All posts tagged: osteopath

Chronic back pain? Why this osteopath says your ‘office posture’ is ageing you – and the steps to fix it

Chronic back pain? Why this osteopath says your ‘office posture’ is ageing you – and the steps to fix it

Published by Daniella Wilson

Did you know that body pain, premature ageing and weight gain are directly related to poor posture? That’s what personal trainer, osteopath and author Pablo Iglesias wants to make clear.  The expert, who has more than six million followers on Instagram, exudes a passion for helping people resolve chronic pain that’s rooted in personal experience.  After suffering debilitating back and neck pain that left him severely restricted during a pivotal time in his life, he immersed himself in the study of the human body to find a way out.  He tells us all about his belief that movement and good posture are the cornerstones of physical and mental wellbeing – plus his three favourite easy pilates moves for back health – in this helpful Q&A. Do you believe that moving more leads to a longer and, more importantly, better life? “It isn’t necessarily a direct link. In many cases, yes, but exercise doesn’t always guarantee a longer life. We’ve all heard stories about grandparents who never set foot in a gym but lived to a …

My osteopath told me to do this one type of daily movement to strengthen my glutes, loosen my hips and protect my lower back from prolonged sitting

My osteopath told me to do this one type of daily movement to strengthen my glutes, loosen my hips and protect my lower back from prolonged sitting

Published by Jenni Sidey

Face down on my osteopath’s treatment table after a long, sedentary day in the office, I recently asked if anything can be done to offset the harm caused by prolonged sitting. Without hesitation, associate osteopath Andy McIntyre BOst MSc from The Livewell Clinic in London, fired back: “Hip hinge, hip hinge, hip hinge—all day long.” Mastering this simple movement, the kind of pivoting motion involved in bowing forward then returning to an upright position with a flat back, “will undo a lot of the damage caused by sitting,” he tells Fit&Well. You may like “When seated for long stretches, our hip flexors can become very tight as they get used to holding us in that 90˚ posture,” McIntyre explains. “At the same time, our glutes get very long and very weak.” As a consequence, when we need to perform hinging movements, like lifting something off the floor, we can end up using our back too much or, when squatting, straining our knees. Often, McIntyre finds, when people present in his clinic with lower back or …

An osteopath urges everyone to do this one daily stretch to undo the damage caused by prolonged sitting—it only takes three minutes

An osteopath urges everyone to do this one daily stretch to undo the damage caused by prolonged sitting—it only takes three minutes

Published by Jenni Sidey

There is no single remedy that will reverse the damage done by prolonged sitting, says associate osteopath Andy McIntyre BOst MSc from The Livewell Clinic in London. “But there are two areas that, for me, take the biggest brunt from sedentary postures,” he tells Fit&Well. The first one is the hips, which he says can be addressed by practicing gentle hinging movements like good mornings and deadlifts. You may like The other pain point tends to be the “mid thoracic” area. This refers to the middle section of the spine, around the T1 to T12 of the vertebrae between the neck (cervical spine) and lower back (lumbar spine). “We all hunch forward when sat at a desk,” McIntyre explains. “We get kyphotic. Our shoulders drop forward. Our mid and upper back rounds.” To compensate, these vertebrae can stiffen, which further restricts the range of motion for everyday tasks. “Our bodies are very clever. To adapt to this [hunched position] joints stiffen up in our mid-back so we require less energy to hold ourselves there all …

The Full-Body Exercise An Osteopath Says Is Key To Better Ageing

The Full-Body Exercise An Osteopath Says Is Key To Better Ageing

Published by Sam Flores

!function(n){if(!window.cnx){window.cnx={},window.cnx.cmd=[];var t=n.createElement(‘iframe’);t.display=’none’,t.onload=function(){var n=t.contentWindow.document,c=n.createElement(‘script’);c.src=”//cd.connatix.com/connatix.player.js”,c.setAttribute(‘async’,’1′),c.setAttribute(‘type’,’text/javascript’),n.body.appendChild(c)},n.head.appendChild(t)}}(document);(new Image()).src=”https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=8b034f64-513c-4987-b16f-42d6008f7feb”;cnx.cmd.push(function(){cnx({“playerId”:”8b034f64-513c-4987-b16f-42d6008f7feb”,”mediaId”:”8cd7f03f-e321-49d9-aefe-89c04246ef63″}).render(“69709f7de4b084d70182df5e”);}); Sarcopenia, or age-related muscle loss, can start earlier than you might think. It may begin as early as your 30s, and has been linked to a lower quality of life and even an increased dementia risk.  But it can be significantly helped with resistance exercise, like strength training.  And Fatema Contractor, consultant osteopath and director at The Health Suite in Leicester, said that we don’t need to wait until we’ve lost muscle to start.  “Many of us sit at office desks all day and slump on soft sofas at night, and wonder why our backs, hips and knees ache.  “It’s really important, especially as we get older, that we incorporate simple movements into our daily routines to keep us mobile and flexible and improve our strength,” she added.  For her, “the deep squat is one of the best for full-body benefits”.  What is a deep squat?  A deep squat is a full-range squat, which means your hips sink below your knees. To do it, the Health Suite shared, place your feet flat on …

An osteopath says this is the one thing he wished more people knew so his treatment table wasn’t so busy in January

An osteopath says this is the one thing he wished more people knew so his treatment table wasn’t so busy in January

Published by Jenni Sidey

Andy McIntyre (BOst, MSc) says his clinic is always fully booked in January. The associate osteopath from The Livewell Clinic in London says the reason injuries tend to always flare up at the start of the year is simple. “Unless it’s a long-term injury, people become injured because they’ve done too much too soon after having done too little for too long,” he tells Fit&Well. You may like Going from zero to 100—or very little movement in December to suddenly running a 5K every few days in January—is a recipe for inflammation and injury. The most common ailments tend to relate to overuse: runner’s knee, plantar fasciitis, shin splints and lower-back pain. Instead, McIntyre (who happens to be treating my lower-back pain from an overuse strain suffered last summer) emphasizes the need to build up gradually with any new activity you’re undertaking. If running 5K is your target, start with run-walk intervals, he says. Alternate running 30 or 60 seconds with one or two minutes of walking. Start your week with achievable workout ideas, health …

The best mattress for back pain, recommended by an osteopath

The best mattress for back pain, recommended by an osteopath

Published by Sam Flores

Back pain is an all-too-common affliction. Its causes are various, from lifting heavy boxes to sports injuries, with sedentary lifestyle and bad posture often making it worse. Even the best mattress won’t fix a medical problem and the wrong one could exacerbate the issue. “Typically, inflammatory pain is worse in the morning,” says Dave Gibson, osteopath, sleep coach and founder of The Sleep Site. “As we lie, our heart rate slows down, circulation slows and any inflammation stays pooled in that area. Sleep position is key. To avoid back pain, you should sleep with your spine in alignment.” Here we share the mattresses designed to provide spinal support and pressure relief, while our best mattress guide covers a wider selection. The best mattress for back pain: At a glance JUMP TO REVIEWS How to choose the best mattress for back pain According to Gibson, some mattresses are better for managing back pain than others. “The main thing is to get roughly medium-firm support, which is best for lower back pain sufferers because it keeps the …