Overcome Neck and Back Pain » (FIRESIDE)

Kit Laughlin studied oriental medicine during a five-year stay in Japan and, on his return to Australia, was the Japanese ambassador's personal shiatsu practitioner. In 1988 he was asked to treat the prime minister of Japan during his visit to Australia, the first time a Westerner had been asked to provide such a service.

Laughlin was awarded a Master of Letters degree in 1992 from the Science Faculty of the Australian National University, and currently is doing research for a Ph.D. dissertation in which back pain is the key case study.

Laughlin originated the Posture & Flexibility and Strength & Flexibility courses that have been run by the Australian National University Sports Union for the last eleven years. Assisted by fourteen teachers whom he trained, Laughlin has taught these courses to thousands of students of all ages and levels of fitness, with proven results. He is the presenter of the acclaimed Overcome Neck & Back Pain seminars and the author of a forthcoming book, Introduction to Posture & Flexibility.

If you suffer from back pain, as 85 percent of Americans do, you may think there is no way to bring about a complete end to your pain. Books, videos, and even doctors offer ways to manage the pain, but not to stop it. Finally there is a solution. Overcome Neck & Back Pain, the international bestseller, provides a means to end your back pain permanently through an easy-to-follow four-part program of structural analysis and correction, stretching, strengthening, and relaxing.

Kit Laughlin spent years suffering from back pain, and, in search of relief, even traveled to Japan, where he found the solution. Using the principles of hatha yoga, he developed a combination of Eastern and Western medicine that provides a way to stop back pain and even protect oneself from future injury.

Through clear, instructive photos and easy-to-follow instructions Overcome Neck & Back Pain shows the beginner how to use stretching, strengthening, and relaxation to end the pain. Overcome Neck & Back Pain also provides instruction in more advanced techniques, with an explanation of the principles behind the movements. The comprehensive text offers solutions for athletes and nonathletes, old and young alike.

If you've given up hope of curing your back pain, Overcome Neck & Back Pain provides the sensible solution you need.

CONTENTS

ILLUSTRATIONS

PREFACE

WHY THE INTEREST IN NECK AND BACK PAIN?

What is this book about?

What can I do?

Who should use this book?

How this book is set out

Cautions

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND TO THE APPROACH

Shoshin Center

Case studies from the clinic

Posture & Flexibility at the Australian National University

Contact address and e-mail

CHAPTER ONE

SELF-DIAGNOSIS

What is covered in this chapter?

Pelvic obliquity

How to determine if you have one hip lower than the other

i) one hip is lifted higher than the other

ii) both hips are lifted by the test, but one higher than the other

iii) both hips are lifted about the same

The heel insert

How thick should the insert be?

What if I make a mistake?

Other indicators of pelvic obliquity

How to determine whether muscular causes of problems like sciatica are present

How to determine your patterns of muscular tension

FLOW CHART FOR TESTING MUSCLE IMBALANCES

TEST AND EXERCISE CHECK LIST

How often should I stretch?

The general principles of good stretching, at a glance:

CHAPTER TWO

REHABILITATION STRETCHING EXERCISES

Limits

Static stretching

Ballistic stretching

The Posture & Flexibility approach to stretching

How to breathe

Benefits of warmth

Why photographs?

REHABILITATION

LOWER BACK EXERCISES

1. Seated forward bend

2. Seated side bend and rotation

3. Lying rotation

4. Partner-assisted lying rotation

5. Buttock and hip flexor

6. Seated hip

7. Lying hip

8. Table-top hip

9.Hip flexors

10. Trunk side bending

11. Hamstrings

MIDDLE BACK EXERCISES

12. Seated rotation

13. Upper back on all fours

14. Middle and upper back

NECK EXERCISES

15. Partner shoulder depress

16. Chin to chest

17. Neck side bend

18. Neck forward and side bend

19. Neck backward and side bend

20. Neck rotation

21. Chin-to-chest variations

CHAPTER THREE

PREVENTION

22. Advanced forward bend

23. Advanced forward and side bend

24. Advanced rotation

25. Advanced buttock and hip flexors

26. External hip rotator (piriformis)

27. Front thigh (quadriceps)

28. Backward bend over support

29. Backward bend from floor

30. Standing calf

31. Standing side bend

32. Lying side bend

33. Middle and upper back backward bend

STRENGTHENING EXERCISES

Matching training to expected demand

34. Abdominal curl

35. Abdominal curl over support

36. Back uncurl

37. Trunk rotation

38. Trunk rotation with weight

ADVANCED STRENGTHENING EXERCISE (PREVENTION)

39. Knee lift

PLANNING A TOTAL ROUTINE

Frequency of exercise

Sets and reps

Working habits

Speed of movements

The importance of rest

The place of aerobic exercise

Lifting things in everyday life

The daily six

For low back pain

For middle back pain

For upper back and neck pain

For wbole-body suppleness

Pointers to chapter four, causes, and chapter five, relaxation techniques

CHAPTER FOUR

THE CAUSES OF NECK AND BACK PAIN

Why do we suffer back pain?

Chiropractic and osteopathy

Oriental medicine

Acute pain

Chronic pain

Muscle tension as cause

Other factors contributing to neck and back pain

What is good posture?

Tests of leg-length inequality

What effects can uneven hips have on the body?

How thick should my heel lift be?

Is right- or left-handedness related to the problem?

Adding another layer to the argument

Shortcomings with the idea of cause

Workshop experiences

Choice of bed

CHAPTER FIVE

RELAXATION TECHNIQUES

Practical Stress Management seminars

Why relax?

Relaxation method

Guided visualization and healing the body

A script for relaxation and visualization

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

REFERENCES

Further reading (annotated)

ILLUSTRATIONS

Heel insert

Where am I sore?

The Contract-Relax (C-R) approach to stretching

Muscles stretched in exercise 1

Right hip in the intermediate position showing stretched muscles in exercise 5

Three ways the sciatic nerve may exit the pelvis

Psoas, iliacus (iliopsoas), and quadratus lumborum

Exaggerated lumbar curve caused by tight iliopsoas

Schematic showing quadratus lumborum, as stretched in exercise 10

Hamstring muscle from side; biceps femoris

The three hamstring muscles

Levator scapulae, and detail of suboccipitals

Front and side neck muscles

Possible entrapment of nerves by scalene muscles

Muscles of the front and inside of the leg

Muscles of the lower leg

Sciatic nerve runs down back of leg

Schematic of hip muscles affected in exercise 31

Upper body muscles, and changes accompanying aging

Why the conventional situp can injure the lower back

Class II lever

Exercise 36 strengthens the trunk in the necessary range of movement

Correct form in exercise 37

One theory of back weakness

The three curves of the spinal column act as a shock absorber

Schematic of spine, vertebral bodies and disc

Posterolateral (back-side) extrusion of intervertebral disc impinging on nerve root

Schematic showing significance of leg-length difference

Schematic of good posture

Effects of pelvic obliquity on the shape of spine

Simple model of possible effects of leg-length difference

Schematic of rowing

As leg extends, hip joint ligaments tighten around neck of femur