I feel that each day brings a new opportunity to not only enjoy life, but also to get healthier, stronger, and happier! One of the most common injuries I have seen in clinical practice over the years has been back pain and it affects many who play Scottsdale tennis. The goal of this newsletter is to discuss how to improve the functional strength and mobility of the back. There are many root causes of back injuries but the common denominator is pain! Often so severe it can weigh heavy on both the mind and body! So, how do we rid the body of unwanted pain and tension? How do we improve our recovery and restoration? How can we forge and strengthen the back so you can play Scottsdale tennis with ease? Many back injuries occur by simply bending and twisting to pick up their kids or grandkids, playing golf at Scottsdale golf club, tying the shoes, and then all of a sudden, the back slips out and the legs crumble. Such simple movements become the pebble in the shoe which can remain persistently painful. Our task as your Fitness and Wellness staff is to help resolve this! Whether you have pain or not, we want to help coach you with your fitness goals! We want to help you be healthy and fit for life! Stop in today or email us to get started! Prevention The best prevention for back injuries and pain is daily movement, proper posture, and proper breathing. But what if there is an injury already present and the pain has been there for years? Well, we have to rehab this area. The problem with the injury rehabilitation process, especially for the back, is that moving hurts! And so then the training process becomes unbearable. We often guard painful areas so much in order to not move them, but we must realize that inactivity weakens the area as well. So, this pickle between having to move the body to rehab the area and protecting the back so we don’t injure it more creates this uncertainty of what to do and where to start, but I always say we must start presently! You have to take inventory of your health at Scottsdale golf club! Come get an assessment at Scottsdale golf club with one of our professional trainers so we can help design a plan of action. The Assessment Process The assessment process takes you through a series of gentle movements to determine the area of concern. There are many levels to the tissues of the back and we have to determine where the problem is! Is it a muscle tightness problem? Then you need more flexibility training. Is it nerve? Maybe your alignment is off. Is it a nutritional deficiency? Sometimes it is all of these. From the movement and health assessment, we can then design a training program tailored to meet your needs. “How long is this going to take?” is always the first question. The best answer I have is that it takes 4-6 weeks to adapt to a single training cycle. This means consistent and disciplined work 2-3x per week for 30-45 minutes, for at least a month is what is often what it takes to at least get stable results. It will also take some time to teach you the movements required in the program and step by step we build a foundation of strength in the core, hips, and back which can get you the pain relief you need to get through the day without taking NSAIDs, muscle relaxers, pain meds, etc. We are not looking for quick fixes, we want your pain resolved for good and we have designed a program for just that! Warming Up on The Power Plate This is a phenomenal tool that helps to loosen connective tissues, improve blood circulation, and excite the nervous system. These alone can bring pain relief. Before your workout, stand on the power plate at level 2 or 3 for 3-5 minutes while doing some gentle overhead reaches, half squats, toe touches, and alternating step-ups. These movements will begin to loosen and prepare the tissues. This device was originally used by NASA as a tool to help with muscle atrophy and osteoporosis which occurs from being in zero-gravity environments. Use these movements to activate and strengthen the legs and to warm the tissues before you go play golf before you work out, play tennis, etc. No matter what, however, make sure you warm and limber yourself up first!
