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All you will need are some resistance bands, a few sets of low weight barbels and a yoga mat.
The most important thing that you can do for your body is stretch, it's even more important that strength training. It's easy to forget about keeping our muscles loose, after all, some of them aren't used that often. When the muscles become tight, they tend to pull on the bones, and unfortunately for us with our cement like bodies, most stretches are off limits. In our post-fusion years, it's important to find stretches that are able to be done without relying on the need to bend in every which way.
Since having a growth spurt as a child, my hamstring muscles and hamstring tendons have become very tight and will ache if I don't stretch them many times throughout the day...every day. It's more important now with my fusion to consistently work on my legs muscles to prevent them from pulling down on the pelvis, twisting the one bendable area into awkward positions and creating a pain that reminds me too much of scoliosis.
While stretching, I usually go with the idea of working towards the splits, even if I won't actually be able to achieve them. Having loose tendons and muscles relieves pain and makes the body feel like it isn't stuck in one position like The Tin Man. I stretch focusing on my lower half three or four times a day, doing each of the examples below and holding them for thirty seconds. As I go, there is less pain and I'm able to stretch farther and farther.
To push your muscles and tendons even more, try resistance bands. They are great in pulling different parts of the body in various directions to get a better stretch. I like to use them for my shoulder joints before weight training, as well as loosening the ankles and hips.
After the fusion, the number one rule that is drilled in day after day is "Don't lift more than ten pounds!" Constant reminders and the fear of busting a screw leaves bionics with flabby, gelatinous arms and backs. But there is hope! By using specific moves, toned arms are just a few pounds away. It's important to start light, especially during the first year post-op. I always had a fear of breaking a screw while trying to lift a two pound barbel; any cracking sound was horrifying.
Strong shoulders and upper arms help to promote healing and prevents future issues in the thoracic and lumbar spine. When the back becomes weak and loses muscle tone, it can cause painful spasms which pull the body into unnatural positions (my shoulder wing reappeared), allowing for that dull ache to return. Before I was on a constant workout regimen, I relied completely on muscle relaxers for my severe spasms.
The bum is the one area that even we can do without making too many changes. These moves work similar to yoga; each exercise uses both balance and your own weight to strengthen your booty and leg muscles. Since none of them require the use of heavy weights or bending the spine (maybe excluding the last one), it's perfect for fusions.
Lunges and squats are great for the bum, lower back and legs, especially if you want muscular legs and a bigger booty. The one thing to remember is to keep the arms out in-front of you to create a center of gravity and to stabilize your body. Remember, we tend to act like Weeble Wobbles, but we do fall down. A great way to think about it is a ballerina mid-plie (a move which is also great for stubborn inner thigh fat).
Each of the exercises below work the booty, legs and back. A strong lumbar region helps the body to remain straight without straining, and the following moves also help with the dreaded love handles (or muffin top).
The trickiest of all areas has got to be the abs. Unable to bend the back, most abdominal workouts are completely impossible. However, the plank is the easiest and most efficient bionic exercise that we have. Everything comes down to pure strength without having to rely on repetitive motion and bending. The best part of all is there are a number of ways to increase difficulty, either by going longer, lifting an arm or a leg and even changing positions entirely.
Depending on the amount of the fusion, half or full spine, other exercises are possible. Thoracic fusions allow for almost every type of crunch or sit up, while lumbar or full fusion mean that you're a tad out of luck. Having a full fusion has had me looking for additional work out ideas, and as it turns out, reverse crunches of any kind are easily done with a fusion since they focus is on the use of the lower part of your abdomen and your legs. They along with scissor crunches are normally done to strengthen the lower abs and reduce a belly pooch, meaning anyone (even normal people) can benefit from them.
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The cherry on The Big Brother sundae this summer (or winter?) has been Australia. Out of the three it has the most entertaining group as a whole. The season kicked off a few weeks ago with the terribly awkward "Marriage Task" of Drew and Jade. These complete strangers spent an entire week masquerading as a newlywed couple, sharing a bed and playing up the PDA in order to avoid eviction. At times they slipped and became rather unconvincing, but no matter what happened, you couldn't help but love them. It was clear from the get-go that poor Drew fell for Jade, but since the beginning she's made a point to refer to him as "her bestie", often reminding him that he isn't her type and how disgusting his hair smells. Poor Drew, he has definitely been sent to the ultimate Big Brother Friendzone and he is never breaking free. Lucky for him (and for us all) he has Tim who is undoubtedly the quirkiest housemate of the year. While I originally found him to be over-the-top obnoxious, I now find him completely hilarious. Tim is the one person willing to do just about anything in order entertain himself and the viewers; he doesn't give a damn about being liked which makes him the perfect antagonist for The Big Brother House. He entered the game ready to play the villain and he completely embodied the role by sadistically withholding food from the halfway house during the first week of the show. "Why should we feed them, we won't have as much food over here? Don't give them anything." He is a strange mix of a Berkley hippie and an 80's hair-band guitarist, even admitting to being intrigued by the idea of marrying a dolphin. He is a riddle wrapped in an enigma and I can't wait to watch his antics every night. But the winner of the show has got to be the precious human being Ben. He's an unemployed flight attendant who carries on conversations with the photos of his mom and gran. He even cried when he thought that the house was mad at him for believing in the "Drade" charade. Ben reminds me of a socially awkward grown man who lives with his mother in New York City. I can imagine the pair of them dressing up in smelly old fur coats and covering themselves in fake diamonds as they head out hand-in-hand to a Broadway show. His overly masculine alpha-male character that he portrays while wearing Tim's clothes is absolutely brilliant and he deserves a show centered on his life. He has to be the winner.
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Although I hate to admit it, I'm one of those insecure girls that overly relies on make-up and a perfectly executed hair style to feel confident. These last few months have been a personal test to see just how I let self image effect me. A few months ago, mid-May to be specific, my beautiful hair began to fall out. Each day I'd lose about two weeks worth of hair. I'd find it all over the floor, on my clothes and I'd pull out strands just from touching my head. I'd be out with friends and find hair all over my body and have to quickly snatch it and throw it into my purse, hoping that no one had noticed. Within weeks there were mild bald patches on my temples and my scalp began to poke through my thin pieces of hair. I haven't gone to the extreme of someone with cancer, but I have lost about half.
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| Tanned: Age 31 Fair: Age 40 |
