Today we’ll debunk some myths surrounding back braces. What do they do? Should you wear one? We’ll cover all this and more.
I think there’s a lot of misconception surrounding back braces. We see this all the time where someone has hurt their back and they start wearing a lifting belt or back brace. I think people believe that wearing it will magically provide structural support. You look around at other gyms and see people wearing back braces or lifting belts and lifting heavy weights, so it must pick up where the muscles stop, right?
WRONG!
Braces and belts do not offer structural support. You can get hurt or injured the same if you wear a belt vs not wearing a belt, it comes down to your form and what you are doing.
What back braces and belts do
Braces help you remember to do just that-to brace! Bracing is where you create tension throughout your midsection to stabilize the spine. This is VERY different from what pilates and yoga teaches with the ‘drawing in’ your belly button. This is almost the opposite. You want to bear down like you are sneezing. This will create the necessary rigidity and tension to move loads with greater ease and less risk of injury. Often getting better at bracing will alleviate back pain and increase your strength.
Sometimes when the loads get heavy enough, it’s hard to remember to adequately brace, so wearing a lifting belt or back brace can help you remember to brace. This is only true if the belt/brace is worn very tightly so that you can feel yourself (core) pushing against the belt.
In short, the brace is there as a reminder of what you should be doing, not a replacement for proper form and moving.
How do I brace my spine without a back brace?
First you need to find a neutral spine position. Second, you need to create tension top to bottom, side to side, forward to back.
A good analogy I’ve found is thinking of your core (hips to shoulders) like a soda can. When it’s unopened you can exert a lot of force against it before it will explode. Conversely, if you pop open the soda can, even if you haven’t drunken anything you can now bend and crush the can easily. Your body needs tension to be stable. So stop drawing in and sucking in your gut. Stop wearing back braces or lifting belts unless you are lifting heavy and need the reminder. Don’t wear it around the grocery or tool store. Finally, to help your bracing, you should practice bracing in several different positions (on your back, on your stomach, standing, sitting, etc).
I’ve found that laying on your back is a good place to start. Here’s a couple of quick video to help you.