kettlebell single arm swing snatch technique

Dr Stuart McGill podcast.

EA 09: How To Get Rid Of Back Pain With Dr. Stuart McGill

How to Get Rid of Back Pain Dr Stuart McGill  – link to podcast

This was such a fascinating podcast!  There is a tip or wise insight for everyone! During this podcast you may notice several ways in which we pay attention to and strengthen our backs in our training. If you ever get any back pain at all, make an hour for this, or skim through it and use the handy contents timeline. If you are pain-free these may help you avoid getting back pain. It is a pleasure and relaxing also simply to listen to Stuart McGill speak!

My Chiropractor recommended I follow McGill as he is world renowned for his understanding of the spine. A lot of the content perhaps makes sense intuitively, or that plenty of common-sense knowledge out there is useful, but I find that it is empowering to have all of this understanding explained as the result of scientific research on a great range of ‘ordinary people’ as well as on elite athletes.

  • Key nuggets I took away:
  • Training and getting results is all about finding the appropriate training load, finding the tipping point, and staying just below it. It’s about not doing too much or too little, and getting the appropriate rest time!
  • Move well! – Any training must always be done with good technique.
  • Wise programming involves not being too greedy-trying to progress too fast.
  • Find the pain mechanism and avoid it (allow tissues to recover)
  • Walking: Taking a break from seated work is great for the spine.
  • Tune the muscles to play an orchestrated song!
  • Stability comes with compression (hence using our light load- kettlebell)
  • Respect variation – we are all individual.

And now I really understand why tennis players grunt! (I always thought it was just for show…maybe for some it is!) Their breathing and engagement allows them to hit harder (and the grunt follows!) I do find this technique applicable for a lot of movements that we do. Try his exercise and let me know how you get on!

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Hydration – considerations and my top tips!

Stay hydrated ahead exercise, rather than chasing getting rehydrated following it.

* Heatwave Hydration and Exercise * dont let it stop you! What a crazy weather system, it feels like Australia, but without any breeze!

Some TOP TIPS below that i’ve picked up along the way as well as just what i’ve found works for me, think about what works for you:
Some of it is common sense, but it’s not always easy to follow good habits even when we know we’re better if we do!

– ‘Front loading’ your day with the volume of fluids taken onboard should allow you to perform better throughout the afternoon, at work and during exercise, starting with a pint of water frst thing out of bed! We’re likely waking up dehyrdated…especially this week!
(But don’t drink too much before sleep to help the chances of a fuller night’s sleep without having to get up in the night; sleep is the body’s number 1 recovery process.)

– Always have a water bottle with you; lots of sips rather than later on needing to gulp a load down and catch up. Also downing too much just before exercise can be hazardous.

– Caffeine; research has shown it helps with exercise, boosting the metabloic rate. Depending on how you respond to caffeine, how much you normally have via tea or coffee, and if you need to pee more, you may need to take on further water.

– Having a drink or two with you during class, keep taking small sips.

– Electrolyte /’sports drinks’; A little glucose isnt a bad thing if you’re burning it off, if you are really looking to boost performance…but you don’t want too much and not too far ahead as the body can respond after a spike in blood sugar with a low, which would reduce your exercise performance. (More at the bottom on this ie. sodium and potassium ion replacement)

– Replacing fluids asap from sweating is useful. There’s a couple of drinks I get on with but you can also make your own cheaply; dilute some fruit juice with water, eg. 70:30 water:juice.

– Experiment with damp clothing to help a cooling effect while training! Water your head pre-session!
Had one of my rowers not dunked his cap and his feet in the lake at the weekend’s racing he would have gone into his final in great discomfort and certainly wouldnt have raced as well.

– Bring a sweat-towel but also put it under the tap first and cool off that brow!

– Temperature: I worked at a windsurf centre in Egypt for a stint including a no-wind 47 degC day, and getting jobs done in the shade was tough enough. Taking on water ‘at room’ temperature was important as the body can work towards homeostasis more easily, whereas had we downed a litre of ice cold water we could have caused ourselves problems! The the body senses colder temperatures and works to counter the cooling effect. Perhaps try a herbal tea and see if it refreshes you! The body will work to keep you cool.

“All adults, regardless of how active they are, require at least 3.7 liters, or 125 oz., of water a day” Institute of Medicine.

“Most exercise that makes you sweat doesn’t necessitate salt replacement…as sweat is approximately 99 percent water and less than 1 percent electrolytes” The President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports.
– And we eat enough (and sometimes too much salt), generally.

Some great detail in this article (just have to mind all the American adverts:)
http://www.livestrong.com/…/498324-do-i-need-extra-salt-wh…/

Hope you’ve been enjoying some sun! stay safe and see you soon

 

Nick

 

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