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Just had a quick look what spine / neck cracking does. A FAQ has an interesting entry labeled Avoid Self Adjustmens:
Q: My son is constantly cracking his own neck. Besides being annoying, is this damaging his spine?
A: Repetitive and excessive forceful cracking of any joint of the spine can lead to a stress injury overtime. Unnatural movement of the facet joints (the spinal articulations) can create inflammation in that area.
The need to constantly "crack" your own neck is usually due to the fact it feels uncomfortable. The irritation reappears because doing it to yourself doesnt correct the condition of spinal tension. Our office treats neck conditions, more commonly found in teenage patients that have the habit of repetitive cracking. Over stretching the joints irritates surrounding soft, tissue (ligament and muscles) and may make the joint hyper-mobile. The increased movement can prevent stability in the vertebral joint causing it to misalign and eventually subluxate (create neurological irritation). When the vertebral subluxation complex is created, chiropractic adjustments are the most appropriate treatment.
Obviously cracking your spine yourself doesn't correct the condition of spinal tension because us crackeres feel the pressure again after only a short moment has passed. Cracking is really only temporary relief. Can a professional chiropractic correct this as claimed for good? I have my doubts.
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I can never seem to crack my back, though i've tried, am i doing something wrong?
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I can never seem to crack my back, though i've tried, am i doing something wrong?
Maybe your back isn't crackable? I don't believe that everyone can necessarily crack every joint.
One of my back cracking techniques:
Sit tight with a fixed bottom and then twist your upper body to the extreme left or right leveraging your arms to push / pull. -
So its bad huh , does anyone have any suggestions on how to quit! you might think its as simple as "just stopping" but the crunching in my back is just an irresistable feeling. Is there even a reason to stop? I have been doing this for 7 years and nothing serious has happened. There is no Solid scientific proof that it is bad for you, well maybe chiropractors but they are debatable(they might also just want to make a quick buck to). Maybe us jointcrackers are worrying about nothing and should just keep on enjoying what we do best. . CRACK THINGS!!
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In addition to the technique mentioned above, are there other effective methods that folks have found for back-cracking? I remember hearing about a technique involving crossing your arms and then having someone stand close behind you and lift you by the arms, but I do not know the details and have never tried this. Can anyone share experiences?
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I've found some back cracking techniques over the years, and they can be divided into the DIY type and "need a helpful friend" type. If you have a physically strong friend, have them get into a standing spooning position. Clasp yours hands behind your neck and tuck your elbows in, then dip head down slightly. Your strong friend then wraps his arms around your arms and lifts you off the ground while bending backwards slightly. This causes hyperextension of the spine from the neck all the way down to the tail bone. If done successfully, the whole spine is cracked like a short firecracker. Second, in a seated position, you clasp yours hands as before. This time, your friend can lift you much more easily and can also rotate sideways slightly. The third technique calls for your friend to lie down on flat surface with knees bent. You then squat in front of them with hands clasped behind head. Your friend then positions you on their knees and pulls you towards them. Get back next time on the DIY part.
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Hello 40 y.o.o.g. – thanks for these detailed instructions. Now, if I can just find a friend strong enough to lift ol' Bubba up, I'll give this a try. (If I were to have my wife try it, she would likely do something worse to her back than crack it)!
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I find the following methods the most satisfying, because I can do it myself and don't need to act ingratiatingly towards anybody. For me the best results are achieved before going to bed and getting up the next morning. Lying supine on your bed, lift one leg up to your chest and turn sideways. Imagine your shoulders are pinned to the bed and you're trying to wring your body as if it were a towel. If you lift your right leg, twist towards your left. The second method is to cross your legs while lying supine on your bed, then twist your body like a pretzel. Usually this gives me a really soothing crack right in the middle of the back. I use a combination of these techniques because each method seems to only crack a certain segment of the back. You might find certain techniques good for the lower back and some for the neck. It took me years to find a good technique for the middle back.
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If you've tried all of the above and still feel stiff, then you might need to find a good massage therapist. I've sifted through literally hundreds of massage joints and finally settled down on one particularly good one. Best results are achieved after a workout. Finally, I suggest losing weight, quit smoking, drink less and exercising more as a lifestyle change towards better health and overall feeling. Your partner will notice the difference in p****e rigidity.
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I think back cracking is usually the ligaments snapping over the bone or something like that. It is pretty risky if you do it excessively. I sometimes do it, I twist my back so it cracks all the way up.
Really? o*g I wish I could do that!! I only get a pop or two at a time… how do you go about it?
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I always have to have friends crack my back cause i can't is there any ways i can crack it by myself?
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I find a really good way to crack my back is this:
Lie down on the floor on your back, with your hands behind your head.
Stretch out and then relax your back.
Now, keeping your hands behind your head, you want to do the same sort of motion as a sit-up, but do it by trying to lift your head up with your hands.If you did it right you should get a satisfying series of cracks right the way down your back.
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This is my favourite technique to crack my back:
Place a doubled-over pillow on the edge of your bed, then lay face up with the pillow supporting the area of back you wish to crack, with your head/shoulders hanging over the edge. Place your hands behind your head, begin to sit up (so that you are almost level with the rest of your body), then pull your head away from your body. This works very well for the upper back region. Away from home, I sometimes lay backwards on a table (feet still on the ground) with the table edge in the area I wish to crack, then pull my head.
In addition to cracking, it really stretches the spine. I try to avoid cracking when the spine is supporting any weight. During the day, I simply support my body weight by my arms, and all the vertebrae release and seperate.
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The advice you about using a partner to crack your back was wonderful, and my back feels so much better now!!! Thanks! -
Hi everyone my first post here. I've been cracking my back for 15 years and since I've gotten older I crack less often. However, I found a nice way to crack my back. I lay face up on a foam roller, they have these at all gyms all over, and slide and roll it up and down my back. It massages your back and loosens the muscles while your weight cracks your back. The roller also can be used on various muscles for a massage if your muscles are tight.
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Just had a quick look what spine / neck cracking does. A FAQ has an interesting entry labeled Avoid Self Adjustmens:
Q: My son is constantly cracking his own neck. Besides being annoying, is this damaging his spine?
A: Repetitive and excessive forceful cracking of any joint of the spine can lead to a stress injury overtime. Unnatural movement of the facet joints (the spinal articulations) can create inflammation in that area.
The need to constantly "crack" your own neck is usually due to the fact it feels uncomfortable. The irritation reappears because doing it to yourself doesnt correct the condition of spinal tension. Our office treats neck conditions, more commonly found in teenage patients that have the habit of repetitive cracking. Over stretching the joints irritates surrounding soft, tissue (ligament and muscles) and may make the joint hyper-mobile. The increased movement can prevent stability in the vertebral joint causing it to misalign and eventually subluxate (create neurological irritation). When the vertebral subluxation complex is created, chiropractic adjustments are the most appropriate treatment.
Obviously cracking your spine yourself doesn't correct the condition of spinal tension because us crackeres feel the pressure again after only a short moment has passed. Cracking is really only temporary relief. Can a professional chiropractic correct this as claimed for good? I have my doubts.
I don't believe that if chiropractors looked deep down at what they were doing, they would see what benefits or things they were helping with.
With the back thing, if you try and get those hard cracks consistently then you are probably doing damage.
I'm a young teen and i crack my neck but i would never go to a chiropractor unless they have 100% proof it would help me. I might, when i see my doctor next in a few weeks, ask him/her about it.
