a rolled up towel slipped under the knees, in order to relieve the spine.”
Finally, sitting in a deckchair does not guarantee an optimal position for the back either, because the spine is rounded. In order not to accumulate tension in the lower back, “place a cushion between the seat and the back, and a rolled up towel to support the neck”details the chiropractor.
In the mountains, choose the right shoes
If walking is an excellent physical activity to keep in shape, it is essential to be well equipped to avoid hurting yourself. As such, opt for a good pair of walking shoes is strongly advised by Thierry Legagnoux. “Always try on your shoes and don’t be content — if you’re loyal to a brand or a model — to always choose the same size.” It is also important, he says, to choose a model with a thick sole to better absorb shocks and thus preserve the spine.
“Rather than trying two different models successively and then making the comparison, prefer to test two different models at the same time: one for each foot. It is thus possible to choose the most comfortable shoe”recommends the specialist.
In the countryside, settling down to read
If your pleasure on vacation is to settle down in peace with a good book, however, be sure to choose a position that will protect your back. “It is strongly advised not to lie on your back with your head raised with cushions: this will increase tension in the shoulder blades, neck and lower back”warns Thierry Legagnoux.
Prefer to sit on a chair instead”in the right and high backrest. At the height of the lumbar, slide a cushion that will respect the natural arch of the back”. If you read while lying on the bed, remember to “bend the knees until the soles of the feet stick to the mattress, so that the back is flat”. Finally, installed in an armchair, do not extend your legs, but “place a cushion behind the neck to keep it straight. Try to keep the book (or other medium) facing your eyes, so you don’t have to tilt your head.”
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