Stop using your neck to inhale!

Do you experience neck pain on a regular basis? Or maybe you have been dealing with headaches or upper trap issues. Or maybe it’s a rib that keeps going out? I recently made a visit to one of my remote training clients, Wendy. Wendy and I have been working together for over a year now, and she has made amazing progress, but it wasn’t until our most recent visit that we made a BIG discovery.

Wendy has dealt with upper rib issues for quite some time. Her rib heads are regularly pulled out of place, and despite our best efforts (including health from a licensed healthcare practitioner), we haven’t seen a resolution of these symptoms. It wasn’t until today that I assessed her neck muscles upon inhalation (breathing in). As you can see by the before photo, Wendy was using a TON of neck muscles when she was inhaling. The neck muscle should be relaxed during breathing, but hers were flexing like a biceps under load. What this told us is that she was using small accessory muscles to do the heavy lifting of pulling her ribcage into a position where she could get air in. When these muscles pull the ribcage up, they also pull the spine out of a stable position leading to the potential of shoulder, neck, and upper rib issues (both on the front and the backside).

Once we saw what was going on, we worked on a more relaxed inhalation strategy, and getting more ribcage expansion than translation upward. In Wendy’s words, “It feels like I can’t get as much air in!” And that’s exactly what we are looking for for now. As she learns to keep the neck relaxed when breathing in, it will drive air 360 degrees throughout her ribcage, alleviating the need for her neck to kick on every time she breaths. I’ll keep you posted on Wendy’s progress!

If you are saying to yourself, “I have those same problems!” It’s time to fix them! Click the link below to book an assessment today.

The One Exercise You Should Be Doing Every Day

If there is one exercise that you see on every training program that I write, it’s the 90/90 Hip Lift.  There are many variations of this exercise that I use (right hand reach, two hand reach, etc.), but you will always see it on your program if you work with me.  I usually include it in the warm-up for my clients but regardless if you are a world class athlete or you are a 70 year old who is just looking to stay in shape, you can benefit from this exercise.  Not only does it allow you to feel abs, glutes, and hamstrings, but it can be used to downregulate the nervous system as well.

Here is a breakdown of the 90/90 Hip Lift with Right Hand Reach;

1. Lie on your back with your feet flat on a wall and your knees and hips bent at a 90- degree angle. 

2. Place a 4-6 inch ball between your knees. 

3. Place your right arm pointing toward the ceiling. 

4. Inhale through your nose and as you exhale through your mouth, perform a pelvic tilt so that your tailbone is raised slightly off the mat. Keep your low back flat on the mat. Do not press your feet flat into the wall instead dig down with your heels. 

5. As you inhale, reach your hand toward the ceiling.  Maintain the pelvic tilt.

6. Exhale and keep reaching toward the ceiling feeling left hamstring and abs engage 

7. Repeat for 5 Breaths x 2 sets

This simple little exercise will alleviate nagging back pain, realign the neck and shoulders, and prepare your entire body for your workout.

This is only a brief description of the exercise, and proper coaching is key to success with the 90/90 hip lift.  If you need a personalized touch, I'm here to help.  Click the link below to book a free assessment today and let’s have you moving pain free now!

This Common Ab Exercise Is Making Your Lower Back Pain Worse...

It has been ingrained in us since grade school (see the Presidential Fitness Test) that the sit-up is the most important ab exercise you can do. If you have lower back pain however, I would avoid the sit-up like the plague.

"Blasphemy!" my gym rats bro-science experts will say. "You need a strong core!" First off, what do you consider your "core." Secondly, relax, this is just an article written by a guy who thinks the movie Borat is my generation's Citizen Kane. I digress. When you say core, I are assuming that you are talking about the muscle that support all ranges of motion of the trunk/pelvic AND your ability to respire (breath in and out). The sit-up, that targets the rectus abdominis, does a pour job at both these objectives. The rectus abdominis's primary motor function is controlling spinal flexion in the sagittal plane (back to front bending), and it actually has an insertion point that is anchored to the sternum, preventing the sternum from elevating during inhalation when active (that's bad). It's like watching Chris Farley wearing a jacket that's too small.

Your sternum gets pinned down by your rectus and without the expansion things get ugly really quick. You are soon compensating by extending the lower spine, further exacerbating stress on the lower vertebrae and muscles.

If you have lower back pain, and the sit-up is your primary core strengthening exercise, do yourself a favor and give the sit-up the ol' 86!

In future posts, I will be writing about my favorite ab exercises for alleviating lower back pain. You don't want to miss out, so make sure you click the link below to join our mailing list.

Looking for your own workout routine to improve your core and get rid of lower back pain? Click the link below to sign-up for a free assessment and I'll help you feel better, TODAY!