Chiropractic for Back Pain: Movement Is Key

Chiropractic for Back Pain: Movement Is Key

Last year, my youngest daughter Samantha had a performance at her school. She did an amazing routine, and we were all so proud of her. But about 30 minutes after the performance, I got a call from her saying she had been fooling around, doing some silly jumps, and ended up rolling her ankle and hurting her elbow. We rushed to the hospital and discovered she had fractured her elbow. After about six weeks in a brace, I was struck by how visibly weak and atrophied the muscles around her elbow had become. This happens anytime we immobilize a part of our body, and it’s a powerful reminder of what happens to our joints and muscles when they don’t move. Just like Samantha’s elbow, when we stop moving parts of our spine, the tissues weaken, leading to injury.

Functional Range Conditioning (FRC) and Joint Health

I often emphasize to my patients that movement is medicine. That’s why at Naturally Well Chiropractic, we incorporate Functional Range Conditioning (FRC) into our treatment. FRC focuses on improving mobility, flexibility, and joint health by training your body to move safely and effectively within a greater range of motion. The goal is to improve your joints’ ability to move actively and under control, which helps prevent injuries.

Think of it this way: most of the time, injuries don’t occur when we’re doing movements directly in front of us, like reaching for a cup or standing up from a chair. They occur when we’re moving outside of our functional range, such as when we twist awkwardly or reach beyond what our bodies are used to. The problem is that if your nervous system and joints haven’t experienced that range in a controlled way, you don’t have the spatial awareness and control to handle it properly. That’s when injuries happen.

This is why retraining your spinal joints and nervous system to move safely through their full range is critical for long-term back health. The more your joints move through their natural range, the stronger and more resilient the surrounding tissues become. And when you combine chiropractic adjustments, which improve joint mobility, with FRC exercises, you not only heal but also prevent future injuries.



Preventing Back Injuries

At Naturally Well Chiropractic, we don’t just focus on treating the pain after it occurs; we focus on preventing it. By working to improve the movement in your spinal joints and retraining your body to move well, you set yourself up for better long-term health. I like to say that we don’t get injured doing things we’re used to—we get injured doing things outside of our comfort zone. If your body hasn’t been trained to handle a movement, you’re more likely to hurt yourself when it happens unexpectedly.

So, whether you’re an athlete or someone just looking to get out of back pain, maintaining your joint health through chiropractic care and movement practices like FRC is key. Movement is essential not just for healing, but for preventing future problems and keeping your spine strong.

Regards,

Dr. Luke Pocock

Chiropractor