Back Pain, Challenges that change your Life, and the Joy of Health

According to the World Health Organization, approximately 629 million people worldwide live with lower back pain, affecting nearly one in four adults. It is currently the leading cause of disability globally, and experts estimate that the number of people suffering from low back pain could reach 843 million by the year 2050.

When I read statistics like these, I cannot help but think about one of the biggest reasons I dedicated my life to fitness, strength training, and helping others move better.

My own battle with back pain began almost 30 years ago.

At the time, I was a young football player in Mexico with dreams of becoming one of the best athletes on my team. I loved training and spent countless hours working on my strength and conditioning.

It is important to remember that this was long before the internet, YouTube, smartphones, or online coaching. Information about training, injury prevention, and proper technique was difficult to find. In Mexico, it was even harder.

The gym where we trained was nothing like the facilities we have access to today.

There were no resistance bands, no mobility tools, no suspension trainers, no physiotherapy balls, and certainly none of the equipment we often take for granted now. The gym itself was little more than a small room with a handful of rusty weights and homemade equipment.

The football field wasn’t much different. We trained on dirt and rocks with patches of grass scattered throughout the field.

Looking back, we were all doing the best we could with the resources we had.

Our coaches were passionate, but strength and conditioning knowledge was limited. Most of the time, we simply trained hard and copied what everyone else was doing.

One day, I was performing squats with a long rusted barbell that probably would not even qualify as an Olympic bar by today’s standards. The plates were mismatched steel discs, and like many young athletes, I was more concerned with working hard than moving correctly.

As I lowered into a squat, one of the coaches approached me from behind.

I can still hear his voice today.

He shouted, “You need to open your stance wider than that!”

As he said it, he kicked my right foot outward to force a wider position.

Unfortunately, my heel was slightly elevated at the time.

The moment his foot made contact with mine, my position collapsed.

I distinctly remember feeling my right side give way.

And then I heard it.

A crack.

A sharp split deep in my lower back.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion.

I somehow managed to stand up and, with the coach’s help, rack the weight.

I turned around and said, “Coach, I can’t continue. Something really hurt.”

His response was simple.

“You just need to make sure your stance is wider next time.”

But for me, everything had already changed.

Before that day, I could sit comfortably in a car, a classroom, or at home without giving it a second thought.

After that moment, sitting became painful.

Simple movements began to hurt.

At first, I ignored it and kept playing.

Like many athletes, I convinced myself it would go away.

But it didn’t.

The pain became sharper.

More frequent.

More limiting.

Season after season, I continued pushing through it, believing toughness alone would solve the problem.

Instead, it slowly became part of my life.

And that experience would eventually send me on a journey that would shape my entire career. A journey to understand movement, strength, injury, rehabilitation, and ultimately how to help people reclaim confidence in their bodies.

(Continued in the next section…)

Swing Into Summer Challenge

One of the most exciting developments at ABCoaching this month has been the launch of our Swing Into Summer Challenge.

This challenge was created with a simple but powerful purpose: to forge stronger bodies, sharper minds, and greater consistency as we swing our way into summer.

The challenge officially kicked off this week, and it has been incredibly rewarding to watch everyone rise to the occasion and complete the 210 swings that were on the schedule. Seeing members embrace the challenge, put in the work, and support one another has been inspiring.

As we move forward, we will continue digging deeper into our kettlebell practice, refining our technique, building strength and endurance, and creating bodies we can be proud of this summer and beyond.

One of the things I enjoy most about this challenge is that it can be added to almost any training program. Whether your goal is strength, conditioning, fat loss, athletic performance, or simply building healthier habits, the Swing Into Summer Challenge is the hot sauce on your taco!

Along the way, I will also be sharing exercise suggestions, training tips, recovery strategies, and ideas to help everyone get the most from the challenge.

And of course, no challenge would be complete without a little recognition.

There will most definitely be awards and special acknowledgments for the brave and determined individuals who take on this challenge head-on and boldly go where they have not gone before.

Stay tuned for more updates, ideas, and information as the challenge continues to evolve and more members join the movement.

Let’s keep swinging forward together.

The Joy of Health

I recently came across a simple but profound quote from Deepak Chopra:

“The healthiest response to life is joy.”

As I reflected on those words, I realized how often we approach health from the wrong direction. We focus on fixing what is wrong, losing weight, eliminating pain, or correcting weaknesses. While those goals are important, true health is also about cultivating joy.

Joy in movement.

Joy in feeling strong.

Joy in walking without pain.

Joy in playing with our children, hiking a trail, carrying groceries with ease, or simply waking up with energy and purpose.

Strength training, mobility work, and exercise are not punishments for the body. They are celebrations of what the body can do and opportunities to preserve that freedom for years to come.

The more I work with people, the more I believe that health is not simply the absence of disease. Health is the presence of vitality, confidence, capability, and joy.

What aspect of your health brings you the greatest joy today?