Having good mobility and strong core muscles can greatly enhance the quality of our daily lives and our ability to carry out everyday tasks. However, in some cases, when muscles of the back are exposed to stress, they can become injured and lead to a number of symptoms.
Force applied by muscles produces stress on them. Here, stress is referred to as a force or load that is applied to a body, segment, or muscle. Stress may be either positive or negative and can occur as compression, distraction, shear, torsional, bending, twisting, or any combination.
Muscle and its surrounding connective tissue possess mechanical and physical properties that provide resistance to stresses.
When a muscle and its connective tissue resist these stresses, but are unable to withstand the force, injury occurs. This can lead to pain and limit our range of movement.
In this article we will be addressing the factors that can lead to muscle problems in the back, as well as what you can do to improve flexibility, strength and stability, build muscle and regain your full range of motion.
What factors influence the occurrence of injury and back pain due to muscle issues?
Viscosity
It is the resistance to an external force that cause a permanent deformation. It is a term that is usually applied to fluids. Human tissues also have some viscosity. Clinicians use the fact that elevating temperature reduces viscosity by applying heat to tissue before stretching it.
Lowering tissue temperature, on the other hand, increases the tissue’s viscosity. If you have ever been outside without gloves or mittens on a cold day, you know this already because you may recall how stiff your fingers and hands were when you first entered a warm building.
Extensibility and elasticity are closely related.
Extensibility is the ability to stretch, elongate or expand.
Elasticity is the ability to succumb to an elongating force and then return to normal length when the force is released. The more elasticity a tissue possesses, the more extensibility it will be able to demonstrate.
Viscosity and extensibility are inversely proportional in terms of tissue strength. Muscle and connective tissue have both properties of viscosity and elasticity and are referred to viscoelasticity.
Stressed Back, Strain and Creep
Stress is a force or load that the body or its parts resists. How well those structures are able to resist a stress is dependent upon its ability to deform. This is the strain of a structure, the amount of deformation it is able to tolerate before it succumbs to the stress. Stress and strain vary from one structure to another and from one type of tissue to another.
Creep is the elongation of tissue from the application of low-level load over time. We experience creep on a daily basis. If you measure your height in the morning and then again in the evening, you will discover that you are taller in the morning. The long-term effect of gravity in our tissues causes the height difference by the end of the day.
Back Muscle Strength
Among many definitions of strength are the state of being strong, the capacity of a muscle to produce force and the ability of a muscle to generate active tension. How well the lower back muscles are able to produce force depends upon a number of factors. These factors influence muscles performance, which depends on:
- The muscle size and length
- Speed of muscle contraction
- Age and gender
Speed of Muscle Contraction
The rate of muscle shortening or lengthening substantially affects the force a muscle can develop during the activation. As the speed of the contraction becomes slower, the muscle’s force development increases. When there is no motion, there is a maximum contraction which is also known as zero-velocity contraction.
Age and Gender
Males are generally stronger than females. In both genders, however, muscle strength increases from birth through adolescence, peaking between the ages of 20 and 30 years, and gradually declining after 30 years of age. The greater strength of males
It appears to be related primarily to the greater muscle mass we develop after puberty.
Although muscle strength is related to age and gender in the population as a whole, many exceptions to the general rule can be found because of the following two factors:
- The large variation in the rate at which biological maturation occurs.
- The large variation in individual genetics and specific conditioning levels which are acquired and maintained through proper diet and exercises.
How to address muscle injuries and pain along the spine?
The first step is to allow the affected muscles to rest and heal. A combination of home remedies such as hot or cold fomentation can be employed to speed up recovery.
Other approaches, such as strength training or working with a physical therapist to focus on improving your mobility can also be beneficial. This includes performing exercises such as dynamic stretches, static stretching, strengthening your back, core and abdominal muscles, as well as mobility training (which can help your joints to move easier if they have become stiff).
However, an even better approach is to engage in spinal decompression therapy, preferably while using an orthopaedic spinal decompression device.
Backrack Spinal Decompression Technology for Back Pain Relief
Author: Spinal Backrack
