Check out how you can really help yourself when your back hurts.
DON’T WALK AROUND ALWAYS PULLING IN YOUR NAVEL!
The diaphragm, often shown on anatomical posters as a thin line, is in fact a powerful muscle – the main respiratory muscle responsible for stabilising the spine and controlling the body’s balance. Find out how to breathe properly!
- Place your hands on your sides near the lower ribs and test your relaxed breathing (thumbs towards the back, fingers in front pointing towards the navel). Your breathing should cause a 3-dimensional movement.
- When breathing in, your hands should feel a delicate inflation, at the sides and to the back as your lower ribs expand, and to the front as your abdomen relaxes and pushes out slightly.
- Breathing out is the next phase, in which “things loosen up” underneath your hands and you have time to very gently bring your navel in towards your spine. Breathing involves a process involving continuous motion – don’t interfere with it by constantly keeping your abdomen contracted!