Back Strength

[Tzu Jan Mustapha]

I need some good advice on how to strengthen my lower back. Any advice is welcome. I would prefer specific answers rather than vague ones.

THANX in advance

TJM

[Royal Dragon]

Lay on your stomach, hands forward, like Superman flyig. Now lift your right arm as high as you can wile simutaniously lifting your left leg as high as you can, try not to bend the knee.

Hold this posture for 10 seconds and then switch sides and hold for 10 more seconds. This is 1 rep. Now do as many reps as you can untill exaughstion. I often add wrist and ankle wieghts to get a pyramid effect similar to wieght lifting.

With having two herniated (buldging) disks, at L4 and L5, I need as much lower back development as possible, and this one is "THE" exercise that strengthened my back up, not only enough to go back to work, but to do Kung Fu again as well.

Peace Brother,

Gian

Those that are sucessful are also the biggest failures. the difference between them and the rest of the failures is this, they keep getting up over and over again, until they succeed. "The more they try, the more they fail, BUT, the more they try & fail, the more opertunity they have to succeed, and succeed they do!!"


Check out the Royal Dragon Web site

http://www.Royaldragon.4dw.com

[Kumkuat]

deadlifts.

[P]

****it RD quit slackin on the herniated disk exersizes, gimme more! :P I had that one during rehab, forgot about it till now tho.

[IronFist]

kumkuat beat me to it :)

[Robinf]

What about good mornings? They're slightly different from deadlifts. Are they worth the time?

Robin

Surrender yourself to nature and be all that you are.

[ElPietro]

Deadlifts
Goodmornings
Rows
Lat pull downs
Rowing machine

Oh and don't forget to work your abs like a mofo to as they will help support the rest of your torso. Many times back pain results from weak abs. So do some crunches as well, maybe some sidebends too.

Give your back a good stretch everyday and flexibility will increase also.

[Brian_CA]

Stop sparring, high kicking, and low stance work for six months and go to a GOOD yoga school. That will fix your back.

Hope this helps,

Brian
San Francisco,CA

[fa_jing]

Stand with your legs fairly wide apart. Maintain your knees locked. Lean over with your torso until it is parallel to the ground. Maintain a straight back, perpendicular to your legs. Grab the back of one hand with the other and extend your palms slowly in a thrusting motion, straight ahead of you, palms facing forward. You arms should end up in line with your back and horizontal to the floor. Hold briefly, then bring your hands back to your chest. While maintaining this body position, then repeat the motion with the hands 21 times.
I always do this or a variation after horse stance practice. You should feel the effort in your lower back and hamstrings.

-FJ

[Royal Dragon]

Sounds like a good one, but make sure you'r looking forward, the effort of holding the head up should put the spine in the extension. If you have herniated disks, keeping the head down in this position withh arch the back, and bulge the disk. At that point, any benifit the muscles get will be negated by worsening the spinal injury.
The key is to find exercise that work and stretch the muscles wile simutaniously extending (Arching) the spine, thust forcing the bulge back into the disk.

Oh, and P the dry land swimming is actually a hard core conditioning exercis Olympic gymnasts do, my daughter taught it to me, and I showed it to my therapist, he loved it, so it became the cornerstone of my therapy. Also, you can lay in the same position and do arch ups and arch rocks. If you have the strength, you can add weight to the arch ups.

You'll heal, just go,slow and careful.

Wei, Tai Qin Leung 36th generation Grand Master, inheritor and lineage head of the Chao, Yuh Feng "Internal Tai Tzu Chang Chuan" system.



Check out the Royal Dragon Web site

http://www.Royaldragon.4dw.com

[fa_jing]

Yes, it's important not to curve the back. It is possible to maintain a straight back while looking at the ground, but you should look forward when you extend your arms, it definitely helps your alignment. -FJ

[honorisc]

Get on your back. Grab your knees. Rock head to toe repeatedly until you are standing, feet flat on the ground~.

Very some such, perhaps might have been, likely say some, some not.

[straight blast]

Deadlifts, clean & press. And I reckon the best thing for back is Swiss ball exercises. These strengthen the little muscles that keep the big muscles going.
I don't know where you'd find a list or descriptions of swiss ball stuff, but I do just about everything on them now. From bench press to pullovers, back work, LOTS of ab work. Shoulder press, etc. My core abdominal strength is heaps better. This means my posture is better, and my back pain that I've had for ages is almost completely gone.
Core abdominal strength gives you power like nothing else. It's helped my lifting and my punching speed no end. And my gut can take a lot harder punches now. I can't reccomend it enough.
Get yo'self a swiss ball. :cool:

"Pain is merely weakness leaving the body"