This week's topic is one that I believe should have been done quite a while ago, because it's a pretty popular topic and question that I receive in the program, and it's about SI joint pain, something that's really correlated with chronic lower back pain. And so today we're going to get deep into the best practices for what you should do if you're experiencing SI joint pain. If you don't know what that is, we'll talk a little bit about what that is to start. And my goal for today is basically just to pack as much helpful information as I possibly can. That will be the most helpful thing for you if you're in this situation. So the first thing that we're going to do is just define what si joint pain is. And so we have to start with the anatomy. We have two SI joints and they are in our pelvis at the basically the base of our spine. At the bottom of your lumbar spine is something called the sacrum. And so the SI joints are these two joints where the pelvis, the Hemi pelvises connect to the sacrum. And these joints get to be loose. These parts of the pelvis kind of can tilt forward and back. These joints are connected with ligaments and they can become loose. And so there is a very common association with chronic lower back pain where these become unstable or hypermobile and the ligaments are getting stretched out. It's kind of like a sprain and it causes a lot of pain. It's a highly painful situation to be in. So the next thing we want to talk about is, well, we kind of already defined what happens to cause the pain is they get loose and they can get out of place. They can get stuck out of place, or they can just be chronically loose where they're constantly moving and shifting on each other. And if you have experienced this, you may know what I'm talking about. You can feel sometimes a pop or repeated pops. If you do, you can do the same motion over and continue to get that pop or that click in your back. And I do want to kind of point out exactly, there's a very specific point in your body, in your lower back where you will feel the pain. Typically, if you have si joint pain, so it is back pain, it's connected to your lower back. And it is also si joint pain. So it's virtually the next segment down below your lumbar spine. And so that's kind of if you're unsure, that's kind of how you tell is the most obvious thing is where is my pain is really low down then and it's on the side typically then it could be a SI joint pain. So as I said, the goal for today is just to give you the most helpful tips and best practices. Just give as much as I possibly can into one stream, because this is a very common condition, and there's a lot of things that you can do and things that you can avoid that can be really helpful, that can help you to climb out of this spiral of SI joint pain, very similar to back pain. So because I want to pack as much as I can in, we're going to get right into it. I wanted to start with things to avoid, because this could potentially be the most effective thing that you could start doing immediately. That will make a significant change in your SI joint pain. It can be as simple as stop doing the things that are hurting it. And there are very specific positions and movements that irritate the SI joint. And so we're going to go down this list. The first thing on the list that is extremely common is hip external rotation stretches. And so common hip ER stretches are things like the butterfly stretch, the figure four stretch, the pigeon stretch. If you're into yoga, any stretch that's going to take the hip and fully rotate it out into an externally rotated position. Another example would be just sitting cross-legged. So if you're sitting on the floor cross-legged, like you know, is a very common position for children to sit in if they're in like a, I don't know, like a multi-purpose room at school. They sit on the floor. They, they all sit cross-legged. That position will irritate the SI joint. And the reason is because all of these extreme stretches on the hip. They pull on that joint and they Are tugging on those ligaments inside the joint, and it's a little bit too much stress for the joint. You can really kind of think of anything that's going to fully take the hips into end range position and provide a deep stretch to the hip. That's also going to go up the chain, since everything's connected, is going to go up the chain, and the SI joint is the very next joint in your body. And so if it goes past the hip and the rotation or the torque goes to the next joint, then you have and that's also your weakest link. The weakest link is usually the thing that takes the biggest hit. So that's number one. Number two is deep squats. This is another example actually of the same as number one. It's just not externally rotated. It's full hip flexion actually. So anytime you're doing a deep squat where you're not doing it as an exercise where your hip muscles are engaged, but you are sitting on your heels in a relaxed position. You know how people sit. They kind of squat down on the ground and they're still on their feet, but they're resting on their heels. That is going to and the muscles are not engaged to hold your joints in place. They're more relaxed and let go. You're sitting on your ligaments, you're hanging on your ligaments. And so that is going to be another position, a common position where that is stress is going to go right into the SI joint and irritate it. So far, we're avoiding deep hip stretches of all kinds, basically. The next thing that we want to avoid is crossing the legs. So if you think about the SI joints there, there's one on each side and they love to be symmetrical And crossing the legs is going to take one of the joints and be putting a stress on it. So the ultimate lesson here is crossing the legs, whether you're sitting or standing, is going to put pressure on one SI joint more than the other. And so we want to keep things symmetrical. And so we want to avoid all kinds of asymmetrical activities. Standing on one leg, hopping up and down on one leg. You wouldn't want to play hopscotch or do skipping or anything. You kind of want to stick with symmetrical things temporarily. You know, all of these things to avoid are not forever for the rest of your life. I probably should have made that clear. This is to get you out of the cycle and be able to climb out and get a little stability in the joints. And then you can reintroduce these activities. So temporarily for a week or two, avoid motions like this. And then the last one is the kneeling hip flexor stretch. So this one actually is responsible for causing SI joint problems, at least in my personal story. I have a history of chronic back pain and also chronic SI joint pain. So I'm speaking from experience. And because of my chronic back pain I used to and my tight hip flexors, I used to stretch them all day long, every day and try to lengthen them to help my back. And over time, my SI joints broke down because as you can imagine, based on everything I've said, it's asymmetrical. It's a deep hip stretch and it's putting a lot of stress on the SI joint. So this actually over time it broke down. It was talking my SI joint, one joint was going this way and the other joint was going this way. Every time I did that stretch and over years, years of doing this stretch, It eventually broke down and then I gave myself SI joint problems. So in the program, in the core balance training program, we do lengthen the hip flexors, but we don't do it in a way that stresses the SI joint. We do a modified version of the kneeling hip flexor stretch that is healthy for not only SI joint, but also the spine and the whole body. And then we also do some active stretching of the hip flexors where the glutes are stabilizing the SI joint while we're lengthening those muscles. And the bridge is a good example of an exercise to do that. So I see a question coming through in the chat from Austin says, is the popping normal or only with SI joint problems? That's a good question, Austin. The popping is normal in the sense that it's pretty common, especially for people that have chronic issues with their back or the SI joint. but it's not normal in the sense that it should happen or is expected. So what I'm speaking about is, you know, especially if the SI joint problem or pain is one sided, it would be a pop every time. It only happens on that one side. And so it's a sign of an instability. So no, it's not normal in the sense that we it would happen. It should be happening. Good question. So let's move on to the next topic. I have prepared a few slides and so what. Best to follow up. Things to avoid with. Things to do for improving the stability of your SI joints. So the first thing is to remember symmetry throughout your day, because this is not just about things that you do in the gym for an hour a day, or a few hours a week. It's all day long. And that's what really the concept of core balance training is all about is living life in a way that is good for your spine and building support for your spine. So we want to do that for our SI joint too. So throughout your day and you're sitting and you find yourself with your legs crossed and you're sitting on one, you know, or you're leaning over to the side and you're leaning on your desk. Just remember, oh, yeah, I'm not supposed to do that for a little while. And you may not even feel the SI pain while you're doing that, because while ligaments are being stretched and stressed, they often don't exhibit the painful symptom until after when they become slack and they're uncomfortable. Joints don't like that slack backs or loose position. And that's when you'll feel the pain when you get out of the position or when you get up from your seat and then you go, oh man, that hurts. But the thing that was causing the pain was actually the stretching of the ligament while you were sitting asymmetrically or with your legs crossed. And so it's just a thing to remember throughout your day for a while, and standing to standing on one leg or leaning on one leg. We kind of want to avoid that. The next best thing you can do is strengthen your glutes. The glutes can create a force closure of the SI joints. And so they would basically be pulling these two joints together. It stabilizes the joint. So strengthening the glutes is extremely beneficial. It's not the only part of the story. It's only one element. But an exercise like the bridge, if you're doing it the right way, is really effective for that, and it's also effective for the next thing you can do is lengthen your hip flexors. Remember, one of the worst things you can do is the kneeling hip flexor stretch or any kind of deep hip stretches. And so we want to lengthen the hip flexors in a strategic way. And that is an active stretch that does not stress the SI joints. And so the bridge is an example of that as well. But it's really important that you're doing the bridge the right way. And if you haven't done the core balance training program or the free trial, we take four days to learn how to do the bridge the most perfect way with core connection and stability. And it's free. So that would be a great place to start is just take a free course on doing the perfect bridge. And that's the first week of the Core balance training program. So it's really important. I can't emphasize enough that you're doing the bridge in a healthy way, or it could be causing more damage and pain. Just like anything, it's not about what you do, it's about how you do it. Okay, so next one is the Gutbuster. This I just put in here for any students that are in the program and have gotten this far in the program. Anyone with SI joint pain that discovers the butt buster. It's a progression of the bridge. We'll know what I'm talking about when I say this is by far the most effective thing you can do to stabilize your SI joints. And so it's a version of the bridge where you put a band around your thighs and you push out into the band. A heavy, strong band, and you go to fatigue. And again, it's even more important that you're doing the bridge the right way. So this is an added element that adds more challenge and difficulty. And so we want to make sure we have good form with the bridge before we add that challenge or progression. But it's extremely effective for stabilizing this joint. These joints. And then finally, the best thing you can do all around for. for stabilizing and reducing. SI joint pain is gradually over time, bring your body back into balance, muscular balance. And if you know anything about me or the core balance training program, or if you've seen the masterclass, you know that I teach about muscle imbalances. And so there's quite an emphasis on imbalances in the pelvis and the spine and the upper body as well. Predictable pattern of muscle imbalances. And when you combine these inhibited muscles with these tight muscles, it gets, you know, pretty overwhelming to try and stretch the tight ones and strengthen all the weak ones. So we just take a different approach and we learn. This is another example of muscle imbalances and more muscular balance. You learn how to move in a healthy way that brings your body back into balance. And so that's the best thing you can do for SI. Joint pain or lower back pain is gradually over time, develop a healthier relationship with your body so your body moves towards balance. Okay, so that is the last bullet point for that one. The next most common question or topic around SI joint pain is SI belts. So I wanted to cover this in the stream and talk about it. It's an option for people to get an orthotic which is like a back brace or a any kind of brace. They have one for the SI joint and it's not very cumbersome. It can go under the clothing and it is an option. But I want to talk about best practices for the SI belt if you're going to use one. And I will say that I've used one in the past for myself. I've used multiple different versions of them successfully, and so I'd like to share how to use one successfully, and also share some examples of how it would be not beneficial to use an SI belt. So if you can imagine strapping that belt around, your pelvis just stabilises it, holds it together, and it can be extremely effective or it can worsen the pain. And we'll talk about why and how to accomplish the former. So number one, you have to have in your mind that an SI belt is temporary only. You should not just slap it on and use it for the rest of your life. You're going to create serious problems because the muscles that stabilize your pelvis will be able to just shut off and turn off and go away for the rest of your life, and then you will no longer have them and you become dependent on the belt. And that's not a good idea because you can't wear the belt all the time. Your skin will break down. So temporary only. And you will wean yourself off of the belt and only use it appropriate times. So the first thing you want to do before you use an SI belt is to set your joints. You don't just want to throw the belt on because if the joints are out of alignment, you want to set them first and then you want to stabilize them with the belt. And so the way to set your SI joints, you can do it in two different ways. You can actually put something between your knees. If my SI joint is out of alignment, I'll get a loud pop and that will it'll be the joints going boom and that will go to prefer hopefully back into alignment. That's not my favorite way. My favorite way to set the joints is to do the bridge properly. So I can't just tell everyone to do the bridge because it's probably one of the most common wrongly done exercises that I know of, but I do recommend using your glutes to set the SI joints. Just squeeze your butt as hard as you can. You can even do it in standing and that will help pull them back into alignment. And the bridge is a great way to do that as well. So set the joints, then you can put the belt on and placement is everything the way that I suggest you would want to put it at the top of the belt below your a, s I s and the a s I s is are these prominent bony points that you can feel if you just feel your own waist, the front of your waist. The most prominent bony point is the ASIS. The top of the belt has to go below that. You can actually just line the top of the belt up with that point, and then the bottom of the belt will be much below that. And so you'll have the center line. Make sure that it's below that. But you can also put the belt too low. So you want to make sure that the belt is above your pubic bone and it can actually go underneath your clothing, so you don't need to show it off to everyone. It can be totally hidden. And that's the way I wore it. But if it goes underneath your clothing, then you're going to have a potential issue with your skin needing to breathe. And so we're going to talk about timing next. So that's bullet point number four. There's many different types of belts. There's really thick ones. This would be pretty involved only if you had a severe case would you want to be using like this is pretty much a back brace. This would be a, you know, like a lumbo pelvic brace. So it's covering more than just your s I and you typically want to have the least assistive device possible that you need, or you're going to potentially create more problems in your body. I've actually used three different types personally for my own SI joint pain and problems that I had for years. And by the way, I don't do not have si joint pain or problems anymore. So if you do just have hope because it's very possible to get out of the cycle, and that's coming from someone who had s a pain for years, literally probably three, four years serious struggles with my SI joints and now they are stabilized. And you can do that too. So back to the topic of belts. So the problem is when your skin does not breathe, that creates problems. So you want to have the timing of when you take the belt off. Be strategic because if you're stabilizing something with an orthotic, and this is to help you stabilize a joint and get off of the orthotic, get off of the belt eventually. And then you're doing really well and you do it great for a week, and then you take the belt off and you go do one wrong thing that'll set you back the whole week. The whole progress you made. So you got to kind of be perfect and let the body heal enough, and then wean yourself off the belt. And the times when you take the belt off to wean off or to let your skin breathe are important. It's a kind of a thing that you want to do strategically. And those times are when you're sitting symmetrically sitting on both sit bones. You can see that the SI joint is kind of a keystone shape. Pelvis is like a keystone. It's actually wedge shaped. So if you know what a keystone is like the top brick of an archway, it's the strongest point and it won't go anywhere. So it's very stable by structure. And if you are sitting symmetrically on your pelvis and both sit bones, it is the most stable position. And so you can take the belt off when you're sitting symmetrically and not worry that you're going to cause any problems. So anytime you're sitting is a good opportunity to let your skin breathe and take the belt off and times when you and you can also when you're sleeping. So if you're wondering, that is a significant issue for SI joint pain. So we will be going to that next. And if you're sleeping in a good position, you can also take the SI belt off while you're sleeping. And that's a great time to let the skin breathe. And so sitting and sleeping on your back are great times to take the belt off. And then, you know, in the beginning, if you're having a serious flare up with SI pain, you kind of want to wear the belt all other times. But as you wean off, you want to take the belt off. Anytime you're doing things that are pretty symmetrical, like standing, or you can just loosen the belt like you're standing in line and you're not really going far. You can just loosen the belt real quick and just let it be off temporarily. And then you're going to start walking again. You can retighten it. And this belt is pretty good for that because it has these extra straps that have stretchy on them. And I have used this one as well. This one really lets the skin breathe really well, but it's a little more cumbersome. And it also kind of can slip a little bit because it doesn't have that grippy stuff that this one does. So anyway, light activity would be the next step to start taking the belt off. And then the next step after that would be only wear the belt when you're doing like a kind of extreme activities like exercise where you're maybe not doing a symmetrical activity, you just want to stabilize the joint only when you are know you're going to be stressing it. And so that would be the last stage of weaning off the belt. So we can kind of review the stages again is one all the time, except when you're sitting symmetrically or sleeping on your back. Next stage would be start taking it off. Also, when you're just doing something really light or kind of symmetrical. Third stage would be you can start taking it off. You know, like walking, just doing like normal activities and only wear it when you're doing stressful activities. And then stage four would be taking the belt off all the time and having the stability that you developed in your body through core balance or through, you know, through these activities are the things that are now doing what the C belt did. So that is, that's timing. And you want to wean yourself off the belt. And then the best thing you can do is if you can't already guess gradually over time. Bring your body back into balance, because it's not necessarily just a strength thing that causes the problem. It is a combination of the interplay of your muscles pulling on the joints at different times, and an imbalance in the pulling and the repetitive trauma is often the cause. And so by just by gradually bringing your body back into balance over time, over a period of months is the best thing you can do for not just your SI joint, but your knees and your hips and your shoulders and your neck, and of course, your lower back as well. So that protocol is all laid out for you in core balance training. And it really is what I believe is the best thing you can do. It's a long term game, and all these tips are quick tips that can be really effective. But ultimately you want to look at this as a long term game just like your life. So let's get on to these tips for sleeping number one. Back sleeping is probably the best thing you can do for an SI joint, because if you can imagine, it's pretty symmetrical. Side sleeping is probably the worst thing you can do for an SI joint, because if you are sleeping on one side of your pelvis, there is a force that's going to be wanting to close that pelvis down and it's opening the back of the pelvis. And what's happening in the back, it's opening up. This area is what gets unstable. So it's the opposite force is happening in the back of the pelvis because the contact point with the bed is in the front. And so it's really stressing. Side sleeping is really stressing the SI joints, especially on the side of the pain. So that would be one to avoid. Prone sleeping is okay, especially you can try putting a pillow under your Very low abdomen. Just put a nice medium sized pillow there and really low down under your abdomen. That can take some stress off the joint. And then tips for sleeping with a flare up. If you can't sleep on your back because you just can't sleep that way and you're unable to sleep and you're always a side sleeper, I have a little trick that I use with people and it seems to be pretty effective. It's the three quarter sleeping position. So you can put a wedge under your back like a or a pillow and just kind of roll back onto it so you're not fully side sleeping and you're not fully on your back. You're kind of three quarters sleeping. And it seems to be pretty comfortable for people. Generally, people seem to like that position and it's not putting that stress on the pelvis. That side sleeping is it's not closing down. You're kind of more on the flat surface and it's kind of a nice pressure to have. Now, again, we're just going to reiterate the best thing you can do is gradually, over time, just work towards bringing your body back into balance. And that way you can sleep in any position you want and not have to worry. But that is only a long term game and it cannot happen by doing a little tip or trick. It happens by changing the relationship you have with your body and with your core, and developing a stronger relationship, a stronger connection to your core and everything that you do. And so that's what I believe. And I think that's what a lot of us believe that our students of core balance training. So that is the conclusion of the topic today. And we will get into our next section, which is student Q&A. And we always start off with a featured student. And I believe our featured student today is Marcy. So this is a little bit of a tradition. We started several weeks back where each week we feature a student. And Marcy actually graduated from Core balance training like two months ago, maybe. But she's still a member of the coaching hub. And so, Marcy, if you see this, I just wanted to acknowledge you that, uh, we still have you on our minds and appreciate you. Marcy was the first student to leave a review on our Trustpilot account, and she left an amazing review. If you search core balance training, Trustpilot, you can see there's now, uh, quite a few reviews in there and just hear what people have to say about the program. So Marcy checked back in with us after a couple months in the coaching hub and says, Doctor Peebles, I'm not sure where to post this, but I have to share with others. I finished my three months of your program about two months ago. I've continued consistently working on my anchors for fifteen minutes a day. I just want others to know I was on a thirteen hour plane ride and am still pain free. Just being aware of activating my anchors while sitting and standing helped me tremendously. I was nervous about my travel, but I want others to know this program is definitely for lifelong help. Thank you again for your knowledge, advice and this well made program. What can I say? Marcy. Thank you. And you deserve all the progress and all the credit for what you've done, because this program is a solution to back pain. But it's only half of the solution. And the other half is that you do it. And so we appreciate you so much still, thank you for sharing and helping to spread the word, because I know that your posts and the people that you tell are helping others. And that's one of the best things we can do. So thank you, Marcy, just want to acknowledge you. You do have a question that you posted. When I do the bridge, I feel the weight on my heels should the weight be evenly distributed? I think this is a good question because it's something that we probably all think about, and I've thought about when doing the bridge, and I don't think anybody's ever asked me this, but I've definitely thought about it. So ideally, you'll want the weight to be distributed evenly throughout your feet, Marcy. But it's a dangerous thing to say because we want to avoid digging the toes into the ground and trying to grip the ground, because that will activate different muscles. So it's kind of more of just like a, like a gentle even distribution and not a lot of energy or thought goes into the feet. And if it's just heavily heels, that's actually preferable than like, than digging the toes in, or even some people will, their feet will splay. and it's actually correlated with an abnormal human development condition. And so make sure you're not splaying your feet and your toes are like trying to lift up. It is correlated with abnormal human development. Certain conditions like that developing. You know, children can have. And so we want to have our toes and our feet kind of just gently or evenly distributed without trying to like R or R and the, the heels are okay to put a lot of pressure through, but just be aware of what your toes are doing as well. So Don, good to see you. Glad to see you here. And you say good info. Hi Doctor Peebles, I just finished one of the recommended books, Healing Back Pain The Mind Body Connection by Doctor John E Sarno, MD. Much of this book spoke to me. Glad to hear that, Don. I am exploring TMS diagnosis and treatment options. Doctor Sarno suggests that full recovery from TMS is that all forms of physical treatment or therapy must be abandoned. Interesting in your thoughts since CBT I believe fits into Doctor Sarno's statement. Don't get me wrong, I'm planning to continue with CBT and explore TMS options. Given I feel there can be a healthy balance of physical and psychological. I completely agree with you, Don. And I've actually received this question before. I am a physical therapist, right? So why am I recommending a book that is saying that back pain is all psychological? And I actually don't stand in that court. I believe that there is a large component to chronic back pain that is psychological, and there is also a large component that is physical. And so in agreement with you, I believe that there is both and that we should address both. Certainly I feel more back pain when I sit for ten hours. You know, I could be driving on a country road or up the coast of California, and it's a really enjoyable drive and I'm enjoying myself. My back will start hurting worse, and it has to do with the physical stress on my body. Not so much that I'm under psychological stress. So I believe there's both components, and I have answered that more like pretty in-depth in a live stream as well, where I came prepared with my thoughts about this, but I still recommend Doctor John Sarno's book because he spells out the psychological side of the story so well. And in a way, I still remember the day that I found the book I was in, like Borders Books or Barnes and Noble, one of those two. And I was in college, like undergrad. It must have been, I don't know, twenty one years old, Fifteen years ago now, and I remember opening the first page of that book and having my mind blown by going, that's me! And it was only like a few pages into the book where I experienced that. And, you know, it was a pretty short book. So I read the whole thing and I and there was a little bit of a shift in my back pain journey. It did not heal my back. My back pain continued for many years after that. And it wasn't until I, you know, started connecting more with my core and having the awareness of that. Doctor John Sarno taught me that I really was able to get out of the cycle. So thank you for sharing that, Donna. I really appreciate that. And I'm glad you read the book and definitely putting some thought into all of this, which is a big part of it. Always, you know, come up with your own opinions, do your own research, and don't just blindly trust what anyone tells you. Don't just blindly trust what I'm telling you. Do your own research and make sure you agree with what the things that I'm saying. Okay, so I hope I answered your question, Marcy, and thank you again for helping to spread the word and give hope and inspiration to other students. So we'll get into the actual questions. The first one is from Tina and this is in response to module three complete. So she is almost, you know, phase one is for modules. And so she's almost done with phase one. And there are three phases. So if that gives you any outline of the program, Tina, you say I am now on module four, but I have had setbacks. Every time I do the pubic bone front anchor, I have been going very easy on doing it. Like barely pushing away. When I do, my SI joint hurts and a nerve is being pinched. I also have been getting pains in my right hip down my leg and it feels like my right foot is asleep. I've only been doing what doesn't pinch my nerve and the things that do well. I am going at a slower pace. LOL what advice can you give me? And I see that there is a little note to me here from my admin that says c, c, t Live notes. I have reviewed those notes and there's some background information that Tina provided us. So Tina, thank you for providing your background information on your history of back pain. You know, some results of imaging and I have looked in depth through that. And so I do want to start with that. You know, there was nothing significant, nothing severe. And those MRI reports and imaging, you know, radiology reports can be really scary. They point out a lot of things that are wrong in our spine. And and it can make us feel broken. And I just want to point out to you, Tina, that these types of imaging are zooming in with such high technology and such clear visuals of really small details on the inside of your body, and they're kind of picking it apart. You know, looking at these bulges and these narrowing of spaces are millimeters in size. And so, you know, the fact that they're pointing out imperfections that are like that can, they can have an impact on us. They can make us feel like, you know, like we have serious problems because of who they're coming from and the way they're worded and how long the list is. But when you really think about and realize how small these things are. It doesn't help us to know and see that there is a millimeter bulge and that your spine is not picture perfect. All of us have imperfections, and it's kind of like zooming in on your skin on a freckle and saying that there is, you know, there's an imperfection on your skin when it's kind of part of being a human. And so I just want to give you the hope, maybe just help you feel confident that you are not broken. And maybe hopefully this just has a less negative impact on your mind to know that. And so it looks like there is some radiculopathy, so there is some pressure on a nerve, and that's what you're feeling when you do this front anchor position. And I want to say that you are doing the right thing by what you say here. I've only been doing what doesn't pinch my nerve. So you're listening to your body. You're responding appropriately. It might take you extra time to bring your body into alignment, so that you can do the things that will help your body even more. And so the front anchor position is a bit of an extreme position. That's why we wait until, you know, we've already had a couple of weeks to just reactivate some of our muscles before we even get into the laying on your belly position. But it may take you a little more time. And I think this program moves quite fast to consider that. You know, our goal is to get people out of back pain in as short of a time as three months. It took me much longer than three months. You know, if when I was doing the equivalent of this program, it didn't exist, but I was coming up with it. I probably spent about five months just in what's now module one and module two. Just experimenting because it felt right. So that's what I recommend that you do, Tina, is just do the things that feel right. And you may have to tailor the program to what's going on with you. The nerve that's being pinched in your spine is not actually in your spine. It's as it's exiting your spine. And that's the definition of radiculopathy. It's a nerve root coming out of your spine. And it's not, it's not going to be a nerve that's going to take your mobility away. It's more a sensory nerve that just causes symptoms of feelings that you feel, but it does not control the muscles. So you're not going to be paralyzed. I have radiculopathy, I mean, I have a history of it, and you are able to live your life with it and also reduce it and potentially create enough space in your spine through things like the breathing and the anchor connections and, and just developing better posture that it can go away completely. And I have full confidence that this is possible for you. So that's the first thing I want to address. And we can get into some practical tips for you here. So you're having setbacks every time you do the pubic bone front anchor. So I say listen to that and stop doing that and or modify it. And one of the things that you can do to modify it is put a pillow under your lower abdomen. I actually have an entire lesson on this in the program. If you go to extra lessons, there is a lesson and I wanted to call it sciatica relief, but it's not sciatica because it also can be radiculopathy. I think it's actually more effective for Radiculopathy. It's in its own module called Extras Library right after module zero. Temporary pain relief method. So between module zero and module one. And if you scroll down, it's right there. This can be a way for you to modify the front anchor's position. I actually show where to put the pillow optimally. It's worth a try. It can help relieve the nerve pain that will allow you to do the thing that can then help your body. But if that doesn't work for you, that's okay. And you can try different sizes of pillows and you may need. You know, if you watch the video, I explain further the details about how to do that. So I won't get into that here. So that's another tip. And I see that you're already turning down the intensity. And then you say your SI joint hurts. So that's what this stream is all about. And this stream was inspired partly by your email. So go ahead and check out the stream and maybe just making these changes to your life activities to avoid and activities to do it can help in the big picture, long run, help your body be able to do these things that can then help further improve your situation. So I hope that helps, Tina, and thank you for reaching out and trying to help yourself. Got a post coming in in the chat from Austin. So many people say to side sleep for your back, but with this specific pain, that makes so much sense. Oh cool. I'm glad that made sense. Austin side sleeping can be great if you don't have SI joint pain, it can be great for your back. I mean, if it's comfortable for you, it's not the solution. There is no solution associated with side sleeping, but it can be comfortable. All right, let's move on to the next question. We've got one from Gabriel. This isn't posted in the front anchors awareness. So the same actual the same exercise that Tina was talking about. And Gabriel says two questions when doing the bridge. How long do we hold the position. Okay, so not about front anchors. The answer is, and I answered this already for you, Gabriel. I wrote the answer, but to reiterate, as long as you can, while maintaining connection to your back anchor and all the anchors that you've learned up to this point in the program. So there's three. If anybody's not in the program and wondering. So we learn connections. As long as you can maintain connection, continuous breathing, you know, your core is engaged and connected. You want to try and go as long as you can. And at that point, you know, you're going to get to fatigue. And that's where the most benefits are gained at fatigue because then you're telling your body, okay, it's time for you to make a change so that I can accomplish this next time I do it. That's how the body learns is through demand and let that sink in. If it doesn't, if you're doing exercises and you're going three sets of ten and you're not getting to fatigue at number ten, you're not really doing a whole lot. The three sets of ten is designed so that you can be at fatigue by the time you get to ten, and that's when you tell your body, oh, I'm not strong enough to do what this owner of my body wants to do. So I'm going to get stronger so that next time the owner does this, I will be able to do it. And then you build on that. And so with the bridge, we actually don't do repetitions as much as we do holding the position. Because in this program we're working on posture and posture is all day long. I've been sitting here for hours and I've been doing posture this whole time. And so that's what we're training for. It's called specificity. And so that's the answer as long as you can. And if you can only do it for 30s, that's fine. Do it the best you can while breathing continuously for 30s, and then take a little break and do another set to 30s or twenty five seconds, how long you can and do that period of time that you're doing as long as you can. Is a five minute period, and then maybe a couple weeks later, you can actually do a full minute bridge or a two minute bridge, and you're going to have more benefits from doing it longer. And that's another question for another time about why we get more benefits from maintaining the bridge. So part two of your question, Gabriel is laying on my stomach causes a lot of pain in my lower back. Is this normal? Yeah it is. And I'll explain why. I just want to finish what you wrote. I'm having a hard time doing today's lesson because as soon as I lay on my stomach, I feel pain, making it hard to concentrate on finding my front anchors. Thoughts? Uh, yes. Definite thoughts. So the reason that we get pain when we lay on our stomach, if we have chronic back pain, if we have a history with this stuff, is because the predictable pattern is that people with back pain have tight hip flexors. And when you lay on your stomach, it's forcing your hips to open up. Hip flexors are pulling on your spine. They're attaching directly to your spine and to the front of your leg. And when you lay on your stomach, you're forcing your legs open. And it's going to pull harder on your spine. And that's going to arch your back. And it's put a lot of pressure on your back. So you're feeling that when you lay on your stomach. And so I have a couple recommendations for you to reduce that. If the leg opens up, extends the hip like it is in a prone position or laying on your belly, it's going to lengthen or pull on that hip flexor and that's going to pull on your spine. So that's causing the compression. So my advice to you, Gabriel, is to definitely do the bridge before you attempt this exercise. And that's the way that it's organized in the daily routine. So hopefully you're doing the routine in order and spend a good five minutes doing the bridge to release those hip flexors. And as you open your hips up, it's going to pull on the spine more. And so we want to lengthen those hip flexors with the bridge before getting into the prone position. Okay. So that's all I wanted to show. And so that's tip number one. Gabriel. Tip number two is watch the answer I just gave to Tina right before yours and try the pillow technique. And you're going to want to watch the lesson so that you get the right placement for the pillow. And that can help. So you're feeling the pain in your lower back. She was feeling it a little different place. But the problem and the root cause of this is still the same. And so we want to take a little pressure off the spine. And that pillow presses up on the lumbar spine to kind of help open it up. So just try those things. And if you're still having pain, you might not be ready for this and you can come back to it at a later time. You can continue bringing your body back into balance for a couple more weeks and come back to this. And then once you're ready, you can then do this thing which will help further your body. This is a very effective exercise. The front anchor is awareness, further your progress and further your goal of bringing your body back into balance. But it seems like you're not ready to do that yet, and it probably has a lot to do with hip flexors. And so more work with the bridge and then that modification with the pillow. So we are moving along. So we got one from Don question. And this is posted in the anchor triad lesson. This is module five. Don says, I definitely agree with this exercise needing focus. When I bring my pubic bone forward without arching my back, I notice much less tension in my lower back. Feels good. However, my glutes one hundred percent fire up. Then I try to back off slightly the pubic bone forward, which slightly disengages the glutes. I assume we want less glutes engaged. This is a great question. Don, you have a good understanding of what's going on here. And yes, we want to be able to do this anchor triad with less glutes because we want this to be a functional thing we want. It's a posture that we want to be able to maintain and connect to when we're walking. And you can't walk around with your glutes squeezed. And so the day one of this lesson, like the first time you're exposed to this is really complicated. I kind of feel bad for everyone that first gets exposed to this lesson because we're making a huge jump from laying on the floor, connecting to these anchors with amazing biofeedback from the floor, which is how we do it as infants and babies. And then we take away all that biofeedback, and we have to do this in space. And it's so hard. So just be patient and give yourself time, Don. Okay. It is the same person. Just give yourself, you know, a few days to like, wrap your head around this. It will just become more natural and your pubic bone doesn't need to be like thrusted forward. It's just a gentle, subtle thing and you'll get better at it over time as that connection strengthens. So it's more of just an encouragement. You're not doing it wrong, and squeezing your glutes in the beginning is helpful to like make the connection, but what you're trying to do is kind of the right thing is like gradually try to be able to accomplish this with less glutes over time and it will still feel good. It will be less intense, less extreme, but it will allow you to do things like bend down to pick up a heavy object, and you have this connection that kind of feels pretty good. And so let's see if I covered all the points that you said. So, you know, you say without arching my back, just want to make it clear that there is a natural curvature to the spine, so your lower back isn't going to be flat. You know, we respect the natural curvature and let that be. It's just a subtle intention of pubic bone forward. And that is accomplished through your core muscles. Your deep core muscles and the glutes can help, but they are they should not be the primary, you know, crutch that we lean on to accomplish that. So hopefully that helps. And you have a good strategy, what you're doing, try to back off with the glutes and try and keep that pubic bone forward. And the only other muscle group that can do that is the abdominals. So they'll have to like ramp up a little bit. So all right, we're moving on to looks like the last question of the day from Bennett. So Bennett, thank you for asking this. And I sorry it took me a while to get back to you, but I wanted to save this to be able to answer it on the stream because you put you know, I can tell you've put some thought into this. And it was a really good question. And I think the question and the answer might help other people. So let's get into it. This was posted in the back Anchor awareness, but it is actually about the previous lesson about decompressing the lumbar spine by having high abdominal muscle tone on inhales. Other than not being shallow, is this different from chest breathing? In what way do you expect that people could breathe this way all day long once they sufficiently retrain to this pattern? So this was the original question from here to here, and I responded to Don a little bit, or I basically told him, I'm going to answer it in the stream. And then he responded again and said, okay, great. Since asking, I have provided at least part of the answer myself from my own continued practice and observation. It is very different from chest breathing. Okay, that is great Don, that you realized that that that you are. Correct. That is my answer to your first question. It is very different than chest breathing. So with firm abdominal bracing, especially on the sides, the lumbar region is materially aligned and stabilized. I made a point of breathing this way throughout a brisk walk yesterday. Instead of having low back discomfort as expected, I felt that my hips were right where they should be and I had no discomfort for the duration of a one hour brisk walk. That's a big gain for me. Also, in less time than I imagined, I find I can readily breathe primarily through sidewise expansion of ribs and belly at any random moment that I pay attention to my breath. So first of all, I just want to honor you, Bennett, for sticking with it and incorporating, applying, integrating however you want to say it, these concepts into your daily life. That is the key to having success overall in the program is that we don't develop ourselves. The greatest exercise routine that you can do every day to stay out of pain. You know, five days a week for an hour. It's the other twenty three hours of the day that we incorporate into so that we don't have to rely on the exercise routine. So you're doing it right already on day one or whatever day you're on, and you're probably on somewhere around day six or seven right now. But I commend you for that. The other thing I want to say is that I kind of want to dig into the way that you describe the breathing. You know, you talk about side expansion, which is true. You know, we are because the predictable pattern is that our belly becomes, you know, kind of inhibited and underactive. The breath tends to spill out the belly. And we want to even that out by creating more tension in the belly. I don't call it bracing because bracing to me is a little bit of a different definition, where you go and you flex every muscle in your core to brace for impact. Like if you're going to get punched in the stomach, it's actually not the way that I would prefer people to look at this. The way I prefer people to do this is if you kind of flip it around and say, I'm not going to try and decide how this is going to happen, I'm just going to think intention, send breath to lower back. And my body is so brilliant that it will know how to accomplish that, which muscles to engage, how much to engage them. And I don't even have to worry about the how. So I just think, okay, I want to send my breath into my lower back and whatever the body does its magic, it actually has a weird feeling in the back where it expands a little bit. And so that's the way I would want you to look at this, even when you're walking. And I feel that that's a much more natural way to approach this in your life so that it can be integrated into everything you do, so that you're not walking around bracing all the time. Although that may have been effective for you in these early stages for a one hour walk where you could sustain that for an hour. But as we move along this program, we find the magic and the subtleties because, you know, any doing anything intense all day long is unsustainable. And we're trying to make this a sustainable process for life. And so I just wanted to kind of talk about that. And there will be expansion at the sides a little, even still out the front and hopefully a little bit of expansion out the back. So it's three hundred and sixty degrees of expansion in this cylindrical chamber that we call our core. And the important thing is that we send our breath down. And for people who are, you know, prone to just belly breathing or chest breathing, we kind of want to overcorrect a little bit and try to also send it back. So that overcorrecting kind of balances out the, uh, the pattern that may have been going on for ten, fifteen, twenty years, who knows how long? Let's see if I got all of your points that you made. Um, so decompressing. Yeah. So we increase the pressure inside the cylindrical chamber. It will have that effect of decompressing. And we are, you know, we're building abdominal tone. You know, the tone is first captured in the exhale tone activation. And then we try to maintain that tone on the inhale. And so that is the kind of the trick jump start in the beginning. It's more of the exercise version of it. And then as we get into the integrated version of this is how we breathe. That's your second question. Do you expect that people could breathe this way all day long once they sufficiently retrain to this pattern? I expect that some people will be able to do this, and I expect that some people will kind of fall off track and kind of all over the board. The full spectrum of people go through this program we have. I don't limit this program to only for certain type of people. We get all the people, and I expect that we get the full spectrum of outcomes from this type of breathing pattern. But what I do is I, I believe it's possible to make this your default breathing pattern. And even if it's not like the way that you're doing it in the exercise version where it's high intensity. I don't believe that that's something that can become ingrained, but the subtleties of the version where there's just a little bit of a shift from where it's breathing forward, forward all day, every day, for years and years and years, a little bit of a shift towards more down breath going down. I believe that pattern can shift, and the balance that we create around that pattern in our body can absolutely make that the way that we naturally breathe. And that's the way that we used to breathe when we had perfect posture and movement when we were a developing child, you know, four year old child has perfect posture and movement. So that's primarily how we would breathe. The diaphragm went down, not forward. And so yes, you can get back to that. I believe it. You have Jenny. Yeah. Hey, good to see you. Great to see you. My one of my core members. You have Jenny. I just read a book called breathe. And I don't know if it's the same book you are referring to called Just Breathe. But the book I read, breathe, was amazing. Really great book. Not so much about what I'm talking about here today. Different aspects of breathing, but you know, not so much the physical like physics biomechanics component of it, but more like the chemical, you know, oxygen, carbon dioxide components of it and overall health. So I loved that book. And yeah, breathing is pretty cool thing. So thank you for sharing that you have Jenny. I'll check that book out and thanks for showing up. Glad to see you here. This is my last question. So I'm going to sign off this week. We'll be back next week with a new topic as we do every week. So thank you again everyone. And until next week, get down on the floor and connect to your core. All right. Take care.
