Oregon Exercise Therapy Blog | Egoscue Blog - Oregon Exercise Therapy

Back Surgery Might Not Be Your Best Option

6/5/2017

Chronic back pain can be very debilitating and often all you want is to find a way to make your pain go away.

So good to have you back on the sidelines, @SteveKerr. #DubNation pic.twitter.com/GjyaoFAl8Q
— GoldenStateWarriors (@warriors) June 5, 2017

Steve Kerr, coach of the Golden State Warriors basketball team, was in that place in 2015 when after rupturing a disc in his back he just wanted the pain to go away and was told surgery would fix his problem. Before surgery Kerr's pain was so bad that he couldn't walk more than 30 yards without needing to stop and sit down. He described it as "getting old."

I think his injury and pain had nothing to do with his age and can't be blamed on "getting old".

The Perfect Workout

5/22/2017

Is there such a thing as the perfect workout?

Many people, whether they are pro athletes, fitness fanatics, gym rats, or health nuts, are looking for "the perfect workout." Some people believe the perfect workout is a HIIT (high intensity interval training). Others believe the CrossFit WOD (workout of the day) is the best. Super Slow wight lifting is some people's choice. Yoga and Pilates will get a lot of votes also.

The perfect workout is...

Patch Obstacle Course and Becoming a Better Athlete

5/4/2017

Athletes are always looking for ways to become faster, stronger, and more agile. Athletes are also looking for ways to prevent injury, stay pain free, and extend their careers. And these "athletes" I'm talking about are everyone from LeBron James, Tiger Woods, Lionel Messi, and Serena Williams to middle-aged weekend warriors around the world. People will do almost anything to get an "edge."

But do these things actually help? Is there a better way? A faster way? A cheaper way? A more natural way?

Understanding the Psoas

5/3/2017

What is the psoas? Psoas (pronounced SO-az) is a muscle that gets a lot of attention for playing a role in back pain, hip function, spinal function, and sports performance and is often referred to as "the most important muscle in the body." Quite a claim for a muscle none of us can see and very few people really understand.

The term "psoas" sometimes is used to refer to many things including:

Psoas major
Psoas minor
Iliopsoas
Hip flexors as a group
The source of the fight or flight response
An emotional center in the body
Filet mignon

Top 10 Myths About Injuries

5/1/2017

Myth 1: Injuries are the result of bad luck.
Truth: Scientifically there is not such thing as bad luck, thus that can't be the cause of injuries. All injuries are caused by something concrete and with enough investigation the underlying cause can be found and fixed or eliminated, which will help that injury heal faster and more completely and help prevent future injuries. Start your investigation with a free posture evaluation.

Myth 2: Injuries are from overuse.
Truth: As I've talked about previously, overuse is a myth in the way it is talked about, and "overuse injuries" should really be called "improper use injuries". Read more here.

Does Running Hurt or Help Your Knees?

3/6/2017

A new study published in the journal Arthritis Care & Research wanted to look at the question of whether there is an association between a history of running and symptomatic knee osteoarthritis. The study looked at over 2,600 people with an average age of 64 years old, of which about 30% had run at some point in their lives. The researchers evaluated the relationship of running with knee pain, radiographic osteoarthritis (OA), and symptomatic OA.

Running posture: can you trust the "experts?"

2/6/2017

Fitness trainer Nate Helming from The Run Experience made a video where he talks about head and hip position and how it affects your running. Faulty head and hip position will negatively affect your running performance and can lead to injury just as bad shoulder posture does. Nate shares some good knowledge and tips including:

"Good posture is the key to everything" and "my head, low and behold, is attached to the rest of my spine." Both are things I've taught every client, Egoscue University student, and Posture Alignment Specialist I've worked with over the last 15 years.

Nate talks about how you should not hold your phone while looking at it and you can clearly see this is terrible posture:

The Right Tool For the Job

1/16/2017

Ever try to screw in a bolt with a hammer? Didn't work well did it?

There's a reason why we have a garage full of different tools - each one is designed for a specific job and works well for that job but not so much for other jobs. A snow shovel works great for clearing your driveway of snow but a rake just won't do the job. That rake, however, is really good at cleaning up leaves off your lawn in the fall and the snow shovel isn't very effective.

When we start talking about your health, using the right tool for the job is also very important.

How To Make 2017 Your Best Year Yet

1/3/2017

Many people are saying 2016 was a terrible year, maybe the worst ever. I don't think it was...not even close. If 2016 was the worst year ever, it would have to had been worse than:

72,000 B.C. - a volcanic super-eruption reduced human population down to less than 10,000
1099 - the first Crusade which was the start of the worse human acts ever
1348 - the Black Death swept along the Silk Road killing over 1/3 of the people in Europe
1520 - smallpox hit the Americas eventually killing 60-90% of the continents' original inhabitants
1914 - WW1 started, death of millions, and widespead economic depression
1932 - Holodomor or forced starvation which killed upwards of 5 million
1943 - maybe the worst year of WW2 along with race wars in the US

So 2016 might not have been the best year ever, but definitely not the worst.

How can you make 2017 your best year yet? Well only you can decide what that means and how you can get there, but I'll give you some suggestions regarding your health. Here are 10 things that will help make 2017 your best year yet:

Headaches and Posture

1/1/2017

Headaches are no fun. Tension headaches can really hurt. Migraine headaches can incapaciate us. But what do headaches have to do with posture?

Headaches can have a lot to do with posture. Headaches, like all pain, are messages from the body. These messages are not usually telling us something is broken, but rather something needs our attention, something is getting overloaded, something is out of alignment, and/or something is missing.

WHAT OUR CLIENTS HAVE TO SAY

I really just wanted to express my gratitude for what you do and your great help. And, great help it was!! When one is in constant great pain for as long as I was and so desperate for help...words cannot express what I want to say....how can I thank you enough? You helped change my life.
– Carrie

I feel soooo limber and free in my hip movements and relaxed in my low back. Outstanding and I'm very impressed with the pdf's and the videos, great support to the client. Wonderful job, keep up the great job. – Mike

It is amazing! I've been in pain for 5 years and worked with other therapists and no one has been able to help me. Working with you I am 95% pain free! It feels so good to not have any pain and be able to walk and do things I haven't been able to do for years. Thank you so much! - Joni

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Photos used under Creative Commons from mynameisharsha, Jon Grado