Lower Back Pain? Try Stretching Your Hips...?

It was recently brought to my attention I am old.  Not just older, but old.  I thought that was a little unfair until I realized I was hobbling around like an old man this morning.  My back was sore!  And it's not like I was squatting 405lbs yesterday and had a good excuse,  I just woke up this morning with a sore back!  Coming on the heels of being accused of being old, I was kind of pissed.

So I stretched out my back.  Nothing.  I waited a little bit.  Stretched again.  Nothing.  That did not improve my mood.  It made no sense.  I have been doing more or less the same fitness program for the last 3 weeks: Run 3.5 miles one day, lift the next, 6 days a week.  Then it occurred to me, in addition to my workouts I spent 3 hours driving Wednesday which I almost never do.  I then spent 5 hours doing research, in a library, in a chair.  I was inactive for 8 hours.  Something I NEVER do.

My hip flexor muscles were in a contracted position for 8 hours Wednesday and as a result were tight.  This likely caused, unbeknownst to me, a greater than normal anterior pelvic tilt.  The front of my pelvis was being pulled down by the tight hip flexors, which caused the back of my pelvis to rise up.  The anterior pelvic tilt likely caused a greater than normal curve in my lower spine which put my spine is a compromising position.  So what did I do?  I ran on it Wednesday afternoon, lifted yesterday and, Tada!  Sore back today!

Once I realized the potential problem I was able to treat the problem instead of the symptom.  Problem: Tight hip flexor muscles.  Symptom: Sore back.  I started stretching my hip flexors and what I can tell you is that even if they were not causing the low back pain, they were damn tight!  Stretching them was so uncomfortable I almost forgot about my back.  And, as it turns out, it work!  After only 2 minutes of hip flexor stretching the back pain was reduced by, I would say, at least 50%.  Below are the basic and, lets say, slightly more advanced versions of what I did to stretch my hip flexors:

So the next time you are feeling low back pain, and assuming you have no history of major back injury, give this a shot!  For more common sense solutions to common problems, visit www.canyonptandf.com and see how you can FEEL SUPER today!

Get me my tattered sheet! I am Batman!

I discovered a disturbing new "fitness" trend: Fitness programs for the under 12 demographic.  Now let me be clear, I think kids should exercise.  I think they should maintain a healthy weight.  And I think creating a fitness program for them is pure insanity.

Having a structured fitness program for a five-year old is, to me, kind of like having a fitness program for my research assistant, Matilda.  For those who do not know, Matilda is s 2-year-old German Sheppard mixed with... stuff.  She is in great shape!  How, might you ask, does she do this?  I will tell you!  Although this is based purely on personal observations I have made during the last couple hours, I can comfortably clam Matilda lives to play.  She will play with anything at any time.  She plays with squirrels (admittedly I do not think the squirrels see the fun in sprinting across the yard fearing for their lives but that's their loss), she plays with bones, she plays with stuffed objects, some of which squeek, some of which do not, she plays with me, with other dogs, she plays with EVERYTHING.  The only time she does not play is when I force her to lay on her pillow while I work, waiting to play.  The closest thing she has to a structured workout is her evening walk but because I dictate the pace it probably is not much harder than waiting to play.

"What in the world does that have to do with a five-year-old," do you ask?

Again skipping the scientific research, I have determined, based on my own childhood memories, kids love to play!  When I was 5 I needed an old sheet and a stocking cap and I was Batman!  As Batman I would tear around the backyard fighting crime (Our backyard was a cesspool of crime) with a Batarang which looked remarkably like a broken Frisbee.  No one was yelling at me to do one more rep, no one was coming up with creative workouts or checking my form.  Crime did not sleep in St Paul so Batman was constantly on the move.  My mother did occasionally point out particularly heinous crimes which had to be stopped immediately,  Most of those happened during the winter months in very deep snow.

My point is with a little encouragement kids tend to find their own paths to fitness. The rest is just a gimmick.  Get them away from the televisions and tablets, send them outside and let them work their magic.  You too probably remember days from your childhood when you let your imaginations run wild and came home exhausted at the end of a long day of crimefighting.

For more information on fighting crime in my backyard, programs to kickstart YOUR fitness program or ways to avoid trending gimmicks, visit www.canyonptandf.com  And remember to always be yourself, unless you can be Batman.  Then ALWAYS be Batman.

Skip the Coffee and Eat My Shorts

I bet you have been thinking, if only there were a way to combine the convenience of wearing stylish undergarments with the power of high-octane coffee.  Well ladies, your wait is over!  I present to you, and I swear I am not making this up, caffeinated underwear!  According to an article at designtrend.com there is not one, but TWO companies selling these miracles of modern science.

Norm Thompson Outfitters is known, according to their website, as "the escape from the ordinary."  They sell a wide variety of women's apparel and accessories including "The Slimming Body Shaper."

This may look like an ordinary piece of apparel but it is most definitely the escape from ordinary.  According to the website this seemingly innocent piece of clothing is "infused with natural ingredients (caffeine and botanicals)." and is good for up to 30 washings.  The natural question is WHY??  So in an effort to inform you, the consumer, I contacted the company via live chat and asked that exact same questions.

Their response was, get ready, they DON'T KNOW.  Okay, that is not totally accurate.  They do know the "botanicals" are supposed to hydrate the wearer's body.  They also know the caffeine is supposed to "mobilize and decrease fat cells."  The all-important part, the part they do not seem to have an answer for is how this works.  I asked if perhaps the caffeine was absorbed somehow through the skin.  The answer, "Yes."  Well yes, that does clear things up.  Click here for the actual transcript.

The next question that presents itself is: How has the beer industry not jumped all over this?!  How do we not have Anheuser-Busch Briefs?  or Coors Light Longjohns?   Just THINK about the possibilities!

"Tired of paying those outrageous beer prices at the ball game?  Don't want the boss to smell alcohol on your breath?  Introducing Bud Light Boxers!  That's right, just slip them on in the morning and you get a steady stream of quality beer delivered directly to your bloodstream all day long!  No more long lines at the concession stands.  Keep a steady buzz all day long without unnecessary trips to the restroom.  Try Bud Light Boxers today!"

Look, the bottom line is, they do not work.  In fact, the manufacturers just lost a fairly pricey law-suit.   One of our "Member Bill of Rights" at Cayon Personal Training is "Even though you may not like all the answers to your questions, the answers will be honest."  In other words, there is no magic underwear which will mobilize fat.  The only way to mobilize fat is to mobilize you!

More questions you would like actual honest answers to?  Contact tom@canyonptandf.com and leave the caffeine to the coffee.