Most of us have experienced back pain at some point. It’s one of the most common frustrations clients share at my fitness studio, MOVE Wellness. Back pain – like many things – is unique to your own body and should always be evaluated by your physician to rule out any more serious issues.

Quite often however, unraveling why it is happening is the key to resolving acute pain as well as ensuring it doesn’t recur. Movement can be part of the solution.

Genetic vs. Cultural Posture

We have unique and miraculous bodies. Back pain, once you have ruled out other issues, can be diminished once you understand your own body and the elements that play a role in causing the pain. But while you try to figure those elements out, it can also be frustratingly mysterious.

I have had to do this for myself, and the path was not a direct one. First, I had to work to understand why my back hurt. For me, it was because my pelvic bones had shifted and were pulling on my low back.

Then I had to figure out what I was doing to cause the pain. Over time I learned that I was putting additional torque on my pelvis by continuing to pull it in the direction it had already moved. I’m oversimplifying a bit but often, back pain is a perfect storm of forces influenced by a variety of factors.

Here are two factors that are particularly helpful to consider as you play detective with your unique situation.

Genetic Posture

I got it from my mama! Or dad, or grandma… you get the idea. Our genetic posture is formed in us from our parents. It is our basic body structure and includes any issues we might inherit. It can be things like leg length difference, scoliosis or long toes. It’s not good or bad. It is just the way we’re made and important to understand as part of the big picture of how the forces of movement transfer through our body.

Cultural Posture

What do you do all day? Your lifestyle is your cultural posture and has two elements of its own. What you have to do, and what you love to do. These are the forces applied to your body (or lack thereof if you sit or stand still for long periods) based on what you’re doing with your time.

Do you sit at a desk? Are you on your feet all day? Maybe you love to go for a run after work. Or maybe you work a lot in your garden. However this shows up in your life, think about the impact of these activities on your spine and body.

Understanding the influences on your body can help you balance it out. The goal is to achieve balanced mobility through the whole body and keep all the tissues of the body stimulated and moving the best they can in your unique body. That will keep ease in movement and all of the systems healthy.

Everything Is Connected to Everything Else

Our amazing bodies are a collection of systems that have to work together. They are all important. Our musculoskeletal system is made up of bones and muscles and quite often we focus on this a lot. There is also an interconnected system made up of tissue called fascia that is interwoven in and around our muscles, organs and bones.

It’s so much more complicated than simply muscles moving bones. What you do (or don’t do) all day informs the communication of the system.

Back pain can sometimes be a symptom of the place in the system where the communication isn’t happening. Or a place that is strained because of tension coming from somewhere else in the body. When pain flares, our instincts can lead us to try stretching that one area or worse, to stop moving altogether.

But movement is typically a key part of the solution. ​​

Depending on the cause of the pain, certain movements can help relieve back pain. In many cases, the right movement program can make pain a much less frequent concern. Taking time to notice the ways your systems interact with your posture can inform your choices and how to care for your body.

Restoring Balance in the Body

First and foremost, if you have pain, please seek support from a medical professional and only exercise with their clearance. I’m not a doctor and this is not medical advice. As a Pilates instructor and movement professional with 25 years of experience, I have some useful concepts and practical suggestions to share with you.

But they should always be pursued with permission from your own doctor. There is no one simple fix, but here are some basic movements to help you move more and feel better.

Move Your Spine in All Planes of Motion

Moving your spine in all of the planes of motion regularly at a pace that is comfortable for your unique body can be part of the solution. Usually this feels wonderful. Choosing exercises in all planes of motion help us maintain balance in our body. All planes of motion include exercises that bring your spine into length and:

• Extension – This looks and feels like arching your back, especially your upper back.
• Flexion – The opposite of extension – when your spine curves forward.
• Side Bend or Lateral Flexion – When you tilt your head toward your shoulder and bend your body sideways.
• Rotation or Spiral – Your shoulders and upper body turn one direction while your hips and lower body head the other way to create a gentle twist through your spine.

Practice Mindful Breathing

Breathing well can help a lot. By learning diaphragmatic breathing you can organically organize the musculature of your trunk (i.e., your core). As an added benefit, this mindful breathing practice can also release tension, calm the nervous system and help you feel energized.

Visit a Specialist

If you are moving your body and have areas of your spine that actively hurt, in addition to getting help moving your body in a balanced way, getting support from a manual therapist will help you understand and treat the symptoms of your pain.

Movement support and manual therapy go hand in hand. Ligaments can remodel (mine did) but you need the movement expertise to help strengthen your body. Support in both areas is key so if possible, find a trainer who understands back pain who can work with you in person or online.

Build Strength

Finally, do your exercises. I like to call them Movement Vitamins. If you have a home exercise program from a medical professional, doing it every day should be like brushing your teeth or taking your vitamins. This is the best way to build the stability and balance to your system to ensure that pain doesn’t recur. Here are a few favorites we like to share with clients at our studio.

Cat Stretch

Begin kneeling on all fours. Your arms should be underneath your shoulders and knees directly underneath the hips, slightly apart. Feel your spine reaching long from tail to head. Inhale to grow longer and find length through the spine. As you exhale, use your abdominals to round your spine like a Halloween cat.

Start from your tailbone and leave the head for last. Hold this c-curve position while you inhale to breathe into the sides of your ribcage rounding further. Finish with an exhale and beginning with the tail end of the spine extend one vertebra at a time until you return to your starting position. Repeat 6-8 times.

Spinal Rotation

Begin kneeling with hands under shoulders and knees under hips. Your spine should be in a neutral position and feel as though it’s reaching long from tail to head. Your shoulder blades are stable against your rib cage.

Take an inhale and extend one arm out to the side. As you exhale, lead with your fingertips to thread your arm under your body. On your next inhale, return your arm out to the side. Exhale to open your chest and allow your spine to rotate as you then reach your arm to the ceiling. Inhale to return to your starting position and repeat with your other arm. Repeat 4 times on each side.

Hip Rolls

Start lying on your back with your knees bent and feet hip distance apart. Your arms are by your sides. Take a deep breath into the sides of your rib cage and feel yourself grow long through your spine. As you exhale, recruit your abdominals into an imprinted position by feeling your hip bones and ribs pull closer together and there is little or no gap between your spine and the floor.

Once imprinted, articulate your spine starting from the tail to roll up into a bridge position where wide shoulders support your weight. Your hip joints are extended, and your knees should feel they are energetically reaching long over your toes.

Take an inhale to stay here at the top, then roll down as you exhale to return to your starting position. Imagine your sit bones reaching toward your heels as you articulate down through your spine. Repeat 8 times.

Do More of What You Love

Unraveling back pain is like being a detective for yourself. The trick is to think about your unique genetic and cultural postures and bring balanced movement into the body all day long. There are so many systems working together to keep us moving and pain free. Noticing and understanding the systems will inform your choices and help you care for your body.

Moving your body in a conscious and enjoyable way is part of the process. Train for your unique life. Move your spine in all planes of motion. Breathe well. Bring movement to all the joints of the body and build up enough strength to do the things that you love.

You can start now. Enjoy a free trial of livestream classes with MOVE Wellness.

How often do you experience back pain? Do you know what causes it? Is it cultural or genetic posture that affects your spinal movement? What do you do to ease back pain?

After a successful keynote speech we had co-presented, my friend Susan and I celebrated over a couple of cold beers. Maybe it was the beer, or the relief I felt after delivering our presentation, but I blurted out something I hadn’t intended to confess.

“Susan, I visited a plastic surgeon last winter. I was thinking about getting a neck lift.”

Susan, who is more than a decade younger than I am, dropped her jaw and registered a surprised look. “Why would you want to do that?”

“Well, the duct tape I had discretely used didn’t work. It kept popping off when I talked.”

Insecurity, Ageism or Both?

At the community college where I teach, I had watched my peers retire over the years. Younger faculty replaced those who left. Then there came a point where I was the oldest female educator on campus.

Like so many women in their 60s and beyond, I felt younger than I looked. At the same time, I became more sensitive to subtle slights, like when some colleagues would talk over me at a meeting or ignore my contributions to conversations.

Was I just dealing with my own insecurity, was it ageism, or was it a combination of both?

I told myself it was time to embrace my new status and live it to the fullest. All of that sounded great until I was invited to be a TEDx speaker. At first, I was thrilled – then I panicked. The thought of exposing my sagging neck in front of a camera, for the world to see, was horrifying. That’s when I decided to see a plastic surgeon.

Before visiting the surgeon’s office, I realized that within a few months, I could celebrate a “new and improved” me thanks to the wonders of a surgical makeover. Or, I could start celebrating a “new and improved” me by embracing life beyond middle age. At the time, both options scared me.

Option One: Plastic Surgery?

As one of my psychologist friends likes to say, “Perception is reality.” Because many of us may feel younger than we look, why not look like we actually feel?

If I had crooked teeth that affected my appearance, I would certainly get braces. If I had a scar that affected my appearance, wouldn’t it be normal to have it corrected? How then was plastic surgery for aging skin any different?

I met with the plastic surgeon. His reputation was excellent. He looked at my neck, and then suggested I also consider an eyebrow lift if I wanted to look my best. I had done my research, so I wasn’t completely shocked when I was told the cost for having just the neck surgery would be around $7,000.

For the next couple of weeks, I contemplated a neck lift. I told myself looking younger could be a prudent investment since I was starting to plan my post retirement life as a self-employed speaker and workshop facilitator.

But then I wondered if there would ever be an end to the nips, tucks and possible butt lift I might need to manage my image.

Why did I feel the need to cling to an image that no longer represented who I really was? Wasn’t it time for me to start embracing my new best life?

Option Two: Embracing a Different Role?

David Borchard, author of The Joy of Retirement: Finding Happiness, Freedom, and the Life You’ve Always Wanted (2008), says that one of the difficulties many of us face when trying to embrace our next life chapter is that it takes a lot of work. That work includes letting go, picturing our next life and developing new behaviors.

I was already working on letting go of my middle years when I first read Borchard’s book. I then began picturing what my next life could look like. I had also discovered Sixty and Me and was starting to learn from other women about all the possibilities that were ahead. As I began to plan, I started getting excited about all that was yet to be.

A couple of months after visiting the plastic surgeon, I overheard one of my “20-something” students talking about “those elderly people who are so slow they shouldn’t have driver’s licenses.” Then the student realized I had heard him. He looked at me and said, “Oh sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you.”

I looked directly at my student and said, “I’m not an elderly woman. I’m a wise elder woman, and there is a big difference.”

Life After 60 is a Time for Celebration

The more I claimed my new identity as a wise elder woman, the more others responded to me with a new-found respect. By the end of spring term, students who came to my office for advice started telling me that they’d heard I was wise, and any “wisdom” I could share would be valued.

As I began months of preparation for my TEDx talk, I made a deliberate choice to embrace my new status as an elder. As I stood in front of the cameras with my sagging neck in view, I challenged everyone who would see my message to live their best lives at any age.

Could living our best life at any age include plastic surgery? I’m still undecided. What do you think? Please share your thoughts below!

When Dyson rolled out its hair straightener in March 2020, it quickly sold out—and for good reason. It took seven years, 600 hours of user trails and 800 heads of hair, for the company to come up with a flatiron that promises to reduce thermal damage to strands by 50 percent. Now’s your chance to try it during this one-day Dyson Corrale Multi-Styler Cordless Straightener sale. Dyson hair tools almost never go on sale — and especially not at a $90 savings.

Before we get to the deal, here’s how it works. Patented “flexing plates” made from manganese copper alloy flex and adapt to your hair. No more smashing your hair in an iron! Plus, intelligent heat control regulates the temperature of the plates.

“Flat hair irons apply tension and heat only on the thickest part of the hair tress, the strands at the edges are not clamped, leaving them slack, unheated and leaving flyaways,” said Founder and Chief Engineer James Dyson in a statement. “It requires multiple passes on the same section of hair tress to give an even look, by which time excess heat may have caused reduced strength and less gloss.” All those annoying issues are gone with the Dyson Corrale.

More than a year after its launch, there are now three colorways to choose from. The fun purple hue is exclusive to QVC and yes, is part of the sale!

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. QVC is a STYLECASTER sponsor, however, all products in this article were independently selected by our editors. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale.

QVC.

QVC.

QVC.

As you can see, you get way more than just the straightener in this QVC value set. You get the Corrale straightener with lithium-ion battery, charging dock, magnetic 360-degree charging cable, heat-resistant pouch and Dyson paddle brush. If you purchased all of these separately, the retail would be $539.98. Today only, it’s on sale for $449.99.

The paddle brush is great for detangling and really smoothing out your strands. You can also use the Corrale to create cool-girl beach waves with ease. There’s no way this deal is going to last so head over to QVC to grab yours now.

Kyle Richards’ Brown Plaid Shirt on Instastories

Real Housewives of Beverly Hills 2021 Instagram Fashion

Seeing Kyle Richards’ brown plaid shirt on Instastories has me feeling some type of way. That way is realllly excited for fall. Though I am said to see summer go I have to say fall fashion is one of my favorites. I am so ready to kiss my tank tops goodbye and give a big hello to my flannels. Starting with a Style Stealer of this shirt .

Sincerely Stylish,

Jess

Click Here to Shop Her Polo Ralph Lauren Plaid Shirt

Photo Credit: @kylerichards18

Originally posted at: Kyle Richards’ Brown Plaid Shirt

Cameran Eubanks’ Blue Printed Romper on Instastories

Southern Charm 2021 Instagram Fashion

I have been loving seeing everybody’s Labor Day celebrations. And of course the outfits they wore while doing so. Like Cameran Eubanks’ blue printed romper she wore for her day out on the boat with her fam. It looked like a beautiful day yesterday for them to set sail on the water. Just like it’s a beautiful day today for a Style Stealer of Cameran’s romper to set sail to our closets.

Click Here to Shop Her Poupette St. Barth Romper

Click Here to Shop Additional Stock

Photo + ID Credit: @camwimberly1

Originally posted at: Cameran Eubanks’ Blue Printed Romper