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The Best Spinal Decompression Exercises You Can Do At Home

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Over the years, studies have shown that up to 80% of Americans will suffer from back pain at some point in their lives. Many people simply don’t have the best posture, and it leads to all kinds of back problems over time.

One way to reduce the chances of you having to deal with back pain is by incorporating spinal decompression exercises into your daily routine. You won’t have to worry too much about the risks of spinal compression when you make decompressing your spine a bigger priority.

So, what is spinal decompression? Well, it’s essentially any stretches or movements that help to elongate your spine. It’ll help to ease the pressure that you put on your spine and make many back issues go away.

Check out a few spinal decompression exercises that you can put to the test below.

Overhead Stretch

Do you tend to spend almost all your time sitting down in a chair throughout the day? This could be the No. 1 cause of any back pain that you’ve been feeling.

To get rid of it, you should get into the habit of standing up every so often to do spinal decompression exercises. This one, in particular, can work wonders for your back.

To do an overhead stretch that will decompress your spine, you’ll need to:

  1. Stand upright and put your feet shoulder-width apart
  2. Lock your fingers, put your hands up over your head, and straighten out your elbows
  3. Reach up towards the ceiling and stay in that position for about 30 seconds
  4. Repeat this stretch several times throughout the course of each day

You can literally do this stretch almost anywhere that you want. It’ll provide your back with some much-needed relief and help to keep your spine decompressed more often than not.

Bar Hang

If you happen to have a pull-up bar in your home or some other type of bar that you can hang from, you should give this spinal decompression exercise a shot. It’s another simple way to decompress your spine in no time at all.

To do a bar hang, follow these steps:

  1. Reach your arms up and grab onto the bar
  2. Lift your feet up off the ground and begin to let more and more of your weight hang from the bar
  3. Relax the muscles throughout your body and take several deep breaths
  4. Stay in this position for about 30 seconds and repeat this stretch as necessary

You should not attempt to do this spinal decompression exercise if you have a bad shoulder or, worse, bad shoulders. But otherwise, you should be able to see some real results from letting your body hang while you’re holding onto a bar.

Prayer Stretch

Have you been praying for some back relief and not seeing any noticeable change? You might need to work a prayer stretch into your regular routine.

To do a successful prayer stretch, you should do this:

  1. Get down on your hands and knees
  2. Sit back so that your backside is touching your heels
  3. Reach both of your arms out in front of you and allow them to fall down towards the floor
  4. Stay in this position for about 10 seconds
  5. Repeat this process while putting your arms slightly to the left and then slightly to the right while holding for 10 seconds
  6. Continue doing this until you get some relief

The prayer stretch might not be the ideal spinal decompression exercise for those who struggle to get down on the ground and then get back up again. But if you’re able to manage this, you should get some results from this stretch.

Standing Kitchen Sink Stretch

Generally speaking, standing at the kitchen sink might not seem like the best idea for someone who is experiencing back pain. But it would be a smart move to make if you’re stretching while doing it.

To do a standing kitchen sink stretch, you’ll have to:

  1. Hold onto your kitchen sink
  2. Lean back and straighten up your elbows
  3. Push all of your weight back
  4. Stay in this position for about 30 seconds while taking deep breaths
  5. Repeat this several times throughout the day

If you would prefer not to be by your kitchen sink while doing this stretch, you should be able to find something else around the house to hold onto while performing it (like the back of your couch maybe?). Just make sure that whatever you take hold of is strong and sturdy so that it can support all your weight.

Cat Cow Stretch

All of these spinal decompression exercises are going to provide you with relief to some degree. But you could argue that this one is going to do the best job possible.

To complete a cat cow stretch, you should do this:

  1. Get down on your hands and knees
  2. Position your knees right under your hips and your hands right under your shoulders
  3. Arch your back slowly while moving your head down towards the ground
  4. Go back to the position that you started in and then bring your back down towards the ground while lifting your head up towards the ceiling
  5. Repeat this up to 30 times and try to do it several times each day

If this spinal decompression exercise doesn’t get the job done, you might need to seek the services of a professional for back pain. Get more info on how a spinal decompression St George chiropractor might be able to help you.

Spinal Decompression Exercises Can Save Your Back

Have you started to spot some of the common signs of spinal compression? This is obviously not good news for you as it could mean that more serious back pain is right around the corner.

You should aim to alleviate any back problems you’re having by doing each of the spinal decompression exercises listed here. You’ll be amazed to see just how effective that spinal decompression therapy can be.

Would you like to get your hands on more tips that will help you deal with nagging back pain? Find them by reading through more of our blog articles.