Be wary and take care of your back!

It ain't fun having slipped disc at all. worse still - mine occurs @ 2 pts (L2/L3 and L5/S1) and one of it contacts the nerves roots. So as much as I exert too much during strenous physical activity, there will be some ache. The L5/S1 region is the most common ailment and yet the most painful when it happens.

Treatment so far includes physiotherapy sessions to strengthen the back muscles and maintain a proper posture as much as possible and avoid carrying heavy stuff. I have also enrolled myself in yoga too. According to my friends who have the same problem, they say it helps.

So far, I had occasionly neglected most and more critically on the strengthening exercises and posture, thus the pain when I had coughed slightly more forcefully than usual while washing up, forcibly putting me into a squat, subsequently dragging myself back to bed and lie supine hoping the pain will alleviate. Didn't happen, so off to the hospital I went for treatment.

Words of advice:

1. If you are carrying an injury, take care and follow the prescriptions ordered, no matter how troublesome. Believe me, it won't be troublesome until you go to the hospital, like me.

2. If you are seeking treatment by doing some prescibed exercises, don't forget to do lots of stretching to lumber up your back. There are many websites which promote these exercises and I will link you to some lower back exercises from the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons.

3. Take care of your back when you are young. When you get older and are more prone to ailments, then having a potentially paralysing injury ain't fun at all.

Knees are hurting - Is it a major concern?

Ran the 21km category of the annual Army Half Marathon / Sheares Bridge Run. If the stock market was like the run, then Singapore's economy would forever stay bullish. The participation, as expected, was even more than last year's. People of all genders and ages come along to pit their fitness and endurance on this event. I am not too sure who won, but I marvel at the sheer fitness ability of the Indian Army representatives who clocked at 1 hr 9 min ++ seconds for 21km .. that's like an astonishing 3 min per km. That's real amazing. I wonder how they train for it. Even some of the females ran faster than myself. Feel so let down by my fitness.

Anyway, while we are trying hard to maintain our fitness for whatever agenda, we must still observe the most important rule - To take care of our body. What is the use of pushing beyond when some parts of your body says otherwise and all the yadda yadda yadda. The doctors would agree with me on this.

Your body is the most essential asset to you as a human being. Without it being in prime condition, how can someone do the multitude of tasks, from simple to complex, some even to the extreme, without your body? When you are younger, you take it for granted... by the time you are older, you'd wished you'd taken care of your body when you are younger.

Take me for example... I have been diagnosed with a minor slipped disc, but I still wnet ahead with the 21km. But because I am no longer the young and fit guy that can run without much warming up, I spend more time warming up particularly the lower back. Besides that, I am doing my exercises taught to me by a physiotherapist. HOWEVER, I am still NEGLECTING my knees. And it's my knees that almost gave way during the arduous journey after 16km as I struggle towards the finish line.

The warning signs were there since 3 yrs ago when I was 28. That was the first time my knees started to hurt after a long distance run of about 18 km, and I thought that ample rest was good enough, together with supplements like Glucosamine pills. Since then, I have been running at least once or twice a week but the intensity is not that bad. Although running was a routine, the pain will kick in only after running above 15 km, which is not so good. There were ways that I tried to tackle this pain as a preventive measure - more Glucosamine pills, running shoes with emphasis on comfort and stability, running shorter distances to maintain stamina, the works. However, this is not a sustainable solution for the long run... The fact is, till today, I have yet to see a specialist and assess the situation. Maybe by now, my ligaments may have already worn out.

The bottom line is "Don't take it to chance. If it hurts frequently, please do consult a specialist." This way you may benefit from the advice, medication, etc etc. Any type of ailment, if untreated in the long run, will come back to haunt you... the more you delay, the more frequent it will harass and inconvenience you. So like all fitness / exercise regimes place as a disclaimer in fine print, "If you feel any pain after (yadda yadda yadda), consult your physician (immediately)."