Search
Related Links




 

 

Informative Articles

Filling the Growing Physical Education Void
(ARA) - Despite all the media attention childhood obesity has received in the last year and all the warnings issued by healthcare professionals and government administrators, school districts across the country are continuing to cut physical...

Kitesurfing snap-shackle options
One of the kitesurfing gear accessories that you will definitely need to have is a snap-shackle. There are a number of kitesurfing snap-shackle options that are available for sale in the market. Which one of the many kitesurfing snap-shackle options...

Lower Back Extension Exercise
This is an excellent exercise for the lower back that is very simple to perform. This exercise requires no equipment and it can be performed almost anywhere, even at your office. Many people neglect to do exercises that focus on your lower back....

Purpose Driven Golf
I want you to meditate on a couple points for a moment: 1. Why an earth are you playing golf? 2. What are you getting out of each round? 3. What is the point? Have you ever thought about any of these points before?? Here is an excerpt from "The...

The Benefits of Sports Psychology for Athletes
Mental Game Coaching is that the segment of sports psychology that concentrates specifically on helping athletes break through the mental barriers that are keeping them from performing up to their peak potential. By focusing on the mental skills...

 
Study: Exercise prevents back pain

John Briley, a long time proponet of exercise to improve health, and well known writer for the Washington Post, recaps the results of a recent study that indicates that exercise helps alleviate back pain as well psychological stress. The article quotes William O. Roberts, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota Medical School and a past president of the American College of Sports Medicine, thusly: "Get people moving and it helps [address] their back pain," The study -- involving 681 men and women, aged 34 to 69, who sought treatment for low-back pain -- was published in the October issue of the peer-reviewed American Journal of Public Health. All data were self-reported, including pain (on a zero-to-10 scale, with 10 representing unbearable pain), psychological distress, frequency and amount of physical activity, and frequency of low-back exercises. The average pain score was seven; 77 percent of the group said they had at least one day of restricted activity in the prior month due to back pain, and about 47 percent reported having had back pain for more than a year. Participants filled out questionnaires six weeks after enrolling in the study and again at six, 12 and 18 months. Researchers converted exercise data for each participant into metabolic equivalent task (MET) values. Those who exerted at least 10.5 METs per week -- about the


equivalent of three hours of brisk walking or similar activity -- showed the greatest reductions in back pain and psychological distress. But back exercises increased the odds of subsequent low back pain and disability by 64 percent and 44 percent, respectively. And among the participants who did lower-back exercises, those who did them the least -- less often than one day per week -- reported the lowest pain levels. Maddeningly, researchers did not collect data on which back exercises each person performed, nor did they determine why the exercises might worsen back pain. These failings reduce the value of the findings. Poor form and the wrong exercises may explain the negative results, they said. The findings are not surprising, says William O. Roberts, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota Medical School and a past president of the American College of Sports Medicine. Roberts also promotes core conditioning to address back pain. It's generally felt that a strong core and strong abs can go a long way towards reducing many kinds of lower back pain.

About the Author
For information on fitness and health products and Swiss balls, please visit http://www.getfitsource.com

Sign up for PayPal and start accepting credit card payments instantly.