Are you tired of waking up with lower back pain that you can’t quite shake? You aren’t alone. Lower back pain is a common issue that can make it difficult to perform everyday tasks and leave you feeling less than your best. But this back pain isn’t everlasting; something as simple as trying out new sleep positions can make a world of difference and alleviate this pain. 

At Ogden Chiropractic, our team has compiled a list of several sleep positions to try that may alleviate lower back pain and allow you to wake up feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. With the help of our team, you can say goodbye to restless nights and hello to pain-free sleep. If you want to learn the secrets to a good night’s sleep, keep reading to learn about what sleep positions we recommend. 

How Sleep Positions Influence Back Pain 

You might not realize how much influence different sleep positions have on your back and other body aches. However, choosing the right sleep positions can make a substantial difference in the way you feel. Improper sleep positions can lead to kinks and muscle tension if they cause you to lay in unnatural positions. If you wake up feeling tense and in pain, it may be a result of your chosen sleep positions, and it is best to try adjusting your position to prevent this pain. 

1. The Fetal Position

If you’re dealing with herniated discs, a good night’s sleep might seem like a far-off dream. But there is hope if you sleep in the fetal position. Sleep positions like this curl your body into a ball and gently open up the space between your vertebrae. The fetal position does a great job of naturally decompressing your spine.

So, if you are dealing with a herniated disc and nothing has given you much-needed relief, consider trying to sleep in the fetal position. It may be the key to the peaceful sleep you’ve been waiting for. 

2. A Reclined Position

When it comes to dealing with lower back pain, the reclined position may be a game-changer. This sleep posture offers support to your lower back by redistributing your body weight. This redistribution of weight helps your spine maintain its natural curve, making it a great choice for chronic back pain sufferers and those looking to prevent it. 

In a reclined position, your lower back may get the relief it needs throughout the night, allowing you to wake up feeling relaxed and recuperated. Whether you have persistent back pain or want to avoid it altogether, a reclined position is a simple way to ensure you have a pain-free night. 

3. Flat On Your Back

Sleeping on your back is a wonderful way to prevent back pain, though it may be overlooked by those who deal with chronic discomfort. However, if you do choose to sleep on your back, one way to enhance the benefits you’ll experience, place a pillow under your knees. This small adjustment can work wonders by providing the right amount of support where it’s needed most.

When you lie on your back, you create the perfect position for your spine. The pillow elevates your knees to help you maintain the natural curve of your lower back while reducing the stress on your lumbar region. If you’ve been dealing with lower back pain, consider laying on your back for a night to see if it helps. 

4. On Your Side with a Pillow Between Your Knees

When back pain is too severe for you to lay on your back, you may find solace by sleeping on your side with a pillow tucked between your knees. By turning on your side, you can relieve some of the discomfort that might have been exacerbated by lying flat on your back. However, simply lying on your side isn’t enough.

By sleeping with a pillow between your knees, you may align your hips, pelvis, and spine in ways you cannot without this support. This pillow creates harmony throughout your body and maybe your pathway to a more restful and pain-free night’s sleep. 

Other Ways To Prevent Back Pain 

Your chosen sleep positions aren’t the only way to prevent lower back pain. If you have been dealing with pain for quite some time, you may want to incorporate stretching into your nightly routine. This routine can stretch your muscles and help you feel more rested. You may also want to avoid caffeine and alcohol before. These act as a stimulant, which may disrupt your sleep schedule and make it difficult for you to feel comfortable as you rest. 

Care For Your Back With Ogden Chiropractic

Lower back pain can make it difficult to perform everyday tasks and may have a detrimental impact on your quality of life. If trying out new sleep positions doesn’t help alleviate back pain, consider scheduling an appointment with our team of experts at Ogden Chiropractic. With years of experience, we’re confident that we can identify the cause of your back pain and get you back on the road to enjoying quality time with your loved ones.

In addition to treating back pain, we can help you recover from muscle cramps, vertigo, and more. If you want to schedule an appointment to address your back pain or would like to speak to a member of our team about the additional services we provide, contact us today. 

As you say goodbye to summer and the fall weather rolls in, you may find yourself making a long list of fun fall activities you want to get done before the holidays hit. From pie making and corn mazes to bonfires and football games, there are so many activities for everyone to enjoy. While these activities are a fun way to spend time with your friends and family, there are a few activities that may leave you with back pain if you aren’t careful.

If you want to maintain good back posture during your favorite fall activities, our team at Ogden Chiropractic has a few tips to help you do that. Keeping yourself safe during these activities and maintaining good back posture is crucial if you want to enjoy them for the full season. To learn more about our tips and tricks to maintain good back posture this fall, keep reading. 

1. Carving A Pumpkin

Pumpkin carving is a quintessential part of many people’s favorite fall activities. But, if you aren’t careful, this activity may leave you with a sore back and stiff muscles. As you prepare for Halloween’s approach, you may find yourself spending time with your family, carving jack-o’-lanterns. There are a couple of things you can do to avoid this pain and maintain good back posture. First, try carving your pumpkin while standing. 

When you carve while sitting at a table, you may find yourself hunched over the pumpkin, leading to back and shoulder pain. If you stand, however, you prevent this hunching and protect your back. Additionally, remember to stretch your arms and back before and throughout the activity. By rolling your shoulders and locking your hands, you soothe potentially irritated muscles, ensuring good back posture.  

2. Playing In Fallen Leaves

While you may love playing in piles of fallen leaves through the early fall months, prepping these piles may irritate your back, leading to discomfort for days on end. If you want to play in leaves while maintaining good back postures, there are a couple of things you should do during the preparation period. 

When you rake leaves, ensure you are wearing appropriate shoes with adequate support to reduce the strain on your feet and lower back. You should also remember to keep your knees bent slightly and your weight centered. This guarantees that the muscles in your back aren’t agitated, and you don’t end up with sciatica or other more significant back injuries. 

3. Picking Fresh Apples

Picking fresh apples through the fall months is a great way to enjoy in-season fruits while spending time with your loved ones. If your family enjoys making fresh apple pies or apple cider, you will probably find yourself at an apple orchard at least once this fall. But, if you aren’t careful, you may end up with unexpected back pain from this activity. Thankfully, there are a few things you can do to prevent this pain from occurring.

You should watch your step as you walk through apple orchards. Fallen apples are obstacles that may lead to stumbles or falls that will injure your back or lead to a rolled ankle. Make sure you’re walking around carefully over these obstacles. When picking the apples, you should also engage your core muscles to prevent your back from overcompensating as you reach overhead. This provides your back with adequate support as you reach for the perfect apple. 

4. Going Leaf-Peeping

Leaf-peeping is an especially popular and fun way to enjoy the changing colors in forested areas. But this fall activity does require a bit of hiking to thoroughly enjoy, which may lead to a lapse in good back posture. If you are tired of dealing with back pain during hikes and leaf-peeping and want to maintain good back posture, follow these tips.

If you bring a backpack, ensure it is well-fitted and appropriately packed to balance the weight on your back. You may also want to consider bringing trekking poles with you. Using these poles keeps your body upright, ensuring you maintain good back posture as you head up the trails. When all else fails, schedule breaks. This guarantees you can take a break and give your muscles a rest. 

5. Visiting A Haunted House

Visiting a haunted house isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but some people enjoy the adrenaline rush of this fall activity. Whether it is a haunted corn maze or a spooky haunted hospital set, haunted houses are a major fall favorite. While you may find this activity fun, it may leave you with more discomfort than you had anticipated. If you want to maintain good back posture when going through a haunted house, follow these tips.

Be mindful of your posture as you walk throughout. You may want to hunch over the people you brought with you to the haunted house. However, this may lead to muscle tension and back pain. You should also try to watch your step as you go through it. While walkways should be clear, you may still trip while trying to rush through, injuring yourself. To maintain good back posture, watch where you are walking and try to avoid running when the lights are low. 

Maintain Good Back Posture With Ogden Chiropractic

With so many fun fall activities, you don’t want back pain to prevent you from enjoying them. At Ogden Chiropractic, we are committed to helping you alleviate existing pain and prevent it from occurring again. With years of experience, our team is confident that they can help you through any pain you are experiencing and teach you how to maintain good back posture. 

In addition to treatment for back pain, we provide treatment for auto accident injuries, sports injuries, arthritis, and more. If you are interested in scheduling a chiropractic appointment to treat your existing back pain or would like to speak with a member of our team, contact us today. 

As we get older, tasks that once came easily may become much more difficult or impossible to perform. We lose moisture in our tissue and experience increased stiffness in our joints, making muscle movement more difficult. However, you might never notice this stiffness when you stretch regularly. 

But why is it so important that we stretch and maintain flexibility throughout our lives? Our team at Ogden Chiropractic wants you to understand why stretching is so important for your body and how it improves everyday life. If you want to learn more about the benefits of stretching and some tips for proper stretching, keep reading. 

Why Stretching Is So Important

Maintaining comfortable mobility is essential for a happy, healthy life. While this mobility will look different from person to person, stretching is so important to incorporate into your everyday routine because it allows mobility to persist. Without it, you may notice more muscle stiffness and difficulty or discomfort doing tasks you previously had not struggled with. When you remember to stretch regularly, you soothe and calm your muscles, allowing them to move freely with your body. 

The Benefits Of Stretching

Stretching is so important for many reasons, and regularly performing these activities comes with many benefits. The benefits associated with stretching include the following:

• Better Posture: Bad posture often happens so slowly that you don’t notice it. However, when you regularly hunch, your muscles become weaker. By stretching, you train these muscles to do their job again. As these muscles become stronger, you’ll notice your posture improving and a decrease in back pain.
• Improved Strength: Stretching prior to exercise is a great way to improve blood flow to your muscles. When your muscles are prepared for physical activity, you may perform better than before. It also reduces your risk of injury while performing these activities. 
• Improved Sleep And Reduced Stress: These two benefits seem to work together. Many cite that performing activities like yoga settles the mind by requiring you to focus on how your body and muscles feel. As you stretch, especially in the hour before you go to sleep, you may even find your mind has settled enough to fall asleep more easily, and you’ll wake refreshed. 
• Increase Balance: When you perform the same motions daily, your muscles become accustomed to only those movements. By regularly stretching, you improve the range of motion in joints and, in turn, improve your body’s ability to balance when performing unfamiliar tasks. 

How To Stretch Properly

While stretching is incredibly important for maintaining health and comfort levels, performing this action improperly may lead to more problems than if you hadn’t stretched. To properly stretch, try to follow these tips: 

• Do Not Bounce: Stretches are meant to be smooth movements. Bouncing as you stretch risks putting more tension on the muscle than it is prepared to handle. Avoid bouncing if you want to protect your muscles from unnecessary injury. 
• Stretch Symmetrically: Whatever you do on one side, you also need to do on the other. You shouldn’t try to force muscles to do more than they can to match one side, and you should strive to match your stretches on each side to protect yourself from injuries. 
• Maintain A Routine: If you’ve ever stretched regularly and then taken time off, you know how easily you lose your flexibility. Maintaining a routine is important if you want to reap the full benefits. You should strive to stretch at least three times a week for at least 5 to 10 minutes. 
• Focus On Major Muscle Groups: You should focus a lot of your attention on the muscles in your body that experience the most regular use, including your calves, neck, shoulder, and lower back muscles. Focusing on these major muscle groups prepares your body for the movements you regularly perform. 
• Hold Your Stretches: When you stretch, try to hold it for at least 30 seconds. If your muscles are especially tight, you may want to hold them for up to 60 seconds. You might not notice any major muscle improvements without enough resistance, as provided by holding the stretch. 

Should It Hurt? 

When you stretch, there is going to be some resistance and tension. However, this should not ever hurt. If the movement hurts, it likely means you are pushing the muscle further than it can comfortably move. Simply pull back slightly until you feel resistance without pain. This will protect your muscles from injury and make it a more pleasant experience. 

Incorporating Stretching Into Your Chiropractic Care

Chiropractic care is a great way to improve your mental health, muscle strength, flexibility, and range of motion. In fact, if you receive chiropractic care, your chiropractor likely recommends stretching between appointments and may even help you learn how to stretch properly. Incorporating chiropractic care into your routine improves your ability to heal, and you may notice the benefits more quickly than if you just stretch on your own. 

If you are seeking a chiropractor to see in conjunction with your stretching routine, Ogden Chiropractic is here to help. We can help you through stretches that may be more challenging or uncomfortable on your own and give you more complex stretches as your muscles become stronger. Contact us today to learn more about our services and how a chiropractor can help you improve your flexibility.