Say 'NAH' to back pain

Don't let the back blues get you down this winter. You can say NAH (N - Neutral spine, A - Activate abdominals, H - Hip hinging) to back pain when shoveling snow or doing household chores.

NEUTRAL SPINE
Keep your nose over your pubic bone and your pelvis inside your base of support for neutral spine alignment. That's right, you will have to spread your feet apart a bit to fit your pelvis inside.

ACTIVATE ABDOMINALS
Activate your lower abdominals by Kegeling throughout the day (not to be confused with caroling). Don't forget to turn your abdominal powerhouse on when you are performing a heavy or stressful activity. However, when the activity is over turn the powerhouse off.

HIP HINGING
Master the act of hinging at the hips, instead of bending the spine. Learn to 'bow' in this manner and remember to never reach anything lower than your fingertips without first bending your knees. Yes, you will have to stretch your hamstrings to become a good hip hinger.