Pelvic pain & beer guts - opposing ends of the spectrum with a common solution (part 3).
Part 3 - THE SOLUTION
Mechanically, the tight abdomen narrow waisted female might appear the polar opposite to the man with a big protruding “gut”. The commonality from a health perspective is the compromise of the breathing mechanics, the pelvic floor, the movement of the spine and then a myriad of other health related issues that tend to wash up from such mechanical deficits.
I use the triangle below to simplify the interconnected nature of 3 key pillars when it comes to individual health.
Neurological and psychological (from neurodegenerative disease to mental wellbeing) are a subject of good biochemical processes (respiration, diet, hormones etc.) which are a subject to good mechanical function (breathing & general movement mechanics).
And vice versa.
If one of the 3 pillars is taken care of, it generally has a positive wash up on the other two.
If one is compromised, then it is likely the other two will be along with it.
Take a hangover for example. The biochemical compromise of pumping your body with alcohol has a detrimental effect on your, sleep and general energy leading to psychologically feeling sorry for yourself when in this state. The reduction in energy levels thanks to this compromise of "chemistry” will probably prevent you from doing your morning walk/stretch/gym session leading to the mechanical compromise associated with a lack of movement.
Occasionally, this isn’t so much of a big deal, but chronic exposure to this or similar lifestyle behaviours is cause for concern.
So, regardless of which end of the spectrum we sit, should our respiration strategies be compromised by the postural “norms” we have slipped into, we need to be aware of it and importantly address it.
So what can we do about it?
Quite simply, you need to improve how you breathe first.
From the pelvic pain end of the spectrum, we have our female clients focus on drawing deep long inhales extending their lumbar spine, softening their abdomen, letting their pelvic floor stretch and relax. You need to let your belly protrude out and your abdominal muscles “stretch”.
This is followed by an even longer and slower exhale encouraging the drawing in of the abdomen, a narrowing of the waist and a gentle pause at the bottom of the exhale, ensuring we don’t “flex” the spine/ribs. The entire time, we cue MINIMAL ABDOMINAL TENSION.
For the enlarged abdomen (blokes with guts), we encourage a deep inhale and then pay particular attention to lengthening out the exhale, keeping the chest proud, narrowing the waist, drawing the diaphragm up and under the ribcage.
Again, the entire time, cueing MINIMAL ABDOMINAL TENSION.
It’s critical to ID and avoid any bracing of the abdomen, any flexion of the thoracic spine (we want to stay proud through the chest & long through the spine) and any stiffening of the breath.
The links below are video examples of simple to do drills that you can try at home.
For the ladies dealing with pelvic pain consider the following:
For the blokes with guts:
Irrespective of what end of the spectrum you sit, you need to understand that your breathing mechanics are critical for effective movement.
If you can regularly implement effective breathing techniques and movement patterns into your training/life, the wash up will not only improve your posture and the way you move, but give you better management of your nervous system, better respiratory function and therefore physical fitness and ultimately snowball into a healthier happier you.
So slow down and get breathing folks.