|
| "Bodybuilding
Sins" That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts: Part 3 |
by
Jesse Cannone CFT, SPN, CPRS
and Steve Hefferon, CMT, CPRS |
Jesse Cannone is a Certified
personal fitness trainer, post-rehab specialist,
nutritionist, best-selling author, and national fitness presenter. |
|
|
Welcome
to article number 3 in our series "Bodybuilding Sins That Cause Back Pain and Missed
Workouts". In this article we are going
to talk about how bodybuilders tend to create massive muscle imbalances and what you can
do to not be one of them.
Because
there is so much information to share with you, we’ve broken it down into a series of
5 articles, each covering a different component of how back pain affects bodybuilders.
Article
#1 - Choosing The WRONG Exercises
Article #2 - Training Variations
for Pain Relief and Maximum Results
Article #3 - Targeted Stretching (below)
Article #4 - Targeted Exercises
Article #5 - Rest,
Recovery, and Injury Prevention |
|
Article 3. Targeted Stretching |
Stretching can be great, but it can also make
existing injuries worse or even bring about new ones!
The key to making stretching work for you is knowing which stretches
you need to be working on… and just because a muscle feels tight, that doesn’t
necessarily mean it needs to be stretched.
For example, many people stretch the hamstrings because they feel tight
and they think the hamstrings are limiting their flexibility…
the fact is, most of the time the hamstrings are "tight"
because they are constantly being pulled / lengthened due to muscle imbalances that tip
the pelvis forward.
Below is a scary attempt of artwork to show you visually what we are
talking about: |
 
|
As you can see, when the
pelvis tips forward the hamstrings get pulled upward and are constantly held in a
stretched position…
And this is why millions of people can stretch their hamstrings every
single day and never make any improvement in their flexibility….
Are you one of those people?
If you are, you need to stop stretching your hamstrings and find out
exactly which muscles you need to be targeting by reading the rest of this article…
Not only does this forward tipping of the pelvis (which is caused by
muscle imbalances) keep the hamstrings tight and make it very difficult to make
improvements in the muscles flexibility, but it also leads to the following:
- increased stress / wear and tear from the ankles all the way up the spine
For example, the forward tipping of the pelvis places uneven pressure
on the ankle, knee and hip joints and also many of the vertebrae in the spine.
- weakens the hamstrings, inhibits normal functioning and increases the likelihood of
hamstring pulls
When the hamstrings are constantly being strained because of the muscle
imbalances, the muscle is weak, not able to function as it normally would, prone to injury
and without correcting the muscle imbalance recover can take up to 9 months to a year, or
longer!
- creates excess curvature in the lower and middle spine
This tipping of the pelvis places excessive amounts of abnormal stress on the muscles,
vertebrae and discs in the lower and mid spine and this sets you up for potential injuries
to the muscles of the lower and middle back.
Plus, it also causes the discs between your vertebrae to wear down and
deteriorate much faster than they normally would and this sets you up for degenerative,
bulging, protruding and herniated discs along with numerous other spinal conditions like
arthritis, spinal stenosis, and the oh-so-popular sciatica! |
|
|
|
This
hamstring example is just one of many. Muscle imbalances are responsible for nearly every
ache, pain, injury and condition out there!
Here are a few more examples of injuries / conditions that are caused
by muscle imbalances and can easily be prevented and/or eliminated with targeted stretches
and exercises:
upper back and neck pain
shoulder injuries (rotator cuff)
elbow and wrist pain (carpal tunnel, tennis/golfer/baseball elbow, etc)
knee pain (runners knee, chondromalacia, ligament tears, etc)
hip pain (IT band syndrome, bursitis, etc)
ankle pain (Achilles tendonitis, shin splints, plantar fasciitis, heel
spurs, etc)
All of these conditions are caused by muscle imbalances and will NOT go
away unless you work towards correcting the imbalances… and the only way to know for
sure which imbalances are causing your pain or injury is to do a series of physical
assessments like the ones covered in our "Lose the Back Pain Video" which is designed for anyone suffering
from back pain or sciatica.
What the heck is a targeted stretch?
This is a question we are asked often and here’s the definition we
give it:
Targeted Stretch - a stretch or stretching exercise that is
chosen, based on physical assessments, to target a specific muscle or muscle group to
increase the flexibility and range of motion in that area and bring the bones and or
joints back towards the normal position.
When you compare a targeted stretch to general stretches like the ones
found in Yoga, Pilates and the corny ones your doctor, chiropractor or physical therapist
gives you, it’s no surprise they give little or no pain relief and almost always fail
to get rid of the problem.
Conclusion
Remember, the key to eliminating injuries and preventing future ones is
to identify what areas you need to target. In the next article we’ll be discussing in
detail, how to address various injuries like back, hip, knee, and shoulder pain with
targeted exercises. In the meantime, be sure to read thru all of our detailed Back Pain
Articles and if you have questions, please post them in our Discussion
Forum. |
|
|
| Article by Jesse Cannone, CFT, CPRS and Steve
Hefferon, CMT, CPRS Jesse Cannone
is a certified personal fitness trainer, post-rehab specialist, nutritionist, and a
national fitness presenter. He is also the author of Burn Fat FAST and A Bride’s
Guide To Fast Fitness + Weight Loss in addition to many other popular fitness articles. He
is known for his hard-hitting and to the point style and offers a great free email
newsletter called Fitness Success News, which you can subscribe to at his website www.achieve-fitness.com |
Jesse Cannone,
Steve Hefferon © 2005 – All Rights Reserved |
|
