Strength training associated with less pain among back patients

Back pain is an unusually common cause for complaint, which is actually turning into an epidemic according to the latest statistical data. It affects nearly 80 per cent of all adults. 70 per cent of the problems occur in the lower spine area. Nearly two thirds of all costs for those with chronic diseases are used on this area. This amounts to approximately two billion Swiss francs. This makes suffering from pain the most expensive non-fatal medical condition.
Muscle strength training can help A study conducted by the University of Ulm, Germany, researched the effects of muscle training and muscular relaxation training. Patients who had already been suffering from pre-existing chronic back pain for between two and six months were assigned muscle training or relaxation training at random. The muscle training relieved pain in both a statistically and clinically significant manner, while relaxation exercises were less effective (see graphic). Over 80 per cent of the participants in the strength training were free of pain after two to three months. A new measurement of pain taken three months after the therapy ended showed an increase in pain once again.

Regularity is the key to success

Muscular training effectively reduces any back pain, but it must be done repeatedly over a long period of time in order to deliver sustainable pain relief. kybun training comes into play here. The kybun method involves a physiological gait that increases people’s productivity with regular strength and endurance training, without overexerting the entire organism, and can be retained into old age. Strengthening the muscles on the soft, springy kyBounder mat and on the kyTrainer micro-interval treadmill eliminates back pain and prevents it from ever occurring. Why strength training? Weak or contracted muscles cause pain and a lack of mobility, lower productivity and lead to ill health. This training keeps you fit at work and in your free time. It will make everything easier for you. Orthopaedic specialists believe that targeted strength training is one of the most effective means of treating patients suffering from back pain. kybun training also offers solutions with the following positive side effects:
  • Improves your figure, as the muscles turn into active, strong and toned tissue
  • Improves mobility thanks to softly cushioned, upright and actively rotating movements in order to correct contracted muscles
  • Improves posture and physical well-being
  • Increases calorie consumption and breaks down fat

Exercise is not just something for the younger generation

It is possible to successfully treat chronic back pain, even in older people, with a training programme for the body and mind, according to research from the Orthopaedic University Hospital of Heidelberg, Germany. A study showed that around two thirds of patients aged between 50 and 65 were able to return to work after six months. This figure is similar for younger patients suffering from pain. The specialists from Heidelberg assert that the older patients were just as satisfied with their treatment as younger patients. According to the hospital, the study was conducted among 405 men and woman who had been suffering from back pain for at least three months and had already been on sick leave for six weeks. All of the patients took part in an all-day multidisciplinary therapy programme for three weeks. The programme consisted of physiotherapy exercises and back training exercises as well as relaxation exercises, psychotherapy, behavioural therapy and adjustments to the workplace, explained Prof. Dr Marcus Schiltenwolf. Further scientific findings on back pain While strength training has been central in the treatment of back pain in the last century (Hirt 1967, Levertin 1906), a survey of modern treatment methods for back problems over the past 30 years shows that old practices have been scrapped in favour of the passive treatment of symptoms. Out of the many treatments used today, only very few have passed stringent scientific investigation. Despite a significant lack of scientific evidence to support their effectiveness, methods such as bed rest, ultrasound therapy, electrical stimulation, traction, chiropractic adjustment, heat and cold therapy, medication and stretching are used as standard treatments (Polatin 1990). All of these treatments are similar in that they do not require any physiological adjustments due to their passive nature and are therefore unable to treat the underlying root causes, even if they are perfectly suited to relieving acute pain.

Scientific findings from the past ten years suggest that isolated strength exercises for lumbar extension is a particularly effective method for treating chronic back pain (Carpenter 1999). Patients who take part in these kinds of strengthening programmes for the lower back can usually expect significant improvements in strength, endurance and mobility as well as the alleviation of pain and other symptoms.
A study (Goebel, Stephan, Freiwald 2005) conducted over several years lends significant support to this statement. Medical strengthening therapy (MST) helped reduce pain in patients with chronic back problems.

Academic literature on this topic:

Carpenter, D.M., Nelson, B.W.: Low back strengthening for the prevention and treatment of low back pain. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, Volume 31, No. 1: pp. 18-24, 1999.
Goebel S., Stephan A, Freiwald J.: ‘Krafttraining bei chronisch lumbalen Rückenschmerzen. Ergebnisse einer Längsschnittstudie.’ (Strength training for chronic lower back pain. Results of a longitudinal study). In: German Journal of Sports Medicine, Issue 56, No.11, 2005.
Hirt, S.: Historical bases for therapeutic exercise. American Journal of Physiological Medicine 46: pp. 32-38, 1967.
Levertin, A., Heiligenthal, F., Schultz, G.: The Leading Features of Dr. G. Zanderìs Medico-Mechanical Gymnastic Method. Rossel, Schwarz & Co., Wiesbaden, Germany, 1906.
McGill S.: Low back pain disorders. Evidence-based prevention and rehabilitation. Human Kinetics, Champaign, 2002.
Nelson B.W., O’Reilly E., Miller M., Hogan M, Wegner J.A, Kelly C.: the clinical effects of intense, specific exercise on chronic low back pain: a controlled study of 895 consecutive patients with 1-year follow up. Orthopedics 18, pp. 971-981, 1995.
Polatin, P.: The functional restoration approach to chronic low back pain. Journal of Musculosceletal Medicine 7: pp. 17-30, 1990.
Risch P., Norvell N., Pollock M., Risch E., Langer H., Fultun M., J., Legett S.: Lumbar strengthening in chronic low back pain patients. Spine 18, pp. 232-238, 1993. > Back

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