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Trip Report: Lower Back Pain Seminar

An in-depth look at this sold-out, cutting-edge PICP seminar

If you are involved in any aspect of strength and conditioning, at any level, at some point you will encounter clients with lower back pain. From 13-year-old elite gymnasts who train 30 hours a week to clinically obese teenagers who spend the same amount of time each week playing video games. From new mothers who are recovering from childbearing and dealing with the new stress of carrying an infant, to senior citizens who just want to be able to play a round of golf without pain. So the question is not how prevalent lower back is but what to do about it. One good answer is to attend a seminar by physical therapist Nick Liatsos.

On the weekend of January 9-10, the Poliquin Strength Institute sponsored such a seminar by Liatsos called “Accelerated Healing from Sports Injuries: The Lower Back.” It is part of our Special Consideration Training Series, and as with most of these seminars, it sold out quickly. The seminar attracted personal trainers, strength coaches and therapists from around the world, including Singapore, Germany and the Middle East. Liatsos, a licensed physical therapist and the owner of HealthPro Physical Therapy in Lynn, Massachusetts, is especially qualified to teach this particular seminar, as he trained in ART®, clinical kinesiology and Frequency Specific Microcurrent (FSM), and is a PICP Level II.

The seminar began on Saturday morning with a lecture discussing the most common types of lower back pain and the challenges of determining the specific causes of each type of pain. Although diagnostic tools such as MRIs and x-rays are valuable, Liatsos noted that in one research project examining individuals who had ruptured discs, 28 percent of them reported no back pain. Further, Liatsos said that although surgery is often believed to be the only cure for many types of back pain, especially in those involving the discs, the truth is that an estimated 50 percent of back surgeries to repair discs fail. Because a single back surgery to repair a disc can easily cost more than $50,000 when you factor in the costs of the hospital stay, there has been a high interest in seeking out methods to avoid going under the knife. One method, of course, is drugs.

Drugs are commonly prescribed to deal with inflammation and the pain associated with lower back injuries, and there are many over-the-counter medications that are commonly used. Liatsos went into detail about the many side effects associated with these drugs. One side effect, as many celebrities such as Rush Limbaugh would attest to, is chronic addiction. Liatsos also explained that many of these drugs were released to the American market prematurely and resulted in many serious medical conditions. For example, the Cox-2 inhibitor Vioxx, which was commonly prescribed for arthritis, may have been directly responsible for the deaths of up to 55,000 people. So although drugs are convenient and often effective for dealing with pain and inflammation, they should be used with caution.

Liatsos touched on the classic, and most common, nonsurgical and nonchemical ways to heal back pain: massage therapy, ice and heat therapy, chiropractic manipulation, ultrasound, electrostimulation and static stretching. He then discussed the effectiveness of these methods, using many of his own case studies, and explained why these results are often not as effective as expected. This led into a discussion about alternative methods, the focus of the remainder of the seminar. These methods included nutritional intervention, microcurrent therapy, myofascial stretching, ELDOA, ART© and strength training, with Liatsos and I contributing in turn our individual knowledge and experience to the discussion.

Nutritional Intervention. Can eating a cheese pizza cause back pain? Liatsos says yes – as can many other common foods such as hamburgers, pasta and (sorry, Homer Simpson) doughnuts. First, there are many foods that can increase inflammation, the most common culprits being dairy, wheat, sugar, corn, soy, eggs and peanuts – these foods must be avoided by those suffering from lower back pain. One easy way to ensure that you are eating well is by following a Paleo type of diet, which is discussed in detail in our nutritional seminars and PICP certification. Further, Liatsos explained that due to the structure and function of a connective tissue called fascia, foods that contain gluten can be a direct cause of lower back pain.

Fascia is the connective tissue that envelopes, shapes and connects every muscle in the body. In fact, it’s been shown that in males, through the influence of fascia, there is a direct connection between the brain tissue of a male and his testicles! Humor aside, Liatsos explained that because the fascia of the colon is connected to the discs, consuming gluten can cause the colon to contract and physically twist the lumbar vertebrae, causing pain. So it’s not just that you are what you eat but that you feel what you eat.

At this point in the seminar Liatsos and I discussed specific, natural supplements that can help with back pain. Among these supplements are the following:

Omega 3 (in a 6:1 ratio)
Sinew Plex
Flame Quench Px
Chondro Px
NAC-2 Plex
Licorice Supreme
Joint Task Force Px
Inflam Px

Precise protocols for each of these supplements were discussed, along with additional supplements that have shown promise. For example, recent research on D3 has shown that it not only has anti-inflammatory properties but also can lead to dramatic reductions in musculoskeletal pain. Further, there is a new supplement that has been shown to have promise in nerve regeneration (and when this supplement becomes available in the US, we will provide information on our website and on our Facebook and Twitter accounts about how to obtain it).

Microcurrent Therapy. Although this may seem like a new treatment, microcurrent therapy (MCT) can be traced back nearly a century to the work of Dr. Albert Abrams. MCT is a remarkably versatile treatment that involves applying precise frequencies of electrical current matched to the specific tissue and injury. As such, MCT machines can be programmed to treat the specific medical conditions affecting individual patients, including inflammation and scar tissue, and research shows that it can accelerate the healing of many injuries by as much as 200 percent! MCT also has been found to be a valuable method to effectively treat many types of chronic pain – in many cases providing almost immediate relief. In fact, Dr. James Oschman, a distinguished medical researcher who has written more than two dozen articles on alternative medicine that have been published in peer-reviewed journals, has given the following testimonial about the effectiveness and versatility of MCT: “Anything that can be done with a drug can also be done with a frequency, without side effects.”

After discussing the science behind MCT, Liatsos gave a practical demonstration of the treatment on a seminar participant who had chronic lower back pain that has the symptoms associated with a disc injury. Liatsos did an assessment of this individual’s condition and then proceeded to treat him with the appropriate MCT protocols. The following day, the participant reported that he’d had a great night’s sleep and was pain free.

Myofascial Stretching. Fascia plays an important role in determining the range of motion of all the lumbar and cervical vertebrae. Liatsos explained that stretching the fascia helps restore and maintain the proper functioning of the spine, but requires a specific form of exercise called myofascial stretching.

Myofascial stretching involves positioning the body in specific postures and contracting muscles so that the specific myofascia (myo meaning “muscle”) is elongated. This is a radically different type of stretching from the static stretching that is usually taught by most personal trainers, strength coaches and health care professionals – but the difference in results is remarkable.

ELDOA. ELDOA is the French acronym for Etirements Longitunaux avec Decoaptation Osteo-Articulaire, which in English translates to LOADS (Longitudinal Osteo Articular Decoaptation Stretching). The ELDOA were developed in France more than 20 years ago by Dr. Guy Voyer and a group of skilled therapists. This form of fascial stretching helps decompress the entire spine and normalize alignment of not only the lumbar vertebrae but also the cervical vertebrae. Participants were shown how to perform the five most important ELDOA to maintain and improve spinal health.

ART. ART, also known as Active Release Techniques, is a collection of different “hands-on” soft-tissue techniques that, among other benefits, treat alterations in tissue texture and tension. It was developed by chiropractor Dr. Michael Leahy of Colorado Springs, Colorado. Those in attendance saw a dramatic demonstration of how ART, in conjunction with MCT, can help improve range of motion of the spine to return it to normal functioning.

Strength Training. The final portion of this seminar included a lecture about the most effective resistance training exercises for the lower back, such as 45-degree back extensions for the lower back and specific abdominal exercises to strengthen specific muscles that are often weak in those suffering from lower back pain. Appropriate protocols for these exercises were provided, and participants had the opportunity to perform them in our state-of-the-art weightroom.

As promised, the focus of the seminar was to teach the most effective nonsurgical and nonchemical treatment protocols for the prevention and treatment of lower back injuries. And as with all the seminars sponsored by the Poliquin Strength Institute, attendees were taught skills they can implement immediately with their clients. It was a great seminar, so be certain to check our website frequently for the next one so you don’t miss out on these great educational opportunities.