John Kowalski
Level 2 Valued Member
Hey guys. Recently I’ve been studying spinal training methods, I read most of the studies on lumbar extensors strength by J. Steele, who claims that the popular strength exercises for the back like deadlifts, back extensions and bird dogs are not a sufficient stimulus for the lumbar extensors musculature - even though these muscles are active in the exercises. He recommends a lumbar extension machine which isolates these muscles and it supposedly works very well. I came upon a Stuart McGill’s book “Ultimate back fitness & performance” and that’s what he says about lumbar isolation machines: “some exercise devices are based on the approach to isolate lumbar motion. This creates stress concentrations in the lumbar discs. Replicating the range of motion (from neutral to full flexion), together with the compressive loads measured in some of these devices is one of the better ways we have found to produce disc herniation in the lab. On the other hand, it is possible that adjusting the range of motion (neutral into extension) may reduce some bulges (Scannell and McGill, 2009). This only appears to have potential for discs that have not lost more the 30% of their height.”
Have you experienced any problems with loaded flexion/extension? Every time I do some kind of prone hyperextensions or bent over hyperextensions without the hip movement to isolate the lumbar muscles the muscle pump is accompanied by some kind of mild sensation in my back - I can’t tell if it comes from the discs or the deep lumbar musculature, but considering the above quote it makes me question the safety of that kind of practice. I have no pain with exercises which involve neutral spine, but they don’t even come close in terms of the stimulus to the lower back - the muscles of the hips and legs give up first. Do you have any thoughts recommendations in that area?
Have you experienced any problems with loaded flexion/extension? Every time I do some kind of prone hyperextensions or bent over hyperextensions without the hip movement to isolate the lumbar muscles the muscle pump is accompanied by some kind of mild sensation in my back - I can’t tell if it comes from the discs or the deep lumbar musculature, but considering the above quote it makes me question the safety of that kind of practice. I have no pain with exercises which involve neutral spine, but they don’t even come close in terms of the stimulus to the lower back - the muscles of the hips and legs give up first. Do you have any thoughts recommendations in that area?
Interestingly, I asked the same question on high intensity strength training forum and some of the guys said that they never experienced any problems with using medx lumbar machine and they supposedly helped many patients to rehab their backs. I think I'll stick to McGill's tips, it seems to work well for me, he makes a lot of sense with core stiffness and he helped top athletes from many sports to salvage their careers.
