Relieve Low Back Pain | Reduce Low Back Pain | Canada's Leading Authority in Human Movement | Dev Chengkalath

I realize I left off the last post with all of you yearning for those fantastic ab wheel exercises.

I’ve been extremely busy at the clinic doing my physical therapy thing this past month and I apologize for making you wait and for the dearth in posting.

I promise I will make it up to you!

But…

Before I get into the actual exercises I just wanted to list my top 6 reasons why the ab wheel is such a versatile core training device:

1. Simple and easy to use
2. Small, lightweight and portable
3. Needs only body weight
4. Very affordable
5. Effective and efficient
6. Can be used by anyone, from beginners to professionals

So without further ado, here are a few ab wheel exercises from easiest to incredibly challenging.

1. The basic roll out: Start in a kneeling position and just roll out as far as you can from your hips keeping your back and stomach tight and braced. Don’t let your low back arch up or sink down.

2. Angled roll outs: Start in the same position as the basic roll out, however, instead of rolling straight out, angle your direction of travel.

3. Full standing roll outs: Start in a standing position with the ab wheel at your feet. Roll out as far as you can and then roll back in to the original standing position.

Give these a try but do remember to work within your limits.

While the basic roll out, done with a shorter reach, is fairly simple and straight-forward, the other variations can be extremely challenging and do carry a greater degree of risk. The farther out you take your arms, the harder this exercise will be. 

To your ab rolling.

Dev Chengkalath

In keeping with the theme of body weight exercises, I just wanted to touch on what I consider one of the best tools to enhance your core: The Ab Wheel. 

I’m sure many of you are familiar with this simple yet powerful piece of exercise equipment.

It’s pretty much a wheel with small handles poking out of each side. 

Marvel of modern engineering

This elegant design allows the ab wheel to outperform all those fancy ab-training devices that you may have been tempted to buy during those nights where your insomnia met those compelling fitness infomercials.

Now you’re probably wondering why the ab wheel is so special?

Well, for starters, this little device lets you target the core appropriately.

The core, as I’ve written about before on this blog, is not specifically designed to flex the torso as most people think.

If it were, the muscles would look a lot different than they do.

This is one of the reasons why exercises like sit-ups and crunches are not the best types of core exercises to prevent or relieve low back pain.

In fact, if the main purpose of the abs were to flex the torso, the stomach muscles would look more like the hamstrings and not the typical six-pack.

Hamstrings: long, straight bands of muscle

Abdominals: sectioned and multidirectional

Looking at functional anatomy, the core is designed to resist movement and to act as an energy transfer link between the upper and lower body. It essentially acts like your body’s own internal corset which protects your spine and keeps your back healthy.

And that’s just what the ab wheel does.

It forces you to hold your core tight and neutral while moving through the hips. As an added bonus, you’ll work on your shoulder stability and control as well.

In my experience as a physical therapist, shoulder injuries are the second most common type of injury I see at the clinic. 

So why not do yourself a favour and protect the two most often injured areas at once?

If you don’t already have one of these marvels of modern fitness engineering at home, you can pick one up HERE.

In my next post, I’ll go over a few of the top ab roller movements and give you beginner to more advanced exercises. 

To your abdominal rolling.

Dev Chengkalath

…for an A$$ kicking workout can be found in your own home. 

Now for some of you out there, you may prefer the gym.

The atmosphere. The sights. The sounds. The smells. 

I know I do.

I love the sound of iron clanging against iron. I love the feel of deep knurling ripping into the tender flesh of my palms (yes, I do have soft hands!). I love the look and feel of heavy plates and heavy dumbbells. The grunts and groans of effort (or attention seeking-look at me, look at me!).

I do admit however, the smells I could usually do without. I understand the deep human need to form habits, but seriously, after working out in a certain outfit, WASH IT! I don’t care if you wear the same baby blue T and Addidas shorts ever single day, just make sure you’ve killed the fungus that’s been growing on them.

Okay, now that my rant is over, here’s the point of this whole post. 

Not everyone has the luxury of being able to get to the gym as often as I do.

But…

If you can’t get to a gym, you have everything you need at home to get in phenomenal shape. 

A while back I talked about the ultimate home workout weight set.

If you didn’t catch that post, you can check it out HERE.  

I won’t rehash what’s been hashed (if I can even say that), but I will say that with the proper progression of bodyweight exercises, you can push yourself and achieve amazing results.

Using your body, and perhaps some household items, or even a few pieces of easily purchased equipment, you can create any number of workouts (limited only by your imagination!) that will help you burn body fat, build muscle and get in awesome shape.

All in the comfort of your own home.  

Stay tuned as I open your eyes to the incredible options available for bodyweight training over the next couple weeks.

There are big things coming your way…

 
Yours in movement.

Dev Chengkalath

P.S. Keep your eyes open for a big anouncement coming soon…

LARGE BREASTS.

Warning: May cause severe back pain

“Where the heck is he going with this one?!?”

I am going to assume that’s what you’re thinking.

And rightly so. 

Read on to find out how big breasts are related to back pain… 

While I’ve discussed many learned or habitual causes of back pain, there is an area that I haven’t spent much time talking about. 

Structural causes. 

Now these types of causes are many and can include bone related issues as scoliosis (curvatures of the spine), leg length discrepancies (one leg shorter than the other), or a number of other problems related to the structural make up of various human tissues (bones, joints, tendons, ligaments etc). 

One such structural issue that is fairly common, but not often discussed, is the case of the massive mammaries. 

Being a male physical therapist working under the auspices of the Regulated Health Professions Act, I’ve had to broach this subject with my clients with significant caution.

You can’t just tell someone that their boobs are causing their back pain. Even if that’s really the case.

That being said, this problem is very real for those that suffer from it and must be addressed.

For this problem, there are a few solutions I’d like to suggest:

1. Proper bra fitting: Obviously, not being a bra expert myself, I’ve had to reach into my extended network of colleagues and experts for information (no matter what industry you’re in, you MUST have a network you can access for things you don’t know!-but that’s for another post!) This includes the correct size, style, support and structure. Even a small change such as a wider shoulder strap can make a HUGE difference. So for all you women out there, have your brassieres professionally fitted. 
2. Fix your posture. ‘Nuff said. 
3. Lose excess body weight: This is not only important for back pain issues but also for health issues. My good buddy Rocco has a program that can help you out. You can check it out HERE.
4. Get in shape: If you have a heavy chest that collapses you forward, you need strong, resilient muscles to defy gravity and keep you upright. Get strong. Get fit. 
5. Breast reduction surgery: Sometimes, it’s gotta be done. Your health is probably worth more than having cleavage. 

So there you have it. Big breasts and back pain.

The silence has ended.

Dev Chengkalath

In the realm of injury rehab which includes low back pain prevention and treatment, there are many exercises that are extolled as imperative for proper function. Most of these are granted the high honour of being called “CORE” exercises.

Stabilize your core. Strengthen your core. Turn on your core. Activate your core. 

I’m sure all of these are very familiar statements that you’ve heard when dealing with your low back pain. 

The problem with many of these is that they don’t actually take into consideration the functional anatomy of the involved or recruited structures. 

Let’s take a closer look at some of the muscles that make up the abs…

The rectus abdominis or “six pack” muscle is essentially formed by two bands of muscles which are further sectioned into 8 “rectangles” by intersecting tendons. 

Separation of the abdominal muscle

So why is the structure so important?

For starters, the structure of anatomical body-bits is defined by the purpose of those body-bits. 

Form follows function.

According to Dr. Stuart McGill in Ultimate Back Fitness & Performance the “rectus, by virtue of its beaded architecture, is not made to create force over a range in length-yet it is currently popular to perform curl-ups over a gym ball for example.”

In even more basic words, by its design, the six pack muscle was not designed to perform sit-up type motions, if it were, it wouldn’t be sectioned the way it is.

Instead, it would be two long uninterrupted bands of tissue (much like the hamstrings muscle on the back of the thigh). 

So if it isn’t made to crunch, what’s it made to do?

Based on it’s elegant design, the abs were made to RESIST motion and transfer power from the hips.

One of the best exercises to train this quality is the front plank as demonstrated in the following short clip.

Yours in planking.

Dev Chengkalath