I don’t know if you’re anything like me, but I wish I had a dollar for everytime my mind had the great intention of beginning a workout program yet after just a few weeks the workouts became further and further apart until somehow I was seemingly no longer enrolled in the program.

What happened?

With me, I would begin feeling better and once that happened, without the pain reminding me to do what I needed to do, I would then forget, delay, decide it wasn’t needed, or just slack off in general.

Then, without fail, POP! Injured again. Have to start from the beginning of the healing process all over again.

Not to mention the feelings of failure, frustration, and anger over my situation.

That typically would begin with a trip to the doctor then the pharmacy, both of which cost money.

Then there was the lost income from missed days of work.

Everytime I had to start over it would cost me at least $250.

How much has your back pain cost you?

So how could all of this have been avoided?

What if instead of starting a workout program that required diligence and time to continue, I had decided just to do the bare minimum to meet my primary goals?

I believe by doing that, along with posture re-education and nutrition, I could have saved myself thousands of dollars over the past ten years.

Exercise and stretching are two areas in which I believe under-achieving consistently can lead to success.

ONE IS BETTER THAN NONE

Can’t even do ten crunches? Do one. Do one every day. One will become two. Keep doing two a day. Two will become three and so on.

Also, notice you don’t need to set aside a chunk of time to exercise and stretch.

Multiple times throughout the day I sneak off to a room with no people and do one set of crunches.

Total time required = 1-2 minutes per session.

I also do this with stretching, squats, pushups, etc…

For example, after using the restroom and washing my hands, I’ll look in the mirror to observe my form and do a few squats. That only takes me 30 seconds. (Side note to the men: Compound exercises such as squats boost testosterone) http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/topicoftheweek98.htm

So you can never honestly say, “I don’t have time.”

Another thing: Don’t try to do every exercise under the sun. Just pick a few exercises and a few stretches that work for you and your needs. In fact, certain exercises or stretches can hurt you. Form matters, don’t even THINK of doing a regular sit-up. Keep it simple!

Don’t be gung-ho and jump in with gusto just to burn yourself out or worse yet, injure yourself.

Start super-slow and easy.

After about 40 days what you have been doing will become a habit and will no longer feel like a chore. You will want to do what you have been doing, and you are going to reap the benefits! How cool is that?

One of the mistakes I made post-surgery was to rest for too long. Movement is essential to healing.

Movement increases the blood flow to the injured areas. Increased blood flow delivers the nutrients that the injury needs to heal.

What you don’t use becomes weaker. The muscles that need to be in good shape to support your back begin to atrophy or wither away.

Stronger muscles = Less injury

Flexible muscles = Less injury

A strong core to stabilize your back = Less injury

You will find that a yoga ball, an exercise mat, and even a cheap pool noodle make excellent investments.

With those you can:

Do decompression stretches – No need for an expensive inversion table

Do re-alignment stretches – No more co-pays to the chiropractor

All in all, doing just a little throughout the day does not require workout sessions to be highly effective and will save you tons of money in the long run.