The PBP also employs abdominal muscle exercise as an integral part of the emphasis on overall trunk strengthening Testing under the PBP involves strictly measured timing of two testing trials at the same clinic visit. The holding time in seconds corresponds to lumbar strength, the less the time, the weaker the lumbar area, and the more susceptible to low back injury, and vice versa. This method has obvious utility in preemployment screening. It is reproducible and can also be used to measure progress with strength training. Testing takes from 20 to 30 minutes, including the instruction, warm up, and time interval between test periods.
Training is performed at least once, but ideally, at least twice per week.
Each session takes only about 10 to 15 minutes, including warm-up stretching and abdominal crunch exercise preceding the actual lumbar exercise. After several minutes of stretching, the patient performs one set of abdominal crunches, which takes from 1 to 2 minutes. The results of training are quite dramatic. My own ongoing clinical work, using the Roman Chair device in the PBP, shows similar results. Education, workplace modifications, and general exercise provided in standard physical therapy protocols are not adequate.