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Calculate Net Carbs?

If you are following the Keto Diet or just concerned about how to eat better you may want to calculate your net carbs.  This is important because it actually measures how much sugar your get from your fruits and vegetables as well as how much fiber you are getting.

Too much sugar is bad as we know and more fiber is good.  When you can find a nice balance you can see how much sugar you are consuming per day and see where or if you need to make cut.

The equation is as follows:

Carbohydrate – Fiber = NET Carbs

Superman Exercise (extension) for Lower Back Pain.

There are a lot of causes as well as solutions for lower back pain.  This exercise is a great way to help aid in the treatment for low back pain as well as the prevention.  The exercise is called the Superman exercise.

Essentially you start by laying down on your belly and begin to lift your legs and torso up anywhere between three and six inches from the ground.  In order to do this you will need to engage/brace the core.

If you are weak in the core or are experiencing lower back pain you have a few options.  First, you can modify by just lifting one leg at a time, both legs at a time, or keep the legs down and just elevating the torso.

If are are strong enough then you can elevate both the torso and the legs and pulse them into the air for reps.  By doing this you are going to strengthen the core, the spine itself, as well as the gluts which all help to protect the lower back.

Be CAREFUL not to OVEREXTEND as this can cause too much movement or pressure into the joints within the spine.  Remember, all exercises are geared to strengthen you and help you NOT increase the pain.

This exercise is great because not only does it help strengthen the body but it helps undo a lot of the poor/bad posture that we have.  We live in a FLEXION dominant world where everything we do is in a flexed state.  The way we type on a computer, pick up objects, sleep, etc.  This exercise does the very opposite and helps to strengthen the muscles that we often ignore and neglect.

Sacroiliac Joint Pain Mobilization

Sacroiliac or SI joint pain can mimic lower back pain but the adjustment you and I need to make is a little different.  Here is a mobilization technique you can use to help alleviate some SI joint pain.

On your side you can push right onto the ilium area with your palm of the hand.  Try and orient your force to about 30 Degrees as that is the angle you want to get.  Don’t shove but gently glide the hand up against the ilium and pulse the hand into that angle.  If you go too much over the side you will get more of the lower back so try and be specific.

Continue mobilizing by pushing and pulsing the hand and you will feel the SI joint gap to help alleviate the pain.

Shoulder Pain Rehab

When talking about shoulder pain it is most often the rotator cuff that is injured.  Most of the time much of the dysfunction and faulty movement patterns occur in the scapula and the muscles surrounding the scapula.  As a result, it is important to strengthen this area to get the joint back into a more optimal position.

When doing this particular exercise for the shoulder you want to make sure that you are getting some thoracic spine extension, strengthening the scapular muscles, and pointing the thumbs up.  This allows out to minimize the possibility for impingement within the shoulder.

When performing rehab its usually best to do higher reps and lower or no weight as seen here.  3 sets of 10 reps is a good starting point and this exercise is much more difficult than it looks.  With time you should start to feel muscles that were otherwise inactive begin to contract and activate. As that happens, you will be in better joint alignment and have better muscle recruitment.  All this will lower the chances of re-injury for the shoulder, upper back, and neck.

Should You Use An Inversion Table For Lower Back Pain?

I get this question all the time so the quick answer will be YES but it is not a quick answer because there are some adverse effects that can happen that you MUST know and expect.

The purpose of an inversion table is to take pressure off the spine by literally inverting you upside down.  By tipping the scales you will reverse the gravity and take pressure of sensitive and possibly painful structures such as the spinal joints, discs, and nerves.

Risks?

If you are someone who has glaucoma, blood pressure issues, heart rate issues, strokes, dizzy spells, severe headaches, and even severe lower back pain (and others) I would consider not trying and consulting your MD first.

Also, when someone is really having intense lower back pain it is likely the best option to let the pain go down before trying.

As a result of the decompression on the spine, it is often said that patients feel a stretch and achy feeling within the spine.  This is the spine decompressing.  After this occurs sometimes patients report relief and sometimes it creates lower back pain and aches because the spine has never went through this process before.  The achy pain is fairly common in decompression therapy and other types of manual therapy.  Of course it can be beneficial however, there can be a flare up and that is sometimes part of the process.

Technique is everything

To minimize the adverse side effects you need to substitute your decompression routine with exercise, chiropractic care, etc.

Going upside down should be gradual in nature with the angle as well as the amount of time you are upside down.  Everything should be gradual and there should be rest periods.  Do not exceed 1-2 minutes upside down even if you are feeling well.

Not only will this help reduce lower back flare ups but you will actually get the benefits.

Overall

This stuff works to help lower back pain but its better used when you are not in pain and is a better preventative method. Pain is the last symptom and is a sign you need to do things different.