"Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity." John F Kennedy
Disclaimer: I am not a Doctor although you may find me in a lab coat. If you are having a back issue or an issue with any joint. I urge you strongly to seek out medical assistance prior to attempting to resolve the issues yourself.
How do you move when you get out of bed in the morning? Are you walking normally, or are you limping joints cracking and popping like the rice crispy’s you? Unfortunately, more of us experience the latter myself included however, this can be corrected. A recent study showed that mobility not only affects your quality of life, but now we have proof it affects your longevity. The study involved more than 2000 men and women between the ages 51-80, asked to sit then rise without assistance off the floor. They were followed until they died, which on average was 6.3 years the people who scored lower used their hands died sooner than those who score higher did not use their hands. The study speaks to the need for flexibility, muscular strength, power to body ratio and balance. The costs of back injuries in the United States floats from $24 billion to $64 billion a year with over three quarters of a million working days lost and an estimated 40,000 nurses reporting illnesses from back pain each year. Hopefully this shows that mobility is important on many levels, for quality of life, longevity and economically.
The back is made up of bone the vertebrae, the spinal cord and nerves as well as muscles and ligaments. The spine is noted to be in three different sections the cervical under the head, thoracic meeting the cervical and lumbar or low back. We have 24 vertebrae they go from the sacrum to the base of the skull. The spinal joint is made up of two bones and the disc between them. Each vertebrae is separated from the next one by a disc it acts as a shock absorber which provides the surface for each vertebrae to move upon one another making it a movable joint. If the joints go beyond the normal range of motion that can lead to pain or spinal joint dysfunction. Ligaments connect the bones together and keep them proper alignment, muscles move the joint. So ideal spinal functioning is dependent upon the muscles and ligaments working in harmony. We will be speaking about some of the muscles in the back the deltoids, latissumus, trapezius, levator scapulae, erector spinae, gluteals, multifidi, and teres. I almost forgot we have approximately 100 million nerves in the spine along with the muscles, ligaments and bone.
Last week we shot from the hip, this week its getting the back on track. Some of the same environmental factors apply to this weeks blog such as sitting for to long, poor posture, muscular imbalances and old injuries. One common condition that affects the hip and the lumbar spine is the anterior pelvic tilt. This occurs when the hip flexors are shortened/overactive causing the gluteals and hamstrings to be long/underactive. As discussed previously this can contribute to dyfunctions like plantar fasciitis, runners knee, chronic low back and knee pain. The same affect takes place in the upper body called upper crossing syndrome this occurs when the pectoralis, levator scapulae, upper trapezius are short/overactive and the lower trapezius, deep cervical flexors and serratus anterior are long/underactive. This affects the shoulders causing them to be rounded, possibly contributing to rotator cuff tears, and causing postural defects .These similar conditions were called lower and upper crossing syndromes by Dr. Victor Janda. One of the other issues we are looking at is thoracic immobility which can be caused by age, poor posture sitting causing hyper-kyphosis or a change in the curvature in the spine. The spine is set up so that the lumbar spine is stable, the thoracic spine is supposed to be mobile. It was made to move rotationally as well as in flexion and extension. Lack of mobility will effect shoulder mobility and performance, ability to perform overhead movements, as well as overall spinal health. It is noticeable if you cannot get into a correct squat position without a rounded upper back.
This all begs the question, How do I fix it? My suggestion is to have a personal trainer, physical therapist or chiropractor screen you with a movement screen prior to addressing any issues . So that they can assess you and write you up a corrective exercise program. It does not have to be one or the other you can use a mix, so that you can cover all your bases. Once you have your program set it will be necessary for you to reassess to track progress and modify as you move forward. The tools of the trade are going to be foam rollers, and tennis or lacrosse ball possibly a lacrosse ball for soft tissue release. Yoga bands, tubes and jump bands for stretching. Please review the links below for some solutions and fixes.
Solutions :
Anterior Pelvic Tilt Lower Cross Syndrome
Solutions :
Anterior Pelvic Tilt Lower Cross Syndrome
Stretch the hip flexors, Lunge stretch, Lower back stretches
Strengthening the glutes and hamstring supine pelvic tilt, glute bridges
Changing your position intermittently through out the day
Thoracic Immobility
Use of a peanut on the thoracic spine thoracic crunches
Posture correction and Spinal manipulation under the care of a Chiropractor
Upper Cross Syndrome
Stretch the Pectoralis, Levator Scapulae Stretch, Upper Trap Stretch
Strengthen with Chin Tucks, Ball Prone Cobra, Seated row with Theraband
Press ups
In the next blog we will be taking a look at knee mobility. Also given the demand I will interview a nutritionist about injury rehabilitation diet and supplementation. Please join my mailing list for a Newletter, E-book coming out summer 2013, and upcoming Seminars.
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