Sway back or exaggerated anterior curve of the lumbar spine is a postural condition common in actively working men and women. People with this problem easily strain their lower back and this is one of the most common causes of low back pain.
You can easily recognize this if you stand with your low back on the wall, and if you can easily insert your hand and have a significant space between the wall and your lower back, you have a sway back problem.
If you happen to see the Side view of x-ray film and draw an imaginary line down along the front of the spine, the fall fashion line prior to the lumbosacral joint, if you have a swayback condition. Normally this is an imaginary vertical line falls in front of the lumbosacral joint (between the last lumbar vertebra and the coccyx).
If you have a new rule to overpower your back muscles strong, weak abdominal muscles aggravating conditions. The abdominal musclesshould be strong to balance the forces of the strong low back muscles to diminish or correct the sway back problem.
If you have a sway back problem, when you stand up you are straining your ligaments and muscles at the back of your lumbar spine because the ability of your lumbar-sacral joint to support your body weight is diminished, so your upper body weight is mainly supported by the joints, ligaments and muscles at the back of your lumbar spinal column.
Correction of your bad posture by reversing your exaggerated lumbar curve and strengthening your abdominal muscles will help you solve your sway back problem.
How do you do it? Here are some important tips.
1. Be conscious of your posture every day. Check your low back by standing next to the wall with your back touching the wall. Slide your hand between the wall and your lower back.If you have a significant space between the wall and your low back, then you have a sway back situation.
2. Do a daily exercise while you are lying on a firm bed or on the floor. Lie down, face up, with your hips and knees bent, you feet are down on your firm bed or floor. Tilt your pelvis upwards so that your low back is flat on the firm bed or the floor. Hold it for 5 seconds, then relax for 5 seconds and repeat the procedure 25 times. Then tilt your pelvis again upwards, hold it, and try to reach the top of your knees with the tips of your hands, trying to get your upper back and head upwards, away from the bed. Hold it for 5 seconds, relax for 5 seconds and repeat 25 times. Do these exercises two times a day before you sleep at night and before you get out of bed in the morning.
3. When you are standing up or walking or trying to bend forward like brushing your teeth, be sure that you tilt your pelvis forward and keep that abdominal muscles working. This will prevent you from straining your low back.
4. Learn and practice the proper way of Lifting heavy weights from the floor. Be sure to keep your low back straight, tilt your pelvis forward tightening your abdominal muscles, bend your knees (not your low back) before you lift the heavy stuff from the floor.
5. Learn and practice the proper way of pulling of pushing heavy stuff. Always start with tilting your pelvis forward, tighten your abdominal muscles keep your low back straight before you pull or push heavy stuff.
6. General body conditioning, physical fitness exercise, proper nutrition, prevention and correction of overweight problem are good precautionary measures in helping you prevent sway back and low back pain in general.
