Back Pain Expert Steve Hefferon

Eliminating Neck Pain once an for all

What is it?

What do we do on a daily basis? We wake up, sit down, have a cup of coffee and read the newspaper. We sit in our car and drive to work. We arrive at work and sit down to work. For the next several hours we place and answer phone calls, enter data, research information and communicate with the computer. After the long day, we get back in our car and drive home. We get home, sit down and have dinner, watch the television, and go to bed. Eight hours later, press repeat. The vicious cycle begins again! Fast forward ten years later;

• shoulder pain,
• neck pain,
• headaches,
• numbness & tingling in the hands,
• weakness in the arms & hands,
• slumped posture,
• rounded shoulders,
• forward head

How we look today is the result of years of… Are these signs and symptoms that you are experiencing. But why does this occur? How did this happen to me? How can I fix the problem? The basic premise here is that we become accustomed to our environment. Not too mention gravity is working against us.

Our body as a whole will adapt to the positions we place them in on a daily basis. The muscles in the front of our body become tight and the muscles of our upper back (around our shoulder blades) become stretched out and weak. This in turn weakens our neck muscles, and our head now drops forward.

The front neck muscles become weak and stretched out, and the back neck muscles become very tight. Remember our head attaches to our neck, and our neck attaches to our upper back and shoulders. There is constant communication among all of the parts and each part relies on the neighbor above and below it.

Click here to read the rest of the Neck Pain article:

Is Bottled Water Really Healthy?

By Herb Borkland

Forget the ad images of high mountain streams and diamond-pure glaciers. Did you ever stop and ask yourself why you really think bottled water is better for you than drinking tap water?

"The bottled water industry promotes bottled water as pure, safe, healthy and superior to tap water, but bottled water is actually less regulated than tap water," says Corporate Accountability International Associate Campaigns Director Gigi Kellett.

And in fact, an estimated 25% or more of bottled water is actually only tap water in a bottle — sometimes further treated, sometimes not. Water drinkers, it's time to take a closer look at the bottle in your hands and to ask yourselves, "What's in it for me?" Here's why...

Finally, Proof that your diagnosis is not causing your pain... Find out what is and how to eliminate it

Would you have back pain if every part of your body were in perfect balance? The answer has to be NO... It's pretty safe to say you wouldn't have any pain if your body were perfectly aligned, perfectly balanced and in a perfect state of being.

But here's the thing—you don't have to be perfect to be pain-free. In fact, you can have serious conditions like Spinal Stenosis and even a Herniated disc and still have no pain—regardless of the type of job you have or how you think the condition developed or even the unique situation that you find yourself in today.

Don't believe it? The prestigious New England Journal of Medicine just reported it. Click here to read the the rest of the story...

How to Create Your Own Healing Ritual for Optimal Living...

By Dr. Mark Wiley,
The Healthy Back Institute

Rituals are a mainstay of traditional cultures.

Many revolve around religious ceremonies
and coming-of-age celebrations.

What marks them as so unique is that they
reoccur at the same special place and time
and always hold meaning and deep value
for the celebrants. 
  
The United States has few rituals anymore.
es we have Holy Communion and sweet
sixteen parties.

And for some, the grinding of coffee beans and filling of the automatic drip is a morning ritual they cannot do without. Perhaps it's not quite as automatic as getting up for work, but over time what's special about making the first cup can become a little routine.

It's fair to say that it is a lack of rituals with meaning that makes many Americans feel as if their lives are devoid of something... special.

Click here to discover how you can make healthy lifestyle habits into meaningful (and healthful) daily rituals...

Don't Play "Pharmaceutical Roulette!"

Take Charge of Your Own Health Now

By Herb Borkland, Health Writer

Global is good. But when it comes to the international drug industry, Chinese and Indian manufacturers don't measure up to the strict regulatory environment we Americans rightly demand for ourselves. Not altogether surprising. That's why the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is supposed to protect us.

Advocates of health-conscious living may not be feeling safer, but they have been vindicated in their suspicion of the FDA. But the problem turns out to be much worse than shoddy inspections.

The hard fact is FDA's love affair with China has already killed American patients!
Click here to read more... and to find out how you can protect yourself.

Back Surgery: How to get relief from post surgical scar tissue…

If you have had a back surgery either on your neck or lower back and have failed to get relief there could be an underlying issue that most treatments fail to even mention.

 

Any and every surgery will develop some amount of scar tissue all be it that new techniques are getting better at minimizing the amount, its still an issue that you are most likely dealing with right now and most likely nothing you have tried has helped…

 

Here it is short and sweet, Scar tissue and Fibrous Adhesions are a dirty little secret and a contributing factor of post surgical pain. And if left untreated could take years to diminish.

 

Scar tissue needs to be what is called released or Myofascially manipulated and there are many different techniques that work great for this and most good and well trained massage therapist can do and excellent job of it but there is one more component to getting relief and that is the absorption of the excessive scar tissue from a cellular level.

 

As we get older, the more stress we are under and the less fruits and vegetables we eat the less enzymes our bodies will get and produce on a daily basis allowing for the over development of excess scar tissue.

 

And that is why it is critical that anyone who has had any type of surgery should eat 5 to 7 servings or fruits and vegetables a day and supplement with enzymes.

 

Click here for more information on Enzymes Therapy:

Golf, news, instruction, equipment and exercises

The golfer's checklist to ensure a healthy back:

1. » Visit a physical therapist or chiropractor well versed with golfers for a golf-specific physical assessment and conditioning program.
2. » Take a lesson from a PGA professional about basic fundamentals and how the body should move during the golf swing. Hopefully the PGA instructor uses video to analyze your swing.
3. » Practice golf specific drills that teach the correct movements in your swing, which will decrease the chances of injuring your back.
4. » Ensure your clubs are fitted properly for you, e.g. are your clubs too short or long? Are the shafts too flexible or stiff?
5. » Make sure you do a golf-specific warm-up routine prior to hitting balls or playing golf.

To Read the complete article on golf and back pain click here:

Can this 2-Minute Video About Inversion Therapy hold the secret to pain relief?

Ever wondered if inversion therapy really works?

Well, watch this short, 2-minute video we created for you. In this video, we
demonstrate how inversion therapy works and also show you several things
you can do to make it even better.

So if you suffer from any type of back pain, neck pain or sciatica and have not
tried inversion therapy, you really should watch this short video and read the
special report that is also available on the webpage.

And if you've already tried inversion, you still should watch it because you may
find several of the special "tricks" we share to be helpful.

I also wanted to share with you an email that I received a long time ago but just
found while going through my "collection" of thousands of emails.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: kate.b@myemail.net
Date: Jul 27, 2007 5:30 PM
Subject: Re: 54 Year Old Nurse Shares Her Secrets For Sciatica Relief
To: jesse@gethealthyandfit.com

Hi Jesse,
Over the past year I have become a fan of you and what you're doing on your
website. I was 33 yrs old when my son was born. When he was 3 months old I
got out of a rocking chair and "tweaked" the wrong way and ended up spending
2 weeks flat on the floor unable to move icing nonstop (luckily I have family
around). I was in soo much pain, I'd wake up in tears..not that I slept with a new
born in the house.

Completely exhausted, I had an MRI that reported I had herniated my L5-S1
disc area. That started my journey into researching how to take care of my back
and how to get those core muscles some strength after pregnancy. 

3 unsuccessful cortizone injections later, hours of physical therapy, meds etc.
nothing worked. I used to be a marathon runner and lead a very active lifestyle.
I was determined to get back to enjoying my family and life!

Then one night in my quest I came across your website and the inversion table.
I ordered your books, dvd's and an inversion table. It changed my life! I'm hooked
and have been pain free for over 10 months now. I'm doing pilates, run in the
water, "hang like a bat" on the table as my husband calls it, and chase my toddler
around all day without any pain.

Gratefully,
Kate Berman,  34 & fit mama of an active 22 month old. :)

---------- end Kate's email ------------

That's awesome!

I've said it so many times before, but it deserves repeating here again now...

Most people get the best results when they COMBINE multiple treatments and
remedies together.

Here's the combination that we have found to work the best for the largest
number of people:

1. Identify and address muscle imbalances, which are almost always the
underlying cause, by using the Lose The Back Pain system

2. Reduce pain and inflammation with safe and natural ingredients like the
ones found in Lifezyme Plus

3. Decompress the spine with some form of traction or inversion therapy

4. Address trigger points - with help from a trigger point specialist or can be
done at home using our trigger point self treatment system

5. Improve your mental / emotional state and wipe out negative stress and
there are many ways to accomplish this. A few products we recommend
are the Stress Less video and Mind Body Pain Relief

Well, I hope you find the video about inversion therapy informative and keep
your eyes peeled as I have several more videos I'll be sending you over the
next few weeks.

In fact, I have one about sciatica where I'll show you one of THE most effective
stretches for sciatica... plus an other video showing you many little things you
can do to reduce or better manage pain while at work.

So, that's all for now... talk to you again soon.

Steve

Rub It On and The Pain is GONE

Rub on Relief is now available... and you can grab some here

And for those of you who don't know the story, here it is...

About two years ago we came across a pain relief cream
that worked like magic. So we bought 500 tubes of the stuff
and offered it to our customers.

We never would have guessed it, but we sold out in less than
2 weeks.

But that wasn't what amazed me...

What amazed me was that ever since then we have been
getting emails, phone calls and even letters from people
begging for us to carry it again.

Well, the day is finally here.

This clinically proven pain reliever works like magic...
simply rub a little on and in minutes the pain disappears.

Here's what people have been saying:

"Glad I No Longer Have To Use Viox..."

"After years of suffering chronic pain, I have found relief with
RUB ON RELIEF.  Having tried NSAIDS, prescription pain
relievers, VIOX, Neuronitin, etc., it is a great feeling to know
I am helping heal my body with this product by modulating
the pain mechanisms, rather than just covering up the
symptoms. Every fibro/cfs/chronic pain patient should be
using this product on a daily basis. Even exercise becomes
possible by using the cream before and after workout."

--Jon Shallit - Oswego, NY

"Within Minutes The Pain Was GONE!"

"I was so happy to speak with you yesterday. I just wanted
to let you know how much I like RUB ON RELIEF. I bough it
from a Naturopath in Bridgton, ME who recommended that I
use it instead of advil to relieve my 3 years old son’s leg
cramps. Since then, my husband and I use it all the time.
We use it on all of our muscle and joint aches. It works very
quickly and effectively.               

We both play tennis and ski and my husband play basketball
so we have lots of  opportunities to use RUB ON RELIEF. I
use it for my sore Knees after I play tennis. It really helps! Last
night, I went to bed with a sore, stiff back. In the middle of the
night, my son climbed in our bed and landed knees first on my
back. Oh the pain!! I immediately grabbed the RUB ON RELIEF. 
Within minutes, the pain was gone and I was able to sleep.
I like it so much I ordered 15 tubes for my USTA tennis team.
I have been telling all my teammates about it, but didn’t know
where to get it. I am glad I found you."

--Joey Avantaggio - Bremen, ME

If you ever suffer from any type of ache or pain, you have got to
try this stuff.

And I'm pretty sure it will be just like last time and we'll sell out
very fast so you may want to grab some now

Because if we do sell out, it can be 6-8 weeks before we will
have more available.

I can't wait to hear of your results using this proven pain
relieving formula.

The Sedona Method and Back Pain

As a daily user of the Sedona Method for many years, I love the fact that it starts with the belief that I am (all of us are) perfect, whole and complete. “Thank you, for helping me see that in myself.”

 

What made the Sedona Method so successful for me, is that it did not try to change my mind about any of my beliefs but cleared my mind of the endless cutter floating around in my mind which allowed me to find my purpose in life, set my vision and it continues to help me achieve my everyday goals. “Nothing more powerful in life than that”

 

What I found to be amazing was that every issue I thought I had to work on, either physical pain or mental anguish, was addressed at the root cause level and with the guidance from Hale and his intuitive ability to communicate through the program, almost as if he was talking directly to me, it just worked. I just keep asking myself how did he know that of me, how did he know that was exactly what I need to work on? Just Amazing!

 

I work with Individuals dealing with physical pain and mental stressors every day and they believe their situation is so different because it is either unique to them or has challenged their life for such a long time and they begin to believe that nothing or no one can help them.

 

I urge you to keep an open mind that anything is possible…The last 10 years of my life were not easy by any measure, but I have seen and been a part of many miraculous events in my life and in my work and I would not be where I’m today without the ability to let go of the past and see the possibility in the future. “Hint – Hint”

 

One last thing, when I started the program, I had no clue what it was about or if it would do anything for me, but rest assured my experience was profound -- so much so that my five-year- old will benefit from the gift of being able to use the method her entire life, compared to the rest of us who will start the method much later in life, and then there are those who will never know…

 

Because of your affiliation with the Healthy Back Institute, Hale is offering you $50 off The Sedona Method Audio Course. Click here to get your special pricing.

You’ll thank me for it!

 

Thank you, HaleJ

 

Steven Hefferon, co-founder, the Healthy Back Institute and Lose the Back Pain System

How to get relief from post surgical scar tissue…

If you have had a back surgery either on your neck or lower back and have failed to get relief there could be an underlying issue that most treatments fail to even mention.

 
Any and every surgery will develop some amount of scar tissue all be it that new techniques are getting better at minimizing the amount, its still an issue that you are most likely dealing with right now and most likely nothing you have tried has helped…

Here it is short and sweet, Scar tissue and Fibrous Adhesions are a dirty little secret and a contributing factor of post surgical pain. And if left untreated could take years to diminish.

 
Scar tissue needs to be what is called released or Myofascially released and there are many different techniques that work great for this and most good and well trained massage therapist can do and excellent job of it but there is one more component to getting relief and that is the absorption of the excessive scar tissue from a cellular level.

As we get older, the more stress we are under and the less fruits and vegetables we eat the less enzymes our bodies will get and produce on a daily basis allowing for the over development of excess scar tissue.

And that is why it is critical that anyone who has had any type of surgery should eat 5 to 7 servings or fruits and vegetables a day and supplement with enzymes.

Click here for more information on Enzymes

Does inversion Therapy work? YES and HOW...

What is Inversion Therapy like?

Let's take a look at what a back pain sufferer will go through in a typical session. First, you do not need to go into full inversion to get the benefits. (Note: It will take time before you will be able to tolerate full inversion.) Here is a simple guide for beginners:

First 2 Weeks: Adjust the table to go to 20-30 degrees for 1 to 2 minutes, once or twice a day. Slowly increase your time until you become comfortable with the process and the position. The best way to tell if you're getting used to the inversion table is whether or not you can relax while you're using it.

Click here to read about inversion therapy:

When to Stretch: Before or After Exercise?

One frequently-asked question is, "Should I stretch before or after I exercise?"

The answer is: Both. This is not an either/or option; stretching both before and after physical activity is a must. And no cheating; please.

Stretching after exercise to get a jump on your next session without stretching beforehand will not do you any good either, and here is why:

The purpose of stretching before exercise is to help prevent injury. Stretching does this by lengthening the muscles and tendons, which in turn increases your range of movement. This helps you move freely without restriction or injury occurring. However, the reason why you stretch after exercise is very different.

Why Stretch After Exercise?

Stretching after you exercise is necessary for a very different reason. Any strenuous activity, particularly weightlifting, causes a small amount of damage to the muscle and associated soft tissues.

These small rips and tears are what force the muscles to grow when they begin the process of repairing themselves. Stronger tissue replaces the damaged tissue, which often causes soreness up to 48 hours after exercising.

This is called delayed onset muscle soreness or DOMS. You might not feel sore immediately following a workout, but think how many times you or someone else has said, "I'll pay for this later."

Stretching after your exercise routine helps release the tension and prevents the muscles from becoming tight. Right after your workout, your muscles are warm and elastic. The post-workout stretching session affords you a second chance to increase your flexibility and range of motion, particularly around your joints. Regardless of the type of activity, you should stretch all major muscle groups.

Is Stretching Considered Cooling Down?

No, stretching and cooling down after a workout are two very different things. Some experts say you should cool down first and then stretch, and others say that stretching can be incorporated as part of the cool-down process.

The purpose of cooling down is to help your heart rate return to normal. Your heart, lungs and blood flow all worked hard to get you through the exercise, and without a sufficient cooling-down period, you may feel sick or dizzy. You might want to take a leisurely five-minute walk on a treadmill to relax your body and then do your stretching. Your muscles will still be warm and you will still reap the benefits of a post-workout stretch.

For more great stretching tips I suggest you sign up for the free stretching e-course offered by my good friend and stretching expert, Brad Walker.

Get his free e-course here:

5 simple steps for back pain relief

Millions of people suffer from back pain unnecessarily when there is actually a very simple solution, according to Jesse Cannone , certified personal trainer and back pain specialist.  "Unfortunately, many people are led to believe that back pain is normal and were all supposed to experience it... well, thankfully, that's not the case. Eliminating back pain is not nearly as difficult as most people think or are led to believe... it can actually be easy!" says Cannone. 

Here's the simple system that MUST be followed if you are looking for real, long-term, lasting relief:

1. Identify the cause - nearly all of the treatments people receive for back pain only focus on the symptoms and the healthcare professionals zoom in on only the problem area. The real key in eliminating back pain is to find out exactly what’s causing the problem... and most of the time it's not even the back!

2. Address both the cause and the symptom - the best approach is a combination of treating the symptoms for pain relief while also addressing the underlying cause.

3. Be aware - many people suffering from back pain are not in tune with their bodies and during their treatment they do not realize what is working and what is not. In order to achieve long-term relief you have to understand how your body works, what's causing the problem, and what changes have to be made to correct it.

4. Consistent Focused Action - achieving success in anything requires consistency and focused action. Most people with back pain won't make the time to work on their problem each day... instead they take pain killers which mask the pain and allow them to cause more damage while they continue with their life.

5. Don't do what doesn't work - we already know that most traditional treatments for back pain don't work.... why waste your time, energy, and money? The real key to eliminating back pain is to identify the true cause of the pain and then address it with a combination of treatments to treat both the cause and symptoms. Over 80% of all back pain is caused by muscle imbalances... NOT a lack of pain killers or surgery! Fid out what's going on in your body and take action.

Click here to read more about back pain exercises:

“Bodybuilding Sins” Article #5 - Rest, Recovery, and Injury Prevention

Many of the injuries that bodybuilders suffer from could be easily prevented just by allowing the body enough time to rest...

While most bodybuilders dread hearing the word “rest”, many fail to realize that there is far more to rest than just avoiding overtraining. When you perform a tough workout you not only stress that muscle or muscle group, you also place stress on the cardiovascular, neuromuscular and components of the immune system...

For example, many bodybuilders will train their chest 2-3 times a week and spend an hour or more performing dozens of exercises just for the pecs...

While this may sound ok to some, when you add in the stress of other workouts it can quickly add up to too much stress in one or more ways. I hear bodybuilders all the time say “I let my body rest by splitting up my workouts” and “I worked chest yesterday so today I'll train my back”... that's NOT rest!

Click here to read more about propper workout recovery:

Body Buiulding and the need for Training Variations when looking for Pain Relief and Maximum Results

Bodybuilders are a stubborn bunch... almost as bad as runners! And they tend to follow the “HERD” doing whatever exercises and routines the “pros” are doing...

Now, if your goal is to be as big as possible and you are not at all concerned with your health and fitness, don't even bother this article... this article is for bodybuilders who ARE concerned about their health and want to be big, strong, powerful, and agile... if that's you, read on...

The reason so many bodybuilders suffer from so many different injuries is because there are several things the “pros” don't tell you...

First off, the articles that you see in all the muscle mags aren't even written by the “pros”... and the workout routines they recommend are always extreme and often not even used by the “pro” who supposedly wrote because their main goal is to sell magazines... not give you the real deal on bodybuilding.

If you are serious about bodybuilding and want to achieve your true peak, you need to stay injury free... and that's just about impossible if you train they way most bodybuilders do.

There are several key strategies that you can use right now to not only eliminate any aches, pains and injuries you currently have, but also keep from creating more muscle imbalances in the future. For a more detailed article on muscle imbalances go to Aches and Pains Articles

Click here to learn Strategy #1 - Target the Weaklings!

Can Proper Nutrition and Supplementation Heal Your Back Pain?

Anyone looking to achieve optimal health has to consider nutrition as the single most important ingredient for success. In a perfect world, all of our nutrition should come from the food we eat. Supplementation should not even be an issue.

In the real world, however, most of the foods we eat are riddled with fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, and hormones - not to mention that they are often hydrated with polluted water. In addition, an ever-growing percentage of our food comes from other countries, which don't always have the best inspection track record.

And if all that weren't bad enough, the natural nutrient value of the soil that produces these foods has also been diminishing over the years, a trend that will only continue. This is why it's necessary for us to take a hard look at our diets and make a decision about whether we may need supplements.

As you can see, proper nutrition nowadays is not that easy; it does take some time to educate yourself. By proper nutrition, I mean eating clean and safe foods that have the nutrients your body requires to get and stay healthy.

Recipe for relief

Your two main purposes for eating a healthy diet and taking supplements are to give your body what it needs to heal itself and to minimize the level of inflammation that is in your body. The inflammation is what is causing your pain.

Click here to read more about proper nutrition and supplementation for back pain:

Alternative Techniques You Would Never Guess Would Reduce Pain and Bring Healing - Mind-Body Techniques

Why do we call mind-body techniques such as massage, meditation, hypnosis, or acupuncture "alternative" treatments when they've been around since the dawn of Man? If these techniques have been around and used for that long, surely there must be something to them.

Truth is, you're already a bit of an expert in some of these techniques. Let me explain. Say you stub your toe. You know full well you're going to grab that toe and rub it (massage). Next, your breathing is going to change, you're going to belt out a few choice words, then you're going to find a place to sit down and relax for a minute (meditation). And don't forget your need to show everyone where it hurts by pointing to it and pressing on the most painful spot (acupressure).

I know what you're thinking right now: How would any of these techniques help heal my herniated disc or Spinal Stenosis or Sciatica? First of all, none of these techniques can change the physical aspect of your condition. But when you examine the goals of each of them, they all make sense. And, if used together, they can deliver better and faster results.

Here's a quick look at the benefits of a more extensive list of alternative treatments to help you understand how you might incorporate one or all of these techniques into your life. Study this list and then find practitioners to teach you or work with you one-on-one.

Massage: There are literally hundreds of styles of massage. Which one is best for you will depend on your comfort level. I would recommend finding some one skilled in Deep Tissue combined with Trigger Point as well as Myofascial Release the combination offers calming of the muscles and manual removal of inflammation by getting rid of the source of the irritant and pain.

Click here to read about more Mind Body Techniques:

Why Your Stretching and Exercises Aren't Giving You Relief from Back Pain

When you spend enough time working with people who are in pain, you hear it all: anger, fear, hope - but mostly frustration. Whether you are going through a treatment program for your back pain with a chiropractor or physical therapist, or trying your own exercise program (Yoga, Pilates, pumping iron at the gym, etc.), if you're not getting relief, let me share with you a widely known "secret."

Knowledge Is Power

Our mission here at the Healthy Back Institute is to inspire you through education. We know that people who understand their situation and their condition get better care and faster results, regardless of the type of treatment they are going through. The reason is simple: They have more control.

The problem is that most treatment programs only you tell what to do. You never question and never really understand what you're doing. You just trust that the person telling you what to do is knowledgeable and has your best interests in mind.

Well, here's a shocker: The person working with you is only doing his job. He likely doesn't have time to share with you all he knows. More importantly, he may not be willing to take the time to tell you what you need to know to get better and stay healthy.

I'm about to share with you something I have already shared with untold millions. Thank goodness you took the initiative to search for a better way of stretching and exercising. Be prepared to say good-bye to frustration and hello to hope.

Click here to read more about how exercises can give back pain relief:

Could Muscle Balance Therapy™ be the long term solution to your back pain.

When it comes to back pain, knowledge is power. Our mission here at the Healthy Back Institute is to help you learn all you can about your particular condition because we know that informed people get better care and faster results. The more you know, the more you can be in control of your own treatment, and Muscle Balance Therapy™ is one of the most powerful tools you can use to help you take control of your situation.

A basic fact about back pain is that most treatments fail because they begin at the end - that is, they merely focus on the pain, which is just a symptom of a larger problem. A word of caution: If you feel even minor back pain, you should take it very seriously - your body is telling you that something is not right. Failing to address this situation now will likely result in a higher level of pain and having to work much harder and much longer to get yourself back to a pain-free state.

Whether your goal is to stay healthy or to get lasting relief from your pain, you should know that back pain - or any disease, for that matter - develops as a process. Muscle Balance Therapy™ addresses the underlying cause of your condition while at the same time brings relief to your symptoms. In essence, it attempts to reverse the process that brought you pain and bring your body back to a more neutral state.

The Greeks knew about the principles behind Muscle Balance Therapy™ 2500 years ago, but some how this simple, sensible approach was replaced by today's medical treatments that merely focus on symptoms rather than the source of your pain.

Click here to read more about muscle balances therapy:

Did you know your Blood Ph Levels could be keeping you sick and in Pain?

Remember the litmus test from high school chemistry lab? You stuck a small strip of litmus paper into a solution, and if it turned red, it meant the solution was acidic. If it turned blue, the solution was basic (alkaline).

Well, the body has its own sort of litmus test: It’s called your pH level. And many health care professionals consider a balanced pH level to be the key to good health.

The term pH stands for Potential Hydrogen, which is the concentration of hydrogen ions in a substance or solution. The pH range is 0 to 14. Human blood pH is ideally 7.35. Higher numbers indicate alkalinity; lower numbers indicate acidity.

Constricted muscles

The body simply cannot tolerate extended acid imbalances. In the early stages of an imbalance, symptoms may include such things as skin eruptions, headaches, allergies, colds and flu, and sinus problems. As things get further out of kilter, weakened systems start to give way. If tissue pH deviates too far to the acid side, oxygen levels decrease and cells die.

On the other side of the coin, it is virtually impossible for a health disorder or disease to sustain itself when your pH is in the neutral zone (7.0-7.4). At this level, the body has a strong immunity to diseases. Most Americans, however, have a pH level of 6.2 to 6.4.

When your pH is out of the normal range, all sorts of bad things happen. For one thing, disease-producing organisms thrive. This explains why some people exposed to certain bacteria or viruses get sick while others don't.

Acidic conditions can cause muscles to constrict and inhibit the exchange of nutrients and waste products in muscle cells, causing fatigue, soreness, and pain. In fact, a pH imbalance affects all cellular activity in the body and can lead to a wide range of degenerative diseases and symptoms.

Among other things, acidic blood blocks vitamin absorption, creates toxic buildup in clogged cells, slows organ function, prevents proper digestion, creates excess gas and bloating, causes unhealthy weight gain, and speeds the aging process.

Click here to read more:

Trigger Point Therapy, the missing link to back pain relief...

Research by Drs. Janet Travell and David Simons, authors of "The Trigger Point Manual," has shown that trigger points are the primary cause of pain at least 75 percent of the time and are a factor in nearly every painful condition.

Trigger points, a type of muscle stiffness, are the result of tiny contraction knots that develop in muscle and tissue when an area of the body is injured or overworked. Trigger points are something traditional doctors ignore, but they could be the one thing that has been overlooked in your case for years, if not decades.

A hallmark of trigger points is something called "referred" pain. This means that trigger points typically send their pain to some other place in the body, which is why conventional treatments for pain so often fail. Many health care practitioners wrongly assume that the problem is located where the pain is and therefore fail to assess the body correctly to find the cause of your pain.

I'm going to give you some valuable information about trigger points that I hope will encourage you to consider the possibility that trigger points may be the missing link in your quest for relief.

Click here to read more about the missing link to back pain relief:

How a loved one can help in a Medical Crisis

What you are about to read speaks from the heart and is intended to help those who are suffering and those who love those who are suffering. No one can heal alone so embrace each other and do not let anything get in the way.

When dealing with serious back pain, you have to realize that your condition is going to have an impact on everyone around you and that it will be toughest on the ones you love.

I got an e-mail this morning and could not stand to go another day without telling you my thoughts. Believe me, this question is not unique.

Please read the following e-mail, and then I’ll give you my response:

My Story of Inversion Therapy and Back Pain

With 15 years in the health and wellness industry, I have seen a lot of fads come and go and in the mid 1980s, gravity boots hit the seen and that started a new revolution for treating back pain, sciatica, Herniated disc and numerous other forms of back pain.

Today we don’t use moon boots but we do use a spinal decompression technique called Inversion Therapy… I have written extensively on all forms of spinal decompression and there effectiveness, I encourage you to read the report and the studies that have been done in the last 20 plus years as a treatment for back pain.

Click here to read more about Inversion Therapy

Can your diet be keeping you in pain?

An Anti-Inflammatory Diet Could Be the Ticket to Feeling Better

When I say the word "inflammation," it's likely to evoke thoughts of painful joints and muscles, swelling, and a loss of mobility. But did you know that recent research shows that chronic inflammation in your body can lead to serious diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, some cancers, and Alzheimer's disease, to name just a few?

The amount of inflammation in your body varies and is dependent on a number of factors - including your activity level, the amount of sleep you get, the degree of stress in your life, and even the foods you eat. What you have to realize is that these factors are cumulative - meaning they build up over time. And the more that any or all of these factors get out of whack, the risk for disease increases.

Early in life, these levels can be so low that you might not even be aware that you have any inflammation in your body. That's because our bodies do a fairly decent job of controlling the inflammation - at least for a while. Then one day you wake up and you're in your 40s and something is just not right. That's when the fear begins to set in, and you think to yourself: What did I do wrong? or What can I do now to help myself?

The first step is to get your C-reactive protein (CRP) levels tested. C-reactive protein is produced by the liver, and the level of CRP rises when there is systemic inflammation in the body. Ask your doctor about this (you may have to demand to have the test done). All it requires is a blood sample that will be evaluated by your doctor. And because diet can play a large role in how much or how little inflammation you have, you may want these levels looked at by a registered dietician who can help you formulate an appropriate eating plan.

If you have pain due to inflammation, you may choose to take the traditional medical path, which includes non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), steroids, and even joint-replacement surgery in extreme cases. The good news is that there are natural ways to fight inflammation without the undesirable side-effects that often result from the treatments listed above.

Read more about how to control inflammation with your diet:

Muscle Balance Therapy the new hope for back pain...

When it comes to back pain, knowledge is power.
Our mission here at the Healthy Back Institute is to
help you learn all you can about your particular
condition because we know that informed people
get better care and faster results. The more you
know, the more you can be in control of your own
treatment, and Muscle Balance Therapy™ is one
of the most powerful tools you can use to help you
take control of your situation.

A basic fact about back pain is that most
treatments fail because they begin at the end
that is, they merely focus on the pain, which is just
a symptom of a larger problem. A word of caution:
If you feel even minor back pain, you should take it
very seriously - your body is telling you that something
is not right. Failing to address this situation now will
likely result in a higher level of pain and having to
work much harder and much longer to get yourself
back to a pain-free state.

Whether your goal is to stay healthy or to get lasting
relief from your pain, you should know that back pain
- or any disease, for that matter - develops as a
process. Muscle Balance Therapy™ addresses the
underlying cause of your condition while at the same
time brings relief to your symptoms. In essence, it
attempts to reverse the process that brought you pain
and bring your body back to a more neutral state.

The Greeks knew about the principles behind
Muscle Balance Therapy™ 2500 years ago, but some
how this simple, sensible approach was replaced by
today's medical treatments that merely focus on
symptoms rather than the source of your pain.

Click her to read the rest of the article:

Will inversion therapy help with a bulging or Herniated disc?

When inverted, the natural pull of gravity allows a separation
of your vertebrae, which lessens the pressure on the discs
in between each vertebrae. The action of increasing the space
margins between the vertebrae can actually create a mild
suction in the disc, which may help encourage the bulged
disc return to its proper place.

The main benefits are realized by increased circulation and
waste elimination to injured discs. In the opinion of many
medical professionals, several sessions of intermittent
traction are the best way to help the body dissolve a bulged
disc.

The length of healing time will vary with different people.
However, it has been our experience that you should hang
three or more times every day for short sessions at an angle
most comfortable for you. Do not over-do it-this is not a
"no pain, no gain situation."

To Learn more about the benefits of Inversion Therapy click here:

Steven Hefferon

P.S. As always we give personal Support to all of our memebers

How long should I use and Inversion table for?

This is probably the most commonly asked question about
inversion. The answer really varies with different people. For
the most part, we recommend beginners to start slowly:
invert for only 1-2 minutes during the first week or two until
you become comfortable, and then work up to longer periods
of time as you feel necessary.

The angle of inversion also affects the length of inversion
time that is comfortable. The shallower the angle, the longer
the time. Most people will invert for 5 - 15 minutes once or
twice a day. There is no real time limit-the important thing
is to listen to your body. If you are at all uncomfortable,
simply return upright.

Virtually all issues of discomfort that occur with new
invertees is due to going too far, too fast. You are
wonderfully designed to be upside down, but if you
are like most people, you are detrained to be inverted.
Just listen to your body, increasing the duration of inversion
only as you feel comfortable.

To Learn more about the benefits of Inversion Click here:

Back Pain Exercise while on the inversion table...

Not only is inversion a great activity for back pain but you can
even do corrective exercises when you are inverted...

Partial inversion. Gentle stretching can be performed while
partially inverted by crossing one arm over your body, gripping
the opposite side of the table frame, and rotating up on one
shoulder for a stretch. You can also arch the torso from side
to side to loosen muscles and to help the mid- and lower
spine to stretch.

Similarly, stress in the neck can be relieved by gently rotating
the head to either side, plus lifting the head (do not sit up,
only lift the head) or pushing back against the nylon cover
while lifting the shoulders off thecover for a stretch in
extension.

Full inversion. Only perform these exercises when you are
comfortable with being fully inverted. Do not overdue it-as with
any exercise to which your body is unaccustomed, you may
experience sore muscles if you do too much too fast.

Inverted crunches. Place your hands on your chest or
behind your head and lift your torso half way to your knees.

Full sit-ups. This is the only way to perform a full sit-up that
is safe for your back. Your spine is in line with gravity, so the
full sit-up does not place harmful loads on the back. Place
your hands behind your head or on your chest. Sit up all the
way to your knees. You may need to place your hands behind
your knees to help pull yourself up to a full sit up. Some
people claim that 1 full inverted sit-up is as difficult as 10
regular sit-ups (without the strain on your back!)

Inverted squats. On the tables and racks, you are able to
exercise your legs as well! You may want to steady yourself
by placing each hand on the rear legs of the A-frame. Bending
your knees, lift your entire body toward the sky. This action is
similar to a standing squat, except that you are utilizing your
leg muscles to pull your body weight up instead of resisting
your body weight.

Rotational stretching. You can use the A-frame, support
structure or door frames to aid with stretching. Reach with
one arm to the opposite side of the structure and pull,
rotating your torso to one side. Do the same with the
opposite arm.

Back extensions. For the inversion table, reach your hands
over each shoulder and grab onto the bed frame. Push your
body out away from the bed, arching your back out. (Do not
use the rear legs of the A-frame for extensions, as that may
place your body weight outside the safe support area of the
A-frame).

Added traction. On the inversion table, reach your hands
forward and grab onto the crossbar of the A-frame. Pull
gently to feel added tractionto your lower back.

To read more in inversion please click here:

And as always we personally support our customers

Steven Hefferon CMT PTA

Have you been Diagnosed With a Herniated Disc?

  Have you been Diagnosed With a Herniated Disc?

You've probably heard people say they have a "slipped" or "ruptured" disc in the back. Sometimes they complain that their back “went out”. What they're most likely describing is a herniated disc. This condition is a common source of back and leg pain.

Discs are soft cushions found between the vertebrae that make up the spinal column (your backbone). In the middle of the spinal column is the spinal canal, a hollow space that contains the spinal cord. The nerves that supply the arms, leg, and torso come from the spinal cord. The nerves from the neck supply the arms and hands, and the nerves from the low back supply the butt and legs. The discs between the vertebrae allow the back to move freely and act like shock absorbers.

The disc is made up of two main sections. The outer part (the annulus) is made up of tough cartilage that is comprised of series of rings. The center of the disc is a jelly-like substance called the nucleus pulposus. A disc herniates or ruptures when part of the jelly center pushes through the outer wall of the disc into the spinal canal, and puts pressure on the nerves. A disc bulge is when the jelly substance pushes the outer wall but doesn't completely go through the wall.

Click here for your best treatment optioins:

What is S-I Joint Dysfunction?

By Dr. Robert V. Duvall, DPT, MPT, ATC, MGFI

The S-I joint is one of the most misunderstood areas of the human body. It has been the source of much controversy in the medical community for many years. Much of the debate relies on the fact that there are few reliable evaluation methods for the S-I joint.

Contrary to disc injuries, which can be evaluated using many types of diagnostic tools, examining the S-I joints has proved to be quite unreliable. Clinicians need to rely mostly on their experience rather than simple methods used to examine the low back. Most medical professionals do not acknowledge it as a source of pain and dysfunction. So patients leave a medical office with an incomplete evaluation and often times, an inaccurate diagnosis.

The S-I (Sacro-Iliac) joint is comprised of two bones; the sacrum and the ilium. You have two S-I joints (left and right). They are located basically where the spine meets the pelvis. Look for the two dimples in your low back. These two joints allow for very little movement overall as compared to other more prominent joints such as your hip or shoulder. The pelvic girdle is generally described as the two S-I joints, the pubic symphysis (pubic bone in front), the two hip joints, and the bottom two vertebrae (L4, L5).

What do you feel?

Pain located at or near the S-I joint on one side or both sides. Pain located in the low back, buttock, and/or groin area. Another common symptom of a S-I joint dysfunction is "sciatica". Sciatica is best described as a sharp, often shooting pain that begins in the buttocks and goes down the back of one leg. S-I joint dysfunction may also cause nerve irritation of the nerves that supply the groin or front of your thigh.

Other symptoms include:

•   1. Weakness in one leg or both legs; difficulty standing on one leg and       raising the other leg (like marching)
•   2. Numbness and tingling in one leg (pins & needles)
•   3. A burning pain located near the "dimples"
•   4. Difficulty raising from a chair
•   5. Muscle discomfort in the buttock, hip, or low back (over 30 muscles       attach to the pelvis; from the hip, buttock, thigh, low back.

How does this happen?

S-I joint dysfunction is usually caused by an imbalance in the muscles of the hips and glutes and it can also be caused by a fall or other traumatic event, such as a car accident.

A condition known as "hypermobility" may also predispose an individual to S-I joint dysfunction. "Hypermobility" is best described as a condition in which the joints have too much mobility. This condition generally affects women more than men. Different hormone levels present in women, specifically "relaxin", can influence hypermobility. This hormone is released to prepare the body for pregnancy, and its level in the blood changes throughout pregnancy process. It basically causes the ligaments to "relax" and allow for more movement to occur in the pelvic girdle region.

The best treatment options

First of all, the evaluation is critical to the success of treating a S-I joint dysfunction. Most dysfunctions can be treated with manual techniques that generally involve “mobilizations”, “manipulations”, or “muscle energy techniques”. These techniques must be applied by a skilled medical professional, such as a physical therapist. These techniques can prove to be quite helpful when utilized appropriately following a thorough evaluation.

Once appropriate manual techniques have been administered, a comprehensive exercise program must be implemented to address the following areas, specifically muscle imbalances:

•   1. Lumbar stabilization program: strengthening abdominals and buttock       muscles
•   2. Improve flexibility in lower extremity musculature

Some cases may only need a detailed exercise program that addresses the muscle imbalances. You can learn more about how to identify and address your muscle imbalances by visiting LoseTheBackPain.com.

Some S-I joint dysfunctions may linger on for months and even years. Remember, if you are engaged in a current treatment plan with little to no improvement, seek other options. If you think you may have a S-I joint dysfunction, the first step is to find a healthcare professional who is skilled and experienced in addressing muscle imbalances.

You can learn more about how to identify and address your muscle imbalances with the Lose The Back Pain System. Get Started Here...

“Sex and Back Pain”

Is Back Pain Ruining Your Love Life?

By Jerry Corners, MD

Back pain and sex don't go together very well and if you or your partner are among the 35 million people who have back pain, you know that back pain can disrupt your relationship. Sex is an important part of the intimacy between couples, and attitudes about sex, about rejection and about our self-image when we don't feel up to a sexual encounter can haunt a couple for a long time.

Sex is supposed to be pleasurable for both of you and the fear of hurting yourself or your partner inhibits the spontaneous joy that you probably felt before your back pain developed. But what can you do about it? Most couples in which one or the other is restricted by back pain will eventually get around to realizing that back pain does not automatically mean no more sex. What it does mean is that you will need to make some accommodations to the pain and or the fear of it. It also means you will need to talk about sex in a slightly different way than you are used to.

Let's back up for a second and begin with a very strong suggestion. Because pain has both a psychological component and a physical component, getting a sound diagnosis is critical to putting your mind at rest about what is wrong and secondly having a sound diagnosis will also give you guidelines for your physical limitations.

Secondly, after you have the diagnosis, involve the doctor or physical therapist in a frank discussion about dos and don'ts. Maybe that's an uncomfortable subject for you, but these days we are talking more openly about sex and you should tap into the doctor's experience here. In a perfect world the doctor would open the discussion for you, but if they don't you may have to initiate it. Ideally your partner should be present because he or she will have his or her own questions and concerns.

To start sex off right, start off with a massage, or ice down the painful area. A warm shower together might help too. That way the muscles are relaxed.

Try These Positions Tonight...

Here are some sexual positions that can help you enjoy a pain-free experience.

For males:

1. Lay on a firm surface and use pillows to support your knees and head. You might like to try placing a small rolled towel under your lower back.
2. Try a side-by-side position.
3. Place a pillow under your lower back while your partner straddles you on top. You can also sit in a sturdy chair instead of lying down.

For females:

1. Try missionary position with the legs bent toward the chest.
2. Sit on the edge of a chair and have your partner kneel between your legs for entry.
3. Rear entry may also be more comfortable for women with back pain. Try it kneeling on the bed or lying on your belly with a pillow under her chest.
4. Sit on your partner's lap as he sits in a chair.
   

Remember, the health of your back is dependent on many dynamic factors. Your symptoms may change over time so you may need to work with your health care provider from time to time as you go through the many stages of recovery. A word of caution is in order at this point. It is pretty common to begin feeling better and then overdo it and have your back pain symptoms flair up. We call this, the whoopee effect and it can happen to anyone. Just remember that as you improve gradually, so should your activity level also increase gradually.

As I mentioned earlier pain has two parts. There is the physical part. This is the actual stimulation of the nerve, like a painful tooth or a herniated disc pressing on the nerve. And then there is the subjective or the psychological part. This is how it feels to you and includes, among other things, such attitudes as fear that it will get worse or last forever, what will it means to be chronically disabled, and what you believe your partner thinks about it as well as how you are coping with your condition.

So, at the top of your agenda there needs to be a frank discussion of your pain limitations and expectations about sex. It is a mistake to believe that your partner understands what it feels like. It is your responsibility to communicate those limitations as clearly as possible; it is their responsibility to listen and try to understand.

Pain, after all, is invisible and subjective. That means your pain is unique to you. We have heard people liken back pain to everything from a hot poker going down one or both legs to a chronic aching sensation localized to the lumbar area. It doesn't matter what words you use, just try to explain the pain, what causes it (position, certain movements, or whatever), and what feels good or is what is comfortable for you.

Is it obvious that if it hurts, don't do it is generally good advice but some positions and techniques hurt more than others? It may require some gentle experimentation to find out what works but as in most sex advice, “gentle” is the best place to start.

In terms of maximizing yours and your partner's sexual pleasure, it is very important to stress that all you really need is your imagination and the willingness to experiment to open up new areas of intimacy. But it all begins with willingness to try. And given that, you just may find that the lemon of back pain can be turned into the lemonade of new sources of mutual pleasure.

What Two Things Killed Physical Therapy?

When I first started in physical therapy in the early 1990s, I knew I had found something I loved to do, and it was a profession I was good at. I soon realized I was spending more time doing paperwork than I was doing treatments. I began to hate my job, insurance companies, the entire health care system. So I quit and became a bit of a maverick health care advocate.

Look, physical therapy should be the Holy Grail for anyone who suffers from back pain. The average PT has a master's degree; some even have a doctorate level degree. So why can't they give you relief?

Lets look at some of the treatments PTs have at their disposal, what their intended outcomes are, and why they fail to provide long-term relief:

To Learn more click here:

Can Your Back Pain Be Cured with a Cortisone Injection?

If you've read any of our work and subscribe to our point of view, you already know the answer to that question. For those of you who are just joining us, allow me to share my opinion of cortisone injections as a treatment for back pain and sciatica.

First, let's go over some of the terminology to make sure we're all on the same page. Cortisone injection, epidural, steroid injection, and epidural steroid injection are all essentially the same thing. The goal is to inject a chemical into the inflamed area and try to control the inflammation, delivering relief in the short term. When I say "short term," I'm saying that some people feel better by the time they get home, or perhaps the next morning.

Click here to read more...

Does the 80/20 Rule Apply to Your Health?

By Steven Hefferon, CMT, PTA, CPRS

We've all heard about the 80/20 Rule - the idea that 80 percent of your gain will come from 20 percent of your effort. The 80/20 rule can be applied to most anything in our lives. But have you ever considered how this rule might apply to your health? Click here to read more...

Does Inversion Therapy Work, there is one missing link you must know about...

A few days ago I sent out an email that included the story of a woman who used inversion therapy to eliminate her back pain... And I can not believe the number of emails we've received from people who instead of learning from it and getting inspired, had the nerve to question her and her story. One lady wrote in her email that the story was: "Over-The-Top and Downright Unbelievable"

First of all, the stories we share with you are what we receive from our customers and while they may seem "to good to be true", the fact is, this was their experience. And just because you may have tried inversion therapy and you didn't have the same result, doesn't mean that inversion doesn't work and it certainly doesn't mean these people are lying.

What I find interesting is that the people who write in questioning the accuracy of someone's success story, often are the ones who live with the pain forever because their beliefs are preventing them from getting relief! Don't let this be happen to you.

Second, we always include as much real personal information as we can like full name, what city, state and country they live in, sometimes their age and occupation photos they send us, audio recordings of their stories, and sometimes even videos. So if you honestly believe that the success stories we share with you aren't real, you have some issues... and there probably isn't anything that WOULD convince you. Look, there is no one thing that will work for everybody.

You have to experiment and try different things. But it's very important that you try the right things... treatments that make sense and have proven to deliver LASTING relief.

Here's our recommendations on the most effective treatments:

1. Muscle Balance Therapy Identifying and addressing muscle imbalances with corrective exercises, stretches and other manual muscle treatments and techniques. You can learn how to do this with our Lose The Back Pain System: This can include exercises, stretches, myofascial release, muscle activation, massage and others... but the number objective is to correct or at least improve the muscle imbalances that are forcing your body to work in a dysfunctional way and therefore, breakdown. If you fail to do this, you will likely never get lasting relief because you aren't eliminating the underlying cause of the problem or condition.

2. Reduce Inflammation There are lots ways to do this without the harsh, and often deadly prescription and over-the-counter drugs. Changes to your diet, reducing stress and improving sleep all help, but the best way is by using herbs and preteolytic enzymes that have an anti-inflammatory effect. We've created the most powerful, au naturale inflammation reducing and pain fighting formula in the world and people are reporting truly awesome results. It's called Lifezyme Plus and you can learn more about it and why it works so well here: http://www.losethebackpain.com/inflammation.html 3.

Decompress the spine While there are several ways to decompress, or reduce the amount of pressure that's placed on your discs, the easiest and most affordable is inversion therapy. It's important to point out that inversion alone, is usually not enough as the muscles that are out of balance and tight, and that are placing the pressure on the discs to begin with, will usually require corrective exercises in order for the inversion to really make a difference.

Think about it this way... If the muscles of your torso and along the spine are tight or even locked up, when you invert those same tight muscles will prevent your spine from decompressing as much as it would if you were to perform the right combination of exercises and stretches before and after.

Well, I could going on for days but the key thing here is this, if I were you (and I have suffered from back pain, tendonitis in several paces and other conditions), I would do all three of the above before I tried anything else. While there are lots of other things you can do that may help, these are the BIG 3. Well, that's all for today....

Make it a great one!

Q: Sue asked, I don’t have back pain, but when I look at my self my Back and Shoulders look Rounded, is that just Bad Posture?

A: Well Sue let me help you understand what you see…Everyone uses the very common term posture but I don’t think people really understand what posture truly means, you see your self as you are today but your posture is the result of how your were in the past, I’m talking years ago even decades ago.

What does that mean, well Good or Bad Posture is the result of your lifestyle in other words the way I like to put it is , your posture is the result of your Habits, Pattern, Positions and the things your do everyday, day in and day out.

You see our bodies are very good at adapting to the environment we place it in and if we look back on our life’s, the first 18 years we sit in school and if you go to collage you sit some more, and that if you work at a computer you sit even more, so by the time you are 40 your body has gotten so used to sitting and your muscle are most comfortable in the sitting position but that sitting has caused some physical changes that in turn can cause some postural dysfunctions and if left alone will intern cause structural changes that will be for the most part uncorrectable, so lets get started…

One of our subscribers said it best, “Our bones only go where our muscle put them” That is a great statement, and I hope you understand it…if not keep reading.

We have just talked about how our bodies adapt to what we give them and how our bodies can be pulled into abnormal positions based on the many factors in our lives…I know what you are thinking just get to the part about what to do…Hang in there, just a little longer you see understanding this concept is more than half the battle, because you can now work to prevent and also correct problems in your posture if you understand the equation.

Ok I will spill the beans now…your rounded back and rounded shoulders are the result of what are called Muscle imbalances that are causing this physical dysfunction you see in your posture, you area not the only one with this problem and you are not the first to have it, it has been know for years what it is and what caused it and even though your Doctor did not tell you how to address it does not mean that it can’t be done.

Here is are the nuts and bolts of the problem, if you are wondering how our muscles are responsible for the posture you have now, you must understand that our muscles can be either tight or flexible and/or also strong or weak and not to make the situation even more complex but our muscle can be in any combination of these four states from front to back and side to side.

If we look at your rounded back and rounded shoulders you will see that your head and shoulders are being pulled forward, that would indicate that the muscle in the front of your body are overly strong and/or overly tight compared to the muscle in your upper back which are weak and have more flexibility. That is how we describe the imbalance between your muscles and that’s what we call the root of the problem…

Please realize that your body is and has been undergoing these physical changes for a long time and there is no quick fix, it is a physical problem it will require a physical solution, there is not pill, injection or massage that can make your muscle come back to balance, it take work…

Now just because you know that there is an imbalance and you even know the direction of the imbalances does not mean you can just start doing an general exercise program, that is not how you do, in order to correct a know imbalance you will need to know very specific and very targeted stretches and exercises in order to correct the imbalances and if you choose to do nothing your imbalances will over time start the process of developing into a condition that will cause you pain.

We strongly recommend that you start a proactive approach to your current situation, you are lucky that you do not have pain, it is a shame and I feel with all my heart the pain that the millions of people that are suffering from conditions that could have been prevented or corrected years ago if only more people understood the effects of muscle imbalances and how they effect our bodies.

Sue I hope I have shown you that it’s more than just bad posture and I hope you seek a qualified expert in muscle imbalances and live to prevent any further progression of your condition.

For more information on Back Pain and Sciatica visit us at

www.losethebackpain.com

Fiber is not only good for weight loss but for back pain relief too...

Look there is no doubt that getting or eating enough fiber is one of the key factors for optimal health, let me just touch on a few examples.

For Weight Loss, first off to get enough fiber you need to change what you eat and by doing so you will eat better. It is not easy to eat 20 to 30 gram so of fiber everyday, in fact I bet that most people only get 10 to 15 grams.

For Back Pain, since the spine is so close to the intestines, any excess outward pressure from the intestines will put even more pressure on the spine and if you have back pain it will only make it worse. Not to mention that do the quality of our diets now a days, a lot of what we eat our bodies have a very small even sub clinical response to like milk for example, if you are lactose intolerant and you can not bread down the milk sugars you will not only get gas but you will also get an inflammatory response and again with the intestines being so close to the spine it will make things even worse.

What to do…

1. Eat with like-minded people…
2. Eat at least 5 colors of foods…
3. Force you self to eat fibrous foods…
4. Force your self to eat less Crap
5. Take a supplement if you can not get at least 20 to 30 grams of fiber a day…

How you will benefit

1. First you system will be cleaned and running better…
2. You will have a flatter stomach…
3. You will feel better about your self…
4. You will feel better in general…
5. You will lose weight…

Till next time, keep looking for the thing that will work for you and you life plan

Steve Hefferon

The Reason I Take Supplements...

It boils down to this, yes foods are our best source of nutrition, no question, in fact it’s the other compounds found in food that are as much benefit as the vitamin or minerals, called Phytochemicals… examples are the pigments found in bright colored fruits and vegetables…

So why take supplements, its now clear that the amount of vitamins and minerals in food is not enough to keep an active body healthy and able to prevent diseases…

Lets put it this way Its not easy to eat are self healthy any more, we would have to eat 2 to 3 times the amount of food to get the proper nutrients, its just not practical anymore.

Look our bodies are designed to heal our self under the right conditions, so if we minimize STRESS and increase REST, POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUTED and feed our bodies what they need, if that means supplements, than do it…

I take several supplements, the first is a liquid multi, the second is a digestive enzyme and the third is a Systemic Enzyme called Lifezyme Plus, it is loaded with 11 ingredients that are all essential for optimal health. Not to mention that Systemic Enzymes are natures answer to cardiovascular, joint and Immune support.

One more thing it kick pain and inflammations ass much safer than NASIDs do…

Steven Hefferon

How 30 Sec Bear Crawls burn baby fat

The first time I posted this video I did it for the inspiration, knowing that most people never give there very best at anything, because good is good enough.

Well I just realized just how difficult the bear crawl is after trying to get to the 50 yard line, no I could not do it with out touching my knees twice…

Watch this video again and this time learn the technique and try it for your self!

Steven Hefferon, CMT PTA Co-founder www.losethebackpain.com

CAN YOUR CUP OF COFFEE CAUSE YOU PAIN?

Question from one of our customers

hi jesse,

michael here, kim's husband. I've got a real bad back. I'm going to see
re: surgery next week. Question:
I had a chiropractor/holistic dr. tell me last year that coffee is bad
for your back, I assume your discs?
If so, is it the caffeine that is bad for them, or the acid? Or both?
Thanks much!
Michael

***end of question***

Michael, there are several issues with caffeine, first it is a
vasoconstrictor, that means that your blood vessels get smaller
and you heard bumps harder to get the blood where it need to go...
the down side to the is that lack of blood flow to an affected
area can cause ischemic pain, the same pain that a person who
suffers a heart attack feels and now amount of pain killer can
help, the second part to caffeine is that it will dehydrate you
and a body in pain need to be fully hydrated all of the time.
It is even more critical that you disc while in bad shape get
plenty of hydration, not that it will make it 100% better but to
slow or stop any further destruction of the disc.

My suggestion it is, that if you need to drink coffee, drink it
with a cup of water at your side or drink 8 to 12 oz after every
cup, you goal per day should be 50 to 100 oz per day of water,
the next thing that you can try is the Lifezyme Plus to open your
blood vessels up to increase the blood flow to the affected area,
if you look at the image of the red blood cell caught in the fibrin,
you can just imagine how much better you blood would flow if that
fibrin was not there, that is what the enzymes do they attack and
eat away at that excess fibrin in your blood and in our muscle tissue,
there is really nothing else like it. now if you are going for surgery
its not recommended that you take it 2 weeks before surgery but you can
take it after and it will speed healing:)

Oh ya, the acid in coffee, our bodies need to be at a Ph balances and
when we drink coffee or soda our bodies will balance its self naturally
but they do so by leaching Ca from out bones to buffer the acid, if done
one time its not a big deal, but do it for years and you will start to
see the affects...

One last thing, the number of cases we see every month do to failed back
surgeries is staggering and it not the surgeons fault its the rehab after,
if you do not address the under lying root cause "muscle imbalances"
that the surgery is doomed to fail.

so be sure that the rehab addresses the you cause and your symptoms or
get the Lose the back pain system and force the rehab to implement correcting .
the muscle imbalances as part of your recovery...

You must remember that there will never be only one silver bullet that will cure your
condition you will need to always take a multi-step approach to get long term relief...

Steven Hefferon, CMT PTA

30 Diseases one Solution!

Have you even heard of an Anti-Inflammatory Diet: It Could Be The Answer To Eliminating Your Pain, feeling better and even achieving your weight loss goals. When I say “Inflammation”, thoughts of painful joints, muscles, swelling and loss of mobility probably comes to mind. But did you know that recent research shows that chronic inflammation in your body can lead to serious disease such as diabetes, heart disease, some cancers, Obesity, Asthma, Allergies, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Gout, Lupus, Crohn’s Disease, Atherosclerosis, Diabetes and even Alzheimer's disease, to name just a few?

The amount of inflammation in our body varies and is dependent on may circumstances like activity level, amount of sleep or stress in our lives, recovery form trauma and even the foods we eat. Now what you have to realize is that these factors are all accumulative and as the levels increase the risk for disease increases.

Now early in life these levels can be so low that you would not even know that you have any inflammation in your body and that is because our bodies do a fair job at controlling the inflammation at least for a while, and than one day you wake up and you are in your 40’s and something is just not write and than the fear sets in and you think to your self what did I do, what did I do wrong or what can I do right now to help my self. 

For more information on inflammation visit www.losethebackpain.com

Steven Hefferon, CMT PTA

Surefire Way To Prevent Healing and Stay in Pain Forever!

If you've ever been to a doctor for any type of ache or pain, you most likely walked
out of their office with a prescription for some type of NSAID.

While NSAID's may provide temporary relief, they are actually preventing your body
from healing itself.

NSAID's work by attacking a class of natural biochemicals called prostaglandins.
These chemicals cause inflammation but they also aid in healing so by attacking
them, yes, you may reduce the inflammation, but you also prevent your body from
addressing the underlying condition.

Even well respected, major medical journals like the American Journal of Medicine
and the Physicians Desk Reference have documented this fact.

But if they are so dangerous AND they only temporarily mask the pain... AND, they
actually prevent healing, why are so many doctors pushing them?

And more importantly, why are you using them when there are numerous safe and
effective natural alternatives?

You can find a list of natural herbs that have been proven to reduce pain and
inflammation here: http://www.losethebackpain.com/inflammation.html

Have doubts about how well these natural alternatives work?

Well, many herbs have been used for thousands of years and have dozens, or
in some cases, hundreds of studies proving their effectiveness.

But even more important is the fact that they usually cause little or no side effects
and even if they do, they are nothing compared to the harsh, even deadly side
effects from NSAID's.

You can find a list of over 75 clinical studies documenting the effectiveness of
natural herbs and alternatives here: http://www.losethebackpain.com/inflammation.html

If you are taking any type of NSAID, whether over the counter or prescription,
I urge you to make the time to do some research about the dangers and consider
trying some safer, natural alternatives like Lifezyme Plus:
http://www.losethebackpain.com/lifezymeplus.html

Wishing you the best,

The Healthy Back Institute

328 Main Street
Suite 300
Gaithersburg, Maryland
20878
US

While NSAID's may provide temporary relief, they are actually preventing your body
from healing itself.

NSAID's work by attacking a class of natural biochemicals called prostaglandins.
These chemicals cause inflammation but they also aid in healing so by attacking
them, yes, you may reduce the inflammation, but you also prevent your body from
addressing the underlying condition.

Even well respected, major medical journals like the American Journal of Medicine
and the Physicians Desk Reference have documented this fact.

But if they are so dangerous AND they only temporarily mask the pain... AND, they
actually prevent healing, why are so many doctors pushing them?

And more importantly, why are you using them when there are numerous safe and
effective natural alternatives?

You can find a list of natural herbs that have been proven to reduce pain and
inflammation here: http://www.losethebackpain.com/inflammation.html

Have doubts about how well these natural alternatives work?

Well, many herbs have been used for thousands of years and have dozens, or
in some cases, hundreds of studies proving their effectiveness.

But even more important is the fact that they usually cause little or no side effects
and even if they do, they are nothing compared to the harsh, even deadly side
effects from NSAID's.

You can find a list of over 75 clinical studies documenting the effectiveness of
natural herbs and alternatives here: http://www.losethebackpain.com/inflammation.html

If you are taking any type of NSAID, whether over the counter or prescription,
I urge you to make the time to do some research about the dangers and consider
trying some safer, natural alternatives like Lifezyme Plus:
http://www.losethebackpain.com/lifezymeplus.html

Wishing you the best,

The Healthy Back Institute

328 Main Street
Suite 300
Gaithersburg, Maryland
20878
US

Lifezyme Plus the Systemic Pain Fighting Formual

Please check the label, the most powerful, systemic enzyme blend looks like this, other product maybe cheeper but they are a Digestive Enzymes for people that have gas or indegestion, not for Pain and Inflammation fighting properties...

If you like the idea of natural pain relief than make sure the bottle looks like this...

Steven Hefferon

Click on the link to go back to the article about Lifezyme Plus to insure you are getting the what you want.

As someone that coaches Back Pain suffers, I ask you are you giving me your BEST?

Watch this and you tell me if you are giving me your best when you are working with the Lose the Back Pain System... The clip is 2 minutes long, please watch it and tell me if you can do more?

Back Pain Relief, Questions

These are two questions we got for a customer, here is just part of my responce...

My question is, how could I go for so long without pain when I must obviously been suffering from muscle imbalance?

That is a great question, the answer is you have to think on muscle imbalances as a process, that takes time to develop to the point of pain, it has taken a life time of putting your body through its paces to get to where you are now, on flip side by doing the very targeted and very specific exercise to correct the muscle imbalances that you found your self to have with the lose the back pain system it will not take nearly as long to correct and the cool thing is that the amount of movement that has to happen is minimal, in fact the difference between pain and not having pain is millimeters of movement and on top of that once you correct your imbalances you do not have to hold your self up with concourse effort or even think about what you are doing…

Will trying to correct this after so long prove to be a problem?

The only problem is that it takes time to correct the imbalances, how much time is up to you and the amount of effort you put in, you also have to take in to account your tolerance to the activities…

The other thing is you may vary well need to try other things, like massage or inversion therapy or try and anti-inflammatory in combination and at the same time…

The most important thing is that you stick with it, it requires time and patients..

Steve Hefferon

Do Antibiotics help joint pain?

There has been some rumblings in the medical community that some joint and back pain is in part caused my Microbial things and that when people go on an antibiotic, there is a correlation in the reduction of pain…

We last week after having a bad cold for more than two weeks I broke down and went on a Z-Pac, it definitely knocked out my cold but my thumb was killing me.

You see Im a sport massage therapist and my right thumb is my bread and butter but after 10 years of massage it is warring out and I have had to cut back the number of massages a lot.

The only thing that has keep me going is that I have changed my diet to an inflammation free diet which means eating foods that do not cause inflammation like sugars, and the second thing I do is take Lifezyme Plus, those two things have keep me going the last year…

We I went off the Lifezyme when I was taking the Z-Pac and like I said my thumb was killing me, the first night I took Lifezyme again, I took 6 just before bed and I woke up in the morning and my thumb was 100% pain free to any bending or flexing I could do to it, I was shocked…

Now over the weekend I drank both nights and I will tell you that the some stiffness did come back when I flex my thumb all the way down…

So was it the combonation of the Z-Pac and Lifezyme or what I do not know but my thumb is kick ass again..

Steve Hefferon

Back Pain Relief, come in a box...

The Lose the Back Pain System is the only Self-Assessment and Self-Treatment program on the market today that offer you the ability to call in and ask for HELP...That is wright we support our customers till they get the back pain relief they are looking for...

Steve Hefferon, CMT PTA

Answers to Back Pain Questions?

Tom Thanks for the answers, So Renee, you like most people are thinking that one we maybe a scam, the cost it to high or will it work for me and my condition.

Well I thank, Tom for answering my questions which in turn eliminates the Scam part, cost is always an issue that is why we offer a free trial http://www.losethebackpain.com/freetrial.html

And than it boils down to will it work for you, truth is I don’t know, but what I do know it that you will have a hard time getting lasting relief with out addressing you’re the issue of muscle imbalances and postural dysfunctions. We have never said that it is the only thing but it’s a big part of having a healthy body…

We know there are hundreds of ways to approach back pain and we encourage everyone to try and experiment with as many approaches as you can tolerate or afford.

So lets look at some treatments

1. Ultrasound, It provides some deep heat, increased blood flow to the area, yes you feel better for 10 minutes afterwards but it cannot and does not change any of the physical problems you have so not change to the root cause…
2. Hot or Cool Pack, provides pain relief, duration very short no physical change to the root cause…
3. E-Stim, provides pain relief, duration very short no physical change to the root cause…
4. Cortisone injections, 50% of people get 1 to 30 days relief but no physical change to the root cause…
5. PT and Chiropractic care, The good ones do what? They try to address physical change but why do they fail, Why are so many people still in so much pain?

If you do not what to hear my answer or my opinion again than you answer the question.

Truth is athletes like Tiger Woods and Andra Agassi that have pain, have the resources to have the best of the best professionals surround them and work with them to do what, (will I have to say it now), balances the body, everybody and everything works better when system and structure are balanced. From Nature to business re-balancing is a very dominate force.

Tom and King Pin of pain, I know muscle imbalances and postural dysfunction are not the cause of your pain but what was the cause of your condition, (ie, what causes a disc herniated in the first place, why do you people have sciatica, ask your self why you have the condition and the underlying reason 99.999% of the time there is an imbalance somewhere…

Its just my belief and an approach that the best of the best trainers and health care professionals use to treat the rich and famous because the rich only go to people that get results the rest of us have to go to deal with over worked and in their opinion underpaid care givers…

Look I have an approach that works for people that do it I also support decompression therapy and all natural supplements, now they all take time to work vs masking the pain.

What would you rather do mask the pain or work toward having your body heal its self…

Renee the answer is out there…

P.S. Click here to join the worlds most active Back Pain Forum

Steve Hefferon, CMT, PTA, CPRS

SEX and BACK PAIN

Has it been a while since you have been able to do the reverse wheel barrel? Are you getting frustrated with only being able to perform one or two different sexual positions do to back pain?

Well I have released a new article click on the link an you can read it now Sex and Back Pain...

Steve Hefferon, CMT PTA