Hello everybody-

Today’s entry is going to be on a topic that has seemingly affected most everybody in one way or another: Lower Back Pain!  The incidences of lower back pain in our country have increased dramatically over the last 15 years, to the point that most everybody is now dealing with some level of discomfort.  The question has to be: WHY?  Well, there are many schools of thought, but one of the theories that seem to hold the most water is that of a lack of CORE stability.  The term “CORE” has become very popular in the health and fitness industry recently, and one of the main reasons is because of this new found emphasis on combating lower back pain.

Let’s look deeper at how back pain can occur:  Our spinal cord (which is vitally important to relay information from our environment to our brain and back from our brain to our muscles to move) is encased in individual bones called vertebrae.  In between the vertebrae are small discs that act as shock absorbers.  We have natural curves to our spine that allow normal function for everyday life.  When we are aligned properly, the pressure through our spine (every step you take, your spine must deal with your body weight multiplied by 2-5 times, moving at different speeds because of gravity and ground reaction forces) will keep our discs in the proper place and not force excessive pressure on the front or back potions which can force the nucleus (the center) to protrude, resulting in a herniated disc which can impinge upon the various nerves that stem from the spinal cord and result and in pain and discomfort.  Most people’s daily activities require them to maintain positions for long periods (sitting at a computer, standing behind a counter) and the body will adapt to those positions.  In the case of the seated posture, there are specific muscles that tend to become overly shortened and other muscles that become overly lengthened which can result less than ideal position for the spine.  As the body gets used to this poor, seated “computer typing” posture, the small muscles that connect the vertebra and function as stabilizer muscles tend to become overly weak and not function as they should.  Now when you try to go outside and throw the football around, do yard work, play with the kids or pick up the bag of groceries out of the trunk, the muscles that you rely upon to stabilize your spine aren’t functioning the way they should and your spine with the included discs take all the pressure and an injury can occur.

What is the solution?  CORE Training!  What we need to do to avoid this discomfort and pain is focus on the small stabilizing muscles that support our spine and create the solid foundation for the rest of our body to move from.  How do we do this?  The first step, is to practice a movement referred to as the drawing in maneuver.  Simply pull your belly button and lower abdominals inward towards your spine before you move your arms or legs.  Think of pulling your belly from your pant line.  When you pull your stomach inwards, you utilize a large group of stabilizing muscles that interconnect throughout your spine and pelvis which will  signal your brain that you now have your “seat belt” on and you will have better overall movement and severely decrease your chance of injury or further injury.  We are innately born with this action and pre-programmed to do this right before we move our arms and legs but as the old saying goes “if you don’t use it, you lose it” and these muscles have become weakened from improper use (leaning on the desk or table all day while typing for example).   We just need to re-train our body to perform this movement and this will be one of the most important keys to having a safe, strong back.

There are many ways to challenge the core, if you ever need any assistance or a new exercise, don’t hesitate to ask any of our Fitness Coaches for help or guidance.  In further entries we will discuss other factors of lower back pain such as flexibility, but for now, remember to pull that belly button in!

Thanks for being a part of our Rush Family,

Rob Rettmann

• STAY POSITIVE!  Put your focus and attention on the great things in your life, not the things that aren’t going right.  You must change your way of thinking from negative thoughts to positive ones!  So for example, when you look in the mirror, focus on the parts of your body you like instead of the ones you don’t!
• Direct energy toward the things you have control over, not the things you don’t.  Focus on eliminating stress from your day, one small step at a time.  Remember, exercise is the number one stress reducer!
• Tell yourself how blessed you are, and give thanks for the opportunity you have been given to exercise your amazing body!
• Remind yourself how much more energy you will have to focus on the spouse and the kids if you keep working out!  Exercise increases your stamina and endurance so you can play longer and have enough steam to go from sunrise to sunset!
• Think of how great you feel when you set small goals for yourself each week and accomplish them with hard work and dedication.  Wake up every morning, give thanks, and set forth on your day’s journey to accomplish personal goals.
• Picture your strong mind, body, and soul, and think how much easier everyday tasks are when you are healthy and feel amazing about yourself.   Exercise releases endorphins, which make you feel happy and confident!
• Accept the fact there will always be days you don’t feel like working out, you cheat on your good nutrition plan, and you have a bad attitude.  Don’t jump off the wagon and throw everything out the window the second this happens!  Understand that it’s part of life, so enjoy your cheat meal or your day off, and get right back on track the next day!  Sometimes it makes you work out twice as hard!
• Make sure you have realistic goals in place for yourself so you aren’t tempted to get frustrated and quit.  Consult with a fitness professional to find out what reasonable goals for your body type are so you can stay motivated!

Today’s topic is a very common goal that many of our members and personal training clients share: WEIGHT LOSS.  Nowadays, everybody out there has an opinion, whether it is the latest talk show, magazine, or their best friend on the “secret” to weight loss.  Well everybody, here is the real secret: it’s all about total CALORIES! 

A calorie is a unit of energy that is measureable, which means we use calories for daily activities, working out, and basic body functions.  We consume calories in what we eat and drink.  An analogy for this situation is comparing weight loss to a bank account.  In real life, we want to save money for a “rainy day.”  If our budgets are done correctly, after paying our bills and expenses, we would have enough for savings to keep building our accounts.  In the weight loss game, we tend to “save” whatever we don’t spend in the sense of calories. In other words, many people have really increased their savings account (weight gain) by not spending (energy expenditure) what they need to on a daily basis.  Here is a simple formula to show how a little “savings” each day can accumulate to an extra unwanted 10 pounds per year:  If you were to consume an extra 100 calories per day above what you are expending, and then multiply that times 365 days per year (100 x 365), this would equate to an extra 36,500 calories per year.  We can then divide this number by 3500 per pound of fat and we total just over 10 pounds per year!  One of the points of this story is that it doesn’t take much each day to put you in a position where you have gained weight and not feeling good.  The GREAT part of this story is that it doesn’t take much to REVERSE this process (100 calories reduced instead of increased) to start seeing the weight come off!  All you have to do is be more aware of what you are eating and drinking each day and add exercise to your lifestyle! 

To break this down, start keeping a daily food journal and write down everything you eat and drink for the next ten days.  Put down EVERYTHING, no matter how unhealthy you may think it is.  Next, take an average of what your caloric intake has been over that time period to determine how much of a caloric deficit you should be in.  For example, if you find that you are taking in 3000 calories per day, now take out 200-400 per day to bring your daily amount down to 2600-2800 per day.  If you continue to burn the same amount of calories as what you did before, you will now be in a 200-400 calorie deficit where your body will need to utilize your “stored” calories to fulfill these needs.  The keys are to eat small portions every couple of hours to maintain your energy and hunger levels with good food.  This is important to prevent you from becoming hungry, which can cause a bad food choice (one stop at a fast food restaurant and making the wrong choices can set you back 1000-3000 calories) and making sure you always have energy to do your daily tasks.

The other side of the equation on how you can double your caloric deficit is to exercise!  You will burn various amounts of calories performing exercise at different intensities, lengths of time, and different types.  To start, try 3 times a week, alternating days.  This will spread out your calorie expenditure throughout the week and the great thing about exercising, is that it will have you burning a higher amount of calories, even on the days that you are not working out!  Include some type of cardiovascular activity (20-30 minutes) and resistance training for your whole body, 3 times a week for an hour total and you will be on your way to your new body!  If you need help with any of this, please don’t hesitate to ask for your club’s Fitness Manager and we will be happy to get you started on the right track!

There are many ideas and concepts that we would like to share with you through this blog, but just as importantly we would love to answer any fitness questions you may have as well.  Please feel free to email me at: rob@therush247.com and I will post various questions with our answers every blog opportunity.

Thanks for your time and being a part of The Rush Family,