Fitness Tip of the Day: Saturday's Stretch & Flexibility -- Stretches for Back Pain

Back pain is something that many people experience at one time or another.  I myself have had a herniated disc and had to undergo physical therapy, electro therapy and muscle work.  It still bothers me once in a while if I do something too strenuous or move the wrong way--Don't make fun of Sammy Sosa--I've pulled my back while sneezing too!

One thing we all know--back pain is NOT fun!  It's some of the worst pain that you will ever experience.  In my case, I'm talking worse than labor!

Back pain is the main reason I became a Pilates instructor.  A lot of my physical therapy was actually doing Pilates on a stability ball.  I believe that I have my back health because I do Pilates regularly.

Now back pain isn't limited to your lower back, you can get pain in your middle back and your neck as well--remember, they are all part of your spine.

I was very excited to see today's video posted on YouTube by Psychetruth.  It is entitled "Safe Stretches for Back Pain."

Remember, go only as far as your body wants to go.  Your range of motion may not be as large as hers.  You don't want to force any stretch, especially when twisting.  If sitting cross-legged bothers you, sit however is comfortable.

When threading your arm through to the floor while you are on all fours, you can place your arm on a pillow if the stretch is too deep or painful.

While lying on your back, you can also put a pillow under your knee if it's too deep without it.

Doing these kinds of stretches regularly, along with doing core work like Pilates will help to keep your back strong and flexible.

Fitness Tip of the Day: Friday's Findings -- Fast Foods & Junk Food are Killing Us!

How fast food and junk food are affecting us, from the Psychetruth channel on YouTube.

 Holistic Nutritionist, Corrina Rachel's point of view:

Some of this is common sense--eat more healthy organic fruits and vegetables, eat less processed food and junk food, period.  The main theme is to eat foods that were around 100 years ago, foods that don't have all the chemicals and additives added to them.

Here are the steps she mentions to help you:

1.  Eat more fruits and vegetables.

2.  Stop drinking sweetened beverages, especially soda.

3.  Invest in a water filter to remove chemicals from your water.

4.  Stop eating processed foods.

5.  Avoid processed meats.  Grass fed is recommended.

6.  When eating out, look for salad bars, and asian restaurants--without MSG--avoid deep fried foods and go for the entrees with lots of veggies.

I'll be posting more videos regarding nutrition in the future.




 

Fitness Tip of the Day: Thursday's Total Body/Cardio -- Crazy Cardio Challenge

Today's workout comes from LiveStrongWoman's YouTubeChannel.  It is a crazy cardio circuit challenge from the A-List Look with Valerie Waters series.

It consists of 10 exercises that will keep your heart rate up the entire time tabata-style; working for 20 seconds, resting for 10.  Your lower body will be challenged and you will get some upper body work as well.  Keep track of how many reps you can perform in each 20 second segment.

You are to repeat the circuit 3 times, so you can either repeat the video 2 more times, or follow the printable workout that I linked below.  Note, it's expected that as you get tired that you'll do less reps.  Please be aware of your form as you get tired--keep good form the entire time; move slower it you need to.

You can take this challenge again in 4 - 6 weeks and see how you've improved.

There is no warm-up or cool down/stretch.  Please do those on your own.  They are both extremely important.

Printable workout:  Crazy Cardio Challenge