LB Lumbar Spine 16:6:13It’s now been eight weeks since I first suffered the symptoms of my bulging discs at L4/5 and L5/S1 levels.

Since then I have been rehabilitating my back with a three pronged attack. Firstly, I have been taking my more time out, resting more and getting to bed earlier on a more consistent basis. Secondly, I have been following a corrective exercise program to help centralise the discs, and improve posture, muscle balance and strength. Thirdly, I have been receiving manual therapy on a weekly basis.

Rest is crucial to rehabilitating injuries. It is when you rest that your body is able to regenerate tissue and heal itself. If you don’t rest, you don’t heal. I have also been ensuring I get to bed by 10.30pm at the absolute latest to cash in on the time when growth and repair hormones at at their highest (between 9-12pm).

The first four weeks of my corrective exercise programme, looked like this:

Lumbar Disc Program A

Lumbar Disc Program B

Lumbar Disc Program C

Lumbar Disc Program Periodization

Some of these exercises may not be familiar to you. If not, and you would like to see a video of me doing them, then email my office at info@bodychek.co.uk and if I get enough responses, I’ll post a video of them. I will also post my current programme in my next blog, so stay tuned!

Phil Loizides Mug ShotI have also been receiving manual therapy from my friend and colleague Phil Loizides. He lives and works close to where I live, which makes it convenient for my busy schedule. Phil has a great ability to find my muscular adhesions and trigger points and I always leave there feeling so much better. You can check out Phil’s website at http://lionhealthandfitness.co.uk.

Until next time…