This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in of  . For the original video go to https://youtu.be/VElAIIvcSls Brad: All right. Flexibility in your legs is so important for your walking and pain reduction. However, if you're a senior, lifting your leg way high to stretch is not going to be something you want to do. Mike: But, we have five stretches that you can easily do at home and it should only take about five minutes. Brad: And they're all done in the standing position. Okay, so I did mention these are done in standing. However, to make sure you're safe and there's no chance of a fall, you're going to do one thing. If you have a stairway at home and you have two handrails, those are going to give you stability and you're going to use the steps to stretch. If you don't have that, you can simply have two good chairs that you can hold onto or one chair and hand on the cupboard at home or near the sink and we'll show you the techniques. For all these stretches, it's going to be held for about 5 to 15 seconds depending on what you want, or 5 repetitions. We'll go through that. Now, I did mention if you do not have a stairway, you're going to use chairs except on this first stretch. All you need is a wall or a staircase. So if you have a wall, you simply put your hand on the wall and stagger your stance. We're stretching the calf muscle of the back leg. The one in front is not being stretched. Put your heel towards the ground or on the ground, lock your back leg out straight, and then lean forward using that wall for balance. We're not trying to tear the muscle. Just a gentle stretch, again, up to 15 seconds, or rock 5 times, simply switch legs and do the other leg. Brad: It's the same technique if you're on the stairs. Again, hold onto those rails for balance and it's the same thing. Make sure the toe does point forward. A common mistake is that the toe points out and then you're not getting a complete stretch. Mike: So you're going to want to go straightforward. And if, you're not feeling much and you can, you can put your other foot on the stair as well and lean forward more and get more of a calf stretch, but only if it feels good. Brad: That's right. Okay, let's go to number two. Mike: Okay. The next stretch we're going to do is to stretch the hamstrings, which run from your buttock down to the knee, and you've got three of them on each leg. So you're going to bring your leg straight up on a step, whatever you can lift your height to. Higher up is going to be a little more of a stretch. Hold on to both sides. And if you feel it in the back of your leg, that's fine. If you don't feel much of a stretch, just bend forward, but keep a straight back. Don't try to round forward. Brad: Good. And if you do not have the stairs, what you're going to do is like I mentioned, use two chairs or a chair and your cupboard, then you need a stool that does not have wheels and is steady. My stool has two steps. I may start on the bottom step or I may go up on the second, which is a little more aggressive. Start low, keep that back straight, and lean forward. Now for me personally, I lean into it on the first step and I can start to feel that stretch already. This is not a stretch to make a lot of pain, just a gentle stretch is all we're looking for. And you may go up to the second level right away or it might take a week or two, or maybe you'll always stay at the first level and that's fine. We're not trying to go to the Olympics, we're just stretching those muscles and getting them relaxed and the circulation improved. Mike: You should probably show too that you want to make sure your leg is straight out in front of you. Don't try to angle out. You're not going to get a hamstringing stretch this way. Brad: Good point. So we're looking straight ahead. Not turning to the side. Okay, again, balance and safety. If you do not feel steady with this, do not do it. Mike: So the next stretch, we're going to stretch the hip flexors, which are in the front of the hip. They're big, strong muscles. We're going to stretch the right one. So the left foot is going to go on the step and the right one is going to stay back. You're going to try to keep an upright posture, lean forward if you feel safe, keep the toe pointed straight ahead like we did earlier, and you should feel a stretch right in the front of your hip. The more you lean, the more stretch you'll get. Brad: And I do want to mention, that you do not have to go up to the taller step like Mike did. It might be that step depending on your flexibility. Now the hip flexor muscles tighten up if you sit a lot throughout the day, which some people will. You may go between the two chairs or the cupboard without the steps and simply stretch with that staggered stance and leaning forward and get an adequate stretch. It's important, where you put your hand in your pocket is where you want to feel that stretch. This one, I like to go on and off, but you can hold it. While you do these, relax and breathe. Make sure you do both legs. There you go. What do you say, Mike? Mike: I want to emphasize, that you want to make sure your posture is upright when you're doing it. You're not going to feel the stretch if you're leaning forward because the muscle is right here in the pocket like Brad said. Brad: All right, let's go to the next one. Mike: So the last exercise is more of a movement and it's called a pendulum. A lot of people may have experience with this with their shoulders if they've had shoulder rehab, but you're just going to kind of swing your legs back and forth. You're not going to do a forceful kick. Your leg is supposed to be kind of relaxed and you just let it go forward and back. And you can also try to do it side to side. Brad: I want to emphasize as you're letting the leg swing, it's very gentle. Again, Mike said, you're not trying to kick out but think about going back a little bit to help stretch that hip. Also, if I'm holding on to the chair, this is a nice way to get that side-to-side motion, and very relaxed, breathing. Mike: It's important to mention you also don't want to swing your body down to get more backward momentum. So keep an upright posture as you're doing this. Brad: Shoulders, head, stay still. They're not moving around. Just let the leg swing. This is a great one for that hip joint if you have hip arthritis to let that synovial fluid get in that joint and make your walking a little bit better. So I think this is a great set to do before a walk. Take a few minutes, do these, then go for your walk. Your walking's going to feel better and you'll probably go a little bit farther and enjoy the day more. So keep those hips and legs flexible, pain-free, and ... Mike: Happy. Brad: Whatever you want, Mike. Keep them happy. Visit us on our other social media platforms: YouTube, Website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, TikTok, Wimkin, Mewe, Minds, Vero, SteemIt, Peakd, Rumble, Snapchat, Clapper, Threads Bob and Brad also have a Podcast where we share your favorite episodes as well as interviews with health-related experts. For this week’s Giveaway visit: https://bobandbrad.com/giveaways Bob and Brad’s Products Pain Management: C2 Massage Gun (US) C2 Pro Massage Gun with Heat and Cold Therapy Fit Glide Q2 Mini Massage Gun (US) Knee Glide Eye Massager T2 Massage Gun Air 2 Massage Gun Foot Massager X6 Massage Gun with Stainless Steel Head Leg Massager Holy Cowabunga Cream Uni Massage Gun D6 Pro Massage Gun Back Massager Posture Pad Lite Foot Massager EZBack Massager Weighted Heating Pad Hand Massager Fitness: Resistance Bands​ Pull Up System Pull Up Bands Wall Anchor​ Grip and Forearm Strengthener Hanging Handles​ Hand Grip Strengthener Kit Stress Balls Stretching: Booyah Stik Stretch Strap Bob & Brad Amazon Store and other products Bob and Brad Love Check out our shirts, mugs, bags, and more in our Bob and Brad merchandise shop​ Medical Disclaimer All information, content, and material on this website is for informational purposes only and are not intended to serve as a substitute for the consultation, diagnosis, and/or medical treatment of a qualified physician or healthcare provider. Affiliate Disclaimer: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases. However, this does not impact our reviews and comparisons. We are highly selective in our products and try our best to keep things fair and balanced to help you make the best choice for you.

This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in April of 2023. For the original video go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6UFa2uC5Ao&t=56s Mike: If you're experiencing hip pain specifically in the outer part of your hip, you may be suffering from hip bursitis. Brad: Fortunately, there are exercises that we can do to relieve this pain, and we're going to show you them. Mike: Yes, three of the top ones to help fix your bursitis. Brad: Say no more, Mike. Let's go to work. Mike: Okay. So, a bursa is a fluid-filled sac. This is represented in our model here. It is much, much smaller than this. We don't have a small little ball. But basically what it's going to be located for this area is on the greater trochanter or lateral side of the hip here. And if it gets irritated, it can get inflamed and cause a lot of pain. Brad: Yeah. And I think I can add that we have bursae throughout our bodies, near the joints, and their job is to lubricate. Either a ligament or a tendon goes over the top of it, and it keeps the tendon or the ligament from getting worn out if you will. And again, they're filled with a lot of nerve endings, and they can be very sensitive when inflamed. Mike: So, a common muscle or tendon area that can cause friction on this bursa is called the IT band, and it typically runs from the lateral knee, and connects into the tensor fascia lata, which goes up around the lateral hip. When that gets tight on people, it can cause a lot of friction in this area and cause pain. Brad: Right. So, if you look at the stripes on my pants, that's exactly where the IT band goes. Starts at the knee, just below the joint, and goes up. And again, the tensor fascia lata muscle. Bob always likes that muscle. It does connect up here. So, yeah, that is all part of the anatomy. Mike: Another common cause of hip bursitis can be femoral anterior glide syndrome, which means your femoral head here is forward in the socket, not sitting where it's meant to be. This puts a lot of excess pressure on the front muscles here and could put more stress on this bursa as well. Brad: That's right. So, when that starts to become unstable, then really, we get more irritation to that bursa. So, that's another component of how we're going to remedy this. Mike: And we're going to show you a couple of exercises or stretches to fix both of these problems. Brad: Say no more. Let's go to work. Mike: So, the first stretch we're going to show is going to work the IT band, but it's also a hip flexor stretch, and we've shown it in many other videos. So, what you're going to do is you're going to lay down on your back, bring both knees to your chest to start, and you're going to drop one leg off the edge of the mat and try to bend it to 90 degrees. So, this is stretching my hip flexor now, but Brad, do you want to talk about how it integrates the IT band? Brad: Right. Yeah. And you can do this off the edge of your bed. If your bed is firmer, it works a little bit better. But one thing that Mike was talking about, is if your knee tends to pull out to the side, that's an indication that your IT band is tight and we want to make sure that it's stretched out, and this will get that hip flexor. Try to keep the knee in, and then we'll show you an exercise to stretch that IT bend as well. Mike: A couple of other points to notice is, keep your leg in a nice straight line with your arm here. Try to bend your knee as far as you can. That'll stretch your hip flexor more. The further down you are to the bed, the more hip flexor stretch you're going to get. If that's too aggressive, you can back up. Make sure to do both sides and always reset before switching. Brad: Nice work. Nice work. Mike: Now, if you want to work on femoral anterior glide syndrome, we're going to do a stretch. It's kind of a mobilization. You're going to need a heavy-duty resistance band for this or a belt. Either will work. You're going to tie it to something sturdy in your house that won't move. Don't do a table. It's probably going to pull away. Brad: Before we get going, Mike, I want to mention, that if you had a total hip replacement, you do not want to do this. This is for a healthy hip, or when it's painful. No surgeries before this. Mike: Yes. So, I have the band around my leg up by the hip and I'm going to walk forward and get some tension on this. First, we're going to go forward. I'm going to leave the leg we are stretching back and try to keep my back nice and neutral and straight, and I'm going to slowly lean forward. It's going to have a pulling force posteriorly, trying to get that femoral head back into the socket where it is meant to be. If this feels good, you are doing the exercise that is meant for you and is correct. If you don't feel much, you can try turning sideways and getting more of a lateral pull as well. This can sometimes help some people. If this isn't working, then this exercise isn't for you. Brad: Right. It should not create pain. If it does, it is not for you, and just discontinue it or omit it from your plan. Mike: And we've got one more strategy that we'll get to in a second here. Brad: Looks like you're enjoying that, Mike. Mike: Yes, it's like a bungee jump. So, the last suggestion we have is to keep soft knees when standing and also walking. Brad: Soft knees? Mike: Bent. A slight bend in the knee. You do not want to lock your knee. When your knees are locked, you're going to have more stress on your joints. When your knees are bent, the muscles are going to work like they're supposed to, taking the stress off of your joints. This includes the ankles, knees, hips, and lower back. So, to get some pressure off of the hip, if it's inflamed, you want to stand with bent knees. You don't have to stand overly bent, just a slight bend, as long as you're not locked out. Mike: And walking, what you want to do is land on your forefoot when you walk, not a heel strike. Most people heel strike because of raised heels in modern-day type shoes. You can buy a different type of shoes, which are zero or flat or minimalist. You don't want to necessarily start with these right away. Progress slowly. This is not about that. It's just about forefoot walking to fix your hip pain. So, when you walk, try to land on your forefoot. You could pretend like you have some pins and needles in your heel, or popcorn kernels, as Brad likes to talk about in other videos. So, as you can see, I'm taking shorter strides. I'm not elongating landing on my heel like this. It's going to be a lot less pressure on that hip joint and make it feel better. Brad: Great. I know personally, that if you walk around your house on a hard floor without shoes on, you can clearly feel when you do a heel strike. You can feel that bone right against the hard floor versus landing on your forefoot. So, it's not tippy-toe walking, it's just emphasis on the forefoot, taking the stress off of that heel. Makes a difference. Not so easy to do it right away. Mike: No, it takes time and practice, and it'll feel a little weird at first, but you'll get used to it after a while. Brad: All right. So, hip bursitis. We gave you three nice options. Chances are that you'll find one or two of them to be the best. Make sure you use those, and continue them daily. It'll get better with time. Mike: And let us know what worked for you, what we missed. If you have bursitis, what are some common things that we maybe forgot to include? So, comment down below. Visit us on our other social media platforms: YouTube, Website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, TikTok, Wimkin, Mewe, Minds, Vero, SteemIt, Peakd, Rumble, Snapchat, Clapper, Threads Bob and Brad also have a Podcast where we share your favorite episodes as well as interviews with health-related experts. For this week’s Giveaway visit: https://bobandbrad.com/giveaways Bob and Brad’s Products Pain Management: C2 Massage Gun (US) C2 Massage Gun with Heat and Cold Therapy Fit Glide Q2 Mini Massage Gun (US) Knee Glide Eye Massager T2 Massage Gun Air 2 Massage Gun Foot Massager X6 Massage Gun with Stainless Steel Head Leg Massager Holy Cowabunga Cream Uni Massage Gun D6 Pro Massage Gun Back Massager Posture Pad Lite Foot Massager EZBack Massager Weighted Heating Pad Hand Massager Fitness: Resistance Bands​ Pull Up System Pull Up Bands Wall Anchor​ Grip and Forearm Strengthener Hanging Handles​ Hand Grip Strengthener Kit Stress Balls Stretching: Booyah Stik Stretch Strap Bob & Brad Amazon Store and other products Bob and Brad Love Check out our shirts, mugs, bags, and more in our Bob and Brad merchandise shop​ Medical Disclaimer All information, content, and material on this website is for informational purposes only and are not intended to serve as a substitute for the consultation, diagnosis, and/or medical treatment of a qualified physician or healthcare provider. Affiliate Disclaimer: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases. However, this does not impact our reviews and comparisons. We are highly selective in our products and try our best to keep things fair and balanced to help you make the best choice for you.

The ideal walking pattern without using a walking aid is one in which you engage (use) the gluteal muscles. If you are limping or experiencing significant pain in the hip with each step you may want to consider using a cane. If your balance is significantly worse due to hip pain or weakness you should use a cane or a walker. The use of a cane or walker does not have to be a permanent addition. Often hip pain will calm down with short-term use of a gait aid. In addition, strengthening the hip muscles can improve overall standing and walking balance. See our video How to Strengthen a Painful Hip for exercise suggestions. How to tell if your gluteal muscles are firing when walking. Place both hands on your butt cheeks and walk forward. When your right foot hits the ground, you should feel a tightening of the gluteal muscle on that side. The same holds true for when the left foot hits the ground (tightening of the left gluteal muscle). If the glutes are not firing adequately, it can often throw off the alignment of your hip which can lead to pain. Hints to make certain the gluteal muscles are firing: 1. Shorten your stride. With a longer stride, you will tend to hit your heel first. 2. Hips should be directly over the foot at heel strike (not behind). 3. Your knee should be unlocked at heel strike (It should have a slight bend) (unlocked) 4. Initial weight-bear through the heel AND arch. Not heel only. 5. It should feel like you are pushing off on the back foot. This type of walking pattern can initially be difficult to do, but it will decrease the stress on your hip. Along with the change in walking, you may want to perform gluteal pumps for strengthening the glutes. Check out the full Hip Pain Relief Program series of videos along with downloadable guide sheets for each video on our website here: https://www.bobandbrad.com/health-programs/hip-pain-relief-program

This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in March of 2023. For the original video go to https://youtu.be/LOGf-RY_fq4 Brad: Do you have low back pain? While it's widely accepted that walking is one of the best ways to treat low back pain, you need to do it properly. Mike: Both Rick Olderman and Dr. Stewart McGill recommend this style of walking and we're going to show you some easy tricks on how to do it correctly. Brad: Excellent job. Excellent. Mike: According to Dr. Stewart McGill, walking correctly and at the appropriate distance is known as nature's balm for your back. Brad: That's right. Now, as far as walking correctly, a couple of the big precursors are you're going to walk on flat surfaces, not on uneven or up and down hills. That's very critical, as well as the distance you walk. You're not going to go out and walk 10 miles and hope that that cures your back pain. It's short distances as tolerated, and we're going to show you the key parts of how to walk properly, not just a distance. Mike: The first step is to avoid doing a hard heel strike when you're bringing your foot forward. Brad: That's right, Mike. Most people walk like this without thinking about the heel coming down. There's a large amount of impact force that goes through the joints, particularly when the knee's fully extended, and that is experienced in the knee joint, the hip, as well as the lower back. It's one thing we want to avoid and we're going to show you how to. Mike: So what you want to do instead is land on your forefoot, or middle foot when you land. Brad: And you can see Mike has the heel. There's no force on the heel here. He has shortened his stride up slightly, and that helps. His knee is slightly flexed. We call this the soft knee, so the impact is minimized because of the forefoot, and the soft knee and the back are much more comfortable with this. Now, I'm going to show you another trick I like to do this without thinking about it because this is kind of hard, isn't it, Mike? Mike: Yeah. It takes time to learn. Brad: That's right. Mike: So an important thing to look at when walking too is your shoes. So this shoe has a higher heel compared to the other shoe. This is a flat or minimalist shoe. So with the minimalist shoe, you're not going to want to land on your heel because it's going to be more problematic and almost painful. You're going to want to naturally land more on your forefoot, which will lead to the proper walking mechanics. Brad: That's right. They also call them zero-drop shoes because they're even, the distance in the sole is the same in the toes as it is in the heel. So yeah, just another point. Mike: These are minimalists, so there's not much cushioning. You can get a zero drop that still has cushioning as well. Brad: That's what I have. Okay. I'm going to show you a neat little trick that will help you perform this forefoot walking so you don't have to think about it. I really like it, I've been using it myself. Take two-inch wide masking tape, maybe you have some at home already. It can go narrow if you want. Take some popcorn, unpopped, and put about four or five of them on the tape. Brad: This is going to be a little different for each individual. Then you're going to go ahead and tape that on your heel. So what you're going to find out is when you pull the sock over and you're going to put that in your shoe, and when you walk and you feel those little popcorn kernels dig into your heel, it's going to be a little uncomfortable and you're going to automatically forefoot walk. Now, it's going to depend on whether you have a shoe that has a thick cushioned insert, it'll be more comfortable. If you have a thin sole like Mike has, you're going to feel it more. So that's going to vary individually depending on your shoes, et cetera. Mike: So I've never done this before. So putting these in my shoe kind of feels like when you get a little pebble in your shoe and you're out walking and it's really a nuisance. It feels like that, but if I don't put weight down on my heel, I don't feel it. So it feels more natural. So this is going to make you automatically want to strike in your forefoot and continue through without putting your heel down on the ground. That feels like you're stepping on some Legos. Brad: Yeah, that's popcorn. Now, I've done this throughout the day, and what happens is my calf muscles get a little tired. So you're not going to do this all day long. If you want to try this, you'll have that on for an hour or two, depending on how much walking you do. Take it off, and you'll feel the transformation come over time. It'll be like a muscle memory thing. Mike: It feels awkward initially. It feels like you're learning to walk again, I did this a few months ago because Rick recommended it for me to engage my buttock muscles more. Brad: But not the popcorn part. Mike: Not the popcorn part, no, but walking on my forefoot versus my heel striking and it felt awkward for a week, and now it's becoming more normalized. I can't walk as fast yet, but it is coming along gradually. Brad: Right. So that may sound like a lot of work, but if you want to have less back pain, and better walking mechanics that's going to save your knees, your hips, as well as your back, it's worth doing. So, very good. One thing we'd like to end this video is with... Mike: Be healthy. Brad: Be happy. Mike: And be helpful. Brad: Yeah, the three Bs. Visit us on our other social media platforms: YouTube, Website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, TikTok, Wimkin, Mewe, Minds, Vero, SteemIt, Peakd, Rumble, Snapchat, Clapper, Threads Bob and Brad also have a Podcast where we share your favorite episodes as well as interviews with health-related experts. For this week’s Giveaway visit: https://bobandbrad.com/giveaways Bob and Brad’s Products Pain Management: C2 Massage Gun (US) C2 Massage Gun with Heat and Cold Therapy Fit Glide Q2 Mini Massage Gun (US) Knee Glide Eye Massager T2 Massage Gun Air 2 Massage Gun Foot Massager X6 Massage Gun with Stainless Steel Head Leg Massager Holy Cowabunga Cream Uni Massage Gun D6 Pro Massage Gun Back Massager Posture Pad Lite Foot Massager EZBack Massager Weighted Heating Pad Hand Massager Fitness: Resistance Bands​ Pull Up System Pull Up Bands Wall Anchor​ Grip and Forearm Strengthener Hanging Handles​ Hand Grip Strengthener Kit Stress Balls Stretching: Booyah Stik Stretch Strap Bob & Brad Amazon Store and other products Bob and Brad Love Check out our shirts, mugs, bags, and more in our Bob and Brad merchandise shop​ Medical Disclaimer All information, content, and material on this website is for informational purposes only and are not intended to serve as a substitute for the consultation, diagnosis, and/or medical treatment of a qualified physician or healthcare provider. Affiliate Disclaimer: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases. However, this does not impact our reviews and comparisons. We are highly selective in our products and try our best to keep things fair and balanced to help you make the best choice for you.

This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in March of 2023. For the original video go to https://youtu.be/xB0CcPZUqX4 Brad: Bob and I have been sleeping on SleepOvation mattresses for over five years now. And we're going to tell you our final results on what it's like. Mike: And we have narrowed it down to seven key points to make this mattress or any mattress desirable. Brad: That's right. So hold your horses. We're going to get to it. Number one, and this is probably the biggest point, is that a good quality mattress is going to conform to your whole body, the curves, no matter how you're shaped, and allow support that all your joints, the lower back, knees, et cetera, so you're at maximum comfort, not just when you lay in there, but throughout the night. And it makes you want to stay in your bed in the morning. Mike: So this mattress actually has 700 tiny mattresses all in here. Brad: And that's actually what brought Bob and I's attention to this. We saw this and it looked just like, or similar to the concept of the most comfortable wheelchair cushion that we've seen for decades. Is that right Bob? Bob: Right! Brad: Bob concurs. Mike: What makes this mattress different is each individual mattress has its own unique coil spring. Brad: So this allows individual support and we're going to show you how this can support particularly in the low back. I have spondylolisthesis, which is a problem in my lower back, I noticed this literally the first time I lay on this mattress. All right, we're going to show you the secret of why this style of mattress or this whole concept works. Looking at the spine, you have a natural arch or lordosis in your lower back and the sacrum is a little higher and the upper back goes out. Brad: Now when we lie down, we want to have it conform to the spine itself. However, we're going to actually use a tracer here just because it's easier to see. And here's the arch, this is the sacrum, and you can see how it follows the natural curve of the spine. Brad: Okay, so here's the spine. You can see the arch here, and the sacrum here. Now when you lie down and put pressure on it, you can see how it pushes down. Each individual tiny mattress has its job for each vertebra if you will. Brad: Oftentimes a lot of other mattresses have memory foam, which actually works very well. It does conform to the arches and contour of the body. Brad: However, one important concept of a good mattress is airflow throughout the mattress so you don't overheat. So if you look at memory foam, it's very solid. Now I know there's one memory foam mattress that has air gaps in it, but not air channels, and that's the advantage of this mattress. There are air channels that run across the whole mattress. All right, the next point we want to bring up is the rebound or the recoil of the mattress. Now with a memory foam mattress, it does conform very well, but when you roll over, look what happens to the area that's pushed into the mattress. It takes time for it to rebound and get up. Brad: Now with that, that allows you, when you roll over, there's a hole there and you may want to roll back into it. It can be a problem while you sleep. So here we have the rebound of our SleepOvation mattress. Just observe the exact same pressure point. It comes up almost zero time, immediately not quite, but very close, much faster than the SleepOvation. Bad: I do want to mention the coils underneath. There's airflow throughout the whole bottom of the mattress. It's not like a solid piece of memory foam. Big difference with heat retention. Brad: That leads us right to the point of intimacy. This mattress is a five-star. All right? I have to admit, I've been hogging the film from Mike. He is very aware of what's going on in the last point or two. So he's going to take the show. I might interrupt. Mike: Yes, so this mattress has a removable cover as well, which is very important because your mattresses are much dirtier than you think. You could even listen to Richard Codos talk about it in an interview I did with him recently. So you could typically take this off when it's dirty and throw it in the washing machine. Brad: Now I really want to add, that we just did this on ours. You unzip the whole thing and the top half comes off. You don't have to lift up the mattress at all. You leave the bottom half there, clean the top, put it back on, and zip it up. Even I could do it. Mike: So the cost of this mattress is more expensive than your typical run-of-the-mill mattress store sales, but it is very much worth it, considering you spend a 30-year life sleeping on it. Brad: And I do want to add, that I've done some homework to get the same quality mattress with this type of technology, this is cheaper than the other two mattresses that I did some research on and looked at. They have similar technology, but their cost is much higher. And this does have a 100-day warranty. It comes to your house in a box, you bring it into your bedroom, put it down, and it opens up right in front of your eyes. It's amazing technology. It's great for shipping. And after 100 days, if you decide you do not like it, because there may be a small percentage of people who won't fit well on it, they'll take it back. Mike: No questions asked, free of charge. And this is this week's giveaway. So if maybe you can't afford one right now, you can enter at bobandbrad.com/giveaways. And it's also pinned to the top of Facebook. Brad: That's right. They'll ship it right to your house and you're going to be sleeping like a baby. Visit us on our other social media platforms: YouTube, Website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, TikTok, Wimkin, Mewe, Minds, Vero, SteemIt, Peakd, Rumble, Snapchat, Clapper, Threads Bob and Brad also have a Podcast where we share your favorite episodes as well as interviews with health-related experts. For this week’s Giveaway visit: https://bobandbrad.com/giveaways Bob and Brad’s Products Pain Management: C2 Massage Gun (US) C2 Massage Gun with Heat and Cold Therapy Fit Glide Q2 Mini Massage Gun (US) Knee Glide Eye Massager T2 Massage Gun Air 2 Massage Gun Foot Massager X6 Massage Gun with Stainless Steel Head Leg Massager Holy Cowabunga Cream Uni Massage Gun D6 Pro Massage Gun Back Massager Posture Pad Lite Foot Massager EZBack Massager Weighted Heating Pad Hand Massager Fitness: Resistance Bands​ Pull Up System Pull Up Bands Wall Anchor​ Grip and Forearm Strengthener Hanging Handles​ Hand Grip Strengthener Kit Stress Balls Stretching: Booyah Stik Stretch Strap Bob & Brad Amazon Store and other products Bob and Brad Love Check out our shirts, mugs, bags, and more in our Bob and Brad merchandise shop​ Medical Disclaimer All information, content, and material on this website is for informational purposes only and are not intended to serve as a substitute for the consultation, diagnosis, and/or medical treatment of a qualified physician or healthcare provider. Affiliate Disclaimer: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases. However, this does not impact our reviews and comparisons. We are highly selective in our products and try our best to keep things fair and balanced to help you make the best choice for you.

Weak hips can result in having a strange and even painful walking pattern. Weak hips can also result in poor balance and falls. 1. Trouble getting out of a chair without multiple tries. 2. Have a positive Trendelenburg Sign. Face the wall and place your hands on it for stability. Raise your right leg and the left pelvis/hip should rise a small amount. If the right hip/pelvis falls it is due to weakness in the LEFT hip abductors. If the left hip/pelvis drops while supporting on the right leg it is due to weakness in the left hip abductors. 3. Leaning on the weak hip when walking. Although this may not make sense, when you have a weak hip the tendency is to excessively lean on that leg when walking. The hip muscles of that leg do not have to work as hard when you lean upon it. 4. Your knees are knock-kneed due to weakness at the hip. Weakness of the hip groups can cause your upper thighs to internally rotate and thus your knees tend toward knock-kneed. 5. You have poor balance. Weak hip muscle is one cause of poor walking and standing balance. 6. Have trouble going upstairs. 7. Trouble getting out of a car seat. If you have determined that your hips are weak, watch our video How to Strengthen a Painful Hip for exercise suggestions. Check out the full Hip Pain Relief Program series of videos along with downloadable guide sheets for each video on our website here: https://www.bobandbrad.com/health-programs/hip-pain-relief-program

This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in February of 2023. For the original video go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gi9dacfgz0c Brad: Squats are one of the best bodyweight exercises you can do. However, stop doing them like this. Brad: We'll show you a better way. The three biggest problems with these squats are, number one, oftentimes this promotes a rounded back. And also, the second thing that goes along with that is poor balance. One more thing, functionally, how often do we squat like this, with our arms out? I mean, the only thing that functionally relates to this, is if you're doing some cliff diving and diving off into a 40-foot drop of the ocean. Mike: Now, here are three better options. The first one is to put your hands on your hips. It helps promote better posture as you're squatting down. Brad: Also, that's the same position your hands go when you get out of a chair if you need any assistance with that push-off. All right, the next option is, for good body posture while you do this and good mechanics, you can do two things with your hands. You can put them in the praying position, or you can put them in the arms crossed, or the Elvis position, I heard it called once. You may not think that's funny. Anyways, so it's good posture. Do the squat down and up. The idea is we're doing head up, shoulders back versus rounding forward. Brad: All right. This is a little advanced, but this is the way I do them. It forces your body into an excellent posture. You need a stick about four or five feet long, a broomstick, we're using a Booyah Stik, across the shoulders like Mike and I have it. Now that brings the hands back, the shoulders back. Bring your head back, not forward, wide foot stance, and simply squat. Go ahead, Mike. Tell them some more. Mike: And we're squatting down. Do not round your back like this. This is a good morning, and it's a different exercise. So squat. Try to look up. Try to engage your lats by pulling down on the stick to keep your spine neutral. Brad: Oh, very good point, Mike. I usually don't think of that. I'm going to start working on that. Okay, we've got one more tricky, even a little more advanced. Mike: A fourth option you can try if you have bad ankles or bad mobility in them is to elevate your heels. I do not have good mobility in my right ankle. So you can see, once I get to a certain depth, my back tends to kind of round forward. I can't keep it up. I fall over. So if I put something behind my heels, and rotate my toes out slightly, I can squat down with a lot better mechanics. Brad: And better balance too, right? Mike: Yeah. Push me over. Brad: Look at you go. That's a common technique with people who are more advanced and work heavier weights. Is that accurate? Mike: Yeah. You can get lifting shoes that have a thicker heel. You can just use a book, a foam pad, or even a slant board. Brad: Right? I'm going to stick to my regular shoes and just do them the regular way. But everyone's going to progress at their own rate and do their own thing. So I'm thinking, if you need some help, what are we going to do, Mike? Mike: I don't know. What are we going to do? Brad: We're going to help our neighbors and friends out. How's that go, Bob? Bob: Be helpful. Brad: Be helpful. We're getting it. Visit us on our other social media platforms: YouTube, Website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, TikTok, Wimkin, Mewe, Minds, Vero, SteemIt, Peakd, Rumble, Snapchat, Clapper, Threads Bob and Brad also have a Podcast where we share your favorite episodes as well as interviews with health-related experts. For this week’s Giveaway visit: https://bobandbrad.com/giveaways Bob and Brad’s Products Pain Management: C2 Massage Gun (US) C2 Massage Gun with Heat and Cold Therapy Fit Glide Q2 Mini Massage Gun (US) Knee Glide Eye Massager T2 Massage Gun Air 2 Massage Gun Foot Massager X6 Massage Gun with Stainless Steel Head Leg Massager Holy Cowabunga Cream Uni Massage Gun D6 Pro Massage Gun Back Massager Posture Pad Lite Foot Massager EZBack Massager Weighted Heating Pad Hand Massager Fitness: Resistance Bands​ Pull Up System Pull Up Bands Wall Anchor​ Grip and Forearm Strengthener Hanging Handles​ Hand Grip Strengthener Kit Stress Balls Stretching: Booyah Stik Stretch Strap Bob & Brad Amazon Store and other products Bob and Brad Love Check out our shirts, mugs, bags, and more in our Bob and Brad merchandise shop​ Medical Disclaimer All information, content, and material on this website is for informational purposes only and are not intended to serve as a substitute for the consultation, diagnosis, and/or medical treatment of a qualified physician or healthcare provider. Affiliate Disclaimer: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases. However, this does not impact our reviews and comparisons. We are highly selective in our products and try our best to keep things fair and balanced to help you make the best choice for you.

This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in April of 2023. For the original video go to https://youtu.be/ppzDDzy0pRY Mike: Are you tired of knee pain holding you back from your daily activities? Brad: We're going to show you four strengthening exercises for your knee that are going to help you out while you're in bed. It's a good deal, I'm thinking. Mike: It is. Brad: You could take a nap afterward. Mike: Sure. These exercises are going to help decrease your knee pain by strengthening the muscles around the knee joint, helping provide better support and stability. Brad: That's right. They're going to specifically go towards the quadriceps, the glutes the external rotators of the hip, and this is going to help the hip alignment with the knee. It all works together, leading to less pain and discomfort. Mike: So the first exercise is called terminal knee extension. You're going to be sitting in a long sitting position. Put a pillow under your knee, and you're going to push your knee down into the mat. You're going to hold it for six seconds. Then you're going to relax. Brad: Right. Do 10 reps of that, and you'll feel those quadriceps working very nicely. Mike: The second exercise is going to be a bridge, but first we want to do a butt squeeze. So you can put your hands on your butt to make sure it's activating. Then you're going to lift up into a bridge, and you're going to go down. You can hold this for a few seconds up top before coming back down. Make sure, with each set, you're squeezing your butt first and then lifting up. Brad: Right. So that glute maximus muscle, that external rotator that we mentioned earlier, which helps align the hips and takes stress off the knees, it's a wonderful way to compliment the knee strength. Mike: If this is easy, you could certainly do one leg. So squeeze the butt and then lift up with one leg. Brad: Not everyone's going to be able to do this. This is for the advanced person. Mike: Do what works for you. Brad: That's right. Mike: The next exercise is going to strengthen your hip external rotators, and it is called clamshells. So you're going to have both knees together. You're going to rotate out, keep your feet touching, and go back down. Brad: This is one of those exercises that looks like it's a real easy-peasy exercise, but you will feel those external rotators working after about 5 or 10 repetitions. Do them slow like Mike is doing them, and it's a critical exercise. Mike: Make sure you keep your trunk in line. You don't want to be too far forward or back or be rolling onto your back. That's not the exercise. Brad: Good point, Mike. Are you getting tired? Mike: Yes. Brad: I'm not. Mike: The last exercise is hip abduction. So you're going to kick your leg straight up towards the ceiling, bring it as high as you can tolerate. And then back down. I have the other knee bent. I'm keeping my trunk in a straight line. Pretend like you're positioned up against the wall and you can't go back any further. Brad, do you want to talk about my feet here? Brad: Right. This is important, that your toes point like Mike has them. The tendency is that your toes will want to go up this way, and that compensates and uses the wrong muscles. Keep your toes pointed straight ahead, and you'll feel it's harder to do. It stabilizes the hip, therefore helping the knee. How are you doing, Mike? Mike: I'm doing okay. You want to make sure your leg is in a straight line with your trunk. A lot of people tend to go forward on this. Brad: Exactly. Mike: Their hips might be a little tight. Try to get a nice straight line. Brad: There you go. How many reps, Mike? Mike: We should do 30 reps total on each side. You could do three sets of 10, however long it takes you to get there. Make sure to flip over and do the other side. Brad: Does anybody ever call you Michael? Mike: Yeah, my mother. Brad: That's what I was wondering about. Just a side note, let's go on. All right. How's your knee feeling, Mike? Mike: Perfect. Brad: It's getting better. There are four exercises. Work on each of them. Do the one that feels the best. You may not have to do all of them. What we'd like you to do is comment below on the exercise that seems to fit your needs the best, or maybe two of them. What say you, Mike? Mike: Or if there's something else we forgot, you can mention it because we do go through them. Brad: Right. I've never forgotten anything in my life. All right, be careful. Mike: And be helpful. Brad: Take care. Visit us on our other social media platforms: YouTube, Website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, TikTok, Wimkin, Mewe, Minds, Vero, SteemIt, Peakd, Rumble, Snapchat, Clapper, Threads Bob and Brad also have a Podcast where we share your favorite episodes as well as interviews with health-related experts. For this week’s Giveaway visit: https://bobandbrad.com/giveaways Bob and Brad’s Products Pain Management: C2 Massage Gun (US) C2 Massage Gun with Heat and Cold Therapy Fit Glide Q2 Mini Massage Gun (US) Knee Glide Eye Massager T2 Massage Gun Air 2 Massage Gun Foot Massager X6 Massage Gun with Stainless Steel Head Leg Massager Holy Cowabunga Cream Uni Massage Gun D6 Pro Massage Gun Back Massager Posture Pad Lite Foot Massager EZBack Massager Weighted Heating Pad Hand Massager Fitness: Resistance Bands​ Pull Up System Pull Up Bands Wall Anchor​ Grip and Forearm Strengthener Hanging Handles​ Hand Grip Strengthener Kit Stress Balls Stretching: Booyah Stik Stretch Strap Bob & Brad Amazon Store and other products Bob and Brad Love Check out our shirts, mugs, bags, and more in our Bob and Brad merchandise shop​ Medical Disclaimer All information, content, and material on this website is for informational purposes only and are not intended to serve as a substitute for the consultation, diagnosis, and/or medical treatment of a qualified physician or healthcare provider. Affiliate Disclaimer: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases. However, this does not impact our reviews and comparisons. We are highly selective in our products and try our best to keep things fair and balanced to help you make the best choice for you.

When exercising with a painful hip you should not perform exercises that increase your hip pain. In addition, if they make the hip pain increase after you are finished with the exercise you should avoid that exercise. A small amount of discomfort is acceptable. Exercises (with equipment): 1. Stationary Bicycle (This is a Schwinn 270 Recumbent Bike) 2. Walking in a swimming pool. 3. Swimming in a pool. 4. Elliptical (especially recumbent) (This is a Teeter FreeStep Recumbent) 5. Walking on a treadmill. 6. Lateral steps with leg bands. 7. Work gluteal with leg bands. 8. FitGlide in bed. 9. Wall anchor (move hip out to the side) Check out the full Hip Pain Relief Program series of videos along with downloadable guide sheets for each video on our website here: https://www.bobandbrad.com/health-programs/hip-pain-relief-program

This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in March of  2023. For the original video go to https://youtu.be/rvXc1fGlF-4 Brad: We're going to show you five simple and easy waves to unlock your spine, and we're going to show you all of them in the standing position to get you ready for the day. These are good for anyone, of any age. However, if you have some preexisting conditions, like maybe you've had a back surgery or a recent back injury, I would hold on it. Mike: You also do not want to do them, immediately stop, if they are causing an increase in pain. Brad: Oh, we don't want to forget about osteoporosis. If you have osteoporosis in your spine, that's a precaution, as well. All right, the first one, Mike's going to demonstrate it, we like to call this the Rick Olderman flexion exercise. You can see starting from his head and gently rounding his spine down to the sacrum, and down, and then you come back up. Brad: The whole idea of this one is that you separate and stretch each individual vertebra, as opposed to doing it at one location causing a great deal of stress and causing an injury. Round it out. Do this three repetitions, and you'll be ready to go for number two. Mike: The second exercise is to do some back extensions in standing. You could put your hands on your waist and then go back. I'm going to demonstrate it like on a countertop, so you can put them on your waist or grab onto the countertop and just lean back, but only if this feels good. Some people don't like extending their back. Brad: Especially if you have stenosis, which if you're over 50 or 60, then there's a better chance. Let's go to number three, Mike. All right, the next one is simply taking a Booyah Stik or broomstick about four feet long, or a towel, or a sheet over your head, stretch up real tall, and lean side to side, right to left, nothing too aggressive, just let it stretch out, stretching up tall. Three or four times is adequate. Mike: Make sure to keep your hands wide, because you can't do much if they're too close. Brad: Good point. All right, the next one, you can take your towel roll or your stick, get it tight behind and right on your shoulders, straight out, and it's a rotation exercise. You can do it. I'll just talk about Mike. He's moving the hips, moving the shoulders. Brad: Now if you want to isolate the thoracic spine between the shoulder blades, simply sit down and rotate, and you'll feel much more of the stretch up in the upper back. Mike: I can't rotate nearly as far. Brad: Right. That's what we're doing. We're isolating. All right. Five of those are adequate. You can do more if you want. Number five, again, take your towel roll, sheet, or stick, and place it as Mike has it behind his back. I have it here. Hold it here. Elbows in, and we're going to extend back. I'm going to push up and out. This is one of my favorite ones. I can get my back to crack and pop a little bit when I do this one. You start low. For each level, you can do one. It works a little better with a stick because you get more distinct pressure at each level, but the towel works fine, as well. Brad: We've got a bonus coming up. Mike: Option six is just hanging. This is a nice bonus option. Slowly you can grab onto some bars, or a pull-up bar, Hanging Handles, whatever you have. Slowly descend using your feet to control it. If you're having back pain, you will want to go slow, and just hang here. You can hang for 10 seconds, 30 seconds, a minute, whatever you can tolerate. As you feel comfortable with this and want more traction on your spine, you can lift your feet off the ground, but only if you feel comfortable and this doesn't hurt. Brad: Right. This is one that Bob and I do regularly. Mike, I think you do this intermittently. Mike: Yes. Brad: It is spinal decompression. I needed to throw it in here. If you have something to hang from and you want to try it, it's worth a try if it's pain-free and you feel good afterward, as well. Once again, let's do the finishing tagline. Mike: I forgot it already. Brad: Be careful. Mike: Be helpful. Brad: Be helpful!! Visit us on our other social media platforms: YouTube, Website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, TikTok, Wimkin, Mewe, Minds, Vero, SteemIt, Peakd, Rumble, Snapchat, Clapper, Threads Bob and Brad also have a Podcast where we share your favorite episodes as well as interviews with health-related experts. For this week’s Giveaway visit: https://bobandbrad.com/giveaways Bob and Brad’s Products Pain Management: C2 Massage Gun (US) Fit Glide Q2 Mini Massage Gun (US) Knee Glide Eye Massager T2 Massage Gun Foot Massager X6 Massage Gun with Stainless Steel Head Leg Massager Holy Cowabunga Cream Uni Massage Gun D6 Pro Massage Gun Back Massager Posture Pad Lite Foot Massager EZBack Massager Weighted Heating Pad Fitness: Resistance Bands​ Pull Up System Pull Up Bands Wall Anchor​ Grip and Forearm Strengthener Hanging Handles​ Hand Grip Strengthener Kit Stress Balls Stretching: Booyah Stik Stretch Strap Bob & Brad Amazon Store and other products Bob and Brad Love Check out our shirts, mugs, bags, and more in our Bob and Brad merchandise shop​ Medical Disclaimer All information, content, and material on this website is for informational purposes only and are not intended to serve as a substitute for the consultation, diagnosis, and/or medical treatment of a qualified physician or healthcare provider. Affiliate Disclaimer: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases. However, this does not impact our reviews and comparisons. We are highly selective in our products and try our best to keep things fair and balanced to help you make the best choice for you.

When exercising with a painful hip you should not perform exercises that increase your hip pain. In addition, if they make the hip pain increase after you are finished with the exercise you should avoid that exercise. A small amount of discomfort is acceptable. Exercises (without equipment): 1. Watch Jordan’s walking-in-place exercise programs. 2. Hook lying trunk rotations. 3. Marching in place. 4. Sidestepping. 5. Clamshells (on your back or side-lying) 6. Hip abduction. 7. Wall Slides (shallow) (avoid leaning too far forward which can occur with squats). 8. Gluteal pump (Gluteal pump on the stomach or hands and knees.) Check out the full Hip Pain Relief Program series of videos along with downloadable guide sheets for each video on our website here: https://www.bobandbrad.com/health-programs/hip-pain-relief-program

This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in June of 2023. For the original video go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJlzbhZEngc Brad: All right, if you've ever had back pain, mid-back pain, or the thoracic back, the common symptoms are perhaps if you take a deep breath in and it kind of bites right in there, or you turn and twist and you feel that pain, there's a good chance you have a pinched nerve. Mike: We're going to show you five easy options to help alleviate this pain that has a strong track record with some of our patients. Brad: That's right. I'd like to show you the likely causes of this pinched nerve or the pinched nerve-like pain you're experiencing. Number one, at every level there is a spinal nerve. Mike is pointing them out right there. Those nerves could be pinched for several reasons, we're not going to get into all of them. Brad: Another location of pain source could be the facet joints, there are two facet joints between each vertebra. So you have 12 thoracic joints, that's 24 possibilities. Brad: And the next thing is where the ribs connect to the transverse process, which is a bone that comes from the vertebrae. And those should be mobile, but they lock up sometimes too, and we need to break those loose and mobilize them. Mike: So a common reason for a pinched nerve in a thoracic spine area is often from prolonged sitting in a poor posture with rounded down shoulders and putting a lot more pressure on all of those joints we just talked about and the discs. So getting in a correct straight posture can help alleviate some of those symptoms. Brad: That's right. If you are in this prolonged posture, driving, in your chair, or watching TV, particularly driving like myself and you hit a bumpy road or on my lawnmower and you get this jolting going through your spine, it is terrible on a rounded spine. That can set something off. I've been awakened in the middle of the night with pain and I've got a solution for it and we're going to show you that as well. Mike: Well, let's get into that. Brad: The first exercise I like, a lot of people will like, it's not aggressive and it can do the job. We're going to show you two options. One is something you can just use some towels at home. For the other one, you'll need a 36-inch-long six-inch foam roll. You'll see what we're talking about. Thank you, Mike. Now, for the first option you need to take some towels roll them up relatively tight, and then tape them together. Don't worry, you'll use this. So just don't take it apart and wash it. Just keep it for your back stretches. Set it down, so it's about six inches in diameter and you're going to lie on this pretty much right between your shoulder blades. And if you put pillows to rest your head on, it makes it more comfortable and you can relax. You can bring your arms out and go up and down. My shoulders right here, I feel a stretch. And if I wanted more stretch, I would put two weights in my hands, probably one-pound dumbbells or simply a can of soup. Brad: Make sure you do it on both sides. And that offers a better stretch on my spine and back as well as my pec major muscles. You're going to hang out here for 15 to 30 seconds. You can relax and repeat that. Again, if this creates pain, any sharp pain, it's not right for you. Okay, now, if you happen to have a six-inch foam roller, they work very well. A little more challenging in a way. Make sure you get the one that's soft density and medium works well. You can use the more firm one if you want, it's just not as comfortable. Now, with this, you need to put it on your sacrum, that bone right below your belt line, and then right down, so the roller is between your shoulder blades and you rest your head right on the roller itself. Now, if your head does not touch because you have a tight neck, that may be normal. You want to get a pillow and put that there for comfort so you can relax and you do the same thing. This you can kind of roll back and forth, it can help. If you want to stretch one leg up here just because you want something to do. You can do that with the towel roll as well. Use the weights. Just as I mentioned with the towel roll, it's the same thing except that you have your foam roller. I find a great deal of comfort in my sacrum and my SI joints using this, so I'm getting more than one area. It's a bonus. Mike: So stretch number two is going to work on your amount of thoracic extension or how far you can bring your back backward. Again, you will need a thick, six-inch towel roll or a foam roller, we'll show both variations. I'm going to place this where it feels comfortable for me. Again, you can use a pillow under your head for some nice support, supporting the head there, and you're going to see what feels comfortable. If I go too low with the towel roll, I feel a lot more lumbar extension. That's not as comfortable. I want to hit that mid-thoracic back area. So I'm going to go and arrange it, where it feels good. You can bring your arms up to your side if you want or keep them in. It's just working on bringing that extension back in your spine. Brad: That's right. And oftentimes you'll get that cavitation or that crack release. You'll feel that or even hear it. Again, we're going to show with the foam roller. It's a wonderful stretch. This is one of my go-to's. Mike: So for this one, I'm just kind of sitting in a spot for 10, 30 seconds, and then I might kind of roll up and just get a new spot. Just kind of work through and see what feels good. Brad: That's right. Mike: Okay, now we're going to do the same thing but with a foam roller. So for this, you're going to roll. So I'm going to lift my buttock off the ground and I'm going to kind of roll that thoracic spine region roughly to my shoulder blades, to my mid-back. I don't like it once you start getting in the lumbar spine, you'll feel it. If you're getting some headaches or neck discomfort with this, you can put a towel behind your head here and pull it up with your hands to give it some support if you are having some neck pain with this. But this is another way you can just kind of roll into it. Mike: You can also do what I did before and just kind of lay over it and work on that thoracic extension. Brad: If you don't have a towel and you have flexible arms, you can simply put your hands behind your head. It gets a stretch into the shoulders and the pecs as well. This is a wonderful stretch. Okay, this next stretch, you're going to need a special tool. It's called the Bob and Brad Posture Pad. Brad: We developed this specifically for the thoracic spine, for the pinched nerves, as well as helping with that hunch back or that neck hump from head forward posture that people get stuck in after they've been this way for several years. We'll show you how you use it. It's got a nice radius on one side, which is there for a specific reason. These tennis balls are in there for a specific reason. But first, you simply lie on it there. I'm at about T7 right now. I'm going to start low and I'm going to work and you can rock back and forth and you'll find the area that needs the stretch. Brad: As you can see, I'm supporting my head. You can also take a towel and hold it across your head if that's more comfortable. I always like to do it one way or another, and I'm going to work on it. Now, once you find a spot that needs a stretch, you're going to hang out there for 15 to 30 seconds or longer, whatever you would like. It feels great. It's nice when you can get to that one spot in the corner of the Posture Pad. Now, if you have tight muscles between your shoulder blades, that's the reason we have these tennis balls. And they're not just any tennis ball. The light blue ones have less pressure and the other blue ones have more pressure and all of them have less pressure than a regular tennis ball. But we're going to put those in there and you put them in wherever you would want. I'm going to put the ones with the lower pressure on the top. Now, this is a little more aggressive. You may take a towel and go over it and that's going to go into the knots of the muscle belly between your spine and your shoulder blade on each side and you'll feel it. And what I like to do on this is I like to go forward and backward when I hit that trigger point. The left ball on the top is actually on a trigger point right now. I'm feeling it, I'm working on it. And as I do this, it's much more comfortable. The muscle is releasing and relaxing and that's the point with that. Brad: Now, Bob uses this regularly. I want to get more aggressive on those trigger points, so I'm going to put the blue ball in the upper corner there and leave the others out to put all the pressure right there on that tight spot. This is just an option and that makes a fairly significant difference and I'm going to work on that. And sometimes that pain is not a pinched nerve. It may be just a knot that is so tight and that muscle's so bound up, that it's burning away and causing pain and this can get rid of it. So the Posture Pad, you go to bobandbrad.com and you can order one of these if you'd like to. Otherwise, we've got the other options that we've already talked about. Mike: So the next option, again, we're going to work on straightening that spine and fighting against that rounded posture we're in most of the day. So you can do this on a chair, at home, or maybe at your work desk. You can use a ball for a little bit more stretch. You can use a smaller one or a larger one, whatever you have available. So I'm going to put this behind my back in a position that feels good. Kind of going to go mid-back here and then I'm going to lean back into it. And if you have good shoulders, you can lean back into it and then bring your arms up as well. It really opens up everything in the front and gets that spine extending, combating that flexed forward posture we talked about earlier. Brad: I do want to mention, the ball they use, like Mike said, different sizes, but it needs to be a soft, squishy ball. A basketball would not work. Even a soccer ball is too hard. You need a squishy ball. So if you don't have one, go to the neighbors and see if you can get one from the neighbor kids and then bring it back, of course. Mike: Do you ever just keep it? Brad: No. I do want to mention we believe, Mike is the originator of this exercise. How many years ago you were working with patients and showing them this? Like 10 years ago, wasn't it? Mike: I don't know. I don't remember. It was too long ago. So you can do this stretch throughout the day. You can do repetitions. Say you want to do 10 repetitions and you can hold it for five to 10 seconds each time. If you'd rather just sit here and hold it for 30 seconds to a minute, that's perfectly fine as well. And just do it throughout the day. The whole idea is, if you're sitting hunched over most of the day, take frequent breaks to go and bend your spine in the other direction. Brad: Most excellent, thank you so much. Mike: So number five, if you're having referral pain down your arm and into your fingertips, it may be referral pain coming from the lower part of your neck, and Brad is going to show an excellent option for that. Brad: Right. We're getting out of the lane of the original topic, but it's so closely related to thoracic or mid-back pain, that we're going to address it anyways. So the pain down the arm can be simply numbness, tingling, feeling cold. It's a pinched nerve at the lower neck or upper back. One way you can try to alleviate this, sit up as tall as you can and simply do chin tucks. So you bring your chin in towards your throat, breathe and relax, and see how the pain or the numbness and symptoms in the arm respond. Brad: If you do this five to 10 times and the symptoms in the hand or the forearm seem to be improving, it's gold, you're going to have progress with this. You may want to put a little overpressure. On the other hand, if the pain, numbness, and tingling down in the arm and you do this and it makes it worse, then you need to stop right there. Now, the next option, if this is getting better, then you can add the neck extension. You take a towel roll and you roll it up, any way you want, so we have some cushion and support on the low neck. Use a firm chair, scoot your bottom back in the chair, and start with a gentle chin tuck. Support with the towel, not pulling hard, just support and look up. And you can bring your hands up to offer a little traction or you can keep them down. Brad: And what we're looking for is, if you do this and it hurts a little bit, come forward, repeat that a few repetitions. And if it starts to feel better or the pain and the numbness down in the arm and hand are improving, then it's a green light. You continue up to 10 repetitions. And if it feels better in the arm after that, you take a break, come back in an hour, and do the same thing. And you're going to do that every hour as long as symptoms in the arm and the hand improve and are moving upwards towards the shoulder and the neck and eventually your range of motion, less pain, everything will improve and you'll start to go back in a normal supported way until the arm pain, that pinched nerve is then released. It's a little more complicated, so take your time with this one. If it doesn't make the arm better, you stop. It's very clear on that. This can be an excellent option if it works, but only then. Mike, do you have a finishing outro? Mike: I would say pick which exercise worked for you. There are five and they take a lot of time. Try them all and see what works, and stick to that one for a while to see if it helps. Brad: That's right. The easiest ones are first, and the harder ones we talked about are a little bit later. Take care. Have a good day. 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