Take care of your back (yes you, & especially lifters)

[ZZZZ]

Hey guys, been busy with life and whatnot lately, but figured I would share my latest focus with everyone while I am lurking.

 

Take care of your back.

How does this relate to this forum specifically:

• Meditation is a perfect time to practice sitting up straight with a properly supported spine. Buy a cushion, stretch, etc. and work this into your meditation practice. The same could be said for Yoga. Use it or lose it (are you relying on a back support? Why?)
• Back pain is very distracting, and monkey mind loves to focus on it!
• Flexibility, nutrition, and cardiovascular health are more important than strength training; lifting 500 lbs like a robot is useless if you are not functional and capable of supporting an increased muscle mass in a healthy way. This realization is huge. I went back to ignoring this for a while, but it really should be paramount.
• Some sort of exercise is essential to living a healthy life (and progressing with spirituality work). Inactivity indoors can lead to a host of mental and physical problems that could be avoided with periodic exercise. Contemplate your mind-body connection. Try yoga.
• I don't know much about this, but I imagine this would strongly support kundalini and chakra work (maybe someone else can chime in on this). This is your spine we're talking about after all.

I am an invincible 20-something near his prime here to tell you that you (and your back) are not invincible. I have recently sustained a very minor (but acutely significant) back injury, and this has perked me up to the necessities of taking care of my spine and back. This is something most of us take for granted!  No one thinks much about breathing freely though their nose until they're battling a nose-congesting flu. Now imagine the ramifications of not being able to bend over, arch your back, sit for any significant amount of time without pain, reach to grab basic objects, etc. for months at a time (or for life).

If you lift weights and your form isn't 90-100% as good as it could possibly be, my belief is that you WILL sustain an injury over time, and this could likely mean a back injury in the case of anyone who is deadlifting, squatting, lifting anything overhead, etc. I just went from deadlifting twice my bodyweight, to struggling with 135 lbs as I try to regain months of progress lost. If you're lifting, you should expect to be in the gym for years. You can either make an investment up front by PERFECTING your form, or sustain small micro traumas over that same amount of time which will eventually lead to an acute (and potentially serious/permanent) injury.

We already sustain these traumas throughout the day with poor posture and ergonomics, so poor form under a weighted load only adds to this daily stress that is accumulating. I actually hurt my back playing basketball, although I suspect poor posture related to my job, hyper extending on my deadlifts, and doing a disproportionate amount of abdominal exercises that strained my lower back are what led to the straw that broke the camel's back (mine). If you are reading this, you likely have a forward head tilt (see pic). Looking down at your phone for hours a day contributes to this, as well as many other things. A rounded upper back requires you to tilt your head up/back to look straight ahead. The spine is connected, and every aspect of your back and neck are related in some way. Learn exercises to correct this, and work on your posture. Here's a video from one of my favorite fitness Youtubers on the Face Pull (which is a great exercise to start with): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MiRAi2KOfRQ

Another common problem is an anterior pelvic tilt (see pic).

Basically, if you have either one of these problems, you should be taking steps to correct them. Keeping your body in this position for years will eventually lead to even more problems down the road. I haven't been completely blown away by going to a chiropractor, but this can be something you consider trying if you feel you have significant work to do, or if you need conformation that you might be out of alignment. There are a whole host of other misalignment you could have, even though you feel "fine." 

 

Quick laundry list of actionable ways to work on this:

• Fix your posture. Yeah I know, you can just sit up straighter blah blah blah, it doesn't matter that much, who cares. Wrong. Learn exercises to fix the (mal)position your body is stuck in.
• Put your ego in check and think objectively about why you workout
  • Why do you want to "get big," "lose weight," "tone up," "lift more," etc? Be honest with yourself. 
• Stop staring down at your phone so long
• Stop cracking your joints (this does not help anything physiologically, and many chiropractors will argue it hurts you)
• Adjust your chairs (in your car, at your desk), workspaces, etc. so you can operate in an ideal posture. Do not compromise your posture when you can adjust your environment for the same effect
• Start a daily stretching routine
• Use a foam roller
• Learn proper gym form for every major lift you do in the gym

Alright, that's all I've got for now. Personally, I am dropping my weight in the gym and prioritizing flexibility and form. I am working to get over my back injury (which I think is happening slowly but surely). I'm going to a chiropractor, and trying to get my spine aligned as well as I can while I work on fixing my posture and habits. Good luck guys, and I'll try to answer any questions you might have. Take care of your back!

[Arcangelo]

Yes, Yes, Yes, everything is Yes.

[Gabriel Antonio]

It takes a lot of study and dedication to exercise correctly. There's so much theory that it can feel overwhelming to get it all at once.

Sports are like learning to play the piano. It takes a lot of time to have a solid foundation, and rushing the process can feel very seductive but it's a big trap. 

I have started to exercise recently, and I can sense how addictive it can be. My worries melt away after I swim, for example. But as the saying goes, "Rome was not built in one day."

From my experience, not exercising is the perfect ingredient for aggravating depression. But exercising incorrectly can be just as bad.

Middle path... Change takes time... Slow and steady...

I definitely struggle with patience. I subconsciously exhaust myself until something bad (like an injury) happens. 

Thanks for the topic! 

[pluto]

The spine is the superconductor

[ZZZZ]

@Gabriel Antonio That's so true, and many people don't realize that. The endorphin release (and vitamin D boost) from habitual (outdoor) exercise naturally combats depression for a lot of people. I do find swimming especially calming, my form is just terrible and I'm gassed after a couple laps. Best of luck with your path, swimming is great for the joints.

 

@pluto Yes, I definitely took it for granted for too long 

[Nahm]

@ZZZZ Great post. So true. I lost around 60 pounds with cardio and weights over a couple years and sure enough ended up with lower back problems. After chiropractic, shots into both side of the lower back multiple times for sciatic pain, taking pain killers, etc, for years - the simple resolve was adding a lower back exercise to the routine. Never had an issue since. It’s been years.      I use a foam neck roller too, everyday. Thanks for taking the time to post the info. It’s so hard to really hear the importance of posture until we have an issue. 

[Forestluv]

Yoga was the best thing for my back.

[ZZZZ]

@Nahm Yes, no problem! I'm glad to hear you've found something sustainable for you that works. Muscle imbalances are sneaky like that. I want to look into something like acupuncture for my back pain. I'm just curious about it more than anything else. I know the steroid injections do wonders for some people.

@Serotoninluv I've found myself getting the most benefit out of simple poses like child's pose etc. even though I wouldn't consider the stretching I do "yoga." I've always wanted to learn a formal yoga discipline, so maybe I will take steps towards that in the future. Kriya was not really the practice I had in mind when I dipped my toes into that one. 

[Charlotte]

two thousand five hundred million percent YES!!! ?

[Forestluv]

@ZZZZ You might like yin yoga. The poses are held for 3-8 min. and the mind-body can go into deeply relaxed states.