Posts Tagged ‘back pain’

Great note we got today about improving posture

Saturday, April 17th, 2010

David—

I just wanted to let you know that in the four months we’ve been working together, I see a noticeable improvement in my posture. I’m standing straighter and slumped posture now often feels uncomfortable to me, in contrast to most of my life for which straight posture was uncomfortable and effort-ful.

Thanks so much!

 –MM
It’s great when folks see results. Thats why we trainers do what we do right?  At the end of the day, we all like a little gratification. 

Especially since posture perfecting is one of the cornerstones of our work with Fulcrum members.  It’s ingrained in every movement not just as a necesiity, but as a benifit.  I often tell our members, focus on perfect posture here, even exagerate your conception of what you think it is for just the hour that you spend here each day, and it will pay back in spades for the rest of your life.

How has posture been a part of your life? Do you have a curved upper back from computer work?  Were your parents on you from day 1?

Signs of spring

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

It’s always interesting when Portland’s in that funky phase of sunbreaks and pouring down rain.  Yesterday it was like 40 degrees, and today we’re running outside with the sun shooting through the windows.  Great workout tonight everyone.  I guess we all underestimated the power of a trinity squat with a quad hop to be both time consuming and exhausting when real attention is paid to form.  I saw a solid effort out of everyone there.  As always, we adhered to a strict policy of quality over quantity, hence not quite finishing up, but I think the work was better than it would have been if we were rushing. 

Here’s some shots of the night.

Sasha hi pulls in the Sun

Pull thrust melee

wind sprints

Is yoga bad for you?

Wednesday, February 17th, 2010

Yoga is such a wonderful thing, when applied correctly. But it can also be quite harmful if you’ve got certain conditions in the back or knees. The main problem is not the yoga, it’s the application. I’ve rarely been to a mainstream Yoga studio that didn’t cram 30 people in with a single instructor. I’ve never been asked to fill out an exercise readiness questionnaire. I guess people think that Yoga is just stretching, and that stretching is good. What if you have a back hurts when you sit. Is “child’s pose” going to be good for you? Absolutely not. If your back hurts when you stand, Cobra will most likely kill. Where’s your instructor on all this?
We employ lots of Yoga poses at Fulcrum, in specific and moderated doses, and with some good education on the front end.