[Vickie]

Some great success shared on this thread! I loved Okie's reminder about the value of water (for lubrication of the joints) and sleep where the positive results of your exercise are actually manifest ( in REM you produce HGH, human growth hormone that builds and repairs body tissue). Please allow me to remind you that the core of the body includes the muscles that cross the hips and shoulders which is to say it includes the neck and thigh muscles and the pecs and back muslces. I have worked with many lumbar victims, it is how I was introduced to the golf world, and I can tell you that it does not have to be something you live with at the expense of your athletics. Yes the transvese and obliques and rectus abdominis (not to mention the serratus) are key and usually considered the core muscles. In fact they are the primary stabalizers for the front of the hip. But you must have a positive relationship to the back of the hip and that primary stabilizer is the latissimus dorsi.

There is an inherant relationship between the first cervical vertebrae (your head sits on it) and your sacrum. Once your head (the weight of a bowling ball) looses proper alignment to the hips you are carrying an exponential amount of weight that puts great strain on your lumbar vertebrae as the spine between adjusts out of sequence. Our goal is to return and maintain the natural 'S' curve in our spine that was established in the original blueprint, individual to every body. As I have said before, most of the aches and pains we equate with aging are nothing more than a deterioration or misapplication of our structure (skeleton) that we ALLOW to happen over time. It is akin to improper settling of a house, all is well until or unless the the foundation aquires an imbalance of stress and then the problems ensue.

Good job creating a balance in your body composition and now just focus on creating the most excellent alignment of your skeletal system by creating a balance of muscle tension. Don't forget that flexibility and strength are opposite sides of the same coin and to cash in functional currency they both must be present in your offering. I hope I am stating the obvious when I assume you aren't squatting with a bar on your back.

So glad to see nutrition approached from a natural, holistic, approach.

Good job guys!

Vik