The content of the GLA:D^®BACK course is based on the best available research knowledge for back treatment, recommendations covered in national and international guidelines and developed in collaboration with researchers, patients and therapists.

GLA:D^®BACK is also a research project, designed to increase knowledge about back pain and improve treatment options for patients with back pain. Patients are therefore sent questionnaires (for data registration purposes) at the start, after 3, 6 and 12 months so that we can follow how they are going before they commence the program, in the short term, and in the long term.

The purpose of GLA:D^®BACK is to provide patients with the knowledge and tools to help them reduce their back pain and to better manage the pain that is present.

The program starts with an initial individual consultation where the patients are examined and their starting point for training and their goals for the course are determined.

Then follow two sessions of patient education in groups, where participants learn about the back, why back pain occurs and what can be done to improve the back to better meets the demands of everyday life.

The first session is about:

• Causes of back pain
• Symptoms
• Need for x-rays and scans
• Treatment

The second session is about:

• What pain is
• Handling a backache
• Back pain as an expression of imbalance between your capacities and your demands
• How the effect of exercise works

Subsequent training takes place twice a week for 8 weeks, with the opportunity to customise it to the patient’s needs. The exercises can be performed with varying degrees of difficulty and adapted to the individual participant. The purpose of the exercises is to achieve greater strength, suppleness, balance and variation in the movements of the spine, so that patients can use the spine more easily, more symmetrically, and have more confidence to move naturally and freely.

Each exercise session consists of:

• A brief discussion of topics from the patient education or group experiences since last time
• A warmup for the back
• Exercises that work with strength and mobility

back stretching

abdominal muscles

buttock / hip muscles

leg muscles

Both education and exercising take place in groups where participants have the opportunity to share experiences and learn from each other. Along the way, participants discuss and learn opportunities to be generally physically active so that the effect of GLA:D^®BACK can be maintained after the course is over.

The conclusion consists of an evaluation of the process, both with tests and assessment of the achieved goal.