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Neck Strengthening with Isometric & Rotation (Movement)
This exercise is not used very often (as with a lot of neck rehabilitation) and should be because it really helps reduce a lot of neck pain and can prevent things like concussions. This exercise really helps with the muscles located at the back of the neck but when you add movement and rotation you start to engage a lot more of the neck and spine! Complete this exercise with a bench or padded surface. It may also be a great idea to put a pillow or two underneath you because if you fall (or are not strong enough/pain) you may want to your butt. You want to avoid hitting your butt and sacrum on the floor.
When doing the exercise, make sure you have full head contact on the table/bench and you will likely have your upper traps on there as well! First, see if you can hold this position. From there, raise your hips up and this will add more strength training to the neck. It is also like a bridge so you will get core activation, hamstring, and glut strengthening! Hold the neck extension for 3-5 seconds to start but then you can increase with time. If this is easy, then you can move on to rotation. DO NOT start rotation movements if you are not strong enough to carry out the extension at first.
This exercise is great because it allows extension of the neck, strengthening (whole body) and can reduce the risk of injury and neck pain in the future.
Isolate Every Area of The Spine!
The pelvic rocker is a way to gain movement and isolate each individual spinal segment and can help you if you are suffering with lower back pain. The reason it’s so effective is because its very localized, there is a lot of support in the spine, and you combine movement with stability exercises. To complete this exercise you need a bench. I recommend something with padding like a gym bench because its firm, has support, and is padded. By leaning your hips and pelvis off the bench you will be placing the spine into extension. Often times our spine does not go into this movement so it for some it feels very good, and for others its a very new movement and you need to proceed with caution (especially in those with active lower back pain). After you get into this position (extension), its a good idea to hold it there for 1-5 seconds. From this position, you want to engage the core, fire your gluts, and perform a posterior pelvic tilt. This will fore the spine and core to tighten up. You should repeat this process and then move around to different segments of the spine.
This exercise can really help with lower back pain because it allows a lot of motion but forces your body to activate its core.
Do You Have Knee Pain During a Lunge?
Knee pain often occurs as a result of imbalances in the foot and/or hips. If the foot over pronates it can cause the knee to buckle inward. Likewise, if there is poor hip stability (mainly in the lateral gluts) you can also have caving in of the knee.
A lot of people who do a lunge are often in search for stronger legs but people often fail to correct their alignment. To ensure that the knee does not cave in you want to focus on a few things.
- The knee should be centered directly over the ankle if possible. Try to also have your hip in good alignment with the knee or close to it (this wont be perfect since the pelvis tends to be wider, especially in women. This is known as the Q-angle).
- Focus on gripping the ground and making sure you have a strong contact with the floor. Having a strong foot on the floor will give you a solid foundation from the ground up. I can’t stress enough how overlooked and important this is!
- If you have weak lateral hip muscles the knee will cave in so make sure you are also firing the gluts. If you need, grab a resistance band and place it around the knee. Attach it to a door or post and that resistance will force you to put your knee in the right spot.
- Go slow at first. Correcting the mechanics can take a while but it will be worth it when you no longer having dysfunctional mechanics or knee pain.
It may seem a bit too easy but when your mechanics are off you will slowly grind away at the meniscus and/or do damage the MCL. Over time this can contribute to knee pain, arthritis, and a host of other problems along the kinetic chain.
Glut Stretch
I called this the park bench glut stretch because a bench is a good height to do this one. Stretching the gluts is great because the gluts play a huge role in lower back pain, athletic performance, and power.
This stretch can also help those people who suffer from piriformis syndrome, low back pain, sciatica, and other nerve related pain that runs down the leg.
When stretching, you should do so when you are not in pain and if you do stretch try to hold the stretch for at least 15 seconds and repeat on each side.
Why You Should Not Stretch if You are Injured?
Stretching is not what it all said to be. Yes stretching has benefits such as blood flow, coordination, and can help get you more flexibility but guess what? There is minimal evidence for stretching and the prevention of injury.
If you ended up getting injured you are likely suffering some tightness, immobility, stiffness, and pain. Most people jump right into stretching and they think that stretching while injured will help. WRONG! It will not help because your body is in spasm. Essentially, it is in protection mode and that is dictated by your nervous system. Your body is so smart that its nervous system sends a signal to the muscle and surrounding areas that tells them to “tighten up,” contract and protect that area.
If you stretch in this state, you are only going to be fighting an uphill battle because the nervous system controls everything. You are not going to stretch intensely and magically get the pain, spasm, and dysfunction to release and I have never seen this personally or professionally happen!
By stretching during the pain you can likely injure the body more and you should move the best you can given your state. You need to go through ranges of motion, contract muscles, and do it within a painless state if possible. By doing this you will relax the body rather than putting it through more pain. When you relax the nervous system, then and only then can you start to work on other areas.
Final thought, stretching is better to help movement patterns but should be done prior to injury NOT during an injury.
Can You Workout/Exercise After Seeing The Chiropractor?
This is a Frequently asked question and the short answer is YES!
Your body is designed to move and you are designed to exercise. Going to the gym or exercising after an adjustment is NOT going to mess up the adjustment! As a matter of fact you will be neurologically more stimulated and physically more mobile and therefore it is likely more beneficial for you to exercise.
Exercise is critical if you want a healthy lifestyle. There is no way around that and those who say not to exercise better have a good answer to it! The only reason you may have to consider not exercising is if you are in a lot of pain or maybe your injury is still new and you are still recovering. Either way, your goal should be to exercise again and to regain better movements and this may take some time but exercising will not “throw out” your Chiropractic adjustment.
Stop Rolling Your IT Band!
The IT band is a dense connective tissue that is tendon like and runs along the outside leg and inserts into the lateral knee. Active individuals (mainly runners/endurance athletes) will develop outside knee pain due to this contracted band. This is called IT Band Syndrome.
The problem is that the IT band should not be foam rolled for several reasons.
- There are sensitive structures on the lateral side of the thigh that are responsible for sensation. Nerves DO NOT like to be compressed and when you mash these nerves in the lateral thigh it creates a lot of sensitivity.
- As mentioned before, the IT Band is NOT A MUSCLE!!!! As a result, it does not have the same elastic properties as muscles. When you compress, mash, or foam roll these structures you will not get the same results as when you do the same to a muscle.
- Hip imbalances cause things like IT Band Syndrome. Most people just go to the symptom and not the cause. If there is a hip imbalance, it can put pressure into the hip and cause other structures to tighten up. If the IT band has to tighten up as a result of the dysfunction you will be sure to never get rid of the pain by rolling the symptom. Try rolling other structures
- Finally, the IT band is controlled by a muscle called the TFL (tensor fasciae latae) which tenses and contracts the IT band. If you try and roll this muscle out first, it will likely be a way more effective way to correct the problem and loosen up the IT band.