If you're looking to get fit and healthy, working with a personal trainer can be a great way to achieve your goals. But finding the right personal trainer can be a challenge. If you're searching for "personal trainer near me," here are some tips to help you find the right trainer for your needs.
Know your goals Before you start looking for a personal trainer, it's important to know what your goals are. Are you looking to lose weight, build muscle, or improve your overall fitness? Knowing your goals will help you find a personal trainer who specializes in the type of training you need. Check credentials and qualifications There’s a big difference between a Cert 4 in fitness graduate and a tertiary qualified personal trainer. Is the personal trainer a “thrash and bash” trainer. Or does the trainer have a sound understanding of the cause-and-effect relationships of the various exercises and training methodologies? The reality is you won’t know for sure. One thing you can be sure on however is that you don’t gain “sound understandings” from a cert 4 in fitness. So be sure to check what credentials the personal trainer has first. Consider the trainer's personality It's important to find a personal trainer who you feel comfortable working with. Look for someone who is supportive, motivating, and who can adjust their approach to meet your needs. Most personal trainers offer a free consultation to potential clients. Take advantage of this to get a feel for the trainer's personality and approach. This will also give you a chance to ask questions and get a sense of what training with them will be like. Consider the trainer's availability Trainer availability, is another way to gain an idea of the quality of the trainer. As much as we want our trainer to be able to accommodate our busy lifestyles, the reality is good personal trainers have limited availability. Often, you need to choose the trade off between working your schedule around a very good personal trainer, or working with an average personal trainer who has the availability to work around your schedule. Check reviews and references Google reviews, testimonials on their website and social media content are all good ways to gain a better sense of the trainer's reputation and how well they've helped others achieve their fitness goals. So use these tools to your advantage to potentially save yourself time and money in the long run. Finding the right personal trainer near you can be a challenge, but with these tips, you'll be well on your way to finding the right "personal trainer near me" to help you achieve your fitness goals. Remember to consider your goals, the trainer's credentials and personality, availability, and check reviews and references. With a little research and effort, you'll find a personal trainer who can help you reach your full potential. With the advent of technology, it has become easier to stay fit and healthy with the help of a personal training app. These apps are designed to cater to individual fitness goals, preferences, and schedules. They provide users with the necessary tools to plan and track their workouts, nutrition, and progress. In this blog, we'll take a closer look at the reasons why we too at Pain Free Fitness choose to offer a training app as part of our service to our personal training and rehabilitative clients.
Personalisation: Personal training apps are tailored to your individual fitness needs and goals. They also make is easier to customise workout to your specific needs. This is really important if we want to reach the goals that you have set. Clarity: Exercises written on a piece of paper and accompanied with a stick figure are always going to be open to interpretation when trying to remember how to complete them. At Pain Free Fitness, we get comments every week from our personal training clients saying to app is so useful when trying to remember how to complete certain exercises. Exercises performed correctly is also important when looking to achieve a certain goal set. Flexibility: Personal training apps offer flexibility in terms of time and location. You don't need to worry about working out at a specific time or location. You can work out at home, at the gym, or on the go, depending on your schedule and preference. These apps also allow you to plan your workouts ahead of time, so you can make the most of your time. Variety: Personal training apps allow us to offer you a variety of services and workouts because of how easy it is to house everything. From strength, to cardio, webinars to PDF’s. Personal training apps completely changes the look and feel to the service you receive. A more comprehensive service is only going to add to your overall experience. Accountability: If you’re one that tends to get side tracked with your training then personal training apps can help you stay accountable. They provide you with reminders to work out, track your progress, and provide feedback on your performance. Personal training apps provide users with personalized workout plans, flexibility, variety, accountability, and cost-effectiveness. They are a convenient way to stay fit and healthy, regardless of your fitness level or lifestyle. So why not try a personal training app today and see the benefits for yourself? You can see our app in action here. Personal training is a great way to achieve your fitness goals and improve your overall health and well-being. But, is it worth it? In this blog post, we will discuss some key benefits of personal training, including personal training for sports performance, personal training for over 50's, personal training for weight loss, and personal training after injury. Personal Training for Sports Performance: Personal training can be a great way to improve your sports performance. A personal trainer can help you develop a training program that is tailored to your specific sport and goals. They can also help you identify and correct any muscle imbalances or weaknesses that may be holding you back. Personal trainers can also help you to improve your power, speed, endurance, and agility, which are all key components of sports performance. Personal Training for Over 50's: As we age, our bodies change and we may need to adapt our workout routine to suit these changes. Personal training can be a great way for older adults to improve their fitness and overall health. A personal trainer can help you develop a workout plan that is safe and appropriate for your age and fitness level. They can also help you to maintain or improve your flexibility, balance, and strength which are essential for maintaining independence and reducing the risk of falls as we age. Personal Training for Weight Loss: Personal training can be a great way to lose weight and achieve your weight loss goals. A personal trainer can help you to develop a workout plan that is tailored to your specific needs and goals. They can also help you to identify and correct any bad habits or misconceptions you may have about exercise and nutrition. Personal trainers can also provide you with the motivation and accountability you need to stick to your workout plan and see results. Personal Training After Injury: Personal training can be a great way to recover from an injury and get back to your best. A personal trainer can help you to develop a workout plan that is safe and appropriate for your injury. They can also help you to identify and correct any muscle imbalances or weaknesses that may have contributed to your injury. Personal trainers can also help you to regain your range of motion, strength, and balance, which are all key components of injury recovery. So with all that said, is personal training worth it? Personal training is a great way to achieve your fitness goals and improve your overall health and well-being. Whether you're looking to improve your sports performance, maintain your independence as you age, lose weight, or recover from an injury, personal training can help you to achieve your goals. Personal trainers can provide you with the guidance, support, and motivation you need to see results and reach your full potential. So, if you're looking to take your fitness to the next level, it might be worth considering personal training. Personal training after an injury can be a great way to get back to your best and achieve your fitness goals, but it's important to approach it with the right mindset and guidance. In this blog post, we will discuss some key considerations when it comes to personal training after an injury, including selecting the correct exercises, ensuring imbalances are addressed, and addressing sports-specific needs.
Selecting the Correct Exercises: When it comes to selecting the correct exercises, it is important to work closely with a qualified personal trainer who has experience working with injured clients. They will be able to assess your condition and recommend exercises that will help you recover while minimizing the risk of further injury. This may include exercises that focus on range of motion, strength, and balance, as well as exercises that target specific areas of the body that have been affected by the injury. It is important to start with light exercises and gradually increase the intensity and difficulty as your body adapts and recovers. For example, if you have an ankle sprain, your trainer might start with exercises that focus on regaining range of motion and building strength in the ankle, such as ankle circles and heel raises. As you progress, they may add exercises that challenge your balance, such as standing on one foot or doing lunges. It's also important to note that recovery from an injury is not a one-size-fits-all process. Each person's injury, healing time, and rehabilitation needs are unique. So, it's important to work with a personal trainer who will tailor a program specifically for you and your injury. Ensuring Imbalances are Addressed: Ensuring imbalances are addressed is another important aspect of personal training after an injury. Oftentimes, an injury can lead to muscle imbalances, which can further contribute to pain and discomfort. A personal trainer will be able to identify these imbalances and develop a training program that addresses them. This may include exercises that focus on strengthening and stretching specific muscle groups, as well as exercises that promote overall balance and stability. For example, if you have a knee injury, you may have developed an imbalance between the quadriceps and hamstrings muscles. This can lead to further stress on the knee joint and prolong your recovery. Your personal trainer will be able to identify this imbalance and give you exercises to strengthen the hamstrings and stretch the quadriceps to help restore balance to the knee. Sports-Specific Needs: Finally, it is important to consider sports-specific needs when it comes to personal training after an injury. If you are an athlete, you will need to work closely with a personal trainer who understands the demands of your sport and can develop a training program that will help you get back to your best. This may include exercises that focus on power, speed, agility, and endurance, as well as exercises that help to prevent future injuries. For example, if you're a runner who has suffered a knee injury, your personal trainer may include exercises that focus on building strength in the hip and gluteal muscles. These muscles are key for stability and power in running and help to take pressure off the knee. They may also include exercises that focus on balance and stability, such as single-leg deadlifts, to help prevent future injuries. In conclusion, personal training after an injury is a great way to get back to your best and achieve your fitness goals. By selecting the correct exercises, ensuring imbalances are addressed, and addressing sports-specific needs, you can work with a qualified personal trainer who will help you recover from your injury and get back to doing the things you love. Remember, safety first and take it slow, injury recovery is a process It’s not just aching calves and tight hamstrings that plague runners — sore knees are also common among runners of all fitness levels. Between 40 and 60 percent of runners experience patellofemoral pain syndrome, or iliotibial band syndrome, at some point in their running careers, according to studies published in the Journal of Sports Health and the Journal of Athletic Training. In fact, "runner’s knee" (as both of these issues are more commonly called) can be so common that many people don’t even realise they have it and just think that knee pain is an inevitable part of running. So if you get knee pain during or after a run, this blog article will help you to understand what type of knee pain you may have, what causes the pain and give you some solutions to overcoming it. An Overview of Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS), is a condition that results in pain around or under the kneecap. The pain is often worse when running, going up and down stairs, or sitting for long periods of time. PFPS is caused by the misalignment of the kneecap and can be aggravated by weak muscles around the hip, particularly the gluteus medius. Weakness in this muscle tends to laterally drop the hip and subsequently internally rotate the femur and forces your knee to bear more weight than it should. Exercises like squatting with a resistance band will help strengthen the gluteus medius and bring your pelvis back into alignment, which may alleviate knee pain while running. We'll talk more about that later. What Is Iliotibial Band Syndrome and How Is It Caused? ITB syndrome is caused by the overuse of the knee joint, as well as tightness in the hips and weak gluteal muscles. Pain is experienced on the outside of the knee where the illiotibial band attaches into the knee, as the tension of the band frictions over the lateral condyle. The combination of key muscles being tight while others being weak tends to lead to instability at both the hip and knee joint, which then causes the overload and friction. Studies have shown that runners who have weak gluteal muscles are more likely to experience pain in their knees while running. This is because the gluteal muscles play such a critical role in stabilising the hip joint. You don't need to be a runner to experience runner's knee, in fact the non-active population suffer from this condition just as much fitness fanatics and weekend warriors. Often however the symptoms and causes can be quiet similar, as previously mentioned hip instability often is a factor along with other issues such as a lack of lower leg stability, shoe type, age and posture. The Importance of Strength Training When it comes to runner’s knee, pain in the knees while running, or any type of knee pain while running, there are a few key things that are important to understand. The first is that runner’s knee is often caused by weak and unstable hip and core muscles. The second is that if you believe your hips are strong then you need to look south at your lower legs, instability and weakness there can also underpin sore knees. And finally, optimal joint alignment and movement mechanics are key to preventing knee pain while running. Strength and sound mechanics allow for optimal force transfer allowing the loads associated with these forces to be shared evenly across multiple joints, NOT just your knees. The good news is there are several ways to improve your hip stability and increase strength of these muscles. By doing so you’ll decrease pain in your hips, legs, and knees while also increasing performance. An Overview of Hip Instability The gluteus medius is a large muscle that attaches to the side of the hip. It is responsible for stabilising the hip and keeping the leg from collapsing inward when running. When this muscle is weak, it can cause the hip to drop and the knee to collapse inward, leading to pain on the outside of the knee (runner’s knee). Additionally, tightness in the hips can also lead to pain in the knees as it can cause instability in the joint. It’s important to remember that, while there are many factors that can lead to pain in your knee, it is most often due to an imbalance in how much you use your legs when running. For example, if you rely more on your right leg than your left when running, then it may be putting more stress on one side of your hip and leading to pain on that side of your knee. Alternatively, if you are naturally tight through your hip flexors then you will A) struggle to get your hip into an optimal position to generate force and B) you become more susceptible to overuse injuries through your hip flexors. How Can I Fix My Hip Muscle Imbalance? If any of the above is sounding familiar fear not, there is hope! By focusing on exercises that are unilateral (single leg) you can address the muscle imbalances between left and right. Furthermore, there are also exercises that help to correct faulty neuromuscular patterns. For example, if you recognise that your hip flexors are tight/over active while your glutes are neurally inhibited or lazy then you can do exercises that improve the order and timing of how they fire. All in all, by doing these exercises (ie. single leg squats off a box) you can help to re-teach your brain how to activate your glutes and loosen up tight hip flexors while also strengthening your glutes to fight against future imbalances. Not only will you have stronger muscles around your hip, but you’ll have better control over them too. Here are 3 hip exercises that we use in clinic that delivers every time with our clients. This Glute circuit is actually three exercises in one. It's a great combination that will bring your Glute Med and Gluteus Max to life and ready for more challenging movements. 2 rounds of 12 reps on each of the three movements is a good beginners rep range. These last two movements to a great job at challenging your hip in a position that's specific to any gait pattern, whether that's walking, running or lunging it doesn't matter. Challenging your hip strength in movement patterns that are specific to your needs is critical if you want to remain pain free long term. This last exercise builds on the previous and helps to teach you how to load the hip rather than just the knee. Be sure to listen to the instructions on all three videos to gain a sound understanding of what we are trying to achieve. Knee pain from running is extremely common, but fear not as it's almost always treatable as so often knee pain is a cause and effect of neuromuscular dysfunction either at the hips or lower leg.
Perform these three exercises 3-4 times a week for 3-4 weeks and reduce your running volume to half during this time. If you still get knee pain during or after a run, then make an appointment to come and see us in clinic, We will be able to identify your underlying problems and get you back out there running in no time. Introduction Lower back pain is a common cause of absenteeism and is the second most common reason for visits to the doctor’s office. As is commonly known now 70-80% of us will experience it at some point of our life. In clinic our numbers reflect these numbers also. It's so prevalent within our society. This blog I hope will help you to understand why you might have lower back pain and present you with some of our go to stretches that we prescribe in clinic to help relieve it. Pain Range Back pain can be a little bit of a nuisance, or it can completely incapacitate you. It might be sharp and stabbing, or dull and throbbing. It may be localised to one spot (i.e., in your lower back), or it could radiate outward into other parts of your body. The intensity of the pain can range from mildly irritating to completely debilitating— there are many factors that can contribute to this pain range. From the obvious such as the severity of the injury, how you did it, what the problem is right through to considerations such as, how you slept last night, lifestyle factors and even your body composition. As you can see, there’s a lot that goes into back pain in terms of how bad it is, how long it lasts and how much trouble it causes you when trying to go about your daily life without being able to function properly! Common Causes of Lower Back Pain Common causes of back pain are again vast and complex however the common issues include poor posture, improper body mechanics, arthritis, muscle strain, intervertebral disc degeneration and carrying excessive weight. Poor posture can affect the alignment of your spine and lead to injury or irritation in certain areas. Improper body mechanics can also cause pain by bending or stretching muscles in a way they aren't used to. The classic example that we see in clinic is individuals presenting with faulty mechanics that they have then applied to their fitness routines. From just plain running right through to group fitness classes or crossfit style workouts. When your movement mechanics are faulty to begin with, your brain is always going to be sensitive to excessive load, intensity or training volumes. Lower back pain is often the brains way of just saying "I don't like the way you're doing this". As you get older, the discs between vertebrae begin to wear out which may result in pressure on nerves causing pain when sitting or getting up from a chair. The bones themselves can also become arthritic due to wear-and-tear over time leading them not being able to move as freely as they once did resulting in some joints becoming stiffer than others causing uneven stress on other parts like nerves, ligaments & tendons. Stretches for Lower Back Pain It first has to be said that although useful stretches are a band aid for lower back pain. They do a great job at providing mild relief to the areas that are stressed, inflamed and most likely neurally over active. As I said however, they are a band aid and not the long term solution. That can be found in a combination of strength, stability and neural re-patterning. This is for another blog however that you can find here. Right now we are here to give you some immediate relief from the constant dull ache of sharp jabbing pain. If you have lower back pain, it's very important that you don't overstretch during these exercises. When stretching, ease up if you feel any pain or discomfort in your lower back. If a stretch causes more than mild discomfort in your lower back, either avoid it or stop altogether until such time as the discomfort goes away completely! Additionally, if doing one of these stretches causes too much pain in your lower back area - even after easing into it slowly - stop immediately! It's better to be safe than sorry when dealing with a painful condition like this one; listening carefully to what our bodies tell us about whether or not something is safe for us can make all the difference between having continued problems or getting better quickly (or both). Remember to breath deeply with control during these stretches as this will help to keep the mind calm as you gently challenge your neuromuscular system. Banded Hip Mobility Flow In this exercise you can do this little combination with or workout a band. I obviously recommend with a band as it brings additional benefits to the arthokinematics of the hip joint. By freeing up your hips and improving the mobility there you take the pressure off your lumbar. Slouch Stretch This exercise is traditionally prescribed to clients with Sciatic nerve issues. However lower back dysfunction is so often closely tied to sciatic nerve issues. The nerve flossing aspect of this exercise will only assist any nerve pain that's being experienced in the lumbar region. Lying Lumbar Twists Feel free to take your time with this exercise, you don't need to go all the way down on your first attempt. Just little rotations initially will most likely challenge you enough. As you get more confident with the movement you can increase the range. Because of the extra perceived threat on the brains part with this exercise, be sure to keep your core engaged while doing it. Conclusion
Lower back pain can be a debilitating condition, but it is often curable with the proper treatment and prevention. As a therapist it's one of the most rewarding conditions to treat because it literally changes a persons life. Stretching is effective tool to provide pain relief for lower back pain. Try these stretches yourself (and our strength exercises). If after a few weeks you are still struggling with lower back pain markers, be sure to come into clinic and see one of our therapists. They will be able to work out what the underlying causes are and get you back moving pain free again. We get so many clients in clinic saying “I’m getting old, I need to slow down.” And although I am often younger than them at age 37, they are usually only 5-10 years my senior. And I wonder, why is our automatic response to injury that we must be one foot in the grave? Does our demise actually start at 35, or is there another possibility? At the start of April, we spent four days being inspired by the athletes of the National Masters Athletics Championships, held at the old QEII stadium (now Qld Sports and Athletics Centre) in Brisbane. We worked on over 80 athletes before and after their track and field events, aged between 31 and 87. Each had various complaints ranging from muscle strains to broken bones, arthritis to arthroscopies, and joint replacements to heart failure. But none of the injuries shocked me – we work with these types of amazing humans every day. People of all walks of life just looking to enjoy movement and exercise. What did strike me was that all of these athletes were there to break something else…. a national record, a world record, or most importantly – their personal best. The athletes who turned up to compete at Nationals gave me a fresh perspective on the issue of aging. This is what I learned from them. 1. Age is NOT just a number – it’s a challenge. The old adage that ‘age is just a number’ is completely untrue. For every additional lap around the sun, you gather additional wear and tear. FACT. But just like any journey in life, the harder and longer you have to work to achieve a goal the more satisfaction you get out of it – no matter how many bumps in the road. The higher your age, the more of a challenge you have, and hands down the more pleasure you get from improving your performance. Especially in the face of culturally expected ‘demise’. 2. You CAN improve your performance. Whenever you start, and from whatever level, every day you train you get better and better. It’s a correct assumption that at 63 years old you will not beat Usane Bolt. But you WILL improve your 60m, 100m or 200m sprint result if every day you show up and do the training and get a little bit better each time. Yes, you will need to work around some ‘cranky and opinionated’ knee or hip joints, but if you love being on the track you should just do it anyway – the hip will be cranky even if you stay in bed. Our oldest client at Nationals was 87, and he competed in all six track distances from 60m to 1500m. We watched the over 75 men’s pole vault competitors clear 2.7m. I treated an 80 year old woman vying for a national record in the weight pentathlon. It makes you reconsider your definition of vitality. 3. Find the sport that suits you – if you can’t run, then throw! This seemed to be a bit of a catch cry for the track athletes and jumpers moving over to throws events when they struggled with the impact of training. But it serves as a good reminder that we all can find something we CAN do despite illness or injury, and often what we can do well, we love doing. So find what you can do while working around an injury and do more of that. 4. Professional advice for injury management can be both patronising and irrelevant:. You need to find therapists who will find a way to keep you going, not tell you to stop. We hear all too often that clients in their 40’s, 50’s and older who want to stay active are told that slowing down is the recommended way to manage ongoing pain, niggling injuries, arthritis and other conditions. But in the same breath, they are told to maintain their muscle mass and metabolism to fight cardiac disease and diabetes, work on their balance training to reduce falls risk and engage in the community to keep the white matter ticking. Medical practitioners and physical therapists need to:
Sometimes I think that massage is such a humble part of competition day for athletes. At Nationals, we were simply delivering massage therapy to warm up tight muscles, flush out tired muscles, and help recover muscles more quickly before the next event. But for some, having us there was the difference between competing and not. From the table, the athletes were asking, “can you do a quick treatment and apply some tape to de-load my adductor strain to get through a full pentathlon? Otherwise I’m going to have to pull out.” We also had lots of questions about injury management on the day – “should I keep the taping on my calf tear during my events or take it off?” “How do I manage hip bursitis during warm up to give me the best chance of a PB?” “I’m doing six events over three days, do I come before or after each one for treatment?” All of these athletes wanted advice on how to keep going, how to manage the delicate balance between rehab and performance – and we had so many come back to say that they felt amazing during their event and the advice we gave helped to make some smart decisions that led to a lot of personal and season’s best performances over the weekend, with several athletes achieving this over multiple events. We were so proud to be able to give them what they needed on the day, and mostly that was just education. THEY were the ones who put in all the hard work, we were simply there to be their cheerleaders. Which we intend to continue to do every day in clinic, for as long as there are people who love to stay active. Are you one of them? Now, if you think you could just walk into this and win a medal... think again. Here are some of the incredible results from the 2022 Australian Masters Athletics National Championships. Congratulations to all the athletes!!
Women’s 55 4x100m – 53.19sec WR M 30 High Jump – 1.91m W30 High Jump – 1.71m M30 100m – 10.97s W30 5000m – 19.12min W 50 Long Jump – 4.56m M85 Shot Put – 9.10m Not all muscles were created equal. Some were given the responsibility of strength or speed and some help us to maintain our balance – most of these are the superficial muscles that we can see working under the skin. Some examples are our quads, biceps or deltoids. It is relatively easy to change their shape and tone with strength training (and emotionally satisfying to see their new definition!). However, the most important muscles are below the surface, acting like flexible nuts and bolts for our skeleton and holding our joints steady when we move. Known as postural muscles, they hold us upright and ensure that the forces we generate in our large superficial muscles can be efficiently transferred across each joint along a kinetic chain. In the context of the average sedentary work day, it is these postural muscles that are likely to have more of an impact on the development of postural imbalances, biomechanical dysfunction and injuries. It’s definitely not as satisfying for people to work on the strength of these muscles because they can’t ‘see’ the results in the mirror, but programming for these muscles will no doubt reduce their pain, increase function and mobility, and protect against injury for years to come – and who doesn’t want that as part of their training goals? Here are just three muscles that will make a huge impact on musculoskeletal health and should be addressed in your programming in EVERY training session. It’s like thinking about nutrition – any meal that isn’t a healthy one is a lost opportunity to improve your health. You’re eating anyway, why not add an apple? Serratus AnteriorAlso known as the ‘boxer’s muscle’ for the way it shows itself on the side of the chest during a jab, this muscle inserts onto the medial border of the scapula and originates from several of your ribs. Besides holding the scapula flat against the ribs so they don't wing out and assisting with protraction (scapula moving forward), what’s more important is the SA’s role in scapulohumeral rhythm. It works with the Lower and Upper Trapezius and Rhomboids to rotate the scapula during abduction of the humerus. If the Serratus Anterior is weak, the Upper Traps pick up the load and can become overactive, which in turn inhibits the function of the Lower Traps and Supraspinatus. During abduction (taking your arm above your head), this causes the head of the humerus to get jammed into the top ridge of the glenohumeral joint, rather than pulled down neatly into the socket as is supposed to happen. The risk is that the client is then susceptible to shoulder impingement injuries and bursitis as the humerus squashes the surrounding soft tissues. Watch the below video for a Serratus Anterior activation exercise, which you can use for therapeutic benefit before a workout to improve your shoulder stability, positioning and reduce pain. gluteus mediusThe Glute Med, which originates from the ilium and inserts onto the greater trochanter of the femur, is the most important of the gluteal group for pelvic stability. If you haven't head of this muscle yet, have you even had physical therapy?! When your Glute Med is inhibited, your hip drops causing medial knee rotation: this has a detrimental effect on the biomechanics of the leg and increases the general wear and tear on the hip and knee. For knees that are already struggling, a weak Glute Med takes it from bad to worse. Furthermore, the lumbar vertebrae become misaligned due to the rotation, which places excessive stress on the facet joints and vertebral discs. To correct Glute Med weakness, be sure to start each training session with basic activation exercises such as Clams or Crab Walks with a Bungee. Once you can activate the muscle consistently, you can move onto side holds, step ups, long GM holds and various versions of lunges. Watch this video for why side holds are great for your Glute Med, help to reduce low back pain and a simple trick to make sure you are doing them right. transverse abdominusThe latest statistic I read from the Chiropractors Association Queensland was that 80% of Australians will experience disabling lower back pain at some point during their lives! That is a telling statistic and one I’d believe given the lifestyle choices we make (read: sedentary). Your TA is your ‘human weight belt’, wrapping around your torso to support your lumbar spine. Show me a weight lifter who can lift heavier WITHOUT a belt on and I'll eat my own sweaty socks! So of course it goes without saying that if we strengthen our 'natural weight belt', we will see better performance across all sports as well as reduced injury risk. Strengthening the TA also just isn't about adding more weight - it's about making sure it will turn on in any position, no matter if we are standing straight, bending over, stepping up or down, running or twisting. So to really reduce injury risk and improve performance, we need to do both a wide range of movements in our training, as well as lots of movement that is specific to our chosen sport or activity. If you run, do your core work on one leg to mimic your single-leg run stance. If you paddle board, do lots of rotation. If you are a power lifter, do your core work in bench press or hinge position. And if you are human, do a little bit of everything so you can get the shopping in from the car or empty the dishwasher pain-free. Here is a video *from the archives* that leaves you no excuses but to add in a TA core finisher to your next training session (and hating my taste in music!). 5 more muscles...For those who are REALLY keen to learn, here are 5 more muscles that will help you reduce pain! I can feel another blog post coming on.... As Myotherapists and Remedial Massage Therapists, we provide an alternative to physiotherapy.
If you are a runner, a gym-goer, a social sport player or just generally an active person who is struggling with pain, we can help you get back to the activities you love. We perform clinical assessment, soft tissue therapy techniques and movement coaching to relieve joint pain and movement dysfunction. We provide pain relief and successful treatment for conditions such as: - low back/disc related pain, hip pain and radiating sciatica - shoulder pain, bursitis, impingements and pain radiating into the arm - runners experiencing hip, knee and shin pain. |
AuthorKathy Hill, Remedial Massage Therapist Archives
April 2023
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