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Comment by rsync | Hacker News Reader

I agree wholeheartedly with this and I practice it myself - and have my entire life.

However, if your only goal is to remove (or prevent) back pain, there is an even simpler recipe: walking.

Your body is built to walk. Literally. You are a walking machine. Walking will put your body back into order. Posture, circulation, digestion, metabolism (modestly) ... every function of your body was built to respond to the activity you are built to do: walk.

Nothing to learn, no fees to pay, no equipment to buy. Just walk. Bonus: it's mentally stimulating, interesting, and relaxing. Your mind will respond to it just like your spinal column does.

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> You are a walking machine. Walking will put your body back into order.

If you've got bad posture, and you don't work to correct it, more walking will more likely exacerbate the problem than magically fix it. Some people will intuitively figure out the right responses to pain feedback to correct some problems, particularly the easier-to-correct ones, on their own.

Better, though, to work with a trainer (either one-on-one or in any of the many fitness walking training programs you should be able to find) and get direct feedback while walking to correct the issues more quickly.

What worked for me was ballroom dance first (with both group classes and private lessons), then adding fitness walking and weight training, but that wasn't a deliberate strategy aimed at back pain, and certainly isn't likely to be a cost-effective strategy if dealing with back pain is the only goal.

Hasn't worked for me. I walk and jog 5-10 miles per week, and I use a standing desk. Doesn't do shit for my back as far as I can tell.

To keep my back healthy I must lift. I watch Kelly Starrett's podcasts and do what he says, but with a quarter of the weight. I ain't no lifter, but the light stuff keeps me pretty spry. Shoulders down and back!

Well, again - I can't argue with lifting, since it is a large part of my life and I am glad you have found success with it.

However, 5-10 miles per week is about the same as nothing in terms of the walking that the human body is designed to do. You can walk about four miles in one hour, and if it's part of your daily routine you'd be doing 20-30 miles per week - even if you skipped a day or two.

I encourage you to try it. Worst case is you get out and see a lot of things and have some nice active meditation for a week or so.

As a side (and anecdotal) note, you still can have bad form while walking due to previous injuries or bad posture. So if you experience lower back pain while walking (as I have in the past) check some videos on good walking technique on youtube or consult with an expert.

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