Suffering with Back Pain? Try Walking Everyday

Back pain is a major public health issue and one of the most frequent complaints to doctors. About16 million Americans struggle with chronic back pain and another nearly 65 million people report recent back pain.  

Back pain can diminish your quality of life. For example, if you work, there’s a good chance back pain is interfering with your job. In fact, low back pain has been the leading cause of disability since 1990, according to the International Association for the Study of Pain. But it also can limit your involvement in everyday activities, hinder walking and bending, and raise your risk of depression, anxiety and social isolation.    

While various factors contribute to back pain, you could have a spinal condition such as:  

• Herniated disc  
• Degenerative disc disease  
• Osteoarthritis, stenosis  
• Spondylolisthesis or osteoporosis  

If you do, your primary care doctor, physical therapist or chiropractor can educate you on how to minimize the pain and develop an effective treatment plan for you. Your plan may include a walking program. Walking improves circulation, contributes to weight management and helps strengthen the abdominal, back and leg muscles that support and help stabilize the spine, helping alleviate and prevent back pain.  

But if you’ve ever tried walking with a back condition, you may have found that you easily tired and/or suddenly had to stop walking. This makes adhering to a walking program difficult and begs the question, how much walking should you do to prevent and control back pain.  

However, Norwegian researchers think they’ve cracked the code. Results from a randomized controlled trial found that walking five times a week for at least 30 minutes prevented non-specific chronic back pain, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open. Moreover, walking longer periods of time also was found to lower the risk of back pain developing in the first place.  

Researchers analyzed several years’ worth of data collected on more than 11,000 Norwegian adults. Participants wore an accelerometer on their right and lower back for a week to track how much they walked and their pace. Low back pain that lasted more than three months was reported. Results showed that walking:  

More than 100 minutes a day lowered the risk of back pain by 23 percent compared to those who walked less than 78 minutes every day.  

At a higher intensity also seemed to prevent pain, but the results were less distinct and not as important as daily walking volume. 

Of course, if you haven’t been walking because of back pain and would like to begin a walking program, the first step is to get clearance from your doctor and listen to advice they may have. This is one reason why many MDVIP-affiliated doctors have walking programs, they’re able to guide their patients as they get back into a walking routine.  

But if you’re not an MDVIP-affiliated member but got approval from your doctor to begin a walking program, you should start at a slower pace, preferably on a flat surface. Keep your walking distance short and stay close to your home. You also can try these three tips. 

1. Understand your target heart rate and keep track of it by using a fitness tracker that includes a heart rate monitor, do a talk test and/or use the Borg’s Scale/Rate of Perceived Exertion.  
2. Follow proper walking mechanics. Maintaining good posture is a key component of staving off back pain.    
3. Include a warmup, workout and a cool down with each walk. Warmups and cool downs should last between 5 and 10 minutes. You don’t need to do anything special, just walk at a slower pace.  

Most importantly, partner with your MDVIP-affiliated physician. They have the time and resources to work with you and guide you in the best course of action to get the pain under control, whether it be helping you lose weight, getting you started on an exercise program, trying therapeutic modalities or referring to a specialist. Find a physician near you and begin your partnership in health »