Are you over 60 and find yourself depending on a back brace? Discover these five wall exercises designed to train your body to maintain its own support.
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Many individuals believe that back pain necessitates additional support, which is why back braces are so popular. They certainly have their benefits, particularly after a recent back strain, surgery, or sudden injury. In such cases, a brace can provide temporary relief by easing the pressure on sensitive tissues, facilitating the initial stages of healing. However, complications arise when what was meant to be a temporary aid becomes a long-term crutch.
Our spines are naturally intended to be supported by a complex system of muscles, connective tissues, proper breathing, and neural functions—not by artificial aids. Prolonged reliance on a brace diminishes the body’s natural ability to support itself, similar to how a cast can weaken an arm after prolonged use—a condition known as atrophy. The same weakening effect can occur in your core, leading to decreased inherent stability if you continuously depend on external supports.
To avoid this dependence, try incorporating these five wall-based exercises, along with an added self-massage method. They aim to enhance true, enduring stability in your body, eliminating the need for a back brace.
The T8/T9 ELDOA
Your spine doesn’t need to be held up. It needs to be trained. ELDOA exercises don’t simply strengthen the muscles. They teach the body how to actively create tension through the entire fascial system while gently decompressing specific spinal segments. Instead of depending on something outside your body to hold you upright, you’re teaching your body how to organize itself from the inside out. Over time, that creates something a brace never can: better stability, better body awareness, and better control of spinal positions during everyday activities.
How to Do It:
- Stand with your back against a wall, including the back of your head, walking your feet out slightly if you need more room to flatten your spine.
- Line up your second toe, knee, and shoulder roughly in line, letting your knees open slightly if needed.
- Look down one to two feet in front of you.
- Reach both arms out in front of you, spread your fingers, bend your wrists back, and spiral your arms open.
- Reach up toward the ceiling without letting your back pop off the wall. Only go as high as you can while keeping full contact with the wall.
- Work toward touching your thumbs to the wall as you reach for the ceiling.
- Hold for 60 seconds, keeping your fingers spread, wrists bent back, elbows straight, and breathing from your belly.
- Release slowly, bringing one arm down first, then the other.
Avoid These Mistakes:
- Don’t let your back come off the wall as you reach up. Bring your arms down slightly until your entire back and head stay flat against it.
- Don’t rush the setup. Get your back and head fully against the wall before you start reaching overhead.
Sets and Reps: Hold for 60 seconds.
Form Tip: Keep your eyes down one to two feet in front of you and breathe with a relaxed belly the entire time you hold the stretch.
The Segmental Wall Sit
Your legs are a part of your back. Your lower body plays a major role in stabilizing your back through its attachments to and around your pelvis, which is why we often find weak legs contribute to back pain. Every time you stand up, walk, climb stairs, or pick something up, your legs should absorb much of the workload. When they don’t, your back has to compensate. Wall-supported exercises let you safely build that strength while maintaining good alignment, so your hips and legs start sharing the load your back was never meant to carry alone.
How to Do It:
- Walk your feet out about one to one and a half feet in front of you, then bring your feet and knees together.
- Choose your depth: a quarter squat, a half squat, or a full squat to parallel.
- Hold with feet together, knees together, head and back against the wall.
- Keep your feet together and push your knees apart, holding the same depth.
- Bring your knees back together and walk your feet apart.
- Finish with knees apart and feet apart.
Avoid These Mistakes:
- Don’t come off the wall abruptly. Push your way up gently and relax once you’re standing.
- Don’t jump straight to a full squat if it’s more than your knees can handle right now. Pick the depth that lets you hold good form for the full hold.
Sets and Reps: Beginners hold each of the four positions for 30 seconds, two minutes total. As you advance, hold each position for 1 minute 15 seconds, five minutes total.
The Wall TVA Activation
The transverse abdominis, or TVA, is often described as your body’s natural weight belt, but I think it’s more helpful to understand what it’s actually doing. When the TVA contracts correctly, it creates pressure throughout the abdominal and thoracic cavity, which works like an internal support system around the spine. At the same time, your abdominal contents are gently compressed inward, helping your body create stability from the front while your back muscles support it from behind. Think of it like inflating the inside of a car tire. The air doesn’t make the rubber stronger, it lets the whole structure support more load. Your trunk works the same way. Without that internal pressure, your spine has far less support during movement.
How to Do It:
- Stand with your feet out in front of you far enough that your head, upper back, and low back can rest against the wall.
- If that’s easy, walk your heels closer to the wall.
- Pull your belly button in toward your spine.
- Hold that contraction while you breathe for 30 to 90 seconds.
- If it starts burning, relax completely, then pull your belly button back in and resume breathing.
- Repeat for three total repetitions.
Avoid These Mistakes:
- Don’t force through the burn. Relax completely for a moment, then reset and pull your belly button in again.
- Don’t hold your breath. Keep breathing while you hold the contraction, even though the coordination takes some practice at first.
Sets and Reps: 30 to 90 seconds per repetition, three repetitions.
Form Tip: It’s normal for the breathing and bracing to feel like a coordination challenge at first. With practice, you’ll be able to hold the TVA in and breathe at the same time.
The Wall Lat Stretch
One of the most overlooked muscles in posture is the latissimus dorsi, or lat. Most people think of it as a shoulder muscle, but it’s connected to much more. It has fascial connections from your arm into the thoracolumbar fascia, the spine, and the pelvis, and it influences how much force gets transferred throughout your body. Every time you reach, pull, lift, or stabilize your upper body, your lats have to help distribute that force across your trunk and spine. If your lats are weak, stiff, or poorly coordinated, your spine often ends up carrying loads it wasn’t designed to manage alone, sometimes getting pulled into flexion or rotation simply from tightness in the lat.
How to Do It:
- Stand with your feet out in front of you, back and head flush against the wall.
- Bring your arms out to your sides as though you’re holding a tray in each hand.
- Push your palms toward the wall without letting your back come off it.
- Check that your elbows aren’t kicking out and your back is still flat against the wall.
- If your back stays flush, slowly bring your arms up the wall.
- Hold, then release.
Avoid These Mistakes:
- Don’t let your elbows kick out to the sides as you push your palms toward the wall.
- Don’t let your back pop off the wall just to get your palms flat. Reset your back and lower your arms until you find a position you can hold with your back still flush.
Sets and Reps: Hold for 30 to 90 seconds, one to three repetitions.
Form Tip: Work toward pressing your palms flat against the wall without your back lifting off. Once you can do that, slide your arms further up the wall while keeping your back flush.
Lindsay Clancy’s Emotional Breakdown: Disturbing Details of Children’s Injuries Emerge in Court
Tearful teacher reveals Lindsay Clancy’s daughter’s concerning behavior just one day before killings
Tragic U-Haul Shooting: Co-Worker Killed in Shift Dispute
In a shocking turn of events at a Nashville U-Haul location, an employee is accused of fatally shooting his 56-year-old colleague over a heated exchange about a drink. According to police, the incident escalated quickly from a verbal dispute to gunfire.
On August 5, law enforcement officers detained 23-year-old Devin Rice after he allegedly took the life of Fredrick Lytton at the U-Haul store in Nashville, Tennessee. Lytton succumbed to his injuries shortly after he was transported to Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department reported that during an interrogation, Rice confessed to engaging in a dispute with Lytton over a beverage, which tragically ended with Rice pulling the trigger.
As police continue their investigation, Devin Rice, 23, faces charges of criminal homicide following the fatal encounter at the Nashville U-Haul. (MNPD)
Authorities have accused Rice of drawing a firearm and discharging several rounds at Lytton, resulting in his tragic death.
Officials said Rice fled the area after allegedly shooting Lytton, but was later arrested. Rice was arrested on charges of criminal homicide.
Joshua Houghtaylen, who lives in the area of the shooting, told WSMV that crime is getting worse and putting the onus on the city’s police to act.
Fredrick Lytton, 56, was fatally shot at a Nashville U-Haul on Aug. 5. A dedicated cross-country truck driver, he was remembered for his strong spirit and love of the open road. (Facebook/Fredrick Lytton)
“The crime here in Nashville is getting really bad,” Houghtaylen said. “Police need to do a better job at getting the guns off the street because there’s a lot of shootings in Nashville.”
In a statement to News Media, Jeff Porter, U-Haul area district vice president of Tennessee, said, “We are shocked and deeply saddened by what occurred. Our concern right now is being there to support the victim’s family and our Team Members affected by this tragic event.”
An obituary for Lytton states he’ll be remembered for “his strong spirit, perseverance, and love of life. A dedicated cross-country truck driver, Fred enjoyed the open road, NASCAR, animals, and classic country music.”
The U-Haul in west Nashville where police say Devin Rice, 23, fatally shot his 56-year-old co-worker, Fredrick Lytton, during a shift on Aug. 5 (Google Maps)
“Though Fred’s life was taken too soon, his memories and the love he shared with family and friends will remain forever,” the obituary said.
11-Year-Old’s Stage 4 Cancer Misdiagnosis: Doctors Mistook Deadly Symptoms for Tonsillitis
An 11-year-old girl in the UK has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of childhood cancer, a diagnosis that came only after her symptoms were initially misinterpreted as tonsillitis by doctors.
While on holiday in Devon, England last May, Armaie Burrows-Pitt began to suffer from extreme fatigue and a significant loss of appetite, raising concerns for her health.
Her worried mother, Nikki, and stepfather, Andy, were assured by general practitioners that Armaie was simply dealing with tonsillitis. The doctors prescribed antibiotics, insisting she was in good health otherwise.
However, as Armaie’s condition showed no signs of improvement, her mother took decisive action. Nikki brought her daughter, affectionately called Melly by family, to Warwick Hospital and insisted on a blood test to determine the cause of her illness.
At the hospital, doctors conducted additional tests, initially suspecting sepsis, tuberculosis, or an infection linked to a family trip to Egypt earlier that year in February.
But after 15 days in the hospital, she was transferred to Birmingham Children’s Hospital, where doctors eventually diagnosed her with Burkitt lymphoma — a rare and aggressive form of childhood cancer.
Mom-of-two Nikki, 38, said: “We went to Devon at the end of May and she had us all worried as we could see she was going downhill.
“She was tired and didn’t want to play much. She would take herself off to the corner of the park.
“That all started at the end of May. Then on May 31 my mom took her to Warwick A&E.
“She didn’t want to talk, walk or eat — she just wanted to lie down.
“She got told it was just a viral infection at Warwick, then I took her to a GP [general practitioner] on June 2 and the doctors told me it was tonsillitis.
“I was told she was perfectly fit and healthy by the GP, but we knew she wasn’t as she’s such a fit and active young girl who’s full of energy usually.
“Then I took her back to Warwick to be told it was tonsillitis again and to finish the antibiotics, but we knew it was something more.”
Nikki said she knew Armaie wasn’t just suffering from a virus as the 11-year-old gymnast was left virtually bed-bound and unable to eat.
She thought maybe it could have been a gymnastics injury she suffered when she began to also complain of pain in her shin and groin.
Nikki added: “We then went back to Warwick on June 10, and I said: ‘I’m not leaving until you do a blood test’.
“They did one and admitted her. They thought it was sepsis, TB, or an infection from Egypt from when we went in February.
“She spent 15 days there — Warwick was being led by Birmingham Children’s Hospital as they thought it was something serious before she was moved there.
“She was eventually diagnosed on July 3 with Stage 4 Burkitt lymphoma, after they thought it was an infection.”
Burkitt lymphoma is a rare, fast-growing type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma that starts in white blood cells — specifically the B-cells.
The aggressive cancer, which primarily affects children, can multiply very quickly before spreading through the body.
Armaie is Stage 4 with the disease having spread to her spleen, liver and bone marrow.
Nikki said: “It was all very traumatizing, having your daughter in hospital and not knowing what’s wrong with her for all those weeks.
“It was very frustrating because every single GP I saw kept saying she was fine.
“She’s never seen a doctor in her life and has never been to a hospital, I knew she wasn’t right.
“She had all these symptoms that didn’t necessarily relate to lymphoma.
“It’s very frustrating to be told she’s okay when she’s not.
“She wouldn’t get out of bed, she didn’t want to walk or eat or drink — it’s not normal for a fit and active child to be completely wiped out.
“Children with symptoms like this probably get dismissed, which is frustrating.
“You’d think they would assume the worst case scenario first and rule it out, so to be left three or four weeks without a diagnosis was heartbreaking.
“The first symptom was a neck pain which is why they thought it was meningitis in the hospital.
“Then she had a pain in her shin, then her groin and I thought it could’ve been her gymnastics as a couple of weeks before she had an accident.
“The symptoms would come and go. When they told me it was tonsillitis I did wonder if it was something more sinister.”
Now the family are fundraising to cover costs while Armaie, undergoes six months of gruelling chemotherapy.
Her aunt Emma Whyte, 36, added: “The main aim is to take Melly on lots of trips this year, we’ve had to cancel a lot of holidays because of this.
“She wants to go to Disney World Florida and Lapland.
“But we also want to give back to Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Ronald McDonald House for all their work.
“Melly’s stepdad is staying there and her mum is staying there, so it would be nice to give back to them.
“I think I put $675 as the target but we’re nearly on $12,150.
“In a strange way, it’s brought us all together in the worst time imaginable.”
DSA Member’s Bold Case for Defunding Police Goes Viral
A leading figure within the Democratic Socialists of America found herself on the spot, sidestepping questions on their stance to eliminate police and prisons regarding accountability for rapists.
During a discussion with NBC Los Angeles anchor Conan Nolan, Dr. Frances Gill, a member of the political committee, was questioned about a hypothetical scenario involving his daughter being sexually assaulted under the Democratic Socialists’ ideal system, which advocates for defunding the police and scrapping the prison network entirely.
Nolan pointedly inquired, “If my daughter is assaulted and raped, is there any body that would pursue her attacker and ensure justice is served?”
While Gill insisted that a perpetrator would indeed be held accountable, her ensuing explanation veered off into discussing crime’s underlying causes without directly addressing Nolan’s specific concerns, as she preferred to ‘steer clear of hypothetical scenarios and address the existing reality.’
She further remarked, “We’re investing exorbitant sums on law enforcement, yet failing to allocate resources towards initiatives that genuinely enhance public safety and security feelings.”
‘Which is things like actually well-lit streets. The street lights in Los Angeles. Everybody agrees it’s a huge problem.’
Gill appeared to refer to the city’s backlog of repairs, which has left tens of thousands of streetlights without power due to widespread theft of copper wire.
She went on to say that substance abuse treatment needs to be funded to mitigate crime instead of funneling money into police departments.
Frances Gill did not provide an answer when pressed about how rapists would be prosecuted under the DSA platform
DSA advocates for defunding the police and investing in community policing (file photo)
Instead of answering the question, Gill told the interviewer: ‘We’re spending absolutely outrageous amounts of money on police and policing, and we’re not spending money on things that actually make people safe and feel safe.’ She is pictured above at a rally
‘We’re not doing anything about the root causes,’ Gill argued.
Nolan then moved on to a question about Michigan Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed, who is not a DSA member but has a progressive platform.
A clip of Gill’s answer went viral, prompting former mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt to use it to take aim at his rival, Nithya Raman.
‘Nithya Raman’s partner at DSA LA says their goal is to completely abolish police & prisons. When asked what happens if a girl gets raped? Her answer? “I want to talk about street lights,”‘ Pratt wrote.
Raman is also a DSA member but appears to have taken a different stance on policing. She won a runoff primary race in June and will face off against fellow Democrat and incumbent Mayor Karen Bass in the fall.
Raman was hailed as the most progressive of the three candidates and was the first DSA member elected to the City Council.
She had previously campaigned on defunding the police but walked back the stance, telling NBC Los Angeles in February that, if elected, she would maintain the LAPD’s size.
Raman is now campaigning on a three-point public safety plan, including integrating unarmed officers into 911 calls, restoring accountability and investing in prevention.
Gill declined to say whether she supported Raman’s mayoral run during her recent NBC interview.
Gill refused to share whether DSA would be endorsing progressive mayoral candidate Nithya Raman, pictured above
Spencer Pratt, pictured above with President Trump, slammed Gill’s response on X, writing, ‘When asked what happens if a girl gets raped? Her answer? “I want to talk about street lights”‘
She clarified that the DSA is still in the process of endorsing a candidate for the general election, adding that it was ‘still possible’ Raman would receive an endorsement.
‘There are a lot of members who are excited about Nithya,’ Gill added. When asked if she was personally excited about Raman, she responded, ‘I’m going to defer to our organizational process.’
DSA’s official political platform on policing is to ‘defund the police by rejecting any expansion to police budgets or scope of enforcement while cutting budgets annually towards zero.’
DSA also advocates for the freedom of all incarcerated people, demilitarizing the police, and investing in community self-governance.
The Daily Mail has reached out to DSA and Raman’s campaign for comment.
Eleven Indicted in Alleged Sham Marriage Scheme for Chinese Green Card Fraud
Washington — In a significant crackdown, the Justice Department has pressed criminal charges against 11 individuals on Wednesday, accusing them of orchestrating a complex “extensive marriage fraud scheme” that involved orchestrating over 1,000 fake marriages between Chinese nationals and U.S. citizens.
The allegations, outlined in a comprehensive 21-page indictment filed in the Southern District of New York, detail how this fraudulent operation was conducted over a decade from 2016 to 2026. Key figures named in facilitating this scheme include Amy Cheng, Xiao Mei Chan, and Gang Zheng.
According to the indictment, these arranged marriages were primarily designed to help Chinese nationals secure green cards, thereby gaining lawful residency in the United States.
The defendants reportedly capitalized on a network involving word of mouth, social media platforms, and various advertising methods to promote these fraudulent immigration services. Their primary clientele were citizens from the People’s Republic of China, whom they promised to match in fake marriages, thus facilitating fraudulent applications for permanent residency in the U.S.
The indictment further reveals that foreign nationals reportedly paid as much as $100,000 for assistance in entering into these sham marriages and applying for a Green Card. Meanwhile, the scheme facilitators allegedly profited handsomely, earning commissions reaching approximately $5,000 per arrangement.
The indictment included photos of alleged sham marriage ceremonies that prosecutors said the defendants submitted to U.S. immigration officials.
Justice Department
“In some cases, these sham wedding ceremonies were held at nearby restaurants, where the foreign nationals and United States citizens changed into traditional Chinese wedding attire, and the facilitator, recruiter, foreign national, and United States citizen invited friends and family to create the appearance of a legitimate wedding,” the indictment said.
While many of the recruiters operated in New York, the indictment alleged they orchestrated the marriages throughout the United States and abroad, in places such as Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, Vanuatu, and the People’s Republic of China.
El Niño Sparks Inferno: Vast Indonesian Landscapes Devastated by Worsening Dry Season
Dozens of schools in Indonesia remained closed for a second consecutive day on Tuesday, as persistent forest fires ignited by an intense dry season, and potentially exacerbated by El Niño, continued to rage.
In the region of West Kalimantan on Borneo—the island Indonesia shares with Malaysia and Brunei—the mayor of Pontianak, the capital city, mandated school closures. This decision came in response to the pervasive smoke drifting into the area from distant fires.
Public records indicate that Pontianak, home to approximately 660,000 residents, has tens of thousands of public school students, all impacted by this environmental crisis.
Mayor Edi Rusdi Kamtono declared that children will continue with remote learning as long as the air quality remains compromised. The statement, however, did not specify the number of schools affected by the closures.
“The smoke’s presence is evident, particularly during the night and early morning, as a dense haze has enveloped Pontianak,” Kamtono noted.
On the island of Java, firefighters battled flames for a ninth day at a national park that has lost 900 hectares to an inferno that broke out on Monday last week.
The blaze at the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park, a major tourist attraction closed to visitors since Saturday, is one of several fires that have drawn in nearly 50,000 firefighters countrywide.
Indonesia is forecast to experience an unusually tough dry season this year with a high risk for drought and wildfires due in part to the El Niño weather phenomenon, the BMKG weather agency has said.
More than 107,000 hectares of land have burnt countrywide so far this year.
Authorities insist that food stocks remain adequate.
Burnt area in East Java the size of 1,200 football fields
The fire at the Bromo park in East Java has consumed nearly 900 hectares by Tuesday morning.
This is equivalent to over 1,200 football fields and nearly 2 per cent of the total park area.
“We’re making our best effort and mobilising everything … to extinguish and wet-down the area,” local disaster official Satriyo Nurseno said.
“We hope that today we can put out the fire in all areas, then carry out soaking so that the fire does not reignite.”
Three water-bombing helicopters and fire trucks were providing support to about 200 firefighters, forest rangers, police and soldiers helping to put out the blaze.
According to the BNPB disaster agency, more than 48,000 personnel have been deployed to fight fires in six provinces.
Security minister Djamari Chaniago said on Monday Indonesia has deployed 43 helicopters and up to 15 fixed-wing planes for cloud seeding where needed.
The process involves spraying particles such as silver iodide and salt from aircraft to produce rainfall, but depends on clouds being present.
As Indonesia braces for the worst effects of El Niño, the BMKG said the average air temperature in July was 27C — higher than the 26.2C average.
It was the highest such jump for July since 1991.
El Niño is a naturally occurring climate phenomenon that brings worldwide changes in winds, air pressure and rainfall patterns.
In India and Southeast Asia, it typically causes drier conditions.
The last El Niño helped make 2023 and 2024 the two hottest years globally on record.
The land lost to wildfires in Indonesia so far this year is double the area burnt in 2023.
Concerns for Australia’s bushfire season as El Niño intensifies
While an El Niño does not necessarily mean hotter and drier conditions for Australia, it does raise the likelihood.
And with the climate driver shaping up to be one of the strongest on record, experts are worried about what it could mean for Australia’s bushfire outlook.
Greg Mullins, the former commissioner of Fire and Rescue NSW, recently told SBS News there was “deep concern in all the fire agencies nationally”.
However, Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) forecasters say there are signs that rain could disrupt the summer bushfire threat in some areas.
“That drier than average pattern that we’re seeing for September does break down for much of the country and we start seeing either above average rainfall being favoured or even a not-clear signal for a lot of the country,” BoM climatologist Zhi-Weng Chua said.