“Shoes transform your body language and attitude. They lift you physically and emotionally.”
— Christian Lauboutin, French fashion shoe designer
Some of the suggestions from A. J. Jacobs’ book “Drop Dead Healthy” bear repeating since it’s January and we’ve all overindulged a bit — and a lot of the gyms were closed for the holidays and, even if they were open, we weren’t able to go because we had all the holiday festivities and guests to attend to. So now the trees and lights are down, a few leftovers sit in the refrigerator, and most of the real goodies have been consumed. So now what? How do we get back on the wagon? Or do we even want to or need to?
I enjoy attending exercise classes from four to six times weekly. For the aforementioned reasons I was unable to do so over the holidays. So, there I was in the kitchen when I felt a sharp pain in my lower back and moving was excruciating.
I called my favorite chiropractor’s office and headed right over. I told him I didn’t do anything … I mean I really did not do anything at all. X-rays were taken, resulting in four diagnoses. The cause, he said, was “Time.” We know what that means. He laid out a plan to get me well.
The next day I found an open yoga class and signed up. I parked right in front of the studio and dragged myself in. I told Kelly, “I know this doesn’t look good but I can do everything but walk. I’ll be fine.” And I was, nothing hurt but walking. I had never appreciated the ability to simply walk with ease as I did that day. The next day I was back at the chiropractor. He forbade exercise classes for awhile, just the ones he gave me, which my pride said were a little wimpy but I’m doing them anyway. Between the adjustments and the exercises, we’re getting somewhere.
Jacobs’ book says 65 million Americans suffer from back pain, and back pain is the single most common reason people visit the doctor. Jacobs hired a walking instructor.
“Thanks to our sedentary lifestyle, Americans don’t know how to walk and stand correctly,” he writes. The book said there are not a lot of evidence-based studies on posture, but reason says stand up straight and lengthen the back. Don’t thrust your shoulders back no matter what your mother said.
Melissa, one of my exercise teachers, is big on walking and posture and teaches techniques in her classes. Melissa says lifting the sternum corrects posture and helps deep breathing from the stomach. The book recommends taking shorter steps; it’s a mind-body thing. I noticed it was true with my hurting back. The shorter the steps and the slower I moved, the better I felt. So, sternum up, back straight, shorter steps, take it slow, and do stretching exercises. Not a bad or expensive program.
Note: An inequality in leg length even as much as 3 millimeters can cause back pain over time. The inequality can be corrected with a “lift.” Personally, I’ve found a new tennis shoe wardrobe to be extremely uplifting.
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