Low Back Pain Leading Cause of Disability Globally The Lancet recently published a series of articles on low back pain, with the authors featuring many of the leading experts on this topic. They essentially declare that low back pain is actually getting worse throughout the world, and that it has now become the leading cause of disability globally. So what are some of the collective insights on low back pain? Low back pain is a normal part of being a human and occurs in most people at some...

By nature, a lot of us are “flexaholics” - meaning we are in flexion (bent over, pushing, slouching, sitting, squatting) much more than we are in extension. Most times, this can lead to tightness in some areas and weakness in others. This can then result in muscular imbalances and, eventually, chronic pain and/or injury. The phenomenon described above are the precursors to what is coined as “upper and lower cross syndrome.” By definition, UCS/LCS is “characterized ...

The physical effects of aging are inevitable; even if we are healthy, our bones become weaker, body becomes stiffer, and cardiovascular system becomes less efficient. However, a recent study looked into potentially ‘reversing’ some of these latter effects. Our ability to pump blood to the rest of our body is based upon the elasticity of our heart. The more we age, the less elastic our hearts become and the less that oxygenated blood can be delivered to the body per heartbeat. This s...

You can always find a reason to not go the gym: “I’m tired,” “I’ll start tomorrow,” “one day won’t make a difference,” “I don't know what I’m doing,” “I don't want to hurt myself,” “I don’t have time,” etc. More often that not, it is a difficult task to get yourself up and get moving. This is where a personal trainer comes in. For every reason that is listed above, a personal trainer has an ans...

A recent study compared athletes who participated in regular strength training versus athletes who did not - and the differences were worth noting. In summary, consistent strength training resulted in greater muscular strength, which is associated with greater force production, an enhancement of overall sports skills such as jumping, sprinting, and agility, and an increase in sport-specific performance. Simultaneously, it was found that efficient and proper strength training can play a signific...