Relieve your back pain in less than 10 minutes with this simple workout
ELDOA has been around for years—and it's time you tried it
Back in the early 1990s, a French osteopath named Guy Voyer introduced the health-and-fitness world to his program known as "ELDOA." It's an acronym of French words, but it translates in English to "Longitudinal Osteo-articular Decoaptation Stretching."
The program focuses on decompression of the joints throughout the body, especially the 33 vertebra from the base of your head to your tailbone. Voyer (photo, below) has been greatly applauded for his techniques, which have freed up movement and relieved pain for thousands of people who suffer from joint issues, mostly acquired through aging and activities of daily life.
One proponent of the ELDOA is Dan Hellman (pictured at the top of the article). He is one of Golf Digest's Best Fitness Trainers in America and works with golfers in Fort Lauderdale. Hellman came up with a brilliant routine that can be done in less than 10 minutes that focuses on increasing the spacing between your vertebra. For golfers, it's a game changer. When you think about the amount of time you sit each day, and then compound that time with the torsion and compression you put on your spine when you play golf, it seems like it's only a matter of time before back pain is at your door.
The long-hold poses of ELDOA create tension in the myofascial chains (fascia) within your body. If you're not familiar with the purpose of fascia, Golf Digest fitness advisor Jill Miller talks about it in her article on foam rolling.
Back to ELDOA, Hellman, a Golf Digest Certified Fitness Trainer, recommends you do this program multiple times and be sure to warm up before you do (ride a bike, jog, etc.). "If you did it three times per week, I think would be fantastic," he says.