3 times a week I attempt to do sprints at the track for my intervals. I feel like I am getting a good workout until after when I feel the pain in my shins and sometimes the muscles around my knees.

I don’t get sore at any other time, just after sprints. I run on the track so that it won’t be so jarring on my joints. Is there stretches I can do after that will decrease the pain I feel? Or am I running incorrectly during the sprints?

Why Do You Get Shin Splints? Shin splints is a blanket term. Lack of recovery, like too much sprinting, can result in shin splints. But often there’s more going on. Koryjane1979 mentioned knee pain too.

• Bad Footwear. Wearing shoes with heels can limit the range of motion of your dorsiflexors and tighten your plantarflexors over time.
• Limited Ankle Mobility. Limited dorsiflexion range of motion (ROM) and tight plantarflexors force your body to compensate mobility elsewhere.
• External Rotated Feet. Lack of ankle mobility will make your feet turn outward, while your lower-/upper-leg will turn internally to compensate.

Why You Should Look Into This. Lack of ankle mobility forces your feet out and turns your hip inward. This causes loss of external hip rotation ROM, which can force your knees/lower back to compensate mobility.

You understand shin splints, but also plantar fasciitis or achilles tendinosis, are just the tip of the iceberg. Often there’s a lot more going on, which can result in lower back pain or knee pain or your knees buckling in on Squats.

Why Women Should Really Look Into This. Women have an increased Q-angle compared to men: wider hips, narrow knees. Couple this with the chronic wear of high heels, and you understand why women are more prone to ACL injuries.

By the way, the increased Q-angle is part of the reason why women often have a harder time keeping their knees out on Squats, Deadlifts, Lunges, etc.

Image credit: Doctor Latino.

How to Treat Shin Splints. Chances are your sprinting technique isn’t optimal. Stop sprinting for now so your shins recover. In the meanwhile:

• Improve Ankle Mobility. Both plantarflexors and dorsiflexors. Do the exercises from the ankle mobility post and from this & this video.
• Strengthen Your Dorsiflexors. DARD work, Seated Dumbbell Dorsiflexion, Barbell Reverse Calf Raises, etc
• Wear Flat Shoes. Chuck Taylor All Stars for Squats & Deadlifts. Nike Frees for running. Women: drop the high heels at home.
• Go Barefoot. Do all your dynamic stretching exercises barefoot. Walk barefoot at home as much as you can.
• Improve Hip Mobility. You’re probably tight in there. Do the exercises from the hip mobility post, get Magnificent Mobility if you need more.
• Soft Tissue Work. Feet & calves: toes up/in, rotate in/out. Foam roll the rest too while you’re at it. Read the Soft Tissue Work guide.
• Strengthen Your Posterior Chain. Deadlifts, Rack Pulls, Box Squats, Glute Ham Raises, Pull-throughs, Reverse Hypers, Reverse Lunges, …

Copyright © 2007-2009 STRONGLIFTS BVBA. Disclaimer.

I have a really bad groin. When I try to Squat or run, a really sharp pain runs through my groin.

It’s depressing, haven’t done Squats or Deadlifts for 10 days, and can’t get closer to my soccer goals since I can’t play. So I just skipped Squats & Deads.

Why You Pulled Your Groin. Your groin, hamstrings & glutes are hip extensors. Excessive sitting can cause dormant glutes. This forces your hamstrings, groin & lower back to compensate. They get overactive, and injured.

Hamstring & groin strains are common in sports. Piriformis strains also happen (synergist in lateral hip rotation). And many lifters get back pain on Squats & Deadlifts. The cause is often the same: weak glutes.

How to Treat Your Groin Pull. Bad solution 1: static stretching, it can irritate your hip joint capsule. Bad solution 2: passive rest, no-one likes it. And neither solutions fix the cause of the problem. Better ideas:

• Soft Tissue Work. Remove the knots in your adductors. Do soft tissue work using a Foam Roller. This treats the symptoms (but not the cause).
• Warm-up Properly. No more static stretching or light jogging. Improve your hip mobility by doing dynamic stretches as warm-up.
• Hip Mobility. Split Stance Adductor Mobilization, Walking Spidermans, Lateral Squats, … Check the post on hip mobility & Magnificent Mobility.
• Glute Activation. Supine Bridges, Birddogs, X-band Walks, … Read the post on glute activation & Magnificent Mobility for more exercises.
• Train Your Legs. Speeds up recovery by flushing blood (nutrients) into the injured groin. Light Squats with a narrow stance (empty bar).
• Strengthen Your Posterior Chain. Pull-throughs, Glute Ham Raises, Reverse Hyper-extensions, Deadlifts, Box Squats, etc

4 Days Later, reader Endure reported:

My groin’s getting better, I played a whole 30 mins of soccer on thursday, feeled really good.

Copyright © 2007-2009 STRONGLIFTS BVBA. Disclaimer.

ARTs can break those down for you. But regular visits are expensive. Worse, I can’t find an ART in Belgium and chances are you can’t neither. Luckily you can do soft tissue work yourself. Here’s how.

Benefits of Soft Tissue Work. First time this will hurt a lot. But the pain is worth it in the long-term, and it gets less painful anyway. Benefits:

• Increased Flexibility. The Iliotibial Band (ITB) is often tight. Stretching doesn’t work well as it’s fascia, not muscle. It needs soft tissue work.
• Improved Posture. Improving your thoracic mobility – especially thoracic extension – can fix slouching shoulders.
• Less Injuries. Through increased muscle quality, flexibility and posture. Working on your ITB & calves can get rid of knee pain for example.

What You Need for Soft Tissue Work. The best way remains getting it done by an ART. Alternative ways:

• Foam Roller. Cheap rollers get distorted fast. Get a paperboard roller or PVC pipe. Or invest in the Foam Roller Plus: the PVC pipe on the inside makes it last 5x longer than regular foam rollers.
• Tennis Ball. You’ll reach smaller muscles more easily with a tennis or lacrosse ball than with a foam roller. They also provide more pressure.
• Thera-Cane. More precision, increased leverage and no need to lie on the floor to work on trigger points. Check this one.

How to Do Soft Tissue Work. Here are some books & free guides on how to use foam rollers or tennis balls for soft tissue work.

• Free PDF 1 & Free PDF 2. Free guides on how to use foam rollers. (right click – download as. View with Acrobat Reader).
• Tennis Ball: a Tool You Never Knew You Had by Lauren. 3 part article with pictures & instructions on using tennis balls for soft tissue work.
• Feel Better for 10 Bucks by Eric Cressey & Mike Robertson. First article I read on soft tissue work. Has pictures & instruction on foam roller use.
• Soft Tissue Work for Tough Guys by Tony Gentilcore. Pictures, videos & instructions on how to use a tennis bal for soft tissue work.
• Trigger Point Therapy Handbook by Clair Davies. Lists all possible trigger points, how they can cause pain, and how to assess them.
• Maximum Strength by Eric Cressey. Includes 10 pages with pictures & instructions on soft tissue work using a foam roller/tennis ball.

Check out the video below by Eric Cressey.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Soft Tissue Work Routine. Work on the following muscles as warm-up. 2-3 strokes per muscle before your dynamic stretching. Takes 10mins.

• Feet: tennis ball
• Calves: foam roller
• ITB/TFL: foam roller
• Quads/hip flexors: foam roller
• Adductors: foam roller
• Hamstrings: foam roller
• Glutes/piriformis: tennis ball
• Thoracic extension: foam roller
• Lats: foam roller
• Pecs: foam roller
• Infraspinatus: tennis ball

Soft Tissue Work Techniques. Spend extra time on the most painful spots. It will hurt, but the only way to get used to it is to work through the pain.

• Work All Sides. Calves: curl your toes up, out, then rotate in & out. Infraspinatus: externally & internally rotate your upper-arm. Etc.
• Work Small Areas. Quads/hip flexors: work your quads first, then move up to your hip flexors. Same thing for your hamstrings.
• Increase Pressure. Start with 1 leg on the floor. Switch to legs crossed or on top of eachother after a few weeks.
• Avoid Neck & Lower Back. Work all muscles except these 2. You don’t want to injure your spine.

Whatever your level of experience, if you never did soft tissue work, try it. This is like stretching, you need this to be healthy. Try it for a few weeks. You’ll feel better and will get addicted to soft tissue work.

Copyright © 2007-2009 STRONGLIFTS BVBA. Disclaimer.

People from all ages, occupations, and sport disciplines complain of low back pain. A tight Psoas often contributes to your back pain. Good News? You can avoid it… you can even fix it.

Where and What is My Psoas? The Psoas is one of the largest and thickest muscles in the body. It attaches to the vertebrae of your lower back, and the head of your femur (thigh bone).

The Psoas is primarily responsible for hip and thigh flexion and has a lot of influence over your lumbar posture and the way your hips are positioned.

Psoas Muscle. Image credit: Somatics on the Web

When you’re sitting for a prolonged period of time, your Psoas is in a shortened position. Leave it for long enough, and it will start to think this is normal. Your tissues want to move into that resting position. Leaving you tight & contracted.

Incorrect posture during standing and walking (which is often caused by a tight Psoas) will leave it even tighter and harder to loosen.

Why Does It Cause Back Pain? A tight Psoas is a killer for your back for various reasons.

• If it is tight and in a contracted state, your Psoas will want to bring your lower back forward, moving you into an anterior tilt: lordotic posture.
• The pressure exerted by the Psoas whilst in a contracted state can compress the joints and discs of the lumbar vertebrae. This pressure causes degeneration and will make them more susceptible to injury.
• A shortened Psoas on one side will pull the spine or pelvis to that side, leading to many painful problems, including scoliosis.
• A tight Psoas will stop your Glutes firing and activating normally. This is Reciprocal Inhibition: the Psoas and the Glutes are opposing muscles.

Lack of Glute activity plus horrific posture can lead to overcompensation in other muscles of the back, leaving them tight and overworked. Couple this with the referring pain from the trigger points in your Psoas and you will be hurting.

Tips to Avoid A Tight Psoas. There are several ways to stop your Psoas turning into a hazardous plank of wood. All of which are easy to implement and should be even if you don’t suffer from back pain yet. Here goes…

• Postural Corrections. If we stay in a certain position all day, our tissues will want to move into that resting position, in this case, your Psoas. The best sitting posture is one that always changes.
• Sit Back in Your Chair. This will stop you leaning forward as much, and thus your Psoas won’t be in as shortened position in comparison to when you sit on the edge of your seat.
• Stop Hooking Your Feet under Your Chair. You put yourself in more hip flexion and therefore, more Psoas activation. Set your feet flat on the floor, or a raised platform if you are a shortie.
• Stand Up When Performing Exercises. You sit all day at work and keep your Psoas shortened. Do the opposite in the gym. Instead of the bike, get on the treadmill. Sub in Overhead Press instead of Seated Press.
• Stop Sleeping on Your Stomach. When you are on your stomach, your back goes into hyperextension. This is exacerbating what a tight Psoas already does to your back (anterior tilt). Change it up.
• Move More. Not staying in a seated position all day will go a long way to stopping you developing a tight Psoas. Get up more frequently, stretch more often, change positions… just keep moving!

Tips To Loosen A Tight Psoas. If you do suffer from low back pain and you suspect a tight Psoas, relax (maybe your Psoas will follow the lead), read the next few tips, and get cracking.

1. Stretch. Add Psoas and Hip Flexor stretches after your workouts. Get out of your chair at work occasionally and do some stretches. Do some at night before you go to bed. You can do Mehdi’s Psoas Stretch or this one:

2. Release. The most effective way to loose your Psoas is through a therapist. But you can do it yourself using a ball slightly larger & softer than a tennis ball. This massage technique releases your Psoas through an active range of motion.

• Lay on the ball, about 1-2 inches outside your belly button.
• You’ll feel your Psoas respond as you lower yourself. It will hurt a little.
• Arch your back; come up onto your elbows. This will result in a more forceful stretch and release on your Psoas.

3. Activate Your Glutes. Active glutes will help inhibit and relax your Psoas. Here are my favorites exercises you can integrate into your warm-up, or do in your main program to help fire up your glutes and loosen your Psoas.

• Overhead Lunges. Stretch and glute exercise.
• Single Leg Bridge with Knee lift. Lifted knee stretches opposite Psoas.

A tight Psoas will give many more problems than I have outlined here. It’s easy to prevent them getting tight and there is a lot you can do about it if it does.

Generally, during everyday life, at the workplace and even at the gym people are performing movements that promote Psoas tightness. Start taking some notice and prevent these troublemakers from giving you pain.

Lauren blogs about fitness, strength training and nutrition at Laurensfitness.com. Check out her articles about hip flexor flexibility, foam rolling and the glycemic index.

Copyright © 2007-2009 STRONGLIFTS BVBA. Disclaimer.

I’ve been doing Stronglifts 5×5 since November 2007. I injured my right shoulder while lifting 3 weeks ago. Pain between spine & shoulder-blade, shooting into biceps.

Prior to that, I’ve had persistent pain in my right shoulder. I think the pain was from holding my right hand out for the mouse plus bad sitting posture. I’m working to address the ergonomics of my desk.

The injury required me to drop 10 lbs off my Overhead Press and Bench Press. I’ve continued lifting through the injury. Not increasing the weight for presses but focusing on technique.

Daily I’ve been doing:

• 20x Shoulder Dislocations
• 2×10 Scap Push-ups
• 3×10 Face Pulls
• 3X10 Behind The Neck Pulldowns

Should I take a break from pressing to allow the shoulder time to heal? Are there other exercises that would assist in strengthening the shoulder girdle?

The Infraspinatus. One of your 4 rotator cuff muscles. The Infraspinatus is a dynamic stabilizer & assists in outward arm rotation. It’s located behind your shoulder & covers your shoulder-blade.

Image credit: A.D.A.M.

How Do You Get Infraspinatus Injuries? Habitual overload or repetitive strain related to outward arm rotation can injure your Infraspinatus. Examples:

• Keeping Arm in Front/Overhead. Driving car with your hands on top of wheel, working on computer without elbow support, etc
• Reaching Back Repeatedly. Controlling computer mouse, forehands in tennis, smash in volleyball, etc

Symptoms of Infraspinatus Injuries. Although the infraspinatus is located behind your shoulder, pain is usually felt in your front shoulder.

• Front Shoulder Pain. Pain down into biceps. Pain feels as if it’s deep in the joint. Side shoulder, neck & shoulder-blade can also hurt.
• Stiff/Weak Shoulder. Shoulder & arm tire out more easily on one side than the other. Muscle imbalances. Stiffness. Arm going numb.
• Restricted Mobility. Reaching back – like when putting on your jacket – is difficult. Lying on your shoulder when sleeping hurts.

How to Treat Infraspinatus Injuries. Other rotator cuff muscle will compensate the weak/injured infraspinatus. This can cause problems in your whole shoulder – like frozen shoulders. Don’t let this get out of hand.

1. Fix Posture. Correct posture when sitting & doing exercises like Barbell Rows or Bench Press is shoulder-blades back & down. Hanging shoulders & flaring shoulder-blades is bad posture. Exercises you can do:

• Shoulder Dislocations. Improve upper-body mobility. 3×10 reps as warmup / on recovery days. Start with a wide grip.
• Doorway Chest Stretch. Tight chest muscles will pull your shoulders down. 3 sets of 10 seconds post workout/ on recovery days.
• Bike Face Pulls. Strengthen your upper-back & traps. Squeeze your shoulder-blades when pulling back. 3×10 reps post workout.
• Pelvis Realignment. Problems with your shoulders often means problems with your hips. Check for symptoms of lordosis.

2. Trigger Point Therapy. Trigger points are knots in your muscles caused by overstimulation. These can shorten & stiffen your muscles. Movement stresses muscle attachments, which can damage connective tissue & distort joints.

Popping shoulder joints are evidence of joint stress caused by trigger points. Stretches & rehability exercises can irritate trigger points and aggravate your pain. To remove the knots:

• Infraspinatus Massage. Massage your shoulder-blade using a tennis ball against a wall. 20 strokes several times a day.
• Rhomboid Massage. Between shoulder-blade & spine lies the Rhomboid which can also be overworked. Massage it using a ball or Thera Cane like in this video.

3. Prevention. Posture realignment exercises & trigger point therapy won’t do much if you have bad posture the other 20 hours of the day.

• Sit Correctly. Build the habit of sitting with your shoulder-blades back & down. Put a post it on your computer “shoulder-blades back & down“.
• Drink More. The best way to move more when you have a desk job. You’ll be forced to get out of your chair to go to the toilet.
• Switch Sides. Use your left hand for a while so your right hand gets a break. It takes 2 days to build dexterity in your other hand. Persist.
• Quality Chair. Adjustable chair with elbow support so your shoulders stay relaxed. Aeron Chairs or Steelcase Chairs are worth the money.
• Balanced Program. As much pulling (Rows, Pull-ups) as pushing (Bench & Overhead Press). 1 overhead session for each Bench Press session.

Stay away from painkillers. Pain is your body telling you something is wrong. Find out what. Educate yourself. Ask your doctor’s advice. But make sure you treat the causes, not the symptoms.

Take it slowly with weight lifting in the meanwhile. Lower the weight, spend time improving technique & slowly build back up. Don’t worry about strength loss, getting rid of injuries is more important in the long run.

Copyright © 2007-2009 STRONGLIFTS BVBA. Disclaimer.

I ran my 1st marathon in May of ‘07 and shortly thereafter, began experiencing pain in my right knee. Each time I ran, climbed up stairs, or squatted, the pain could be felt.

I found an orthopedic specialist & had MRIs done. The diagnosis was patellar tendinitis. I’ve completed 6 weeks of physical therapy. The pain is still there and I’m thinking about seeking a 2nd doctor’s opinion before I consider something drastic like surgery.

I want to start StrongLifts 5×5, but don’t want to miss out on Squats, the backbone to your training regimen. I can squat down with no weight on my back several times without knee pain.

My current thinking is to just start with the bar and go from there. With the hopes that the exercises will help (and not hurt) my knee situation. I have a computer job and sit for large chunks of the day, but keep an active lifestyle outside of work.

Patellar Tendon. Image credit: MMG

• Overuse. Intensive preparation the months prior running his marathon. But without proper recovery.
• Muscle Imbalance. Quadriceps & hamstrings aren’t equally strong. This could increase the shear force on his patellar tendon.
• Improper Posture. Ario has a desk job & sits for large chunks of the day. Bad postural habits can cause tight hip flexors, lordosis, etc.
• Other. Bad running technique, bad shoes, hard surface running, etc.

Treatment. The worst thing you can do is immobilization. Accelerate the healing process by increasing the blood flow to your knee. In the meanwhile strengthen the surrounding muscles to help the weakened joint.

• Stop What Hurts. Avoid running for now. Some of the rehab exercises will hurt. Rate your pain from 0-10. Anything above 3, stop.
• Stretch. Stretch your hamstrings & quads. Both legs. Hold the position & wait for the muscles to relax. No bouncing, take it slowly.
• Squat. Squat with an empty barbell for 2 weeks. Then add 2.5kg every workout. Knees out, don’t bounce on your knees & break parallel.
• Posture. Sit with your feet flat on the floor, not with your feet crossed under your chair. Check for lordosis.

Consult Your Doctor. It’s hard to know why you’re injured. It’s even harder to diagnose yourself without knowing what’s happening on the inside. Ario could have had a teared meniscus: similar pain, different treatment.

You’ve got some pain that doesn’t go away? Do like Ario: consult your doctor.

Copyright © 2007-2009 STRONGLIFTS BVBA. Disclaimer.

Cause of Lordosis. Lordosis can be caused by excessive weight, pregnancy, spinal problems present at birth, etc. Sitting for extended periods is a common cause of lordosis. Desk jobs, sitting in your couch, sitting in your car all day, …

Your body adapts to these positions. Some muscles shorten & stiffen, others get stretched & weaken. This causes an imbalance: lordosis.

• Hip flexors shorten
• Glutes and abs stretched & weak
• Anterior Pelvic Tilt: your pelvis is pulled forward

Image credit: MedlinePlus

• Lower Back Pain. Your abs & lower back stabilize your torso. Lordosis stretches your ab muscles, making them weak. Your lower back gets all the work, which results in fatigue & pain.
• Tight Hamstrings. Lack of hamstring flexibility prevents proper exercise technique. Hamstrings get tight during sports lowering performance & increasing the risk of injury (pulled hamstrings).
• Bad Technique. You won’t be able to squeeze your glutes during Squats & Deadlifts . This puts more stress on your lower back & hamstrings, increasing risk of injury. Lower back pain is the first sign.
• Strength Loss. The glutes are one of your strongest muscles. Only using your lower back & hamstrings to lift the weight is less efficient than using all hip muscles. You need to involve your glutes.
• Unattractive. Monkey butt & you look like you’re pregnant.

Self Diagnose. If you have a desk job, sit a lot in your car or if you’re sedentary outside the gym, you probably have lordosis.

• Stand aside a mirror: Butt sticks out? Protruding gut?
• Lower back pain when standing for extended periods?
• Lower back pain during Squats or Deadlifts?
• Hamstrings get tight when playing sports?

Treating Lordosis. You’ll need to stretch the tight muscles & strengthen the weak ones. But lordosis won’t go away without treating the cause: sedentary lifestyle. You need to build better habits for long-term results.

• Sit Less. Avoid sitting in a static position for extended periods. Get up as often as you can. Every 15 mins ideally. Personally I avoid sitting as much as possible. I often eat & wait in queues standing.
• Stand-up Desks. Or kneeling desks. Anything where you’re don’t have a 90° angle at your hips for long periods.
• Desk Stretches. Put your arms overhead, upper-back against your chair. Bring your hips forward by squeezing your glutes hard. Straighten your legs. You’ll be fully extended upper back & hamstrings against the chair, glutes off the chair. I do this one countless times a day.
• Bridges. Glute activation & strengthening exercise. Raise your glutes off the floor by squeezing them as hard as you can. 3 sets of 10 reps.

  Click here to view the embedded video.




• Birddogs. Single leg glute activation exercise. Brace your abs & keep your spine neutral. Push back with your heels. 3 sets of 10 reps both sides. Video:

  Click here to view the embedded video.




• Hip Flexor Stretches. Use padding for your knees. Keep your torso perpendicular to the floor & your lower back neutral. Think upper leg back, not going down. Squeeze the glute of the back leg. 3 sets of 10 secs each side. Video:

  Click here to view the embedded video.




• Hamstring Stretches. Leg Swings. Chest forward, shoulders back, lower back straight & knees unlocked. Look forward. Move your legs, keep your pelvis still. If you can’t get high: keep working at it. Flexibility will come. 3 sets of 10 reps each side. Video:

  Click here to view the embedded video.




• Strengthen Abs. Turkish Get-ups are my favorite. 5×5, increasing the weight every session. Video by MTB Strength Training System:

  Click here to view the embedded video.

Copyright © 2007-2009 STRONGLIFTS BVBA. Disclaimer.

Posted by Sasper in StrongLifts.com Forum:

I tweaked my lower back during Squats. I let my form slip and brought my lower back in towards the front of me. It hurt bad immediately and I had to cancel the rest of my workout.

I had trouble walking and moving around for the next 24 hours. I started taking some ibuprofen to help with the pain and met with a personal trainer at my gym. He gave me some stretches to hit my lower back as well as the rest of my core.

Mobility vs. Stability. Some of your joints are designed for stability, others for mobility. Starting with your feet, joint function alternates like this:

• Ankles: mobility
• Knees: stability
• Hips: mobility
• Lower back: stability
• Middle back: mobility
• Shoulder-blades: stability
• Shoulders: mobility

Lower Back Stability. Your lower back is designed for stability: it keeps your torso upright. Both when walking around or performing Squats. If you stretch your lower back, you compromises its stability function.

By stretching your lower back you try to increase its natural range of motion. Stretching doesn’t alleviate your lower back pain. Stretching makes a back that is already unstable more unstable.

You want a strong back. A strong stable back that keeps you upright when doing heavy squats. Stop stretching your lower back. No more hyper-extension or rotational stretches for your lower back.

Lower Back Injuries. Sasper injured his back. Here is some of the advise I gave him on StrongLifts.com Forum:

• Rest. Stop loading your lower back for 2-3 weeks. Sasper took one week off strength training followed by 1 light week. Start with singe leg exercises then Front Squats.
• Glute Activation. Excessive sitting causes dormant glutes. Glute activation teaches you to use your glutes when doing Squats & Deadlifts.
• Hip Mobility. If you have dormant glutes, you have tight hip flexors. Improve your hip mobility so your lower back doesn’t have to compensate.
• Technique. Sasper will agree improper technique caused his lower back injury. It’s his responsibility to improve his Squat technique now so it doesn’t happen again.
• Doctor. If your lower back pain gets chronic, see a doctor.

Copyright © 2007-2009 STRONGLIFTS BVBA. Disclaimer.

• Sitting on your chair for long periods
• Heavy Front Squats
• Heavy Deadlifts

The spinal decompression procedure increases your spinal health & mobility by restoring its original length.

Procedure for Spinal Decompressions. You’ll need a pull-up bar to perform the spinal decompression procedure. Next:

• Hang from your pull-up bar
• Relax all muscles, especially the trunk muscles
• Hold for as long as you can

The longer you hang, the better. I perform the spinal decompression procedure for at least 5 minutes. I know what you’re thinking: my grip can’t hold for that long.

Spinal Decompression & Grip. I never use straps. Except when doing spinal decompressions. Straps will allow you to hang on the pull-up bar for extended periods of time, without your grip giving out.

Choose nylon-type lifting straps, they are more durable. Or lifting hook straps.

Relaxing the Trunk Muscles. To decompress your spine properly, you need to relax your trunk muscles.

• Hang from the pull-up bar
• Inhale deeply
• Hold your breath
• Tighten every muscle in you body as hard as you can
• Hold the tension for about 5 seconds
• Suddenly let all the air go along with the tension

You’ll drop & feel the spine lengthening.

Spinal Decompression Procedure Video.

I perform spinal decompressions at the end of my workouts for at least 5 minutes. Try it & post your experience using the comments.

Copyright © 2007-2009 STRONGLIFTS BVBA. Disclaimer.