A recent study from Australia reveals that walking can effectively prevent the recurrence of lower back pain, providing a simple and affordable solution for millions.
Mark Hancock, a professor of physiotherapy at Macquarie University in Sydney, and his team found that individuals who began a walking regimen after recovering from lower back pain experienced fewer episodes of pain recurrence than those who did not.
“We don’t know exactly why walking is so good for preventing back pain, but it is likely to include the combination of the gentle oscillatory movements, loading and strengthening the spinal structures and muscles, relaxation and stress relief, and release of ‘feel-good’ endorphins,” Hancock explained.
Lower back pain affects over 800 million people worldwide, with 70% of cases easing only to return later.
Traditionally, preventing recurrence involves specialized exercise programs and patient education. However, Hancock’s team wanted to see if walking, an easily accessible and low-cost activity, could also be effective.
In their trial, 701 adults who had recently recovered from an episode of lower back pain were divided into two groups. One group followed an individualized walking program and attended six physiotherapist-guided education sessions over six months, while the control group received neither.
The results were striking. The group that engaged in the walking program had fewer occurrences of activity-limiting pain and enjoyed a longer average period before experiencing a recurrence—208 days compared to 112 days in the control group.
Dr. Natasha Pocovi, the study’s lead author and a postdoctoral fellow at Macquarie, noted that the benefits of walking extend beyond pain relief.
“It not only improved people’s quality of life, but it reduced their need both to seek healthcare support and the amount of time taken off work by approximately half,” she said.
Moreover, the walking program was straightforward and inexpensive, making it accessible to a wide range of people regardless of age, location, or socio-economic status.
“The exercise-based interventions to prevent back pain that have been explored previously are typically group-based and need close clinical supervision and expensive equipment, so they are much less accessible to the majority of patients,” Pocovi explained.
Hancock also highlighted additional health benefits of walking, including cardiovascular, bone density, healthy weight, and mental health improvements.