How to Lose Weight and Get Rid of Back Pain at the Same Time

Did you know that excess body weight can contribute to back pain? Sure, muscular imbalances are the main cause, but let’s face it, extra weight isn’t going to help. The added padding from a little fat can increase the amount of stress put on your back and the amount of pressure on the discs between your vertebra. Here are a few tips that will help you strengthen your back muscles to correct muscle imbalances and lose weight at the same time. Your back will thank you. First, exercise does a world of good. If you can, get a kettle bell and do an exercise called the kettle swing. Kettle bells have gotten popular recently, and for good reason--they work! In a few short minutes you can really work your major muscle groups. If you don’t want to get a kettle bell, you can always exercise without one. Simply do some squats. These work pretty much the same muscles. Either exercise will help to strengthen your core muscles, which will help balance out muscular problems in your back. Plus, as your muscle groups strengthen, they will burn off calories and excess body fat. The second thing you can do is start eating better. If you’ve got a little (or a lot) of extra fat, then there is probably a good chance that your diet isn’t the best it could be. But did you know that those foods that are helping you pack on the pounds may also be causing inflammation, which contributes to back problems? Foods like red meat, cakes, muffins, pastries, junk food, and fast food are rich in saturated fats, trans fats, and have a high glycemic index. This isn’t good for your waistline or for inflammation. On the other side of things, foods like blueberries, walnuts, salmon, cod, and other fruits are a great staple to any diet, plus they are full of Omega 3 acids and antioxidants, which will help to reduce inflammation and ease back pain. So make sure you make smarter food choices in your diet. The third thing you can do is to drink more water. Maybe you’ve heard that water can help to replenish the fluids in the discs in your spine to help them stay plump and able to absorb shocks and prevent pressure on our nerves. But water also helps your liver function better. Since your liver helps you metabolize fat and burn calories, you definitely want to make sure that you’re getting enough water. Not only that, but water will keep your stomach full and help to keep you from feeling hungry throughout the day and overeating at meals. So, you see you can actually lose weight and help to combat back pain simultaneously. Just remember to get some good exercise to strengthen muscles burn calories, and fat, start eating good foods that are nutritious and reduce inflammation, and drink water to improve spine health and help our liver function at its best. The bathroom scale and your back with thank you.