Back Rx: A 15-Minute-a-Day Yoga-and Pilates-Based Program to End Low-Back Pain »

A lifelong yoga practitioner, Vijay Vad, M.D., is a sports medicine specialist at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan. He also serves as the official back-care advisor for the Professional Golfers Association tour and two major tennis tours.

Hilary Hinzmann is a freelance editor whose projects include Use What You've Got by high-profile New York City realtor Barbara Corcoran.

From a noted pioneer in sports medicine comes a breakthrough regimen for stopping back pain once and for all-without surgery.

Eighty-percent of Americans suffer some form of low-back pain-usually due to a herniated disk-but long-term relief is rarely achieved.

As a physician specializing in treating athletes, Dr. Vijay Vad has spent years researching how to cure back pain using medical yoga and Pilates. Profiled in The Wall Street Journal, his program requires just fifteen minutes a day for eight weeks to restore flexibility and prevent future injuries.

Offering a proven alternative to invasive surgery, Dr. Vad's Back Rx provides the best of mind/body medicine by giving readers three step-by-step exercise series, demonstrated in 130 precise photographs, for implementing his popular program at home. Even readers with severely limited mobility will rejoice in Dr. Vad's gentle introductory workout. Progressing through his self-paced program, they will discover a new range of exercises, breathing techniques, and tips for self-massage. For those who want to go even further and use this program for more than the treatment of a single injury, an advanced workout is included that puts readers on the road to peak performance.

The perfect combination of modern medicine, Pilates innovations, and ancient yoga postures, Back Rx builds important new fundamentals for lifelong freedom from pain.

The Wall Street Journal

After three months, the results have been striking: 80% reported that their pain was reduced by at least half.

Contents

Acknowledgments ix Introduction: The Back Rx Way to a Healthy, Pain-Free Back xi What to Do If You're in Pain Right Now xvii

Part one chapter one: How Your Back Works 3
chapter two: Why Your Back Hurts 9
chapter three: The Four Stages of Low Back Pain Care and Recovery 15
chapter four: Flexibility, Strength, and Endurance: the Three Keys to Good Balance and Posture 25
chapter five: Power Tips for Healthy Backs 35
chapter six: Resuming Activity after a Low Back Injury 51

Part two: Back Rx Series A, B, and C chapter seven: Introduction: Doing the Back Rx Exercises 57
chapter eight: Return to Movement: Back Rx Series A 63
chapter nine: Resuming Full Activity: Back Rx Series B 95
chapter ten: Into the Fast Lane: Back Rx Series C 119

Part three chapter eleven: Other Caregivers 143
chapter twelve: State-of-the-Art Treatments and the Future of Low Back Care 149
Appendix: Resources on the Web 156