Unless you are Superman, you are going to experience back pain at some point in your life, likely several times. Usually, back pain is the result of overdoing a certain activity, repetitive movement, a car accident, disease and a host of other factors. Back pain usually goes away within a few days to a few weeks but it is one of the most common complaints of patients visiting doctors. However, with back pain therapy exercise, you can avoid a trip to the doctor and remedy the situation on your own.

The Exercise Ball

The exercise ball is fast becoming one of the favorite ways to conduct back pain therapy exercise because it is versatile and people of all ages can use it. You can use this huge ball to conduct stretching exercises for back pain, specifically the lower back. The best way to use it is to lie on the floor with your head slightly elevated on a pillow and the heels of your feet propped up on the top of the exercise ball. Slowly lift your buttocks off the floor so that your body is straight at an angle to the ball and floor where your head is positioned. This back pain therapy exercise is one of many on the exercise ball that even physical therapists recommend.

No Tools Needed

There are back pain therapy exercise options that do not require any special tools or implements to ease the aches, just your body! For upper back pain, there is the pectoral stretch, which consists of standing in an open doorway and using both hands to grasp either side of the doorframe. Then, with the frame tightly gripped, you push slightly forward until you feel the muscles in your chest stretch and then hold the pose for about 15-20 seconds if possible. You would then retract and repeat the process at least 2 or 3 more times.

Another back pain therapy exercise consists of lying on your stomach with your chest supported by a small pillow. From there, hold your arms out in a 90 degree position from your body and then squeeze your shoulder blades together by raising your arms from their position This could take some time to get used to but greatly alleviates pain in the upper to middle back areas.

Inversion Table

The inversion table has been around for ages and is a popular way to conduct some back pain therapy exercise. You are strapped into this table and then it is inverted, based on the degree of angle you need. The reason why the inversion table is popular for back pain therapy exercise is that it works to increase the disc space between the vertebrae which in turn alleviates the pressure that could be pinching nerves or compacting discs.

Going the back pain therapy exercise route is the best place to start when it comes to aches and pains from the upper to lower back. Remember, a large percentage of people experience pain that can and will go away within a few weeks but you can speed up the process with back pain therapy exercise.