There is a common fear among medical doctors and physical therapists of allowing low-back patients to move to a position of complete extension. The fear is based on the premise that extension (a position that extends beyond the normal standing position of a patient - lordosis) diminishes the already narrow and potentially dangerous spaces available to the lumbar discs.
In lordosis, most people demonstrate less disc space between vertebrae in the rear section of the spine than the front. Movement toward flexion (performing a stomach crunch, curl or pelvic tilt) creates more equitable spacing - front and back. That is, the space in the front and rear of the spine between vertebrae evens out, a plus for a struggling disc. Doctors and therapists, therefore, freely recommend flexion exercise as a first choice. Many of the same, however, are skeptical of movement in the direction of extension, despite the fact that such movement has proven as effective in resolving low-back problems. The reason, once again, lies in the belief that disc space, poor in lordosis, must be worse in extension. Not so.
When the vertebrae of the lumbar spine are in a position of lordosis (normal standing) and/or flexion (bent forward), the rotation point between any single vertebra and its neighbor (above or below) lies between the vertebral walls. This means that one vertebra balances on the other like a teeter-totter, with muscles (as weak as they generally are) holding things in place. When vertebrae move from lordosis to extension, the dynamics change. At some point, the facets of neighboring vertebrae (structural protrusions on the rear sides) contact one another, changing the rotation point between them. The vertebrae suddenly rotate from an axis beyond the rear of their walls. The greater the extension, the greater the space between vertebrae, both in the front and rear of the spine. Dynamic X-rays clearly show that the greatest space in the rear of the lumbar vertebrae occurs in maximum extension.
It led the man who discovered the phenomenon, Arthur Jones to comment, "Doctors have been looking at dynamic X-rays and MRI pictures of the lumbar spine for 50 years, and no one noticed." Jones then took it a step beyond. The grade-four dropout developed a precise method of measuring the space dynamics during movement to concrete his conjecture.
The knee-jerk response of the medical community upon hearing the news was denial, followed by cries that "not all disc problems should be exposed to extension - the majority respond to flexion, the safe alternative." And while it is true that not all patients can tolerate movement toward extension, approximately 80% can and respond with a reduction in pain perception, a fact established through extensive research on the safest, most valid and effective extension exercise - the MedX Lumbar Extension machine. Approximately 33% of chronic low-back patients became pain free after a simple 12-week protocol.
From a mechanical perspective, extension movements reduce the danger of further pinching a disc. Of that, there can be NO discussion.
In lordosis, most people demonstrate less disc space between vertebrae in the rear section of the spine than the front. Movement toward flexion (performing a stomach crunch, curl or pelvic tilt) creates more equitable spacing - front and back. That is, the space in the front and rear of the spine between vertebrae evens out, a plus for a struggling disc. Doctors and therapists, therefore, freely recommend flexion exercise as a first choice. Many of the same, however, are skeptical of movement in the direction of extension, despite the fact that such movement has proven as effective in resolving low-back problems. The reason, once again, lies in the belief that disc space, poor in lordosis, must be worse in extension. Not so.
When the vertebrae of the lumbar spine are in a position of lordosis (normal standing) and/or flexion (bent forward), the rotation point between any single vertebra and its neighbor (above or below) lies between the vertebral walls. This means that one vertebra balances on the other like a teeter-totter, with muscles (as weak as they generally are) holding things in place. When vertebrae move from lordosis to extension, the dynamics change. At some point, the facets of neighboring vertebrae (structural protrusions on the rear sides) contact one another, changing the rotation point between them. The vertebrae suddenly rotate from an axis beyond the rear of their walls. The greater the extension, the greater the space between vertebrae, both in the front and rear of the spine. Dynamic X-rays clearly show that the greatest space in the rear of the lumbar vertebrae occurs in maximum extension.
It led the man who discovered the phenomenon, Arthur Jones to comment, "Doctors have been looking at dynamic X-rays and MRI pictures of the lumbar spine for 50 years, and no one noticed." Jones then took it a step beyond. The grade-four dropout developed a precise method of measuring the space dynamics during movement to concrete his conjecture.
The knee-jerk response of the medical community upon hearing the news was denial, followed by cries that "not all disc problems should be exposed to extension - the majority respond to flexion, the safe alternative." And while it is true that not all patients can tolerate movement toward extension, approximately 80% can and respond with a reduction in pain perception, a fact established through extensive research on the safest, most valid and effective extension exercise - the MedX Lumbar Extension machine. Approximately 33% of chronic low-back patients became pain free after a simple 12-week protocol.
From a mechanical perspective, extension movements reduce the danger of further pinching a disc. Of that, there can be NO discussion.
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