Managing Mid Back Pain for Crafters: Part 2
How to Address and Prevent
In Part 1 of this series, we defined what the mid back is, and discussed common factors of mid back pain, including what crafting postures can contribute. In this article, we will discuss how you can address and prevent mid back pain in your crafting life, and go over exercises you can apply to stop hunching over your work.
Ways to Address and Prevent Mid Back Pain:
Improve Posture
Strengthen
Stretch
Mobilize
Use Back Support
Improve Posture and Awareness
The first step to improving posture is improving your physical self awareness. In Part 1 of the Neck and Shoulder Tension series, we talked about the raindrop cue for improving upper back posture and alignment. Imagine that you are trying to catch a raindrop in the divot of your collarbone. This imagery will help you lift your sternum up towards the sky, which then allows your shoulders to naturally fall back. I’ve illustrated it in video format below.
The more often you can check in with your body and what position it is in, the more awareness you will build. One way to increase your ability to check in with your posture is to set a timer every hour, or to take a look at what your body looks like when you’re doing everyday things, like washing the dishes, brushing your teeth, sitting and watching TV. Especially when it comes to activities of daily living, our bodies default to a habitual posture, and breaking that habit in those activities can go a long way to improving your overall posture and health.
Strengthen
Strengthening the muscles that support your thoracic spine and rib cage is an excellent way to prevent mid back pain, as well as improve posture. These muscles include, but are not limited to, the thoracic paraspinals, rhomboids, middle trapezius, lower trapezius, and serratus anterior. I’m highlighting two upper back strengthening exercises that I recommend for beginners.
Wall angels: This exercise is my all time favorite for both strengthening the upper back, while stretching the front of the chest. Stand with your back against the wall and raise your arms like you are making a snow angel. The goal is to have the back of your arm in complete contact with the wall also - this is very difficult! Don’t be discouraged if you have difficulty or if it is uncomfortable. Keeping your arms against the wall, slide them up and down like you are making a snow angel, making sure to squeeze the shoulder blades down when you bring the elbows down. The more you do this exercise over time, the easier and more comfortable it will get, especially for the front of your chest!
Scapular squeezes: Sitting or standing tall, bend your elbows to 90 degrees and keep them at your side. Row your elbows back, pinching your shoulder blades together and down. Make sure that your elbows and forearms stay close at your side, and aren’t flapping out. For a bonus, externally rotate your shoulders at the end of the row, while keeping your shoulder blades pinched together.
I recommend starting with 3 sets of 10 repetitions for each exercise daily.
Stretch
With hunched over posture (also known as increased kyphosis), the front of the chest becomes tight due to the shoulders rounding forward. Tightness in the chest muscles will restrict your ability to open up your chest and bring your shoulders back in place, as the chest muscles attach to the humerus (or upper arm bone). Long-term tightness can also inhibit your ability to expand your ribcage and take a deep breath, which is important for stress relief and calming down the nervous system.
The main muscle I recommend stretching to open up the chest is the pectoralis muscle. The pecs originate at the sternum and attach to the humerus, which is the upper arm bone. If the pecs are too tight, they draw the shoulders forward which causes the thoracic spine to round. To stretch, there are two main options. The first way is to lay on a foam roller with the roller on the length of your spine, and then allow your arms to fall out to the side. Moving the arms closer or further away from your head will stretch different muscle fibers of the pecs, since the pecs are a fan shaped muscle. If you don’t have a foam roller, another way is to stand in a doorway with your forearm up along the frame of the door. Gently press your chest forward through the doorway to feel the stretch through the front of your chest. Make sure that your low back is not arching. Again, sliding your forearm further up or down the doorway frame will stretch different muscle fibers.
I recommend trying to hold the stretch for 30 seconds; however, it is not uncommon for the arm to fall asleep or go numb during the stretch, so you can shorten the time to your comfort level.
Mobility
In Part 1, we covered how stiffness occurs in the thoracic spine, and how stiffness in one segment of the spinal column will result in the segments above and below becoming hypermobile. The primary motion of the thoracic spine is rotation and sidebending. It is important to build intentional thoracic movement into your daily routine to maintain the mobility the thoracic spine needs. I have found that since adding in thoracic rotation and sidebending into my daily stretches, a majority of my mid back pain has disappeared. Like mentioned before, the joints in our bodies crave movement, especially the movement they were designed for!
Here are 2 exercises for thoracic mobility: sprinklers and rainbow elbows.
Rainbow elbows: Stand tall, with your hands behind your head and elbows out to the side. Pretend you are drawing an arc with your elbow, and lean over to one side and then to the other. Before leaning, imagine someone is lifting your ribcage up - this will help lengthen the thoracic spine even more. Make sure to keep your hips still.
Sprinklers: Stand tall, with your hands behind your head and elbows out to the side. Imagine someone is lifting your ribcage up, then slowly twist to one side. Make sure your hips stay still and the movement is coming from your mid back.
I recommend starting with 10 reps to each side, and performing these exercises after you have been sitting for more than an hour.
Another way to improve thoracic mobility is to reverse the increased kyphosis that can happen from poor posture. The half foam roller in my shop was designed for this function specifically. Spending 5-10 minutes lying down on the half foam roller will help reverse any hunched posture and is a great way to unwind from your day. The half moon shape ensures that your body is lifted up from the floor enough, but not so much that you are in great discomfort. The half foam roller also comes with a bonus thoracic mobility video too!
Use Back Support
If you find that you have difficulty maintaining healthy mid back posture when you sit, make sure you have appropriate back support. That often means sitting in a high-backed chair or couch, or a seat that has head support also. The more you can avoid leaning forward, the better you can avoid the classic hunched over position. For me, that often means making sure I can lean back slightly.
If you are in the market for a new ergonomic desk chair, the Hinomi H1 Pro V2 has significantly elevated my ability to work at my computer and knit/crochet/spin with less pain. The 3D lumbar support and adjustable headrest help me to keep my spine aligned and avoid hunching forward. If interested, check it out through my affiliate link here. (Note: chair was gifted but my opinions are my own).
Let’s Bring It Together:
In this second part of our series on mid back pain, we've explored practical ways to address and prevent discomfort, ensuring you can enjoy your crafting activities pain-free. By focusing on improving posture and self-awareness, strengthening key muscles, incorporating regular stretches and mobility exercises, and using proper back support, you can significantly reduce mid back pain and improve your overall well-being. Remember, the key to long-term relief is consistency and making these practices a part of your daily routine. Happy crafting!
