Why is my back pain worse in the morning?

Back pain in the morning is typical, due to poor sleeping position, not enough movement the previous day or muscular weakness. Watch physical therapist Peggy Brill, explain how her "belly blaster" exercise can help provide stability and reduce pain.

Transcript

00:00

And that's a great way to wake up your abdominals and say, OK, they're going to stabilize me when I go to get out of bed. [MELLOW ELECTRONIC MUSIC]

00:15

Well, a lot of people end up getting back pain in the morning. It's one of the hallmarks to start to see degenerative changes in the spine.

00:21

It can come from being in just one position for long periods of time at night. It could be come from the day before that you were sitting

00:28

for long hours at a computer or just not getting enough movement. And it also comes from muscular weakness that doesn't allow stability for the spine to stay stable.

00:36

The Belly Blaster is a great way to start to create an isometric contraction for your abdominal muscles before even getting out

00:43

of bed in the morning. You will lie on the bed with your knees bent, feet on the bed, and you'll start off with one leg,

00:51

bringing it in towards your chest, and taking the other arm and press-- the opposite arm-- and pressing against the knee.

00:57

And that creates that isometric contraction of your abdominals where there's no movement in your spine. You'll hold it about 6 seconds, and then you switch and do

01:04

the other side, the right leg with the left arm resisting it. So it's across your body. Hold that for 6 seconds.

01:10

And then you do both legs at the same time, pressing one hand on the same leg of each side,

01:17

holding that for 6 seconds. And that's a great way to wake up your abdominals and say, OK, they're going to stabilize me when I go to get out of bed.

01:24

[WHOOSHING] [HEART BEAT THUMPS] [BEEPS]