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Do Inversion Tables really work?
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For the last year or two, I have had worsening back (lower lumbar) & hip pain. Could it be age catching up with me? Probably. Could it be 35 years of running? Probably. Could it be a more sedentary life style (a lot of driving followed by a lot of sitting at a computer doing image editing)? Friggin' hurts after sitting for extended time. Could it be a lack of flexibility? Ask my wife about my lack of "flexibility". All I know is I have a hard time touching my toes. Could it be dietary? Certain foods are not agreeing with me.

All these issues have lead me to looking into an Inversion Table. Thoughts?
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [EndlessH2O] [ In reply to ]
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It's helped me. I have a herniated disc L5/S1 from 17 months ago. PT and my chiro have kept me off the operating table but the table is great in between. I use it every morning and after my runs. You can pick them up for like $100 and in my opinion worth every penny.
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [snobum] [ In reply to ]
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They can certainly help. I have one and I use it to treat a hip alignment issue. It seems that someone is always selling one on Craig's list, so you can probably pick one up for 40$. At that price it is worth a try.
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [EndlessH2O] [ In reply to ]
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Best $100 I've ever spent. It has helped me immensely.
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [EndlessH2O] [ In reply to ]
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It's worked well for me. Woot had a good buy on the Teeter Hangups for $200 so I figured it would be worth a try. Now I use it almost every day. Every time I come home from a ride or run (or whenever I feel the pain coming on) I hang on it for a few minutes to stretch out my back. It certainly hasn't cured anything but it really does help keep the pain at bay for me.
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [ In reply to ]
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I like having one and it sure has saved me a good amount of money in comparison to what my Chiro charges for being on his traction table. Of course the computerized traction table can focus in on specific areas, whereas, I only feel the inversion table helps with the lower back issues. I have mostly lower back issues so it serves me well. I also find it helps stretch out tight psoas and other core muscles that tend to lock down if doing a lot of training hours compacted in an aero position.

My only regret was that I bought a fairly expensive model that is really heavy duty. It does fold up, but not as compact and being heavy it takes more effort to move around and set up. I wished I had bought a cheaper and lighter table.
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [EndlessH2O] [ In reply to ]
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It was about the only thing that seemed to help one of my clients. Maybe ask your Dr. if it is right for you?
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [EndlessH2O] [ In reply to ]
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I will be as brief as possible. You will only know if you try.

Had I listened to my neuro or the ST 'inteligentsia' I would have never tried it. I have had 2 discectomies: ruptures at L4/L5 and L5/S1. Was heading for my 3rd at the behest of my neuro and as a last try I bought a Teeter. That was over two years ago and I have not been to see my neuro since. Oddly he told me if I tried an inversion table I would do irreparable damage and be back in his office 'with no options'. He might be right who knows. As far as my anecdotal input here I have never felt better......that is at least since the day b/f I was hit by a drunk driver originally causing the injury. The doc thought inversion therapy was a kook, as it turns out he seems to be the kook. Not only is my on again/off again sciatic nerve impingement gone, but the foot drop that was supposedly permanent sciatic nerve damage is.....gone. All feeling back in my heel.

I spent 25 years letting neurosurgeons cut me up to the tune of over $60k of my own money and got progressively a tiny bit worse every year. Then I spent $300 on a Teeter 2 years ago and have never felt better.

YMMV.
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [tigerpaws] [ In reply to ]
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tigerpaws wrote:
Oddly he told me if I tried an inversion table I would do irreparable damage and be back in his office 'with no options'.
YMMV.

Maybe he meant irreparable damage to his bottom line and no options needed for surgery?
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [mcmetal] [ In reply to ]
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I get relief from my inversion table. Slow rocking back and forth for several minutes usually helps.
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [EndlessH2O] [ In reply to ]
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Have you tried changing your posture at work? You can try sitting on a swiss ball or similar to avoid slouching, do some stretching every hour, change your desk to a stand-up desk or at least elevate your key board/mouse and screen to change your posture. A mixture of these helps me a lot. I have a swiss ball in my office. If I start feeling any lower back pain, I stretch my back a bit on it and replace my chair with it. Good luck!

Francois-Xavier Li @FrancoisLi
"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." George Bernard Shaw
http://www.swimrunfrance.fr
http://www.worldofswimrun.com
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [EndlessH2O] [ In reply to ]
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I've never tried the inversion boots, much tempted for sure. But I don't think it's necessary, if you can re-hab & stretch out your hip flexors, psoas, quads, IT, build up your lower abdominals, hamstrings, glutes, work your gluteus medius and minmus in contraction, and correct any side to side imbalance or full chain deficiencies from head to toe. Did I miss anything? :)

Of course you guys knew that Teeter was a waterskiing engineer with a bad back. He had a bad back because when you slalom ski with feet in-line on your ski, you twist your spine and form up a wicked imbalance, in addition to tightening your hip flexors beyond belief. There are plenty of pro water skiers with new hips out there too. So the sport is designed to fail that way.

I figure that the hangups only perform a decompression function and while they do stretch you out, not enough to handle 70% of what I started this post off with. So??? I think the docs and users are both right actually.

My wife and I started Teeter Hang Ups® in my forties as a result of my own journey to find relief from back pain. At the time, I was designing waterskis and competing at a national level, though my back pain was so severe that I was forced to wear a steel reinforced lace-up brace every time I skied. Through other competitive skiers, I was introduced to Gravity Boots and for the first time I was pain free. The relief was not just the result of silencing symptoms; inversion was actually targeting the source of the ache. As an engineer, I knew I found my calling--to design and manufacture inversion equipment so that more people could take control of their health and find natural, sustainable relief.

Training Tweets: https://twitter.com/Jagersport_com
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [mcmetal] [ In reply to ]
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mcmetal wrote:
tigerpaws wrote:
Oddly he told me if I tried an inversion table I would do irreparable damage and be back in his office 'with no options'.
YMMV.


Maybe he meant irreparable damage to his bottom line and no options needed for surgery?
The inversion therapy has given me pause to consider the path I took over the years for sure. I'm quite flexible and strong in my postural and movement mechanics as I went through a real learning curve years ago when I went on a rigorous dry land modus operandi. Learning how to support yourself in the water face down is a far cry from standing or walking well. It's hard! Even at that and given my progressions the dessication of my disc material was still causing sciatic issues. Apparently surgery was not the answer. 2 years and counting with Teeter. It will be an interesting greeting if I ever have the chance to cross paths with the surgeon again and revisit my 'mistake'. In the end I would never recommend not seeking professional medical advice, but in my case traditional medicine had run it's course in my opinion. I was willing to take the risk of trying something new. That old adage about doing the same thing and expecting different results started to resonate with me:/
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [EndlessH2O] [ In reply to ]
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I have herniations in L4/L5 and L5/S1. I have an inversion table, and it definitely has helped keep me in the game.

The one MAJOR caution that I was given is to not hang upside down for more than 30 secs at a time. This is to prevent too much blood from collecting in the brain, which could cause capillaries to burst, which of course could end up causing all sorts of nasty problems that I don't even want to think about. I'll hang and/or stretch for 30 secs, come up to level or head just slightly higher than my feet for approx 15 secs, then invert again. Several repeats of this I find works best for me.

I can do, and am comfortable with, full inversion. But full inversion is not needed to realize benefits. You caution and common sense; your body will tell you (quickly!) if you're doing too much. A little goes a long way!

Hope this helps,

Brian

.

Swim. Bike. Run. Repeat as necessary.
Welcome to the Church of Briantriology!
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Re: Do Inversion Tables really work? [EndlessH2O] [ In reply to ]
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You can get similar decompression in the pool. Put a five pound ankle weight on each leg, and wrap two noodles under your armpits. Hang in the water for ten minutes (find a warm wellness pool, vs. cool exercise pool). It looks like this:

http://www.aquaticsphysicaltherapy.com/...physical-therapy.jpg

Don't laugh--there's well designed research (that I can't find right now) that demonstrates it produces as much decompression as mechnical traction.

No coasting in running and no crying in baseball
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