[noelwelsh]

Taking a bigger picture:

Muscle atrophy is one of the biggest causes of reduced quality of life in the elderly (and also the not so elderly). Women in particular are susceptible to this due to their smaller amount of muscle mass to begin with and the general cultural aversion to women undertaking resistance exercise. My own experience (as a man and admitted gym rat) is that resistance training sorts out my back problem (and generally improves my life in other ways).

So, who's for deadlifts? :)

[nfnaaron]

I've (male) been going to they gym almost a year, after 30 years of sloth, it's made a huge difference.

I've heard some concern from women who don't want to work out too hard because they don't want to bulk up. I'm no expert, the responses I've heard have generally been something like most women aren't genetically prone to bulking, you're just going to get more fit, stronger and toned.

In case there are any women here who have had similar concerns. IMO you're much better off being strong and fit. Working out is not (necessarily) about body building, it's about health, ability and quality of life.

[jules]

> they don't want to bulk up

This is probably just an excuse for not exercising. I have never seen a woman in real life who would become more attractive by losing muscle, except professional sportswomen (and there's a reasonable chance that those women are using some kind of drug to get more muscles). Actually unless you're fat free you will probably bulk down rather than bulk up.

[bitwize]

Skinny Jessica Biel = just another actress.

Jessica Biel with muscles = hot.

I for one welcome our new amazon overlords (overladies?) and think there are worse ways to go than death by snu snu.

[sliverstorm]

Agreed- indeed, some of the cutest girls I know could become more attractive still by putting on some more lean muscle. As for whether it's an excuse or not, probably a mix. It could be for many women, fashion trends are convincing them skinny is more attractive than lithe (I love that word, describes it perfectly).

[seldo]

I strained my back a couple of years ago, causing a cascading pain reaction that locked up all the muscles in my back and resulted in a trip to the ER, pumping me full of muscle relaxants.

The simple, best and most effective treatment has been ab crunches and back extensions, a couple of times a week at the gym. As long as I do them, I'm perfect. If I skip them off for even a few weeks, I get the warning twinges of another cascade.

You don't have to be a crazy gym person, kids: just do something, anything, physical with your body on a regular basis, and it will repay you many times over.

[frankus]

I'm in!

I spent years under the misconception that being skinny (but not scrawny) meant I was fit. It wasn't until I started a proper weight/interval training routine that a) I realized how out of shape I was and b) my lower back stopped being so damned fragile.

[CWuestefeld]

My experience matches this as well.

I used to see a chiropractor for back pain, and honestly it did help a bit.

But I started exercising for other reasons, and that marked the real change. I felt better, even without going to the chiro.

I can still feel the difference today. If I go on vacation, say, and skip exercise for more than a few days, I can feel soreness and stiffness returning. But once I pick back up the exercising (and stretching, too, I suppose), the discomfort dissipates.

[a-priori]

I used to see a chiropractor for back pain, and honestly it did help a bit.

The real question is not whether it helped, but rather whether it helped more than the equivalent time to heal and possibly a massage would have.

And that's ignoring the risk of injury from a chiropractor's "corrections".

[donw]

I've just got to chime in with an oo-rah for the deadlifts... they hit your whole body, and really improved my climbing performance.

The clean-and-jerk with Olympic weights was awesome, too... anybody know of a place in the bay area where one might find some used rubber weights, cheap-ish?

[jseifer]

I'm with you! With the caveat that your form needs to be spot on to avoid injury. There are other benefits to resistance training as well: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/06/health/06real.html?src=sch