How can riders reduce back pain
A leading surgeon has said that the repetitive nature of riding makes riders prone to back pain, but core strengthening exercises can help alleviate these issues.
Anthony Ghosh, a consultant neurosurgeon of the spine, spoke to Horse & Hound about the back-related problems he commonly sees in riders, the preventive measures equestrian athletes can take, and the importance of viewing the body as a complete system.
Mr. Ghosh said: "Due to the nature of this sport, where we are dealing with what is called repetitive axial loading — meaning vertical impact forces that are repeatedly applied while the spine is almost in an upright position moving up and down — we see a much higher prevalence of disc disease.
" He added: "But the important thing readers should take away is that we also know from studies that if we scan people who don't have any back pain at all, we find worn-out discs in many of them.
Just because the prevalence of degenerative disc disease is high, it doesn't necessarily mean you have to suffer from back pain.
"Your scan is not something that is going to define you and your quality of life.
In medicine, there is a famous saying: treat the patient, not the test result.
" He added: "In the world of back pain and spinal health, there is a bit of an overemphasis on core muscles; the reason for your back pain is not that you have weak core muscles.
However, strengthening the core muscles can still be a useful tool for reducing back pain.
" He explained that these muscles include those that run up and down the spine, the paraspinal muscles, the abdominal muscles located at the front and sides of the body, as well as the gluteal and hamstring muscles.
Mr. Ghosh said: "If you build a 360-degree muscular belt around the lower back, you have effectively created a natural and suitable support for the spine.
" Mr. Ghosh named the "McGill Big Three" as useful core strengthening exercises that may help prevent back pain.
These exercises include the bird dog, curl-up, and side plank.
He said: "If you have experienced a bout of back pain, I recommend seeing a physiotherapist; there are various types of these exercises that any good physiotherapist will know and can adjust according to your ability.
" Mr. Ghosh also recommended that riders experiencing developing pain, weakness, pain, or numbness in their limbs should definitely be examined by a medical specialist.
He took a holistic view of riders, saying that while core exercises are important, individuals should not "focus too much solely on the back."
He said: "As part of your daily or weekly routine, you should have resistance exercises throughout the body; like any other type of exercise, all of these are part of a larger system.
" "We've gone from scores of 6.5 and 7 to 8 and 9" Phillipa Hendry visited an osteopath in February after injuring her back while lifting wet hay nets.
Ms. Hendry, 61, who became the champion of the Luhmühlen BE100 grassroots competition at Badminton with Flyer de Coup in May, was told that her muscles were spasming due to lifting heavy loads; but she also has an old injury and the lower part of her back is "completely locked."
She concluded that her initial injury must have been caused by a rotational fall in her twenties.
This injury did not cause her pain, but she was consistently faced with comments like this in dressage judging sheets: "Good horse, good movements, just needed to show more suppleness through his back to score higher."
Ms. Hendry thought to herself that perhaps these two issues were related.
She asked her osteopath to give her exercises; exercises she committed to doing regularly, and said the difference in the way "Fly" moves is "night and day," especially in the free walk.
She said: "Our scores have gone from 6.5 and 7 to 8 and 9.
It's not just about him, but the scores of my other horse have also gone up significantly."
She added: "I'm just really sorry for my horses that I couldn't realize this years ago.
Now that I feel the difference in the horses, I tell myself that all those years must have felt the same way."
Source: Horse & Hound