The long distance drivers probably know this already. Shall I get out of the car now or shall I continue to drive, then I will be faster at my destination. Your lower back starts to hurt a bit, but yes, it is part of the job. In any case, I hear that more often from the long-distance riders, but there is certainly something that can be done to prevent these complaints. Here are 5 tips to avoid back pain while driving.

Movement
If you have to spend a lot of time in your car at work, for example as a truck driver or if you have to drive across the country for appointments, it is important that you also take breaks. Of course this does not work like in the office that you have to get up every 10 minutes. Try to park your car every 30-45 minutes in a safe place such as at a gas station, as you can stretch your legs and walk for a short while.

Watch the roads
If you do have to sit in the car a lot, make sure you do not drive too much on uneven roads. Fortunately, this hardly occurs in the Netherlands, but from my understanding lots of other countries could use some better roads. Your body can rock back and forth on uneven / broken roads, which in turn can possibly cause lower back pain. Fortunately, this is less common on slippery roads

Better to prevent than to cure
Go exercise! A trained body is less likely to suffer from complaints such as lower back complaints. This is because your muscles become more durable than the untrained beer belly bodies. Do you want to know more about prevention of complaints? Then read "Better prevention than cure schedule".

Adjust your seat properly
Nowadays you can adjust almost all seats in the car to your liking. Make sure the chair is well adapted to your posture. An incredible number of people are slumped in the car because it is "nice" and "chill", but I don't need to tell anyone why that is bad for your back and that this is a culprit for getting back problems.

Relax your shoulders while driving
Something that happens very often is that people start to shrug their shoulders while driving. This not only increases the risk of neck and headache complaints but also lower back complaints. Therefore, try to relax your shoulders. What helps well is to breathe well through your stomach, which relieves your shoulders a bit.

Go see a professional
Have you used all these tips and has it not helped? No problem, there are several roads to Rome. You can go to the physiotherapist, osteopath or chiropractor and they can help you with this.

Questions of feedback? Message me.

Kind regards,

Sascha Bargi BSc. Pt. & MSc. Ost. in training