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Posted by Andy Petranek :
Monday, Feb 15, 2010
I want to start this off by saying that I've never been a believer that there is such a thing as a quick fix, for pretty much anything...
Saturday morning, I completed the WOD (which included deadlifts), and felt a little "tweak" in my upper back (nothing major). I went on with my day and didn't think much more about it. On Sunday morning (yesterday), I was dancing around the living room with my 3-yr-old, and all of a sudden, zoink - my back went into total spasm. I could hardly move or breathe. I spent time both icing and heating as well as stretching, but nothing really helped. Though I wasn't laid up on my back, and was able to move around, though slowly, I was miserable - shooting pain could come at any moment, from almost anything.
Cut to a bit earlier in the day, I had given Julia her Valentine's Day gift - an acupressure mat called a Yantra Mat. It contains 210 "flowers" on it and each one has 42 little "spikes" on it, for a total of 8,820 points that stick into your body when you lay on it. According to reviews and the website, it is a lot like lying on a bed of nails, and they claim that it brings stress relief, relaxation, and healing to anyone that uses it. When I bought it, I though it would be great for Julia for some stress relief, but as far as any real specific health or pain relief benefits, doubtful.
Well, by mid-afternoon on Valentines Day, I was desperate... decided that I'd try anything to feel better - including laying on a bed of nails - what a coincidence, I just happened to have one, Julia's Yantra Mat. I broke it out and laid down, gingerly. The first two minutes were intense and painful, but as I continued to lie on it (on my bare skin), I the pain from the spikes in my back subsided (some), enough that I could endure. I stayed on it for 20 minutes, and much to my surprise, when I got up, I was about 80% better! I was shocked, as was Julia. I did it again later in the evening and again, noticed improvement.
I can't say necessarily that it will help you if you have back, neck or shoulder pain, but for $70, it's worth a shot. I'm going to get another one to keep at the gym, so if you're interested in trying it out, let me know.
Katie - looking surprised at getting this overhead!
Today's Workout
3 Rounds, each for time and distance
10 Hang Squat Cleans (155/105)
2 minutes of Rowing (meters)
- Rest exactly 2 minutes between rounds.
- Score - both time and distance in meters for each round
