Ol-kalou VTC

NOCK ELITE S&C - SUNDAY READ

Lower back pain troubling you?

How many times have you woken up with back pain yet can’t place where you injured yourself? OR attempted to stand up from your couch and aborted the mission due to hip pain?

The human body is one complex machine that needs lots of detail and attention when prescribing exercise for both elite and general wellness purposes.

We often lay too much emphasis on a few of the bio motor abilities [Strength, Speed and Endurance] but go ahead and neglect one of the most important component therein which is>> FLEXIBILITY-MOBILITY.

Hip, back, knee pains can be traced to a host of issues>> ALL related to poor mobility/flexibility, muscle imbalances, weak glutes and by extension posterior chain muscles.

For the general population, Sitting for long can lead to shortening/tightening of the psoas, hamstrings muscles which ultimately leads to anterior pelvic tilt, and with it comes back pain!

For the Elite athletes, the respective event that you engage in repeatedly can also lead to the above mentioned issues if the alternate muscles aren't strengthened, stretched or released!

This in turn leads to many issues;
...e.g. trouble activating the glutes, stiff & overactive hip flexors, weak abdominal muscles, compensations that lead to the dominance of the quadriceps muscles in some movements hence shutting out the glutes which in turn makes the lower-back compensate for this.

When left unchecked, the issues transfer to your hips and knees….Ultimately shutting you down due to injury!

How do we fix this?

-Incorporating good flexibility and mobility exercises for the affected muscles and strengthening the opposing ones.

-Improving on your gait and posture>> sit, stand, run with the proper technique!

-Perfect your lifting, pulling and hinging techniques in the weight room by always maintaining a neutral spine position.

-The biggest and strongest muscles in our bodies are the glutes which help initiate powerful movement, keeping the trunk stable whilst at it... individuals with lower back pain tend to have trouble firing the glutes and compensate by overusing the lower back muscles…

Learn how to activate these muscles so that they fire effectively.

Below are some of the exercises that you can incorporate in your training regimen;

Glute bridges, Hip thrusts, Hip / Adductor stretches both dynamic and static etc…

In a nutshell >>> STRETCH what needs to be stretched … RELEASE what needs to be eased…. STRENGTHEN both the agonist and antagonist muscles.

Geoffrey Kimani
NOCK ELITE
Strength and Conditioning

Photos Courtesy;
NN Running team/ Boxing Kenya

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