It's Not Yoga It's FYI! Fitness & Yoga Integration

Slack lining is fun, but are there real benefits? Here is the scenario…You observe people laughing, smiling, and enjoying standing on this one-inch (or two inch) line in the park. As curious as a cat, you approach intrigued by the joy you are seeing. They invite you to give it a try! You tentatively step forward placing your right foot on the line. You happen to look down and notice your whole leg is wobbling uncontrollably from side to side! You pause, nervously laugh, sigh, take a deep breath and try again. Like the first time, your leg seems to be taken over by some puppeteer who is laughing at your seemingly lack of control. Fast-forward a few months and several hours of practice you are know able to walk on this line, perhaps even walk backwards! How did this happen? The purpose of this paper is to describe what slack lining is. Secondly, describe the benefits of slack lining from a research standpoint. Finally, we will chat about how slacklining might benefit you from what others opinions including the author. Walking on a very thin surface has a fairly long history across this great earth! Slack lining takes its roots back to the day when people would walk on ropes (tight roping) of about one inch thick. Historically speaking, the first person to walk on ropes is 2000 years ago in Kazakhstan! Slack lining, on the other hand, is done on a 1 to 2 inch thick elastic band that has the properties more like a trampoline versus a static rope. Walking on slack lines has exploded in growth in the last 20 years with its popularity following a continuum that ranges from recreational to highline to sport! Whereas ‘sport’ is where tricks are performed on the line (like jumping) while ‘highline’ is an activity where the line is suspended hundreds, maybe thousands of feet off the ground! Ok, so slack lining is fun, but what are the scientific benefits beyond that? There has NOT been a lot of scientific research done, but there are a few of studies that should be mentioned. One study done in Switzerland showed that slack lining improves postural control by improving communication between sensors and the spinal cord (3). This is really cool! To understand this further, let’s do the opposite. Imagine that you have been in a cast from a broken ankle for 6 weeks. Take that cast off, and then just simply walk noticing how weird your foot feels. The body just doesn’t seem to move the same way as it used to. It takes time to re-integrate the information from sensors (in the feet) to communicate well with the nervous system. So in essence, keep practicing for the body will adapt and find ways to learn the correct rhythm & timing necessary! The second study found showed that slacklining seemed to increase the structural and functional plasticity of the hippocampus (2). This fancy sentence basically means that slacklining might help the part of the brain that is responsible for navigation and memory. We can add to this by saying that complex movement and intense exercise has been shown to be very good for the brain. So get moving it’ll make you smarter and healthier! The final study I’d like to mention found that slacklining increased the rate of development of a muscular contraction (1). In essence, it’s saying that it allowed the person to perform a given strength task slightly faster than before. Another way to say this is that it didn’t increase strength; instead it increased how quickly one can use their strength. In conclusion, from a research standpoint, we have some good evidence showing different reasons why slacklining can positively contribute to your health! Let’s move on shall we? Research is often somewhat behind what the people in the trenches are doing for many reasons, so let’s quickly discuss now how slacklining might anecdotally help you. First, one of the first things you notice when you are on a slackline is the INTENSE concentration it takes JUST to stand on it. One’s eyes must be glued on a static object in order to not fall (which you will), and this takes insane amounts of focus. There are HUGE benefits from this alone. Yogis have known for generations the positive impacts of meditation. Meditation is nothing more than the ability to focus 100% on the task at hand. The benefits of meditation include: lowering blood pressure and heart rate, lowering tension on muscles, decreasing stress hormones, and allowing someone to feel in the moment. It feels great! Another benefit is the ability to take a fall. I know that sounds crazy huh!? As humans who are upright creatures it pays huge dividends to know HOW to fall because we always eventually do fall-whether we are on a slackline or not! Since the odds of you falling off a slackline on to a soft surface (hopefully, like grass) are 100% learning how to absorb this energy is going to be key to injury prevention with this activity and life itself! This is why it might be a good idea to work with a professional to get started. The final reason that slacklining should be an activity that more people should try is because it is fun! Life is stressful enough as it is, and if you can find an activity that you truly enjoy then you will likely do MORE of it. As a society that moves less and less and eats more and more it’s smart and cool to get outdoors and try activities that challenge your MIND & BODY, especially if it’s fun. In conclusion, the human body is the most complex machine on the planet! Your machine can adapt to so many things, which is amazing since we all were helpless babies at one point in our existence. Learn to use this incredible machine and your mind, body, and fun factor on this planet will skyrocket. Who wants to come outside and play? References 1). Granacher U, et al. Int J Sports Med. Slackline training for balance and strength promotion. 2010 Oct. 2). Hüfner K, et al. Hippocampus. 2011 Aug. (8):855-65. 3). Keller M. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2011 Mar 8.

2011-10-19T14:40:00.000-07:00

Slack lining is fun, but are there real benefits?

Here is the scenario…You observe people laughing, smiling, and enjoying standing on this one-inch (or two inch) line in the park. As curious as a cat, you approach intrigued by the joy you are seeing. They invite you to give it a try! You tentatively step forward placing your right foot on the line. You happen to look down and notice your whole leg is wobbling uncontrollably from side to side! You pause, nervously laugh, sigh, take a deep breath and try again. Like the first time, your leg seems to be taken over by some puppeteer who is laughing at your seemingly lack of control. Fast-forward a few months and several hours of practice you are know able to walk on this line, perhaps even walk backwards! How did this happen? The purpose of this paper is to describe what slack lining is. Secondly, describe the benefits of slack lining from a research standpoint. Finally, we will chat about how slacklining might benefit you from what others opinions including the author.

Walking on a very thin surface has a fairly long history across this great earth! Slack lining takes its roots back to the day when people would walk on ropes (tight roping) of about one inch thick. Historically speaking, the first person to walk on ropes is 2000 years ago in Kazakhstan! Slack lining, on the other hand, is done on a 1 to 2 inch thick elastic band that has the properties more like a trampoline versus a static rope. Walking on slack lines has exploded in growth in the last 20 years with its popularity following a continuum that ranges from recreational to highline to sport! Whereas ‘sport’ is where tricks are performed on the line (like jumping) while ‘highline’ is an activity where the line is suspended hundreds, maybe thousands of feet off the ground!

Ok, so slack lining is fun, but what are the scientific benefits beyond that? There has NOT been a lot of scientific research done, but there are a few of studies that should be mentioned. One study done in Switzerland showed that slack lining improves postural control by improving communication between sensors and the spinal cord (3). This is really cool! To understand this further, let’s do the opposite. Imagine that you have been in a cast from a broken ankle for 6 weeks. Take that cast off, and then just simply walk noticing how weird your foot feels. The body just doesn’t seem to move the same way as it used to. It takes time to re-integrate the information from sensors (in the feet) to communicate well with the nervous system. So in essence, keep practicing for the body will adapt and find ways to learn the correct rhythm & timing necessary! The second study found showed that slacklining seemed to increase the structural and functional plasticity of the hippocampus (2). This fancy sentence basically means that slacklining might help the part of the brain that is responsible for navigation and memory. We can add to this by saying that complex movement and intense exercise has been shown to be very good for the brain. So get moving it’ll make you smarter and healthier! The final study I’d like to mention found that slacklining increased the rate of development of a muscular contraction (1). In essence, it’s saying that it allowed the person to perform a given strength task slightly faster than before. Another way to say this is that it didn’t increase strength; instead it increased how quickly one can use their strength. In conclusion, from a research standpoint, we have some good evidence showing different reasons why slacklining can positively contribute to your health!

Let’s move on shall we? Research is often somewhat behind what the people in the trenches are doing for many reasons, so let’s quickly discuss now how slacklining might anecdotally help you. First, one of the first things you notice when you are on a slackline is the INTENSE concentration it takes JUST to stand on it. One’s eyes must be glued on a static object in order to not fall (which you will), and this takes insane amounts of focus. There are HUGE benefits from this alone. Yogis have known for generations the positive impacts of meditation. Meditation is nothing more than the ability to focus 100% on the task at hand. The benefits of meditation include: lowering blood pressure and heart rate, lowering tension on muscles, decreasing stress hormones, and allowing someone to feel in the moment. It feels great! Another benefit is the ability to take a fall. I know that sounds crazy huh!? As humans who are upright creatures it pays huge dividends to know HOW to

fall because we always eventually do fall-whether we are on a slackline or not! Since the odds of you falling off a slackline on to a soft surface (hopefully, like grass) are 100% learning how to absorb this energy is going to be key to injury prevention with this activity and life itself! This is why it might be a good idea to work with a professional to get started. The final reason that slacklining should be an activity that more people should try is because it is fun! Life is stressful enough as it is, and if you can find an activity that you truly enjoy then you will likely do MORE of it. As a society that moves less and less and eats more and more it’s smart and cool to get outdoors and try activities that challenge your MIND & BODY, especially if it’s fun.

In conclusion, the human body is the most complex machine on the planet! Your machine can adapt to so many things, which is amazing since we all were helpless babies at one point in our existence. Learn to use this incredible machine and your mind, body, and fun factor on this planet will skyrocket. Who wants to come outside and play?

References

1). Granacher U, et al. Int J Sports Med. Slackline training for balance and strength promotion. 2010 Oct.

2). Hüfner K, et al. Hippocampus. 2011 Aug. (8):855-65.

3). Keller M. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2011 Mar 8.

It's Not Yoga...It's FYI! Fitness & Yoga Integration

2011-10-19T12:05:00.001-07:00

Your Groin is Screaming for More Attention

2010-11-02T16:24:00.000-07:00

Your Groin is SCREAMING for More Attention...Especially the RIGHT kind of Attention

Ahh, yes...let's talk about YOUR Groin. This is a fun topic, and one that is so mis-understood and misrepresented in the fitness industry, and I dare say in the rehabilitation setting as well.

What is your groin and why are we discussing it? Let's keep it clean, and no I'm not going to be talking about your genitals, but the anatomy we'll be discussing is REAL Close! Let's proceed shall we?

Besides the fact that most machines in the gym should be melted down into scrap and recycled into something purposeful (maybe kids playgrounds?) there are two machines that STILL waste precious space in most gyms across the land. What are they?

Yep there they are! The "inner" and "outer" thigh machine. Too bad your "inner and outer" thigh muscles are completely confused as to why they are doing these movements. They truly say, this isn't what I do in real life, what the heck!! So, what do I mean, let's dive into some anatomy!

Pelvis

The pelvis includes the following bones with the sacrum acting kind of like a keystone in the back: Illium, Iscium, and Pubis.

Great View looking head on (Anterior)
of the many prominent land marks.

Oblique (45 degree angle) view
which shows the Left Acetabulum

Inferior view looking up, showing the ring
like nature of the pelvis.

By looking closely at the images, one can definately see some major PROMINENCES (For example, the Super and Inferior Pubic Ramus.) These projections make great ANCHOR points for muscle attachments ABOVE AND BELOW. Now, one could spend all day and list every single adductor muscle, but I'm not going to bore you with that today ;-). Instead, we'll group the adductors together as one unit that ONLY start their journey on the pubis (Inferior and Superior Pubic Ramus) and dive downward attaching on to the BACK of the Femur on the linea aspera with the exception of one that attaches on to a boney prominance shown below called the adductor tubercle. For all you anatomy buffs, I'm excluding the Psoas, Illiacus, Gracilis, and Pectineus from this Blog today (but they are all close cousins and have VERY similar jobs...controlling pronation) :)

Posterior view of femur

So the image above shows the back of the femur and all the pominances for attachments of soft tissue including muscle and ligaments. So, the BULK of the groin/adductor muscles attaching onto a line on the back of the femur called the linea aspera.

Got it? Now lets fill in the gaps with the bulk of the groin/adductor muscles...

GOT BEEF? Anterior view

Side View

As one can see this group of muscles makes up a BIG portion of the thigh! So what does this muscle do? Well the text books will say that they ADDUCT the Hip joint, and the textbooks are right, EXCEPT during most human functions (unless you are on your back). Hip adduction is given for FREE due to Gravity. Disagree? That's fine. Keep reading.

Stand up. Take a step forward onto your right leg. Your pelvis and it's relationship with the femur caused adduction on the joint, and your adductors had ZERO to do with it. What did then? Gravity and ground reaction forces did it! Ahh, gotta love G.

Now keep standing on your right leg, and allow your left leg to swing(knee straight) forward and backward like a pendulum. Continue doing this motion until you get that leg really high in the front and really high in the back. Your adductors are CRUCIAL in resisting Hip Flexion AND Hip Extension. Yes, they can have it both ways!

So, what am I saying? I'm saying that we get on these inner thigh machines with the INCORRECT notion that we are making this muscle stronger and NOT knowing WHAT this group of muscles does in REAL life. If you want to make this muscle stronger (and perhaps with more mass), then you have to get your ass off the machine (because you need your glutes to help your adductors and vice versa) and do multiple direction lunges, squats, deadlifts, sprinting, and intense 3d yoga. We must prepare our muscles for the unexpected movements that life spring up on us, or POP we'll tear one of these groin muscles. And that is NOT the kind of attention your Groin needs, right?

Until next time, I bid you farewell. We'll discuss this one more, and we will link the adductors and how interconnected they are to the abdominals!

Peace!

"Oh no, NOT another Ankle Sprain" PART I

2010-10-28T14:27:00.000-07:00

The audible POP, the searing and gut sickening pain, that momentary feeling of helplessness. Yep, we've all had one before, the notoriously sinister ankle sprain. How many have you had? I can count 8 (yep 8!) different times I felt my ligaments tear down there on my right ankle, and at least 3 on my left which includes 3 separate ankle fractures (before the 3rd grade). Ankle sprains are a very very common injury. According to one study done by National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS), between the years 2002-2006 there was 3,140,132 ankle sprains reported! That is a lot, and that doesn't include all the kids who don't go to the E.R. for a diagnosis.

So what gives me authority or credibility to write a blog on prevention of ankle sprains?

Experience

I've experienced the pain, worked numerous times thru the recovery, studied extensively the anatomy, and have found some things that I'd like to share with you all that may help you, whether you are a trainer, doctor, therapist, or Jack or Jill. Ready?

Let's discuss the anatomy first shall we? The foot has 26 bones (plus 2 sesamoids), 33 joints, 100 ligaments, and is interconnected facially with the rest of the body. The foot is a marvelous structure with fantastic DYNAMIC architecture. Leonardo da Vinci said it best with his famous quote, "The human foot is a masterpiece of engineering and a work of art."

We all know the Tibia(Shin bone) and the Fibula right? These two bones wrap around a bone in your foot called your Talus. If fact, think of the distal end of the tibia and the fibula as like legs of a cowboy and the Talus is like a horses saddle. Giddy up! The Talus is a irregular shaped bone, an it's surface articulates with 3 joints which includes the joint with the tibia and fibula.

If we go inferior(below) on the talus, you will find the talus sits on (articulates with) the Calcaneus or heel bone. The 3rd and final articulation of the talus bone is with a bone that helps form the arch of your foot called the Navicular bone.

Ok, we've discussed the bones a bit, let's talk about some of the other support mechanisms of the foot. First, the foot is encased in a network of fascia that helps support and transmit forces. Fascia is a saran wrap like material of collagen and water and has become a very significant player in the study of anatomy recently. This fascia forms lines of strain that are interconnected with the rest of the body to help disapate load.

The next layer of support is the ligaments. Now, the ligaments tend to blend with the fascia, but there are a few major ligaments that have a chance to get ripped during a inversion ankle sprain (where the bottom of your foot rolls to the inside). The three main ligaments on the outside(lateral) of the ankle are:

1). Anterior talofibular ligament (Most commonly torn/sprained)

2). Calcaneofibular ligament

3). Posterior talofibular ligament

Here is a diagram for us visual folks.

The ligaments are not just passive protectors of the joint. They are alive and VERY sensitive. They are constantly sending information about their position and movement, and if things get out of hand...they SCREAM. Who listens to this though? Does your brain? Yes, but if your brain got the information first then you will sprain every ligament in your body real quick! The muscles get this information, and they are in a position to do something about it immediately and hopefully with precision. Speaking of precision, when we injury this area sometimes the phone lines don't communicate very well with the rest of the body and we have to find ways to TURN THEM BACK ON AGAIN! We'll describe how to do this in part II.

With that, the final area of support comes from the muscular system. Our muscular system can offer a HUGE layer of protection for an ankle sprain. Don't believe me? Let me show you!

Stand up. Ok, again you aren't going to get this sitting there. Ok fine, sit there and be ignorant ;)...Ok good.

1. Stand on your right leg with your hands on your hips

2. Imagine you have a flash light on your belly button (which you can buy at any corner convenience store here in Las Vegas for $19.95)

3. Allow your bellybutton/pelvis to turn or rotate to the right and then rotate back. Repeat a few times. Pay attention to what you feel.

4. As you do this, what is happening to your foot? As your pelvis rotates to the right your foot supinates/the arch raises. You'll also notice that if you keep going that your foot can roll into that scary ankle sprain position.

The question is....what stopped the motion?

Your butt! Yep, your butt (or glutes) has TREMENDOUS ability to decelerate (slow down) that twisting motion that some fancy people call the Transverse Plane.

So you say that a strong butt can help prevent ankle sprains? YES! But that isn't all! If your hip/butt/glutes are mobile and strong, then you will have a happy knee a happy lower back a happy......

So what exercises can you do (besides the basic one you just did) to help lower your chance of an ankle injury? Wait for Part II of "Oh no, NOT another Ankle Sprain" and we will go in more depth and give you practical advice...Stay tuned!

Most ankle sprains.

2 Bare feet or not 2 Bare feet...Part II for those who want to understand the foot better as it relates to movement!

2010-10-01T14:29:00.000-07:00

2 Bare feet or not 2 Bare feet...Part II

Barefoot/Minimalist Training

You may have noticed the EXPLOSION in shoe options these days. On one end of the spectrum you have the rocker bottomed "Shape Up" Shoes, while on the other end of the spectrum you have the folks in the barefoot/minimalist crowd...What to do, what to do?

Let's discuss barefoot! I'm going to start this conversation with the following quote:

"The human foot is a masterpiece of engineering and a work of art."

- - Leonardo da Vinci

The human foot consists of 28 bones (including the 2 sesamoids) and 33 joints. It houses 20 muscles that stay in the foot while 11 muscles cross the ankle from above. Our foot is completely unique from any other animal in the world in that we have developed a way to efficiently walk UPRIGHT!

As your foot hits the ground and the ground hits the foot with an opposite and equal reaction there is a lot of energy that is absorbed. A good foot will allow all 33 joints to help decelerate this energy, so it can be used to help propel the body forward. Not only that, a good foot will allow the joints above the foot to also help decelerate and absorb impact and then use this energy for propulsion or unloading. This is certainly not new information, as the topic of how the foot functions have been discussed before. Let’s refresh our understanding.

When we walk, the first thing that usually hits the ground is the lateral heel (calcaneus). As the rest of the heel comes down into the ground due to ground reaction forces, the joint below the ankle joint called the subtalar joint (STJ) will get woken up! This joint is so important that it’s surprising that it’s not taught sooner to trainers. So, the STJ begins to load. What does that mean? This joint is kind of like a screw in that the bone below (calcaneus) will relatively stay in place, while the bone above (talus) will internally rotate or screw DOWN medially. This is just one way it can help absorb motion, but remember this is a joint that operates in 3 planes! We just described what happens in the transverse plane, but what about the frontal plane? In the frontal plane, the heel will begin go through eversion (hopefully, but not too much) relative to the talus. I told you it was complex! So what about the sagittal plane you ask? Good question, but due to the shape of the axis of the STJ joint, not a lot of motion occurs in the sagittal plane. Sagittal plane motion is mostly the responsibility of the ankle joint (talo-crural), which needs to be able to move effectively into dorsiflexion upon loading.

So what you ask? Ok, let’s tie this together! We talked about how a properly functioning subtalur joint (STJ) will cause a combination of subtalur joint motion right? Let’s call this pronation, because pronation indicates loading in all three planes. This is when the magic happens! So we are walking, and our right heel hits the ground. The STJ goes through pronation, which DIRECTLY affects the Midtarsal joint (MTJ). This is how we are different from the rest of the animals in world! This pronation of the STJ “unlocks” the midtarsal joint. What does that mean? It essentially allows your forefoot via the MTJ the FREEDOM and the ABILITY to adapt to almost any ground surface. Ok, to summarize, I just stated that the STJ pronates which helps to unlock the midtarsal joint. The midtarsal joint can now adapt to the ground and LOAD through the joints of the forefoot including the plantar fascia. It’s a great series of events if the foot and the rest of the chain are working as a team! If not, ouch!

Improper foot wear (Hint: Many shoes people wear), forces the foot into a tiny space and inhibits some of this energy that would normally get dissipated in the foot. So, as we know that energy cannot be created or destroyed this energy just keeps traveling up the chain. (And I'm sure you have a "bad knee"). Yes, that is right it's not secret that the body is a chain reaction (Thanks to Gary Gray and the Gray Institute for helping to spearhead this!) and what the foot doesn't do properly will only be placed on other joints up the chain!

So let's go back to when our foot hit the ground. The joints of the foot pronate to absorb energy. If they are successful, ROTATIONAL energy is delivered to the tibia. Do you think this energy stops here? Heck no! As the old saying goes "the foot bone is connected to the...". I digress, the femur sits on top of the shinbone, and all those HUGE butt (oh I'm sorry I mean glutes) muscles absolutely LOVE decelerating rotational energy. But it doesn't stop there! Ever notice when you walk that your arms swing opposite your legs? Ever notice that your ribcage rotates opposite of your pelvis?

So even though we walk forward in a straight line, there is a huge component of rotational energy that is FIRST decelerated then accelerated (Ahh, so that's why most muscles and fascia go at angles and twist and turn throughout the body versus being linear). Can you now see that if your foot is crunched into tiny shoes how that can possibly make the rest of the body work harder?

It goes in reverse as well! Trying running or walking fast, but NOT letting your arms counter rotate with the legs. In this situation, the top down deceleration energy is not doing its job so someone below (low back, knee, foot) will have to work much harder to compensate.

Ok, let’s get back to the foot shall we? We briefly discussed how the foot loaded. Now, let’s talk about the foot unloading. This can be very complex, so let’s simplify it! You are walking and your right foot is on the ground, and it is BEHIND your pelvis. While your left foot and leg is swinging forward. Since that left leg is swinging forward, your pelvis is now rotating to the right. What is the pelvis connected to? Yep, the femur is now beginning to rotate externally. What is the femur connected to? Yep, the tibia then rotates externally? Then what happens? Yes, the tibia sits on the ankle, which sits on the subtalur joint (STJ). If you externally rotate the tibia the STJ will now INVERT (hopefully if everything is functioning properly).

More magic is about to happen! The heel is beginning to go through inversion, which directly affects the midtarsal joint (MTJ). If the mechanism is working properly the MTJ will hopefully “lock up”? What does that mean? Basically the cuboid bone and the calcaneus will be arranged in a way that provides a tremendous amount of STABILITY. Why is that important? I’m simplifying this, but the foot needs tremendous stability in order to push off (propel), and it’s important in throwing the force of the body towards the 1^st metatarsal phalangeal joint (MTP). This beautiful mechanism makes us unique in being able to walk efficiently upright. It truly is a work of marvelous engineering.

So why might it be a good thing for some to train/walk barefoot or minimalist (shoes like Vibrams)? Basically it's to allow the foot to do the HUGE job it was designed to do. Second, it's about making the weak link in many people STRONGER, so that it can help the rest of the chain (knee, low back etc). Next, I suspect there would be less tripping because you can feel the ground with more information. Fourth, I speculate there would be less ankle sprains (many shoes put a huge lever on the heel bone which could possibly promote inversion ankle sprains). Finally, it truly does feel good to train this way!

A word of caution. Barefoot training isn't for everyone. The following are things in which you would certainly consult a medical professional and ask their opinion. Bunions, hallux abducto valgus (big toe that points inward at a large angle), large forefoot and/or rearfoot varus, fused ankle joint or other foot joints, diabetes etc. Please be smart, and go SLOW at first. Very very slow. If it hurts to walk barefoot consider other alternatives. Thank you, this was fun! Until next time, farewell.

3d Yoga Lateral Line

2010-09-30T11:26:00.001-07:00

More 3d yoga.... The intent here is to open up the lateral line.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzAHMCIsUYM

New 3d Yoga Class

2010-09-29T16:15:00.000-07:00

Do you like Yoga? How about 3d yoga? 3d Yoga is a unique approach to movement. 3d Yoga is about lengthening and strengthening your body SPHERICALLY! In addition to teaching at Las Vegas Athletic Club and Sun City, Ryan Crandall has taught at Canyon Ranch Spa Club, & has a background in Physical Therapy.

Follow the event invite below for this new opportunity to have fun moving in 3d...This First class is FREE!

Contact info for Ryan Crandall is: paradigmshiftfitness@gmail.com

OR Contact the studio owner: Patricia... dancepk@hotmail.com

Is the fitness term "Core" a Four Letter word?

2010-09-25T11:48:00.000-07:00

Hey there everyone, let's get down and dirty and talk about something that seems to be mis-understood....or is it? It is! ;)

'Core'

How often do you hear this word thrown around by fitness professionals, yoga and pilates experts, physical therapists and others including hollywood celebrities, and even John and Tiffany down the street. This word is so popular that I'm sure it has it's own website, social security #, and I bet it will be allowed to vote in the next election.

What is core? According to Webster's, the core is "central and often foundational part usually distinct from the enveloping part by a difference in nature." Got it? The basic premise of core is that it's foundational, central, and often quite different from the rest of the structure or body.

Is this true of our "CORE"? Wait a minute, what the heck is core in the first place? This term core has exploded in use over the last 10 years or so, and has gotten very popular in certain circles. From the popular folks, the core is this area of your body that is very important and must be focused on. You see the idea here is to isolate it and strengthen it because it's vital for back strength, posture, and whether or not you can keep your "core" tightened and sucked in 100% at all times(is that how they get into them jeans...but it looks like they are constipated....oh yeah they can't breathe either no wonder they are pissed off.) Next, it seems that it's something that you have to FOCUS on at ALL TIMES and all activities....why? Because it is good for balance and makes your back strong. At least that is what they say! Finally they would say that the core includes your abdominals and lower back muscles with the most important muscle of them all called the Transversus Abdominus (better know as TVA).

Did you know that one area of your body is more important than the others? I didn't either! Which is why we should look at the "core" from a different perspective! Popularity contests will win the battle, but TRUTH will win the war baby ;)

Your body is integrated. Your mid-section is part of the chain and it's no more or less important then your foot, shoulder, hip, or neck! We are built much like a tensegrity model. What is that? Let me show you!

The two main elements of tensegrity are having continuous tension (think Fascia, muscle, skin) AROUND localized Compression members (BONE!)

Crazy? Nope. We are integrated organisms that have a need for a certain level of mobility yet be stable. Here is another picture of a model of a human with this concept in place!

All though this model may appear a bit crude, you can see that the articulations will react similar to a humans under a load or strain. You can also see that we are an oxymoron in that we are responsive yet resilient to stress. If you pull on one part of the body it will affect the WHOLE body by distributing stress through out the whole body along lines of tension(fascial lines).

Ok, what the heck is my point? I didn't mean to get into a discussion of fascia, but that is where it lead to prove that training your core in isolation isn't the most ideal way to work your body. Your body is designed to have enough strength and mobility AT the right time. Other wise we walk around like robots. If you want to move with grace and balance and also have the ability to be powerful then we must work on movements that allow the body to load and explode. As we talked about in a previous blog, our backs (especially the lumbar spine) don't have a tremendous amount of range of motion. But if your hips are mobile AND strong...and if your THORACIC Spine is mobile AND strong then your "core" will have the OPPORTUNITY to be mobile ENOUGH and strong ENOUGH.

What is the take home message here? Get up! Stand up! And move dynamically against gravity in 3d with an emphasis on allowing your ankles, hip, and upper back to move....Your "core" will then and only then be in the right place to protect your back. Remember being static isn't a good indicator of balance or strength....being able to control motion is!

Until next time, ditch the four letter word. Hit me up with questions if you need help or disagree. Love to hear from ya!

Peace,
Ryan
www.desertpersonaltrainer.com

REFERENCE:
Myers, Tom, 2009. 'Anatomy Trains'. London, Churchill Livingstone Elsevier.

It's not your knee!

2010-09-23T12:57:00.000-07:00

So, I thought that I'd re hash an old blog! Why? I think this is a topic that should be discussed because their is a mis-understanding of a very important area of your body! Today we will talk about your knee. Why the knee? Because like the lower back, it plays the role of SCAPEGOAT way way too much!

I'd like to start this conversation FIRST with a quote by a legendary Physical Therapist named Gary Gray..."the knee is caught in the middle with no where to go and no where to hide."

What the heck does this mean when he says this and what are the practical take home messages when can derive from this?

Let's first back up a notch and give the knee its true credence. The knee is the articulation between the patella (knee cap) and femur (thigh bone), AND the articulation between the femur and tibia (shin). This knee complex is referred to as a trocho-ginglymus. What the hell is that? :)...I'm glad you asked, it means that the knee is a Pivotal Hinge joint.

The knee rotates? YES it does! It doesn't rotate a lot, but will allow for some rotation which fly's in the face of how the knee is traditionally looked at as a hinge joint. Off the top of my head, I can think of 12 muscles that CROSS the knee joint, but we are NOT going to talk about them! In fact, we are NOT going to discuss individual muscles at all! So much credence is given to tiny individuals muscles, and I think that is a BAD mistake. It's like saying that your right front tire is most important, but you need all four if you want to get some where....right?

As stated above, the knee is caught in the middle. It's caught in between the ankle and the hip joint, but as you can figure out it's INFLUENCED by the WHOLE body. Pretty obvious right?!

Let's try a little experiment. Stand up. I'll wait. Come on, I can see that you are still sitting, get up buster! Ok, that is better. Bend your knees. What muscle/s caused your knee to bend? None!! So what bends your knee then while standing? GRAVITY! The question is, what helps CONTROL and DECELERATE your knee from bending more. The answer is it DEPENDS on the position of your foot, knee, hip, and the rest of your body relative to all these parts ;)....Jeez this is sounding complex, and it is but it isn't. There is not simple answer as it could be a combination of your calf muscles, quads, hammies (hamstrings), glutes, adductors etc etc. Disagree? If you do give me feedback, I'll show you ;)

Ready for another experiment? No one told you to sit down, so let's stand up! Let's bullet point this one.
1). You are standing.
2). Take your right hand and reach down AND across your body AND Scratch the outside of your left calf.
3). What did your right knee do? Try again if you need to. What happens to that right knee?

Oh My GOD, it probably dove to the inside (medially) a bit huh? What will the knee police do? You know, the folks who insist that our knee MUST stay over our second toe regardless of the activity. Your knee is designed to go where it's DRIVEN, the question is can your WHOLE body control the motion?

So in the above experiment when the knee dove in, who HELPED slow the knee from decelerating and then pull the knee back straight when you stood back up? Try again and FEEL it out. .......... Your butt (Glutes) did it!? What else besides the obvious. Your "core" yes....and even muscles in the shoulder and upper back such as the traps and lats.

So do you see how truly INTEGRATED we are? Can you see how if you have a hip that is weak and immobile how it can make the knee do MORE WORK?! Can you see that if the shoulder girdle isn't doing it's job how it can make your knee have to do MORE WORK? Finally, can you see that if your ankle isn't mobile and strong how it will make the knee do MORE WORK? Of course you can. So before you go and focus on isolating someones VMO (Medial quadricep muscle) perhaps you can do more work with someones knee pain(by the way Pain IS an OUTPUT of the brain) by understanding the beautifully interconnected nature of our neuro/musculo/skeleto/fascial system!

Until next time, I will sign off. Let me know if you have any questions/comments/concerns/statements/pontifications...etc etc.

Peace out,
Ryan

What the heck is the Thoracic Spine, and why is it related to lower back, shoulder, neck, and maybe jaw pain....?

2010-09-22T11:01:00.000-07:00

Hey there everyone, let's get back to business and have some fun exploring at the same time, shall we?

So much credence in our society is given to the lower back, wouldn't you agree? How many people do you know who has complained, "My low back hurts". I know all of you have heard many folks INCLUDING yourself with this very same complaint.

Why?! Why does the lower back hurt? I often times will ask that question to fitness students and I get a lot of answers including:

Weak abs, weak core, tight hamstrings, weak back, motor vehicle accident, congenital, poor lifting techniques, etc etc.

Is there one right answer? Of course not! Could any of the above be an answer? Of course. Let's look at it differently and see more possibilities than the above listed!

Thoracic Spine

As you may already know, the Thoracic Spine is the part of the spine that is in between the Cervical Spine and the Lumbar Spine. There are 12 vertebra and yes all of the ribs come off the thoracic segments...

One may think that not a lot of motion should occur in this part of the back...and they would be WRONG ;-)

The thoracic spine moves A LOT! I'm going to try to describe how much motion occurs here in a way that won't put ya to sleep...zzzzzzzz. Ready?

Ok, the body as we know moves SPHERICALLY. We simply this by labeling that motions occur in certain planes such as the Sagittal Plane (Forward and Backward), Frontal Plane (Side to Side), and the Transverse plane (Which is Rotation). Got it? Easy enough....So let's start with the Plane of motion that GRAVITY relentlessly effects...The Sagittal Plane.

We can all agree that it's VERY VERY easy to slouch, right?! The Thoracic Spine already is designed to have a Kyphosis, which is a curve that occurs in that Sagittal plane we talked about. Unfortunately Gravity pulls many of us (especially ya'll excessive sitters out there) FORWARD too much. This excessive Kyphosis can do a lot of bad things including:

1). Cause your head and neck to protrude forward...Headaches and Jaw pain anyone?

2). Put extra strain on your shoulders...We'll do a simply 'Show me' test later :)

3). Straightens the curve in the lumbar spine which is not a good idea as it puts the discs at a disadvantage.

4). Makes breathing much much more difficult.

5). Do I really need to go on??

Ok, we touched on the sagittal plane (but we'll be back), so let's move on to that side to side frontal plane. The Thoracic spine moves very well in that side to side plane. Most people wouldn't know it, until they have been stretched in a stretch cage designed by Gary Gray, PT. Holy smokes allowing the rib cage to "Open up" feels amazing! So how much motion can we get in there with all them darn ribs in the way? I'm glad you asked, on average there is about 6 degrees of motion PER segment in that side to side frontal plane. Guess what though? If you don't have good thoracic spine motion into extension(Think standing tall) then you will not get good motion into the frontal plane...Sorry folks!

Next, let's touch on the Transverse plane! This is the plane that moves into rotation. Believe or not, the thoracic spine MOVES a lot in this plane. How much? Well it depends on which segment. For the most part, there is about 8 degrees of motion in the transverse plane for a majority of the segments(T1-2 has 9 degrees). As you DESEND down the thoracic spine there is a gradual DECREASE in rotational movement. For example, when you get down to T9-10 there is only 4 degrees of rotation. This makes sense, as the LUMBAR Spine doesn't like to do a lot of rotation as there is only about 2 degrees per segment!! This is why it's so IMPORTANT to have good HIP motion and strength as well as good THORACIC spine motion and strength. In addition, you will not have good THORACIC spine motion into rotation if you don't have good extension!! Sorry, but that is the Fact JACK.

I can see some of you guys and gals want PROOF! Prove it on yourself! Ready? If you are seated now that is fine:

1). Allow your upper back to collapse into MORE kyphosis...SLOUCH buddy!

2). Try to take a deep breath in. Come on TRY! Hmm, that is funny it's harder to breathe.

3). Keep your body in this position and lift your arms over your head as high as they will go. Are you still slouching? If not SLOUCH and lift arms over head. Hurts doesn't it? Maybe you'll remember that if you are a trainer and doing seated overhead presses with someone that can't even sit or stand up straight ;)

4). Stay SLOUCHED and cross your arms over your shoulders. Try to rotate through your upper back. Or better yet, image you are a golfer and you want to hit that long drive. Only try it in the slouched position. Not much motion huh? Now allow your thoracic spine to EXTEND and repeat steps 1-4.....Much better huh?

Let's conclude this. What does the thoracic spine have to do with the lower back? A lot! If your thoracic spine is not working correct with proper motion and strength then you Lower Back, Neck, and Shoulders (To name a few) have to work MUCH MUCH harder. So before you go and start stretching your lower back, do yourself a favor and check on your upper back first. It will be a win win.

Until next time....PEACE out and hit me up with questions, comments, and

tips (including $$ ;-)...Haha...Live a little, smile, have fun, KEEP LEARNING, learn to relax and keep moving!

Ryan

More 3d Yoga fun....

2010-09-19T09:40:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-4FLnZV2k0

The World is never static...neither is Balance

2010-09-13T15:53:00.000-07:00

BALANCE IS NOT STATIC…IT’S CONTROLLING MOTION

So there you are comfortably sitting down reading an article on balance and stability. I’m truly am quite thrilled that you are interested in this topic, but sitting down while reading this will simply not do, so please stand up and get ready for some movement! From the words of Physical Therapist Gary Gray, “If you want to learn to dance you must get off of yours pants!”

Ok, that is much better. This is the first of a four part series of articles to touch upon a popular and important topic, balance. This first articles focus is to shed light upon the basic principles of what keeps us upright and doing the activities we desire to do. In this piece, we will very briefly discuss the basic sensors that detect our surroundings and help us control our bodies against gravity. Next, we’ll discuss some of the common misconceptions about balance training that appears to perpetuate themselves in many programs. Finally, we will go over a few quick exercises to try that are “balance” oriented.

In opening, we thoroughly take it for granted, but our bodies are amazing machines. In order to survive and thrive we have a vast network of systems (such as the cardio-respiratory, nervous, endocrine, etc) working in harmony constantly. In order to move about our surroundings, we must use our nose, ears, eyes, vestibular system, and proprioceptive systems to take information in and to somehow use it to move through our environment seamlessly. We will focus on the proprioceptive system in this short article.

The proprioceptive system can be thought of as an extensive network of sensors that assist in detecting what is going on in our surroundings and gives us the ability to quickly react and take action. These various proprioceptors can be found in skin, fascia, ligaments, joint capsules, tendons, and muscles. They all work together to detect strain, pressure, pain, position AND motion (movement turns them on the most) of skin, muscles, and joints at any given moment. These detectors collect data, interpret it, and perform a response typically before we even know about it. The fact that most of the network of sensors in our body is mostly subconscious is of extreme benefit to us. Just the simple act of walking across the room would be nearly impossible if we’d have to try to interpret all of that information as it was coming in.

Next, lets build a brief foundation in order to understand what are some common misconceptions regarding balance training. Most of us have heard the phrase “I need to work on my balance” or “My trainer is working on my proprioceptors.” Since our bodies are CONSTANTLY receiving information, everything is proprioceptive. Plus, the more we are moving, the more information we are receiving from ALL body sensors! This is why trying to work on balance by being still or static is not very effective. A better question would be: “How do I work my proprioceptive system best?” That all depends on what our goal is. For example, if my objective was to be able to navigate across a crowded street with curbs and potholes that would certainly be a different task then if my goal were to have better balance after a ballistic tennis serve. Our training should be geared for the task. Remember balance is never static. Balance is controlling motion! We can look at it as the bodies ability to sense motion going in one direction, decelerate to a stop, then move us into another direction(Transformational Zones--Gray Institute Credit for this), only to do it all over again. These transformation zones occur in every activity and are the key to improving balance or an even better word, function.

I went a very long way in order to finally come back and mention a couple of misconceptions of balance training. The following are popular yet misleading:

*Static standing on one leg.

*Standing on wobbly boards or discs.

Doing various exercises standing on one leg or working on unstable surfaces are tools that have their place, but should be used appropriately! Why? How often do you truly ever stand statically on one leg? In real life, how often do you stand on an artificial unstable surface? Remember, you are teaching your body constantly how to react and respond. Balance training on unstable objects is tools that we should tweak into our program to add variety once we’ve mastered the ability to decelerate our own body weight against gravity and ground reaction forces, and the utilization of momentum to our advantage.

So now you may be wondering what are some simple exercises that you can do today to help improve dynamic balance for tomorrow? By now, you should know that there are millions of exercises, maybe even billions! This is why I had trouble narrowing it down for such a broad audience, but I realize I have to put something on paper, so here goes! Since you are standing let’s get to it! For those of you who are visual learners, I posted this video on my YouTube sight at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5qhEbfk1uU www.

Exercise #1

1. Keeping your feet shoulder width apart, step your right foot forward about 2-3 feet in front of the left. Your feet are pointing forward.

2. Take your hands and reach down for your feet as if you are going to tie your shoes. (Allow your knees to bend if you like)

3. Then reverse direction and take your hands as high overhead and behind you as possible. Repeat! To challenge this you can narrow the stance, go faster, close your eyes, etc.

Exercise #2

1. Same stance as above, places arms overhead with an emphasis on lifting your ribcage.

2. Allow arms and trunk to rock side to side as far to the left and as far to the right as possible. To challenge this you can narrow the stance, go faster, close the eyes etc.

Exercise #3

1. Same stance as above, place arms overhead with an emphasis on lifting your ribcage.

2. Circle the arms pelvis and ribcage around as if you have a hula-hoop around your hips Increase the range and the speed to challenge.

So how do you feel after those simple movements? For many of you, you were obviously way below your threshold for success. On the other end of the spectrum, there may be some of you seasoned citizens who had difficulty with these exercises and you felt quite unstable. We will address BOTH ends of the spectrum in the upcoming articles.

In conclusion, balance training is a very complex endeavor that must be addressed specific to the needs, abilities, and goals of the client. There is no cookbook approach that works for everyone, so we must learn to think out of the box. We are three-dimensional creatures, and once we start working with clients with a chain reaction mindset we can have a dramatic affect on function! Email me with any questions, and I look forward to digging deeper into this topic next time!

3d Yoga 9/92010

2010-09-09T19:37:00.000-07:00

It's Hip to be Square--Part 2

2010-09-09T14:56:00.000-07:00

It’s HIP to be Square…Part II

Welcome back! Now where were we? Ah, we were chatting about the hip. We discussed a bit of very basic anatomy and why it’s designed to be mobile yet stable. We were trying to wrap our heads around the importance of that oxymoron. Let’s proceed shall we?

Quick question:

So what do you get when you have a tight and/or weak hip?.....Drum roll…. You can get a pissed off knee and perhaps a perturbed lower back!

Now I know you are not surprised by this. The question now is how can we get this area AWAKE again? It really is pretty simple, and I’d like to say that the movements start so easy that it may be easy to dismiss them as a waste of time…they are not.

If you are sitting now…. Please STAND UP. This addition will have only 3 steps.

STEP 1

Feet shoulder width apart (XXX). Pretend that you are standing in a narrow doorway and begin to shift your pelvis to the right and to the left in the frontal plane. Start small and progress the AMOUNT of movement over time. Make sure you hip is pushing OUTSIDE of your base of support (your feet). You can tell that one hip is moving into adduction while the opposite hip is moving into abduction. I know it’s so EASY! The question for you, reader, is how can you tweak this frontal plane movement? How about bringing the feet wider (XWX) or narrower (XNX)? What about putting the right foot in front (RXX) or left foot in front (LXX)? What crucial movement pattern does this feel like? What if you add an arm driver overhead? How about a bilateral arm driver, what happens then? MOVE! What does your body tell you? Why is having good hip adduction important?

STEP 2

Let’s bring our feet back to XXX and move the pelvis forward and back in the Sagittal plane. So now the pelvis is translating forward over the toes and then back over the heels. As the pelvis goes forward the shoulders stay behind. What do you feel? I feel a nice lengthening in my abdominals and some of the hip flexors muscles; it’s subtle but significant. Try a different foot position; let’s try wide (XWX). What gets lengthened more now? Try with one foot in front of the other (do both RXX/LXX). As you step one foot in front, did you notice the opposite foot toe out or no? Why would it do that? Finally, try with the arms extended overhead for a different reaction. Nice work!

STEP 3

Okey dokey! Let’s bring our feet back to shoulder width apart (XXX) and now pretend we have a hula-hoop around our hips. YES, a hula hoop! Let’s allow the pelvis to go in a circle in the transverse plane. Check the feet to make sure the WHOLE foot stays in contact with the ground, especially the big toe joint. Ok, guys look no one is watching so get that pelvis moving! Expand on the circle, so make it BIGGER. Now, lets complicate this by allowing the arms to extend overhead. So we are continuing to circle the FEET around the PELVIS and the ARMS are circling around the shoulders. I love this FULL body mobilizer, for it feels wonderful! Just as we did in the previous steps, try this same movement pattern, but put the feet into different positions for a different full body reaction.

In conclusion, we’ve taken some baby steps to turn on the hips. This is just a sample of how 3d motion can break up the cobwebs and allow the body to be free to move as it is designed. If one area of the body is tight and not doing its job, then you can be sure that another area is working HARDER! So the next time your lower back feels off, or your knee begins to act up. ASK WHY!? It could be that darn hip NOT doing its job. Until next time…farewell and thank you for reading.

It's HIP to be Square--Part 1

2010-09-06T16:31:00.000-07:00

I love cliche's, pun's, and tying stuff to music and such...why? Because it's easier to remember, like a horrible annoying song from let's say Lady Gaga!

So, YES, It IS hip to be square!

Now let's get down to business and talk about the hip. What can we summarize about the hip that we already may know:

*The hip joint consists of the proximal femur(thigh bone) and fits in a socket called the acetabulum which is formed by the three pelvic bones: Pubis, Ischium, & Illium.

*The hip joint consists of 22 muscles that CROSS thru the hip (whose counting right?)

*The hip is reinforced with several ligaments and fascia has a HUGE influence on the hip.

*The hip is a ball and socket like joint that allows a LOT OF MOVEMENT yet also provides a bunch of stability!

So it moves a lot?

You bet it does! The hip is a 3d joint meaning it can move in all three planes of motion. As we know by now, we DO NOT move like Mr Roboto! Instead, think spherical. We can move in many different combinations of all the planes at any given moment. Anyone can go and look up how much motion is average for the hip joint into the three "Cardinal Planes". Isn't wikipedia great? Instead, let's discuss the following three terms/items and piece them together: Gravity, prolonged sitting, and lack of motion.

Gravity is omni-present. Is that official sounding enough? Too fancy? Ok, gravity is always around and it positively AND negatively affects us. It's positive in that we need gravity to support bone and cell growth, it helps us walk and MOVE on this planet. It can be negative in that it can force some areas to work too hard. Our bodies follow the path of least resistance, so when gravity wins it tends to pull you forward. This 'flexion' is what we call sitting which leads us to point two.

Prolonged sitting seems to be an unfortunate fact today with all the technology that is supposedly making our lives better. Excessive sitting forces some structures on the body to over work due to the fact that our friend Gravity is relentless! I don't care how good your posture is when you are sitting, for it really doesn't matter which brings us to point three.

Lack of motion works in conjunction with the prolonged sitting doesn't it?! We sit to much which causes the body to not move enough to function properly. Don't believe me. Sit a car in a garage for a few months. The tires begin to go flat, the engine may not start, and the ride will be much more rough than if the car has been driven consistently. We are made to move! If we don't move enough structures tighten up, we don't get good circulation, nervous systems connections begin to fade, and "injuries" begin to hop up with more frequency.

So where am I going with this? The hip is a joint that has a profound influence on the rest of the body. The hip helps control the foot! If I turn off the motor control to your hip, your foot will over pronate and be unable to supinate properly when it needs to. The hip helps control the knee! Do you really think you knee dives in because of a weak knees? How can we blame the knee? As Gary Gray PT says " The knee is caught in the middle with few places to go and nowhere to hide). So, yes if we shut off the glutes the knee will become unstable. The hip helps control the lumbar spine! Uh oh, have I gone to far with that statement?! If you hip doesn't do it's job, you can bet the farm that your lower back WILL have to work harder. The hip can help allow good shoulder movement! Remember, your body is a chain reaction and if one area doesn't do it's job (especially the powerful hip) you can be certain that other areas WILL have to work harder. I could go on and on, but this is a blog not a seminar. Let's move on...

It has a bunch of stability?

I just said that the hip has a bunch of mobility, now I'm going to contradict myself and say that it also has a bunch of stability?! You bet. The motion and the stability together work hand in hand. The Gray Institute has coined this "mostability". This oxymoron allows movement when there needs to be movement, but just enough for the given task. For example, when we walk our foot hits the ground. The hip muscles help decelerate pronation of the ankle and hip while allowing for a rigid platform for propulsion of the same foot upon toe off. In order for this to happen, the hip muscles must load (stretch) enough yet also contract enough for the push off. If your hips lack the ability to lengthen (loading) enough then they may also have the inability to explode(unloading).

I'm going to end this posting here. We'll come back at another time and show some practical 3d movements that you can do that can simultaneously lengthen and strengthen your hips that will help your entire body! Remember, your hip can have profound influence on many different structures including the foot, knee, lower back, shoulders, and neck. I bid you farewell for now and chew on this for the moment................ ;)

3d Exercise = Prevention: What is 3d Yoga??!

2010-09-02T15:42:00.000-07:00

3d Exercise = Prevention: What is 3d Yoga??!: "What the heck is 3d Yoga? I get asked the following question quite often: What style of yoga do you teach?For the longest time, I would a..."

3d Exercise = Prevention: 2 Bare feet or not 2 Bare feet...

2010-09-02T15:41:00.000-07:00

3d Exercise = Prevention: 2 Bare feet or not 2 Bare feet...: "Barefoot/Minimalist Training You may have noticed the EXPLOSION in shoe options these days. On one end of the spectrum you have the rocker..."

2 Bare feet or not 2 Bare feet...

2010-09-01T11:48:00.000-07:00

Barefoot/Minimalist Training

Let's discuss barefoot! I'm going to start this conversation with the following quote:

"The human foot is a masterpiece of engineering and a work of art."

- - Leonardo da Vinci

When we walk, the first thing that obviously hits the ground is the foot. As your foot hits the ground and the ground hits the foot with an opposite and equal reaction there is a lot of energy that is absorbed. A good foot will allow all 33 joints to help decelerate this energy, so it can be used to help propel the body forward. Improper foot wear (Hint: Most shoes people wear), forces the foot into a tiny space and inhibits some of this energy that would normally get dissipated in the foot......So, as we know that energy cannot be created or destroyed this energy just keeps traveling up the chain.....and yeah I'm sure you have a "bad knee" ;). Yes, that is right it's not secret that the body is a chain reaction (Thanks to Gary Gray and the Gray Institute for helping to spearhead this!) and what the foot doesn't do properly will only be placed on other joints up the chain!

So let's go back to when our foot hit the ground. The joints of the foot pronate to absorb energy. In doing so, their are 3 joints specifically near your ankle (ankle joint, subtalur joint, mid tarsal joint) that have to work together to allow the foot/ankle to pronate. If they are successful, ROTATIONAL energy is delivered to the shin bone (tibia). Do you think this energy stops here? Heck no!! As the old saying goes "the foot bone is connected to the...". I digress, the thigh bone sits on top of the shin bone, and all those HUGE butt (oh I'm sorry I mean glutes) muscles absolutely LOVE decelerating rotational energy. But it doesn't stop there! Ever notice when you walk that your arms swing opposite your legs? Ever notice that your ribcage rotates oppossite of your pelvis?

So even though we walk forward in a straight line, there is a huge component of rotational energy that is FIRST decelerated then accelerated (Ahh, so that's why most muscles and fascia go at angles and twist and turn throughout the body versus being linear). Can you now see that if your foot is crunched into tiny shoes how that can literally make the rest of the body work harder?

It goes in reverse as well! Trying running or walking fast, but NOT letting your arms counter rotate with the legs. In this situation, the top down deceleration energy is not doing it's job so someone below (low back, knee, foot) will have to work much harder to compensate.

So why would it be a good thing to train/walk barefoot or minimalist? Basically it's to allow the foot to do the HUGE job it was designed to do. 2nd, it's about making the weak link in many people STRONGER, so that it can help the rest of the chain (knee, low back etc etc). 3rd, I suspect there would be less tripping because you can feel the ground better. 4th, I bet their would be less ankle sprains (most shoes put a huge lever on the heel bone which can promote inversion ankle sprains....arch supports can throw you into the direction to). Finally, it truly does feel good to train this way!

A word of caution. Barefoot training isn't for everyone. The following are things in which you would certainly consult a medical professional and as their opinion. Bunions, hallux abducto valgus (big toe that points inward at a large angle), fused ankle joint or other foot joints, diabetes etc etc. Please be smart, and go SLOW at first. Very very slow. If it hurts to walk barefoot consider other options.

Have fun, be safe, and get back to nature a bit eh?

What is 3d Yoga??!

2010-08-31T14:23:00.000-07:00

What the heck is 3d Yoga?

I get asked the following question quite often:

What style of yoga do you teach?

For the longest time, I would answer...uh, well, uh hmmm, it's kind of Hatha yoga like. So in other words, I didn't know! I've never been a big fan of a style because then you are stuck in that style and un-willing to learn.

So about a year ago I was asked the same question and my response was, 3d Yoga. I wasn't surprised when the student asking the question looked at me with a puzzling face and remarked, "Huh, 3d what?"

So, what the heck is 3d yoga? 3d Yoga is basically my particular brand/version/label of movement. A little background now....I've been teaching yoga for over 10 years now. I've been influenced by many sources including, YogaFit(The Yogi's often hate this), Bruce Lee, Gary Gray PT, Chuck Wolf, Scott Sonnon, Will Stewart, study of trigger point work, study of fascia, my WIFE, Shiva Rea, listening and watching my students, and selfishly what feels GREAT to my own body. 3d Yoga is EVER evolving, and I love watching all kinds of movement and finding a way to add good quality movement to my classes to benefit the health and wellness of my students.

3d yoga is based on some principles that I always keep in mind. I'll put them in bullet point fashion to simplify:

3d Yoga Principles

*Deep diaphragmatic breathing affects us positively in SO many ways. Diaphragmatic breathing is the foundation of an optimally healthy life thus a major foundation in 3d yoga.

*GRAVITY is our friend and enemy. This duality must be balanced for a healthy body. Since Gravity pulls us FORWARD all day long we will do a lot of standing postures and movement in the OPPOSITE direction. Flexion and Extension must be balanced.

*Balance is not achieved thru stillness, as it requires MOVEMENT to facilitate Strength, Mobility, Coordination, Vision, Proprioceptive system, and the Vestibular System. So, balance is never static. Balance is controlling efficient movement in any situation

*If you lengthen muscles without strengthening them, you can create Instability, thus we will work on both Simultaneously.

*Movement is rarely done in one line as we move in 3 planes of motion (X, Y, Z coordinates), but even more descriptive is that we move SPHERICALLY as dictated by the shape of our joints and that there are no straight lines in the body. In addition, everything is connected through fascia, so no joint is unnecessary. We will encourage spiral-oscillating movement throughout the entire body.

* We shall evolve and CREATE new movements as we gain a deeper understanding of the body. There is always another layer!

*Yoga/Life is about following your OWN path based on this given MOMENT, not reliving the past or worrying about the future. Focusing on the breath is the root to staying in the moment, and remember that movement is a PRACTICE that has no end point - it is a journey.

*Work with success; so baby steps before big steps which helps us avoid getting trapped in excessive ego.

*3d Yoga is for everyone from the nursing home patient to the athlete to the office worker to the child. The goal is to find your threshold and tweak movement based on success.

*It’s ok to laugh and have fun with movement. Why? You'll do MORE of it.

That's IT in a Nutshell! Namaste :)

If you are still reading this, THANK YOU. I hope to see you in class. Have a fantastic day.

Namaste/Peace, Ryan

Fitness Goals for 2010.... Behavior Scapegoating getting in the way???

2010-01-01T13:14:00.000-08:00

A very very long time ago, I wrote a book. It's titled 'Quit the Gym...Lose Weight at Home'.

It was on the New York Times Best Sellers List for 3 weeks! Just kidding!!

Anyways, I did write a book and here is one of the chapters that I'd

like to dust off a re-distribute back to the public.

Let me know what you think....

Change Your Behavior

Millions and millions of people at any one time are trying to lose weight. They try to do

the right things and improve their eating, but The overwhelming majority will FAIL. In fact,

approximately 90% will not succeed in the long term. 33% of that number will actually gain

more weight. OUCH! You can get better odds in Las Vegas!

Why do people fail? Are diets the cause? Does exercise only work for some people? Is it

genetic? Is it our family, friends, or work? Is it in the water we drink? Or are WE getting in the

way of our own progress? Most people fail because of internal behavioral enigmas versus

external issues (Relatively speaking) such as endocrine and orthopedic complications. Yes, we

are shooting ourselves in the foot. You are an adult now, so what are you going to do about

it? Don’t take it personal and quit like you have always done in the past. If you really want to

lose weight and improve your fitness levels keep reading.

This chapter deals with the very important topic of behavior. We will start with a brief

description and definition. If you don’t know what behavior is then how can you begin to change

it? Then we will move on to an analogy which will parallel many folks typical day. Finally, we

will discuss ways to reprogram your brain for success. By reprogramming your mind, you will

set up your entire spectrum of life FOR SUCCESS.

Losing weight and losing it permanently boils down to mandating a change in your

behavior. What is behavior? Why is it important to understand it? Think of your behavior as the

mental foundation for the person that you are. It is your persona. Your behavior is the

substructure for your interpersonal relationships with your family, friends, coworkers, strangers,

and environment. Behavior is quite similar to a computer program. Our brain is conditioned to

act in a predictable way based upon situations that we have learned or encountered from the past.

Think of it as a way that we are programmed to respond to our surroundings. Our environment is

everything that surrounds us including people, situations, and places. Our behavior is often seemingly automatic and goes largely unchecked without us even being aware of it. For example, when someone shouts out your name in the mall you automatically respond regardless if you recognize the voice. Or, when was the last time you thought about going to the bathroom when you first get out of bed in the morning?Most people just automatically do it. Right?

If your behavior isn’t set up for success then you are going to likely end up in a

continuous loop of losing your weight loss war. I’ve reason to believe that most peoples’

behavior is set up for failure based on how many times they’ve lost this battle. It is about time to

break the cycle don’t you think? Let’s tie this into your brain with a simple example:

I want you to think of the structure and under structure of your house. The foundation

that it is built on seems strong and sturdy right? It’s built using concrete, wood, and many other

sturdy substances. What if your house was built on top of cardboard? What if the walls were

made of cardboard as well? It certainly wouldn’t hold up during any dire circumstances. So the

stronger the foundation of your house, the less prone your house is to crumble due to any

outside forces.

The same is true for your behavior. If your will and determination is weak, if you give up

when someone says you can’t, or you don’t really give it 100% effort then how are you to ever

succeed when the going gets tough? On the other hand, if you have hearty coping skills,

unshakable determination, and you don’t stress too much when things are not always going your

way, then you will be successful. Behavioral problems can be the underlying cause of a

multitude of profound issues besides weight loss ranging from adultery to stealing, from starting

fights to murders.

Modification of behavior can be a dubious challenge in which psychologists have spent

many years studying. Psychologists have devised several methods of changing behavior, in

which you will learn a few to master yourself. For you to lose weight and get healthy and stay

that way, there will have to be a change to your psyche. Let’s first get our mind set with a good

personable example that may ring true for you:

Our behavior for the vast majority of our adult lives is to get up in the morning and skip

breakfast. After that, we sit down in the car and drive to work. Once we are at work we sit for

four hours straight. Lunch time comes around and we eat like crazy while we sit. Next, we sit for another

four hours of work until the end of our shift. After work, we get in the car and sit for the drive home. Once

at home, we sit down and have dinner (and usually over eat). Dinner is done, we walk all the way into the

living room and sit and watch TV, maybe will have some chips and a cold beer or soda (tastes good after a hard days work). Finally we go to bed.

Is it really a mystery any more as to why we are unhealthy and overweight? Our behavior

is nearly identical everyday. We spend the majority of our life seated or lying down. Technology

has made most of our necessary life sustaining activities redundant, so we don’t move enough to

promote any physical changes. If you truly want to make a difference in your health, I implore

you to start at the foundation; work on changing your behavior.

Modifying your behavior will be the most demanding part of your decision to get into

shape, but if you can learn to modify your behavior fitness will be only ONE aspect of your life

that will change! It’s a slow process and will take effort to reprogram your brain. You can no

longer give in to negative people or situations. You can’t give up because the results will NOT

be immediate . You must learn to weed through all the crap that people try to sell you to help with

the process because you will be stronger on the inside.

Finally, you will learn to enjoy your journey to success. If we can’t learn to enjoy the

now, we will never appreciate our end results. You see, most of what we think or feel is due to

what others (many times negative people) have instilled upon us over the course of our lives.

SNAP OUT OF IT AND MOVE ON!! You are an adult, and it’s time for you to control your

destiny with a clean and controlled mind. Are you ready for a change? Read the following

commandments and install them into your brains hard drive. Then implement them daily!

OFFICIAL TOP TEN COMMANDMENTS

TO CHANGE YOUR BEHAVIOR

FOR HEALTH AND LIFE SUCCESS

1. Be honest with yourself and truly know and understand what you want.

2. Write down your short, intermediate, and long term goals every day.

3. You will encounter resistance daily. Learn to cope.

4. Stay positive during frustrating times.

5. Avoid negative people and attract positive people.

6. Find physical activities that you enjoy doing. DO THEM CONSISTENTLY.

7. Take some time everyday to R E L A X and just breathe.

8. Never give up.

9. Eat a balanced diet and get abundant rest.

10.Embrace life and have fun.

Summarize it!

In summary, you must take the steps to learn to control your mind. Your mind is much

like a computer in that you can program and reprogram it for whatever your ambitions are. By

following the Top Ten Commandments To Change Your Behavior for Fitness and Life Success,

you are on your way to break the viscous cycle of fitness failure. Realize that you’re an amazing

person with abundant untapped potential. Following the previous top ten list is the foundation to

build your body the way you want. You are one step closer. Let’s continue to the next chapter.

Symptoms versus Causes...Don't always blame the painful Joint/s!

2009-10-20T12:19:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone,

I thought I would discuss a true story, one that is probably all too common. I teach a 3d Yoga class to Seasoned Citizens, and I quite often get asked questions afterwords. The question I received yesterday is "What stretches can I do for my lower back? My doctor told me to strengthen my core and stretch my lower back"

My answer wasn't what he wanted to hear, "I think you need to stretch your hips"

His response was, "But my back hurts"

My response went like this, "The lack of movement in your hips is causing your lower back to tighten up."

He was somewhat puzzled by my answer. I proceed to ask him, "What are you doing for you "Core?""

He said "I'm doing situps and crunches."

Does anyone else see the problem with how the fitness industry has presented itself. This older gentleman believes that he has to crunch his abs until the point that his abdominals can't even load anymore. His posture was quite kyphotic, and he had very little mobility and stability (Mostibility) of his hips. This viewpoint of training your "Core" has got to be eroded!

Your core includes the pelvic floor and your whole trunk up to your neck. It's a 3 dimensional sphere if you will. Crunching down one side (especially on a seasoned citizen) can literally wreak havoc for the proper function of the body. Our bodies are designed to function much like a whip, and when their is a section of the body that is too stiff and tight, breakdown is likely to occur there or somewhere else along the chain.

Back to our client, I told him to go home and work on some hip bumps. He is to stand in a hall way and adduct/abduct his hips until they touch the right side of the wall and reverse the motion so the other hip touches the other wall. I also told him to get into a doorway with his arms up at shoulder height. Then he is to step a foot thru the doorway so that he can get a 3d stretch thru his anterior. This stretch will help open up his hip flexor, obliques, abdominals, and up into the pectorals. These two exercises or movements are exactly what he needs to start allowing the proper chain reaction of movement to occur so that his back symptoms will F...A....D...E.......away.

In conclusion, don't always treat the symptoms. Look above and below the involved joint and begin to think out of the box with your training and conditioning. We can make a positive change in someone's life. It's a beautiful thing!!

Behavior

2009-10-13T12:29:00.000-07:00

A very very long time ago, I wrote a book. It's titled 'Quit the Gym...Lose Weight at Home". It was on the New York Times Best Sellers List for 3 weeks! Just kidding!! Anyways, I did write a book and here is one of the chapters that I'd like to dust off a re-distribute back to the public. Let me know what you think.

Change Your Behavior

Millions and millions of people at any one time are trying to lose weight. They try to do

the right things and improve their eating, but the overwhelming majority will FAIL. In fact,

approximately 90% will not succeed in the long term. 33% of that number will actually gain

moreweight. OUCH! You can get better odds in Las Vegas!

Why do people fail? Are diets the cause? Does exercise only work for some people? Is it

genetic? Is it our family, friends, or work? Is it in the water we drink? Or are WEgetting in the

way of our own progress? Most people fail because of internal behavioral enigmas versus

external issues (Relatively speaking) such as endocrine and orthopedic complications. Yes, we

are shooting ourselves in the foot. You are an adult now, so what are you going to do about

it?Don’t take it personal and quit like you have always done in the past. If you really want to

lose weight keep reading.

This chapter deals with the very important topic of behavior. We will start with a brief

description and definition. If you don’t know what behavior is then how can you begin to change

it? Then we will move on to an analogy which will parallel many folks typical day. Finally, we

will discuss ways to reprogram your brain for success. By reprogramming your mind, you will

set up your entire spectrum of life FOR SUCCESS.

Losing weight and losing it permanently boils down to mandating a change in your

behavior. What is behavior? Why is it important to understand it? Think of your behavior as the

mental foundation for the person that you are. It is your persona. Your behavior is the

substructure for your interpersonal relationships with your family, friends, coworkers, strangers,

and environment. Behavior is quite similar to a computer program. Our brain is conditioned to

act in a predictable way based upon situations that we have learned or encountered from the past.

Think of it as a way that we are programmed to respond to our surroundings. Our environment is

everything that surrounds us including people, situations, and places.

Our behavior is often seemingly automatic and goes largely unchecked without us even

being aware of it. For example, when someone shouts out your name in the mall you

automatically respond regardless if you recognize the voice. Or, when was the last time you

thoughtabout going to the bathroom when you first get out of bed in the morning? Most people

just automatically do it. Right?