TheBroBrah's Guide To Correcting Excessive APT.

[backinbusiness]

I wonder why the chiro didn't say anything about it? He said my curve was fine, but it was leaned "forward" a little.

Either way, I'll start the program and see how it goes. Starting right now just got the foam roller.
EDIT: How frequent did you do the program? x times per day? once per day? How long a session each time? All exercises on that pdf?

[TheBroBrah]

The most obvious sign is your distended gut. Compare your arch to a neutral spine. Also, all of those questions are answered in this thread. Just skim through it and you will find them.


Here's a pic of a neutral spine comparing to your spine, as you can see there's quite a bit more curve in your spine, also notice how your belt line points down instead of straight.

[backinbusiness]

I see what you mean now....the belt line is a huge giveaway. I though for a second it was just my shorts...but I checked again in the mirror and its definitely pointing down.

I do know over the last year I unintentionally was trying to keep a really strong lower arch to improve strength -- maybe now that my new job is standing all day, its simply allowed an underlying problem to flare up since I am standing in the already bad posture all day long now. Does that make sense?

[TheBroBrah]

I see what you mean now....the belt line is a huge giveaway. I though for a second it was just my shorts...but I checked again in the mirror and its definitely pointing down.

I do know over the last year I unintentionally was trying to keep a really strong lower arch to improve strength -- maybe now that my new job is standing all day, its simply allowed an underlying problem to flare up since I am standing in the already bad posture all day long now. Does that make sense?

Yep, makes perfect sense. Now that you know you have it you can start practicing good posture during the day.

Remember, pull your core in, but not too much. Squeeze your glutes. Pull your shoulders back and down. Do this all during the day and you will end up feeling much better. And will become natural over a few weeks time.

[backinbusiness]

I'm so excited that I may be able to get this fixed after 6 months of pain. At one point I could barely stand by the end of the day and had shooting pains up an down my entire back. It was BAD. It happened every day at work for about 2 weeks. Worst time of my life.

This also makes sense too....I bought new shoes and it was even WORSE. I then removed my shoes altogether and stand bare feet now (since nobody can see my shoes its not a big deal -- I tell my boss to live with it or send me on workmans comp) and it got 5x better...It is still BAD, but at least now I don't have shooting pains up and down the back.

I can only assume removal of the shoes means my back is now arching less on an already overarched problem since I am reading heels make it worse?

Everything is adding up now.

EDIT: Also, one thing I am not 100% sure on....I'm supposed to be strengthening my hamstrings, NOT stretching them, right? Quads I do both...?

PS: I've slept on my stomach since I have been born. Go figure...

[TheBroBrah]

I'm so excited that I may be able to get this fixed after 6 months of pain. At one point I could barely stand by the end of the day and had shooting pains up an down my entire back. It was BAD. It happened every day at work for about 2 weeks. Worst time of my life.

This also makes sense too....I bought new shoes and it was even WORSE. I then removed my shoes altogether and stand bare feet now (since nobody can see my shoes its not a big deal -- I tell my boss to live with it or send me on workmans comp) and it got 5x better...It is still BAD, but at least now I don't have shooting pains up and down the back.

I can only assume removal of the shoes means my back is now arching less on an already overarched problem since I am reading heels make it worse?

Everything is adding up now.

EDIT: Also, one thing I am not 100% sure on....I'm supposed to be strengthening my hamstrings, NOT stretching them, right? Quads I do both...?

PS: I've slept on my stomach since I have been born. Go figure...

Mine was probably just as bad as yours. It was a living nightmare. Back pain ALL of the time. Knee pain ALL of the time. Hip pain ALL of the time. **** sucks man. But then i finally started researching and found out i had APT.

I always wear skate shoes because they have flat sols. Your right about that, what shoes you wear can make it worse.

Yes, don't stretch your hammies, just strengthen them. Quads you should be stretching, but you should try to stay away from quad dominant exercises.

I've also slept on my stomach since i was born. Finally learned to start sleeping on my side.

[K0pe]

What does squezing glutes through the day do? My posture is fine now (back always straight) but I never squeeze them except when I need more power when lifting

[backinbusiness]

I did the exercises 3 times yesterday....Woke up this AM and my tilt has already improved probably 5deg or so. Gonna keep it up and hopefully the tightness in the back subsides in the next week or so.

I'm really concentrating on my posture standing and walking. I have work on Tuesday (10hr shift standing still) so that will be the biggest test.

[TheBroBrah]

I did the exercises 3 times yesterday....Woke up this AM and my tilt has already improved probably 5deg or so. Gonna keep it up and hopefully the tightness in the back subsides in the next week or so.

I'm really concentrating on my posture standing and walking. I have work on Tuesday (10hr shift standing still) so that will be the biggest test.

That's great too hear man!!! Just keep concentrating on it and don't quit! Try to do it as much as possible at work and it will become an easy habbit in no time.

What does squezing glutes through the day do? My posture is fine now (back always straight) but I never squeeze them except when I need more power when lifting

It helps keep your spine in a better, more neutral, position. Squeeze them throughout the day, it is very important if you have APT.

[backinbusiness]

I notice that in the last few weeks (prior to starting this routine of course) some of the tightness moved from my lower back to the bottom to mid lat (left side)....did you experience any tightness or pain anywhere else other than your lower back?

I tell you the foam roller on the lat is a killer for me! Every time I roll it seems to get easier though, so somethings happening.

Also, how important is the strengthening? Since my back is so tender, I'm afraid of simply having the muscles tighten up as soon as I begin lifting anything. Would you recommend I continue doing the rolling, glutes and ab routines for a few weeks until the pain + tightness subsides and then progress onto strengthening?

I know put to the test, I could probably still deadlift 250lbs or so for sets, but the following day would be unbearable tightness...

EDIT: Oh one more Q....think I should keep ibuprofin in my system for the next week consistently for anti-inflammatory? I really wanna get "back in business" asap!

[TheBroBrah]

I notice that in the last few weeks (prior to starting this routine of course) some of the tightness moved from my lower back to the bottom to mid lat (left side)....did you experience any tightness or pain anywhere else other than your lower back?

I tell you the foam roller on the lat is a killer for me! Every time I roll it seems to get easier though, so somethings happening.

Also, how important is the strengthening? Since my back is so tender, I'm afraid of simply having the muscles tighten up as soon as I begin lifting anything. Would you recommend I continue doing the rolling, glutes and ab routines for a few weeks until the pain + tightness subsides and then progress onto strengthening?

I know put to the test, I could probably still deadlift 250lbs or so for sets, but the following day would be unbearable tightness...

EDIT: Oh one more Q....think I should keep ibuprofin in my system for the next week consistently for anti-inflammatory? I really wanna get "back in business" asap!

I never really had tightness in my upper back, but i would just recommend foam rolling your lats, which your doing already. I would try some lat stretches too, you can prob find some on youtube.

As you begin to foam roll more and more there will be less pain, so what you do is try to figure out how to put more of your bodyweight onto that muscle while rolling. When i foam roll my back and quads for instance, i do my quads one at a time with all my weight on that leg, and then when i do my lower back i do one side of my back first, with most of my weight.

Strengthening your glutes, hammies, and abs will help quite a bit. But yeah don't try to go too heavy on deads or squats, you don't want your lowerback coming too much into play. Don't go heavy on deads again until you feel like you've made some good progress. And once you start doing deads again it's very important that you keep foam rolling and stretching.

About the ibuprofen, you can use it man, i don't see any problem i guess.

[backinbusiness]

is side lying leg raises a hip flexor exercise? My back is tight on the left side and I noticed that side leg raises are 5x more difficult for my leg leg than my right. I did 20 extensions with my right leg and only managed 14 on the left.

[Skillmister]

Wow just came across this. Looks like ive got APT pretty bad. I dont get any pain in back/knees etc and i get decent glute activation in deads. Definately got dat ass and spine curve though.

How much progress do you think i can make doing all the static stretches and posture as theres no way i can get a foam roller at the moment.

[TheKoiCarp]

Wow just came across this. Looks like ive got APT pretty bad. I dont get any pain in back/knees etc and i get decent glute activation in deads. Definately got dat ass and spine curve though.

How much progress do you think i can make doing all the static stretches and posture as theres no way i can get a foam roller at the moment.

any kind of consistent stretching will help and practicing good posture is something everyone should do regardless so go for it.

Foam rolling is just to help force the lumps and knots out of tight muscle groups, its no different to getting a deep tissue massage. You can easily do the same thing on your calves / IT bands using a rolling pin, round metal bar etc

[Skillmister]

any kind of consistent stretching will help and practicing good posture is something everyone should do regardless so go for it.

Foam rolling is just to help force the lumps and knots out of tight muscle groups, its no different to getting a deep tissue massage. You can easily do the same thing on your calves / IT bands using a rolling pin, round metal bar etc

Awesome. Got a holiday in summer so would love to have some improvements by then (not to mention some decent mass but thats a different story haha)

Will start doing some daily stretching cheers

edit: i feel like when i pull my shoulders back and chest out it just exagerrates the problem. should i be trying to do this and roll hips back/ tighten glutes at the same time?

[TheKoiCarp]

edit: i feel like when i pull my shoulders back and chest out it just exagerrates the problem. should i be trying to do this and roll hips back/ tighten glutes at the same time?

you are prob arching in the effort to get your chest out.

stand up straight and relaxed with your usual poor posture

squeeze your glutes, imagine trying to hold a bank note in-between your butt cheeks. If you do this with a mirror side view in tight boxer shorts you can also imagine trying to thrust your cawk out to make your package look bigger (silly i know but it does work as a good point of reference)

now lift your chest by breathing in... not thrust it out... just lift it gently.

As you chest is lifted breath out and let your shoulder drop down.... that should give you a straighter back with lifted chest. Your glutes should still be tense at this point.

If you are struggling to keep your cawk thrust forward while doing this you can bend your knees slightly to get the upright position then work on loosening your hip flexors to allow you to keep your legs straight

[Skillmister]

As you chest is lifted breath out and let your shoulder drop down.... that should give you a straighter back with lifted chest. Your glutes should still be tense at this point.
t

This looks so much better, will keep doing along with stretches etc thanks

[TheBroBrah]

is side lying leg raises a hip flexor exercise? My back is tight on the left side and I noticed that side leg raises are 5x more difficult for my leg leg than my right. I did 20 extensions with my right leg and only managed 14 on the left.

You mean clams? They are for hip flexor mobility.

you are prob arching in the effort to get your chest out.

stand up straight and relaxed with your usual poor posture

squeeze your glutes, imagine trying to hold a bank note in-between your butt cheeks. If you do this with a mirror side view in tight boxer shorts you can also imagine trying to thrust your cawk out to make your package look bigger (silly i know but it does work as a good point of reference)

now lift your chest by breathing in... not thrust it out... just lift it gently.

As you chest is lifted breath out and let your shoulder drop down.... that should give you a straighter back with lifted chest. Your glutes should still be tense at this point.

If you are struggling to keep your cawk thrust forward while doing this you can bend your knees slightly to get the upright position then work on loosening your hip flexors to allow you to keep your legs straight

lmfao.

You explained it well though, GJDM.

[backinbusiness]

Alright so I am a week in.....my back arch is noticeably better, almost normal posture I would guess now. Tightness though has simply moved, not really gotten better. It is no longer tight in the lower back, but has moved to the bottom of my left lat. When I bend at the waist to the side its really, really tight.

Any suggestions?

Also, hip flexors on the roller are very painful -- genuine pain. Is this normal? I am cringing and fighting to roll on them.

Would you recommend I begin working with weights yet or keep static stretching?

[jam88]

Sup Brah,

I've have some pretty brutal APT and it just recently started causing me back pain so now i REALLY want to get rid of it fast. I bought a foam roller, been using it for about a week now. And before that I had been stretching 1-2 times a day for the past 3 weeks.

Also I made a small workout which I do about twice a week to target my hammies, glutes and core. I have also been doing this for ~3 weeks. These are some of the exercises I've been doing:

- Romanian DL (hamstrings)
- Cable kickbacks (glutes)
- Standing leg curls (do these sometimes for hamstrings)
- Bridges
- Planks(Haven't been doing them regularly, always feels so awkward)

Does that seem like a decent routine? I know it isnt great but I have limited equipment and can't do some of the exercises you suggested in the OP .

Also, I have an inversion table at my disposable, do you (or anyone else) think this would be beneficial for correcting excessive APT?

Thanks man, really appreciate it.

[themoose333]

good stuff OP, if you check my side pics from bodyspace you'll notice my case of ATP. I'll be stretching my glutes/quads every day!

[backinbusiness]

Here's my 1 week progress....I can see a big difference....Getting there! Today I feel so great Best i've felt in MONTHS.



I think I need to adjust a little, maybe I've been concentrating almost too hard on pulling the pelvis up...what do you think?

[TheBroBrah]

Here's my 1 week progress....I can see a big difference....Getting there! Today I feel so great Best i've felt in MONTHS.



I think I need to adjust a little, maybe I've been concentrating almost too hard on pulling the pelvis up...what do you think?

Wow man can definitley see a difference!

Ok you have one thing you need to fix. Pull your shoulders back a lot more, you have them rounded, pull them back and down, that could also be what's causing your lat pain. Protracted shoulders are a bad habbit and are caused by too many pushing movements and not enough pulling movements, hit that back and those rear delts a bit more!

good stuff OP, if you check my side pics from bodyspace you'll notice my case of ATP. I'll be stretching my glutes/quads every day!

Yes you definitely have it my man! You'll be lookin and feelin better in no time!

Sup Brah,

I've have some pretty brutal APT and it just recently started causing me back pain so now i REALLY want to get rid of it fast. I bought a foam roller, been using it for about a week now. And before that I had been stretching 1-2 times a day for the past 3 weeks.

Also I made a small workout which I do about twice a week to target my hammies, glutes and core. I have also been doing this for ~3 weeks. These are some of the exercises I've been doing:

- Romanian DL (hamstrings)
- Cable kickbacks (glutes)
- Standing leg curls (do these sometimes for hamstrings)
- Bridges
- Planks(Haven't been doing them regularly, always feels so awkward)

Does that seem like a decent routine? I know it isnt great but I have limited equipment and can't do some of the exercises you suggested in the OP .

Also, I have an inversion table at my disposable, do you (or anyone else) think this would be beneficial for correcting excessive APT?

Thanks man, really appreciate it.

That's great your are trying to fix your APT, glad you found out you had it!! Routine seems good man. Just do those exercises and you should be good. Keep up the foam rolling and static stretching as well man!

Alright so I am a week in.....my back arch is noticeably better, almost normal posture I would guess now. Tightness though has simply moved, not really gotten better. It is no longer tight in the lower back, but has moved to the bottom of my left lat. When I bend at the waist to the side its really, really tight.

Any suggestions?

Also, hip flexors on the roller are very painful -- genuine pain. Is this normal? I am cringing and fighting to roll on them.

Would you recommend I begin working with weights yet or keep static stretching?

Foam roll your lats as well as stretch them.

It should be painful to roll your hip flexors because usually that's your tightest muscle when you have APT.

You can work with weights but don't go too heavy on lower body exercises, get your form right and make sure you can at least get SOME glute activation.

[user58374]

I heard a physical therapist tell me that if you learn how to make it a habit of sitting up straight for 5-10 min every hour or however hours through a day (it can be everytime you misc) that your posture will get even better.

[TheKoiCarp]

sup my APT brahs, just to update about a stretch that had really helped me in maintaining tight glutes throughout the day while walking and sitting

Glute bridge



this can be tough at first, you should aim to hold it for a set amount of time (2mins for me) 3-4 times per session. You can hold weights on your crotch for more progression. It helped stretch out a really tight muscle deep in my glute and i have notice it becoming easier to maintain my posture throughout the day since doing it

[PerpetualMotion]

^^ That sounds like too much time to me. The purpose of a supine bridge is to teach proper hip extension (as opposed to lumbar extension) and gluteal activation. You're not really stretching the glutes as much as you're contracting and activating them.

Anyway, awesome article on glutes:
http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_...the_glute_myth

I'm not even close to progressing to weighted glute bridges but it's a great article for anyone with APT.

[superasn]

hi,

i just stumbled upon this thread and i think i have this too. just took a pic also and I can definitely see a visible curve in my lower back (like the first post). Anyway, I just ordered my foam roller and will try to do these exercises from tomorrow... I've also had lower back pain since god knows forever but i thought it is something to do with my computer related job and sitting on a chair all day..

I'm a very new member here but I've been highly impressed with how informative the posts are here. I think this post in particular is really awesome, for some guy to take time and collect such useful information and share it for free. So thank you for that.

Also I'm feeling extra motived with the fat to fit sticky thread in the pics section.. those are some really awesome transformations! man, i'm so excited.

glad I could be part of such an awesome forum.. thank you

regards,
san

[martial-man420]

Great thread. I will start doing this as I think i have slight (it's probably bad but i dunno as have never really looked side on) APT

BackinBusiness that APT looks so much better. I thought you had a beer belly in the first picture from that angle but now it looks like a completely flat chest.

I didn't realise that you could fix this problem.

When i start doing this I will post before and after pictures at some point

[TheBroBrah]

Great thread. I will start doing this as I think i have slight (it's probably bad but i dunno as have never really looked side on) APT

BackinBusiness that APT looks so much better. I thought you had a beer belly in the first picture from that angle but now it looks like a completely flat chest.

I didn't realise that you could fix this problem.

When i start doing this I will post before and after pictures at some point

Thanks man, yeah you'd be surprised at how much of a difference you can make in such a short time period. This problem is definitely fixable, people just don't know it, and instead listen to a doctor and take drugs all their life.

Lookin forward to those before and after pictures!

hi,

i just stumbled upon this thread and i think i have this too. just took a pic also and I can definitely see a visible curve in my lower back (like the first post). Anyway, I just ordered my foam roller and will try to do these exercises from tomorrow... I've also had lower back pain since god knows forever but i thought it is something to do with my computer related job and sitting on a chair all day..

I'm a very new member here but I've been highly impressed with how informative the posts are here. I think this post in particular is really awesome, for some guy to take time and collect such useful information and share it for free. So thank you for that.

Also I'm feeling extra motived with the fat to fit sticky thread in the pics section.. those are some really awesome transformations! man, i'm so excited.

glad I could be part of such an awesome forum.. thank you

regards,
san

Thanks man, glad you liked my post. I'm happy that people are now realizing they can make their life so much better if they just fix their posture, it will help attraction wise (no homo) and health wise.

Glad too see your taking action and getting a foam roller and wanting to fix your APT. Good luck man! And if you need any help just ask I'm always here!

^^ That sounds like too much time to me. The purpose of a supine bridge is to teach proper hip extension (as opposed to lumbar extension) and gluteal activation. You're not really stretching the glutes as much as you're contracting and activating them.

Anyway, awesome article on glutes:
http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_...the_glute_myth

I'm not even close to progressing to weighted glute bridges but it's a great article for anyone with APT.

This.

sup my APT brahs, just to update about a stretch that had really helped me in maintaining tight glutes throughout the day while walking and sitting

Glute bridge



this can be tough at first, you should aim to hold it for a set amount of time (2mins for me) 3-4 times per session. You can hold weights on your crotch for more progression. It helped stretch out a really tight muscle deep in my glute and i have notice it becoming easier to maintain my posture throughout the day since doing it

sup Brah, if you read my original post i say that your suppposed to STRENGTHEN the glutes not stretch them haha Nah but that is a glute strengthening exercise anyway, that's why you've noticed your holding your posture better because of it. Once you get strong enough in your glutes, progress too the 1 legged bridge, hits my glutes like no other.

I heard a physical therapist tell me that if you learn how to make it a habit of sitting up straight for 5-10 min every hour or however hours through a day (it can be everytime you misc) that your posture will get even better.

Yes, very true. Most people are sitting down during the day anyway.

[user58374]

TheBroBrah i think i fixed my APT. I did a very long stretch on my hip muscles and i felt a blood/urine rushing sensation down my groin area. I feel a lot looser... Maybe because i stretched my entire body with a 2hours of yoga techniques. Is it normal for that to happen the way it did though? (How did you know your APT was fixed btw).