Low Back Pain Relief Made Easy
- 2 hours ago
- 7 min read
This article is a transcribed, edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in November 2024. For the original video, go to https://youtu.be/6S6bux_wkvE
Brad: Oh, oh, my back. These muscles are tight, really deep, and boy, is it sore. Oh. If you've got sore back pain or low back pain that's deep like that, you need something deep that's going to get into those muscles, loosen them up, and relax them.
Mike: Now, in the therapy world, we have something called ultrasound, which can penetrate deep in there and heat up those tissues. However, they're very expensive, and most people don't have them at home, so we're gonna show you the next best option.
Brad: There you go.
Mike: So, what we are going to be talking about to achieve deep heat within these back muscles is actually infrared heat, right, Brad?
Brad: Well, it's actually far infrared. Now, if you take a typical, normal electric heating pad, they do heat up well, and they feel nice and warm. However, they only penetrate skin deep, just a few millimeters. Now, if you take a far infrared heating pad, like the Thermotex Platinum Far Infrared heating pad, they've actually tested this, and it goes how far?
Mike: 2.36 inches.
Brad: Right, now, if we look at Sam, who is going to be very helpful, and you look at the lower back, you can see that these bones are called the...
Mike: Spinous process.
Brad: Thank you, spinous process. The old mind is losing it. But anyway, let's see how much muscle we have, particularly in the lower back. If we measure it, whose camera do we have here? There we go, and we go into there, you can see it's over two inches by the time you have the skin and all the soft tissue there. You need something deep to get into those muscles, to relax them, and get circulation back into those knotted muscles.
Mike: Now, when you're going to use a far infrared heating system, like Thermotex, it's important to put it the right way, first off, and what position you can optimally be in to get the most penetration from that heat.
Brad: That's right. In other words, what are you saying that these are three panels? You have to have this side facing your body. If you do the other side, it will not work. That's just the nature of these devices. So Mike, should we talk about one of the most important things about using a hot pack?
Mike: Yes, when you lie on it or sit on it, you want to get the optimal amount of pressure, so what you can do to make your back feel more comfortable, especially in your pain, is lie down or sit in a chair.
Brad: Right, and not only that, but the amount of support in the right areas of the back, so your back is in a neutral, relaxed position while it's getting this deep heat. All right, let's go and lie down on your bed or the floor first.
Mike: Sure, so what you're going to need is a pillow, obviously, for comfort on your head. Now, our plug-ins are a ways away, so we're not going to plug this one in. I'm going to put it on my lower back where I am feeling the most discomfort, then I'm going to take some pillows and put them underneath my legs.
Mike: What this is going to do is flex the spine a little bit, help it relax. This should feel good for most people. If you feel like one pillow's good, you can do more. If you happen to have a leg wedge of sorts, you can also put a leg wedge under there.
Brad: Typically, more than one pillow is needed for a lot of people, but if you have one of these leg wedges, they're shaped nicely to fit under the legs. This is exactly what they're designed for, and they really work well. I've had extremely good success with patients, including myself. It just does something as far as flexing the hips, relaxes the lower back, and then you've got the hot pack underneath in the right position, Mike?
Mike: I do.
Brad: Good. So here we go.
Mike: So you lie down on it, and then if I had this plugged in, simply press the button, turn it on, and that's all you have to do, and then turn it off.
Brad: Yeah, this is the Platinum model. The nice thing about this is it works really well for large areas like your back, but it also works well for hip, hamstrings, quadriceps, and what am I thinking of?
Mike: Calves?
Brad: Calf, moo. Yeah, and the nice thing about this is it's only one heating level. You just turn it on or turn it off. There are not three levels, and it's a low heat. It does take a little longer to get that deep penetration of over two inches, so you're going to lie there for up to 30 to 40 minutes to get it all nice and warmed up, so just be prepared for that. If you want to do this in a chair, we're going to show you how sitting in a chair is the best position to get the best results.
Mike: Sounds like the best.
Brad: All right, let's talk about sitting in a chair. Now, we have a firm chair here. If you're using a chair like this, I would definitely take a pillow, a regular pillow like this, put it vertically in there, and that's going to give you support, more comfort, and give you that contact area that Mike was talking about, and again, you have to have the panels towards your back. Simply place it behind you and relax back against it.
Brad: I've used this oftentimes in my recliner. Now, my recliner has this nice cushion, which offers really good support. I do not use a pillow there, but you might. If you have a recliner or a soft chair that really is hollowed out and it makes your back round out, that's the last thing you want to do is sit with your back all rounded out with a hot pack on it. Make sure you get a pillow, either a throw pillow or like this, put it in first, then put the hot pack after it so you have good, proper body mechanics or body posture in that low back. Then the nice thing about this is, if it's your lower back, maybe you have tight muscles between the shoulder blades, this works equally as well for that, and we're going to show you a little trick on how it works. All right, now with the Thermotex, it comes with two straps, like these elastic straps. Why don't you turn around? If you want it on your mid-back, again, make sure the panels are towards your back, and you simply strap it on like this, and it'll hold it.
Brad: I know Bob always used this when he was working at the computer with his mid back pain for a while, and then he could unplug it if he needed to walk away while he's working on the computer to get a drink of water or walk the cat or the dog or whatever he's doing there. Anyways, and then come back and plug it in, so it's really handy that way, and let's just finish up. Before you do it, you can easily take this off.
Brad: There we go, and I've used it a lot, particularly hamstrings. Wrap it around here for your hamstrings, the panels down around for your quads, I can mention. Here on the calf and the hip as well. It's a really nice, versatile model for it, so it's nice. They're not real cheap, but they are good. They work very well. They're going to get deep where a regular hot pack won't, so what do you say, Mike? You got anything else to say? Did I miss anything? You want to keep talking or what?
Mike: If you want to check out more videos on how to use far infrared heat on different body parts, watch "The Secret Reason Infrared Heat Can Heal Neck, Back, Shoulder, Hip Pain & More!"
Brad: A little more detail there. Have a good day, and stay warm.
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