Dear Subscriber,
Happy Tuesday!
Crazy how quickly
the year has gone, isn’t it?
As we head into Winter,
it’s important to make sure you
take care of your OVERALL health,
and not just your physique.
That’s why today I’d like to offer
a few tips that can help you with
a nagging problem you’ve most
likely experienced… or might be
experiencing right now.
Enjoy!
Yours For Health,
Shane Shiels
Shashido Enterprises
Adelaide’s Premier Health & Fitness Expert
This Affects 8 Out of 10 People
at Some Point In Life – Here’s
What You Can Do About It
I’m talking about back pain.
It’s one of the most common
medical problems Australians
experience.
The Chiropractors Association
of Australia (CAA) estimates
that at any given time, 31 million
Australians have low-back pain.
They also estimate that up to 50%
of all working adults complain of
having back pain… making it one
of the most common reasons for
missing work.
There are a lot of potential causes
for back pain, but today’s article
won’t focus on that.
Instead, I’d like to give you some
strategies you can use to ease it or
even make it go away, starting today!
Let’s get started.
1. Use your mind to relax.
It’s hard to believe, but research
has clearly established that psychological
distress can be a more reliable predictor
of back pain than doing an MRI or even
diagnostic disk injection!
In one study, Dr. Eugene Carragee of
Stanford University followed 95 subjects –
none of whom had back pain at the
beginning of the study – for four years.
He and his team studied the participant’s
spines using disk injection and MRI, in
addition to psychological evaluations.
What they found was startling.
Those participants with poor coping skills
as determined by the psychological test
were 3 times more likely to develop back
pain than those with good coping skills. [1]
In fact, folks with the poor coping skills
were even more likely to develop back
pain than those with structural problems
(like cracked disks!) in their spine.
The moral of the story?
If you suffer from back pain or want to
prevent it in the first place, learn to relax.
Learning how to cope with life’s stresses
will make you less suceptible to back pain.
So start a meditative practice like Yoga or
Tai Chi. Make sure to breathe deeply
every day when you’re feeling anxious.
And learn to let the small annoyances in
life slide away and not bug you as much as
they normally do.
2. Work those abs. This is a good line of
defense against back pain and a great way
to ease tension in your back that you may
not be aware of.
Strengthening your abs and core helps stabilise
your spine and keep it in alignment.
Think of it as having a tight corset that
holds everything in place.
Since our goal is to help out your lower
back, make sure to place a strong focus on
those abdominal exercises that work the “lower”
part of your abs – like pelvic tilts and leg lifts.
Planks are also a great option and will
strengthen your “core” overall.
3. See a “bone crusher.” If you suffer from
chronic acute lower back pain, then seeing a
chiropractor may help.
A paper published in an October 2007 issue of
the Annals of Internal Medicine made some
recommendations for those with back pain.
Among them being that, “patients who do not
improve with self-care options [i.e. nonsteroidal
anti-inflammatory drugs] should consider the addition
of nonpharmacologic therapy with proven benefits –
for acute low back pain, spinal manipulation.” [2]
And yet another extensive study conducted by
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
concluded that back pain sufferers should choose
the most conservative care first – suggesting that
spinal manipulation as the only safe and effective
non-drug treatment for acute low back pain. [3]
4. Get a massage. More than anything else,
getting a massage will help you ease tense
and knotted muscles that could be
contributing to your back pain.
Also, a massage will help you relax and cope
with life’s stresses, which we’ve seen can
have a direct impact on back pain.
To sum up, back pain is NOT something
you just have to “put up” with and resign
yourself to.
You CAN do something about it. Use
some of the tips I’ve given you here
today. It’s definitely worth your time…
After all, eliminating that back pain
will go a long way to keeping you
healthy and helping you lead a happy life!
Oh and by the way, if you’re serious about
taking your health and fitness to the next
level and be ready for Winter, why not take
advantage of your FREE Fitness Consultation?
(an $87 value)
During this consult, you’ll receive detailed
information on how to get fit and trim that’s
tailored to YOUR body.
There’s no obligation and it’s totally
and completely free. To sign up,
use the link below:
References:
1. Carragee EJ, Barcohana B, Alamin T,
van den Haak E. Prospective controlled
study of the development of lower back pain
in previously asymptomatic subjects
undergoing experimental discography.
Spine 2004 May 15; 29(10):1112-7
2. Chou, Roger MD et al. Diagnosis and
Treatment of Low Back Pain: A Joint Clinical
Practice Guideline from the American College
of Physicians and the American Pain Society .
Annals of Internal Medicine. October 2, 2007
vol. 147 no. 7 478-491
3. Bigos S, Bowyer O, Braen G, et al.
Acute Low Back Problems in Adults.
Clinical Practice Guideline No.14. AHCPR
Publication No. 95-0642. Rockville, MD:
Agency for Health Care Policy and Research,
Public Health Service, U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services, December, 1994.
Quote Corner
“Even if you fall flat on your face, you’re
still moving forward.” – Victor Kiam
Eat Yourself Thin
Black Bean and Corn Salad
(Serves Six)
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 cup olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed
and drained
1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels
1 avocado – peeled, pitted and diced
1 red capsican, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
6 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped fresh coriander(optional)
1. Place lime juice, olive oil, garlic, salt, and
cayenne pepper in a small jar. Cover with
lid, and shake until ingredients are well mixed.
2. In a salad bowl, combine beans, corn,
avocado, capsican, tomatoes, green onions,
and coriander. Shake lime dressing, and pour it
over the salad. Stir salad to coat vegetables
and beans with dressing, and serve.
Prep: 25 mins
Cook: 0 mins
Ready: 25 mins
Amount Per Serving – Calories: 391 /
Total Fat: 24.5g / Cholesterol: 0mg /
Sodium: 830mg / Total Carbs: 35.1g /
Dietary Fibre: 12.2g / Protein: 10.5g
Recipe from AllRecipes.com.
Shashido Enterprises
Adelaide, S.A.
Phone: 0420 347 550
(c) Shashido Enterprises 2012 (All Rights Reserved)
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