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What's in my Carry-on: The Bad Back Edition

August 04, 2026

Awhile back I shared what's in my carry-on bag — my little treasure trove of travel wellness must-haves. But there's a whole category I didn't cover in that post, and it's the one people ask me about most: what I pack for my back.

If you've been around here a while, you know my back and I have a complicated history. I've had scoliosis since I was a teenager, and between long-haul flights and cobblestone streets, travel is basically an obstacle course for a bad back. Over the years I've refined my routine down to three things. That's it. Three. They all fit in my carry-on and I do not board a plane without them.

1. Rapid Release Travel Unit

This is the anchor of my whole routine. I first discovered Rapid Release at my chiropractor's office years ago, and it has saved more trips than I can count. When my back spasms after a long travel day, five minutes with this and I can move again.

Here's the thing I always explain to people: this is not a percussion massage gun. Percussion guns punch deep into muscle — great for a runner's quads, wrong tool for a twisted spine. Rapid Release uses high-frequency vibration — a tiny, incredibly fast stroke that works on fascia and tight tissue without the pounding. It's gentle enough that I use it every single morning, including on areas you should never use a massage gun.

My morning routine with it takes five minutes: six spots, head to toe, following the body's natural drainage pathways. I filmed it so you can see exactly what I do:

[EMBED REEL HERE]

The travel unit is small, the battery lasts the whole trip, and I don't need a separate European adaptor because it charges with a USB-C.

2. Travel Red Light

My love for red light therapy is well documented — but in that post I talked mostly about skin and jet lag. For my back, it's all about inflammation. After a day of stairs, cobblestones, or fourteen hours folded into an airplane seat, I'll sit with the red light on whatever is angry — usually my lower back — while I'm winding down for the night. It's the most effortless thing in my routine: you literally just sit there.

Between the Rapid Release in the morning and the red light at night, my back gets bookended care every travel day, and that consistency is what keeps small aches from becoming trip-ruining flare-ups.

3. Magnesium Tallow Balm

This one is a full-circle moment for me. Years ago I wrote about my magnesium spray — my chiropractor recommended it because magnesium absorbs well through the skin, and it ended my leg cramps... but it stung. Then I fell in love with tallow balm for my skin. And now someone has combined them: magnesium in a tallow balm. No sting, deeply nourishing, and my muscles get the magnesium they're begging for after a flight.

Magnesium is involved in muscle relaxation — it's one of the reasons so many of us deal with cramps and tension in the first place. I rub this into my neck, shoulders, and lower back before bed, especially after travel days, and it has replaced two separate products in my bag. In the carry-on game, anything that does two jobs wins.

Packing tip: Transfer some balm into a smaller container if you're flying.

That's it. Three things: vibration for the fascia, red light for the inflammation, magnesium for the muscles. Each one targets a different layer of the same stubborn problem, and together they've kept me exploring the world with a back that, on paper, shouldn't love travel as much as I do.

And as my physical therapist always said — if you want a strong back, you need a strong front. The tools help, but core work and daily stretching are still the foundation. The best part about those? They're free. =)

Happy traveling!

These opinions are 100% my own. Consult with your healthcare practitioner if necessary. This post may contain affiliate links.