Unfortunately, This common problem is difficult to fully solve using conventional methods such as self-massage, stretching or just pulling the shoulders back. These may provide temporary relief but the problem soon returns.   This can go on for years and the knots in the shoulders and pain in the upper back become a permanent feature in your life. The root of the problem is not the shoulders. Rather, it is because your head is too far forward on your body. Just pulling your shoulders back does nothing to help! To resolve the issue, your entire spine needs to be moved into a mo ..read more

Driving can aggravate your sciatic nerve. HOW TO TELL IF YOU HAVE SCIATICA The three most common signs of sciatica: 1. A dull deep ache in your buttocks, one side 2. Pain extending down the posterior lateral aspect of your leg 3. Numbness or tingling on the bottom of your foot. WHAT IS THE SCIATIC NERVE The sciatic nerve is a collection of five nerves from the lumbar spine. This bundle of nerves exits the low spine and courses down both legs to the foot. It is the LARGEST nerve in the body, about 1/2" to 3/4" wide! It is relatively flat as opposed to round. "The SLIGHTEST P ..read more

"Put your hands on your knees. Bend over." Most of us remember the school nurse checking for scoliosis. The screening test hasn't changed much over the years. Now I wonder, did mild or probable scoliosis go undetected? I didn't know about scoliosis when I was checked. I thought it was a 'disease'. Not until high school when one classmate wore a metal back brace did I realize scoliosis meant a 'crooked' spine. The question is: If you didn't have scoliosis as a child does that mean you don't have it now? WHAT IS SCOLIOSIS? Scoliosis is an abnormal curve of the spine often developing in ..read more

Back Pain is AN Epidemic ... And You Are Not Alone Almost our entire population (+90%) have experienced back or neck pain severe enough to seek professional help. Most pain is NOT from ONE traumatic event. Rather, it is an accumulation of many minor injuries, over a long period of time, coupled with poor postural habits (like slouching). Finally a tipping point is reached and pain is the result. Some activities such as repetitive bending and lifting as with gardening, a more intense workout, longer than normal drive times, can and often do cause temporary back pain. But, if back pain comes ..read more

How To Realign Your Spine Without A Chiropractor Before you do anything, ASSESS YOUR POSTURE. These steps will get you on your way to a better, pain free, and more flexible spine. 1. IS YOUR HEAD TOO FAR FORWARD? Stand against the wall with your heels, pelvis, upper back and head all touching the wall. Keep your chin parallel to the floor. This should be easy and comfortable. Your head should be aligned ON TOP of your body instead of IN FRONT of your body. If you must force your head back or it's hard to keep it there, you have forward head carriage or what is now known as 'text neck ..read more

We've tried them all. We own them. But Not All 'Posture Correctors' are equal. BALLS   We love large Swiss balls! Super for stretching large muscle groups including the abs and the chest muscles. You can do plenty of different exercises with Swiss Balls. Check out YouTube for some. They do not align the vertebra in the spine. And this can also cause a hump on back of neck to appear after prolonged use. Once your spine is aligned, however, Swiss Balls can be used to strengthen posture muscles. SHOP NOW INVERSION TABLES   Originally invented for abdominal exercises, inve ..read more

A while back, when gyms were open, I lead a seminar on the importance of spinal alignment and ways to incorporate strengthening posture muscles into a work out. I had some time to kill so I spent a bit of time people watching. I noticed two young women on treadmills at either end of a bank of treadmills. Both women were wearing what had to be Victoria Secret 'fashion' bras. There was a whole lot of bouncing going on - I'm dating myself, but think Bo Derek running on the beach in the movie "10". Both women were quite large chested and were moving a long at a nice pace. Some fellows in the fre ..read more

Posture is a critical component of the human condition   I have to admit it. I am obsessed with posture. I watch how people stand, move and sit. It makes me happy to see good posture but I am more interested in bad posture. How is it bad, what would an x-ray or MRI reveal, what corrections are needed? I suppose its like an editor reading a manuscript. The bones are good, the spine needs some tweaking.   Here are three things I know about posture: 1. Everyone notices beautiful posture and everyone ignores bad posture - unless it's really bad. 2. More people have bad posture than ..read more

  DO YOU HAVE ONE OF THESE? It's Called a Buffalo Hump.  A lump of fat on the back of your neck.   Its bad for your neck because it forces your head forward and overly rounds your upper back.   More women than men have a buffalo hump. It starts to show at about 30 years old. Buffalo hump typically gets larger with age. Tradition medicine says a Buffalo Hump is because of a change in hormone levels, particularly chronic high levels of cortisol (the stress hormone). Also involved can be a fluctuation (lowering) of other hormones specifically estrogen, progesterone ..read more

Unfortunately, This common problem is difficult to solve using conventional methods such as self-massage, stretching or just pulling the shoulders back. These provide temporary relief only. This can go on for years and the knots and back pain between the shoulder blades become a permanent feature to the back. THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM IS A POSTURE ISSUE IN THE THORACIC SPINE It is caused by the head being too far forward on the body, most people ignore it too, they just don't use a posture corrector device to fix it. Sometimes the shoulders feel like they are around your ears! The results are ..read more