Splash Your Way To A Healthy Back

Let's face facts: back pain is one of the most unfortunate and uncomfortable side effects of growing older. Sarcopenia - the loss of muscle mass - is most commonly found in the more mature body, but can also be seen in overweight or obese individuals.

As a solution to these painful niggles, there has been an increase in individuals turning to aqua exercise as a solution. Aqua therapy consists of bespoke programs that are tailored to stretch and strengthen the back.

Many conventional exercise approaches try and create the perfect marriage of controlling weight, improving strength, and increasing flexibility with the intention of treating back pain. When these land-based exercise workouts are carried out in the water, studies show they help improve function and strength, and as a result, back health is improved.

The buoyancy and resistance of the water create the perfect environment in which one can moderately exercise without feeling excessive pain. Participants can enjoy a thorough workout thanks to the resistance training provided by the water. The surroundings alleviate the pressure from the tender joints; which is especially crucial for the older generation whose bodies would find the same movement stressful to their bodies if carried out on the hard ground.

While there is no significant evidence that aquatic training dramatically improves body composition, it has been proven - by monitoring specific obesity variables such as BMI or PBF - that the exercise does help shift weight and enhance trunk muscle mass. In layman's terms, aquatic workouts are not the route to a six pack but are a no-brainer if you are looking for a gentle solution to general weight loss and improving muscle flexibility to redevelop the muscles in your back.

When you think of aqua exercise, is this the image you see?

Aqua training is one of the most commonly misunderstood and underappreciated workouts. If the image above portrays the workout that you are looking for, there are excellent classes available. However, aqua training specifically designed to help improve your back health is considerably different; there's a lot more to it than dancing around in the pool to some well-loved pop classics.

So what can you expect from your workout?

To give you an example of what you could expect, we dissected the core elements of a 12-week program used in a study to monitor the pros and cons of aqua training. This particular program was designed for gentlemen aged 65, based on exercising three days a week for the entirety of the three month period. Each session lasted one hour with 10 minutes each for warming up and cooling down. 

The main bulk of activity time consisted of a combination of cardiovascular workouts such as walking, jogging, or water cycling followed by typical gym circuits. Movements such as the chest or shoulder press, calf raises, squats etc. Workouts that for those with painful backs could not even fathom on the hard ground. Thanks to the buoyancy of the surrounding water, aqua training makes these activities easily accessible. Often water polo or aqua basketball can make for jolly good fun at the same time of having a full body workout.

If you have a bad back and would like to explore non-operative methods to solve your back or neck pain why don't you consult with Mr George Ampat? Give a call on 0161 4852476 or 0151 2275800 to book an appointment. Mr Ampat sees patients at Southport, Liverpool, Manchester, and London.