Introduction
If you suffer from back pains, or spinal stenosis your doctor may recommend inversion therapy. With these conditions, gravitational pressure is placed on your nerve roots hence causing shooting pains in the back. Now, inversion therapy reduces the pressure between your nerve roots and vertebrae to bring relief. Patients often tip backward on a table with their feet on the air to allow space. Studies say that this therapy can help treat back pain and other disorders. But, how often should you use an inversion table? Continue reading to learn more.
What Is Inversion Therapy?
Before answering how often should you use an inversion table, it’s essential that we begin our discussion from this point. Inversion therapy also known as spinal traction places one upside down. The assumption is that when you’re in this position, it eases gravity pressure on your nerves and disks in your spine. This therapy temporarily creates additional space between your vertebrae which is smushed together.
During this therapy, patients are suspended with their heads down. This, therefore, stretches the spine and relieves back pain. A shift in gravity causes ease of pressure from your back.
Who Should Invert?
Individuals who benefit from this therapy are those;
- With poor blood circulation
- Suffer from chronic back pain
- Have issues with sciatica
- Have scoliosis
This therapy has proven effective in relieving back pain, boosting the spinal health, increasing flexibility, and minimizing the need for surgical surgery. How often should you use an inversion table varies from persons to persons.
Does It Work?
Some people find that this table offers a short term relief from lower back pain. Also, a 2012 study from England revealed that inversion and physical therapy combined was an effective sciatica pain treatment. Additionally, research shows that inverting may be helpful for people with painful kidney stones. When used with diuresis, it can help get rid of stones. Now because there are different conditions this therapy can help manage, how often should you use an inversion table depends on your condition.
How Long Should You Invert?
If you’re doing this exercise at home without supervision from a professional, we advise that you stick to a strict timeline. For those who’ve done it before, start by using the table for 1-2 minutes each session. However, if you start feeling uncomfortable, even if you haven’t reached the one minute mark, stop the exercise immediately. Bear in mind that the frequency of this therapy is what matters more than the duration. So, don’t overwork yourself too much. With time, you’ll get more comfortable with the session. Therefore, one can increase it to 5-minute sessions. As there’s no pre-determined workout time to use the inversion table, remember to listen to your body. Also, don’t forget that inversion should be relaxing and not strenuous. So how often should you use an inversion table?
How Often Should I Invert?
As we’ve mentioned earlier, it’s not the duration rather than the frequency of the session that counts. So how often should you use an inversion table depends on several factors. However, we recommend a routinely invert using the Best Inversion Table several times a day. You can invert in the morning or the evening before going to bed. And for those who work out, incorporating inversion into your fitness routine can help recover from rotational, high impact, or compressive exercises.
What to Expect
Now that we’ve already answered how often should you use an inversion table, let’s take a look at what it feels like using it. One lies back and straps themselves onto it such that they’re secure. Then they tip over such that their head is lower than the heart. A professional physical therapist can show you how to use this table and supervise you.
Note that there are possible side effects of using this table. For instance, it may decrease your heartbeat and increase your blood pressure. People have reported feeling pressure in their eyes to go up. As such, inversion tables aren’t recommended for people with high blood pressure, heart disease, eye problem, glaucoma, history of strokes, pregnant women, and those with inner ear problems. Also, an inversion table may put someone with hip or knee arthritis at risk of joint injury.
How to Use the Inversion Table Effectively?
How often should you use an inversion table affects how much you reap from this therapy. Hover, using it correctly will also come along way. Here are some tips for using the table correctly.
- Wear comfortable clothing and athlete shoes
- Beginners should have someone there to help them get off should there be any problems
- Adjust the table to fit your height
- Ensure that it is in a balanced position
- Tightly fasten the straps around your feet
Final Thoughts
Inversion tables can relieve stress and help your body’s circulatory system. Plus, it can also help with back pain. However, if you’re planning to use this table at home, make sure that you purchase from a reputable brand. We recommend the body power inversion table stable, narrow, easy to use, and comes with simple angle adjustments. So how often should you use an inversion table depends on a person. If you can, use it at least twice a day for better results.
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