In almost 20 years of working in health and fitness I have seen back pain continue to be prevalent in society and fitness enthusiasts. For some, there are degenerative issues as I previously discussed (view previous posts). For many others, muscle strength balance is the key to feeling better!
The key is to figure out which muscles are weak? Traditional programs include doing exercises that "Strengthen the CORE!". Well this approach can be helpful and certainly is useful in managing pain. My question is how do you know which muscles you really need to strengthen? Are you focusing on the right areas? Are your abdominals really the problem?
I worked in health and fitness for years, and not until recently have I changed my thinking relative to pain and muscle imbalance. The thing to understand is that if you're following a stretching and strengthening program, that is awesome. However, if your program does not consist of specific components that target weaknesses in the hips, pelvis or torso... you may be missing the boat!
Why? Well what happens is that our bodies always take the path of least resistance when strength training. Working out on a stability ball, balancing on one leg, or doing other such "stability" exercises does not guarantee you're recruiting muscles that are neurologically not functioning correctly. Your body will get better at balancing, "stabilizing" or whatever.. but your pain may not change that much. Your compensation pattern in your body may be getting even stronger. The weak muscles are still on vacation. If your pain is not changing, you are not getting to the muscles that need to be strengthened. You may feel better right after you work out, but the pain is back in two hours. Excessive tension in your back that is relentless, is usually caused by imbalances.
How do you fix it? Well you need to get an assessment to figure out which muscles need strengthening. Typcially MAT (Muscle Activation Technique) Science Behind MAT assessments take about 60-90 min. After that, follow up assessments and very specific exercises are used to isolate the weakness and improve the neuromuscular system to work more effectively! Focusing on the right things makes all the difference. If you have more questions Contact me.
"It is all about perspective"
... should you look at things differently?
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