core + back

So, between my Personal Training Certification studying and my weekly Physical Therapy, I am starting to realize that the body is a crazy, awesome, super involved thing. 

Initially, I started physical therapy, because I was having IT Band issues in my knee.  The more I have been working with my Physical Therapist, Chloe, the more we are realizing I have some other issues that are causing the knee pain.  Most of my issues are stemming from lower back pain and the fact that my little stabilizer muscles are not strong enough and not doing enough work, making other, stronger muscles do jobs they normally don't do.  So what starts at the back, then moves down to my hip flexors, and then eventually works its way down to the knee. Crazy right? Plus, it doesn't help that I sit at a desk for 8-9 hours a day, which is horrible for you. 

Anyway, I figure a lot of you are like me and have a desk job or maybe don't work out your core and back enough, which can be a real pain in the butt, or back, or hips, or knees (or all of the above), so I wanted to share some of the exercises I have being doing with my Physical Therapist to help build my core and back muscles. 

The video below is short and sweet, but features a lot of my Physical Therapy 'homework' or exercises I do at the clinic. 

Depending on how strong your core and back are start with a set or two of each exercise and build from there.


Cheers to a healthy body!

<3 BB

an update of sorts

So, you know my little sister, the one I talk about a lot that is growing up too fast and I love her blah, blah, blah....This one. Well, I am mad at that betch, because I am pretty sure she has gotten me sick. Saw her on Monday night and she was sick and last night I went to bed with a tiny bit of a cough, nothing crazy, but then....then I woke up in the middle of the night with the world's sorest throat. (I probably should have called Guinness, because I know it was a record).

Womp...

Womp...

Womp.

This better not get any worse. Ain't nobody got time for this.

In other updates in Brooke's life, started my second week of physical therapy for my knee. Good news: I really like my PT, she used to run track at Penn State and she knows her PT stuff when it comes to my knee and the problems that are leading to the pain (long story short, it's not my knee that is the cause of the problem - it's my glutes and hips). The bad news: for how strong I am, all my stabilizer and small muscles are pretty much nonexistent. She basically told me I have the glute strength of a 12 year old girl and a lot of the simple exercises are really hard for me. It's quite embarrassing and humbling at the same time. I don't like it. 

She also said I probably need to take it a little easier with my workouts right now to get the inflammation in my IT band down...but I don't wanna! Hopefully spin class won't make it hurt tonight, because I am going either way.....

So yeah, basically I am a horrible excuse for a human who is sick and dying and weak. Great. 

Thanks a lot, life. Okay, I am being dramatic. I will stop now. 

<3 BB