Joint, Muscle and Movement – BodyGrades Blog

BG-13: Taking Things Too Far

Coach T — Thu, 24 Aug 2017 17:15:01 +0000

I am all for challenging myself and my clients to see and to show them what we are capable of, because, after-all, challenges are the very reason you, I, or any of them are able to get better at anything that we do. If we want to know what we can handle, or if we want to grow or get better, at doing anything, its simply what we have to do. Often times, however, too many people take things just a little too far in the weight room and cause a lot of structural damage in the process. Its ok to accept challenges, but its best, before-hand, to know what you are doing. Most people who aren’t in the health, fitness, wellness and rehab industries tend to forget, or, I guess, not realize that when you exercise you are affecting more than just the intended muscle. Even some of those that are actually in the fitness and wellness industry either forget or simply don’t know. But when you are well aware of the body’s anatomy, you are well aware that the body contains other soft tissues that also support the body, such as tendons, ligaments and cartilage, which are all found around the areas of a joint. And because of that, not all exercises and all movements are good for you, regardless of who has been doing them or for how long they have been done. Take the deep squat for instance. In this exercise, the goal of the exerciser is to squat down, keep the feet flat and take the hips down as close to the floor as possible – beyond the point where the quads and glutes are even working – and then pushing yourself back up from that position by contracting the glutes, quads and hamstrings. I have 2 problems with that exercise. First, I STILL cant figure out, exactly what muscle(s) you actually are using to get yourself up from that deep squat position. Because the muscles you are supposed to be using become so overstretched that they virtually become inactive at the bottom range of that movement. Second, the amount of stretch that gets put on the patellar tendon once you are beyond 90 degrees (plus or minus) at the knee joint is way beyond the amount of stretch that is supposed to be put on it. This exercise also puts the meniscus (knee cartilage) and the Anterior Cruciate Ligament – aka the ACL – into bad positions as well. Ligaments are designed to have some give but no true stretch. ACLs are designed to have even less stretch than what the ligaments are supposed to have. By doing this exercise, and adding a hundred pounds or more of weight, on top of the body’s weight, it puts the joint at significant risk for injury. Joint laxity and instability of the knees start to develop because the tendons and ligaments DO NOT have that same recoiling effect that muscles have. Another fan favorite exercise that should be banned is the tricep dip. The stress that gets added to the ligaments and tendons of the shoulder, with this exercise, puts you in the same position as with the hips and the deep squat. It creates a lot of instability which can lead to a lot of aches, pains, dislocations, tears and even surgeries. Just because its an exercise that has always been done, doesn’t mean you should keep doing them. The risk of taking your exercises too far is not worth the investment, so choose your exercises wisely. CLICK HERE to view our previous posts, or CLICK HERE to contact us.

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BG-12: I Don’t Like To Use Big Words part 2

Coach T — Fri, 04 Aug 2017 17:01:38 +0000

Until last week, the word proprioception has been a term that many of you have never heard. As I said in last week’s post, the word describes the brain’s ability to sense where all of the body’s parts are in space, at any given time. In addition, because it “knows,” it has the ability to change from one position to a new position, ALMOST instantaneously. This allows us to do everything from simply turning our head to look in a new direction, to reaching for something that is sitting on the other end of the table and to move, react or reposition ourselves when we need to protect against injury. But what are some of the ways that we can improve our proprioception? In ONE OF MY PREVIOUS POSTS I talked about, well, I actually wrote a series about, how most people who walk into the gym should not be using the seated exercise machines. One of the benefits of doing exercises while standing is that the body’s smaller muscles have to work. These fine, smaller muscles typically creates the movement that allow small position changes to occur, that don’t require a lot of force. Plyometric exercises are another good way to improve proprioception. An example of a good plyometric exercise is throwing a ball off of a mini-trampoline and catching it – the smaller the ball and the harder you throw it, the harder your brain has to work and the faster it has to respond to get you into the right position to make the catch. (FYI: Probably best to start out using something along the lines of a dodgeball ball, as opposed to a golf ball). One of my favorites, that is so simple and can be done anywhere, at any time, is standing with your eyes closed. Closing your eyes shuts off the use of your vision to tell your brain where all of your body parts are in space, and not just in relation to the body itself, but also to its surroundings. You can feel your proprioceptors working harder the very minute you close your eyes and keep them closed for any time longer than a simple blink. You can also feel them working and get a similar affect by simply standing in a dark room. One amazing thing about the proprioceptors and the body’s neurological receptors and sesnory organs is that there is no limitation to what it can handle. The brain is aware of where each arm is and where each leg is, but also where each finger and each toe is. It knows whether a hip is flexed or extended, a knee is bent or straight and whether one arm is above your head while the other is scratching your back, and at a moments notice is able to move each limb into its exact opposite position, immediately and simultaneously or in an exact sequence that you want it to move in – think about a dancer, a gymnast or a football player. All of them, on a regular basis, train so that everything is in sync and move how they want it to move, in less than a moments notice. Improving proprioception improves the body’s awareness and its ability to protect itself, at any given time. Read more of my blogs by CLICKING HERE, or learn more about me and what I do by CLICKING HERE. Have questions or need help? CLICK HERE to contact me.

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BG-10: Sometimes I Cringe

Coach T — Fri, 14 Jul 2017 13:38:46 +0000

If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you know how I feel about the seated exercise machines. While they can provide some benefit – for the right individuals, I don’t feel that they are the best option for the majority of fitness center members. HOWEVER, if you don’t know how to use the pulleys or the free weights, I’ll give you a pass to use those machines, but ONLY temporarily, because exercise safety is of the upmost importance. I love the fact that so many more people have taken a personal interest in their health. It doesn’t matter to me if you are trying to boost your sex appeal to get more likes from your beach photos or if it is to be more healthy so that you can lower your healthcare costs. It really doesn’t matter. What does matter, however, is that when you are in the gym, that you are exercising using good mechanics. No one wants their photo likes to go from, ‘I’m on the beach and I’m sexy’ to, ‘Pray for me, I’m in the hospital’. What I DO care about, however, is that people learn to move correctly, even if it means less weight initially, plus, I prefer quality over quantity. Motion, movement, performance and mobility is what I love and it’s what I do. It is a beautiful thing. Sometimes I cringe, however, when I see someone in the gym swinging their back so much as they try to do arm curls with 100 pound dumbbells in each hand, or when I see someone unfolding themselves as they try to leg press (ya know, the machine that I HATE!) with hundreds of pounds on each side. Exercise should never look like a spinal disc is about to slip out of someone’s spinal column, through their skin and onto the floor. Like I said, sometimes I say something. Sometimes I say nothing. But sometimes I walk past them as they are exercising and drop one of my business cards by their cell phone and towel. Okay, I may not actually do that, but you get the picture of how important mechanics are when it comes to any type of bodily movement, whether in the gym, exercising or at home picking up a newborn. The idea of going to the gym and exercising is so that you can become stronger, move more efficiently, and live a healthier lifestyle with fewer aches, pains and injuries. CLICK HERE to read all of my posts and CLICK HERE to learn more about me.

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BG-6: Machines vs Free Weights: Which One Is Best For You pt 2

Coach T — Wed, 21 Jun 2017 14:57:06 +0000

Fitness Machines vs Free Weights pt 2 There are many reasons that people give for going to the gym. Some go because they want to lose weight, some go to get stronger or build muscle and others go because they want to maintain or improve their ability to function. Regardless of what any one person’s goal is, we all want to get better. We all want to move better, move more efficiently and we want to move pain free. In my experience, as both as a trainer and as a physical therapist, I’ve learned that the best way to do that is by practicing exactly what it is you want to be good at. Getting better requires more than just going through the motions. It requires consistent effort, and it requires you to choose the right tools for the job. In part 1 of this 3 part series, I talked about how most fitness centers waste precious floor space by filling more than half of it with seated exercise machines. It isn’t very often that a person needs to be super strong in a seated position. No one who walks through the doors of a gym, without an assistive device – a cane, a walker or a wheelchair – should ever be caught using these machines. These machines are not designed to help you progress. In fact, they actually rob you of at least 50% of your progress while you exercise because the machine is doing at least 50% of the work for you. To me, functional exercise is all about purposeful movements of purposeful intent, where what I do in the gym transfers to being more efficient outside of the gym. For me, personally, there’s never a time that I am sitting where I would need to have a strong quadricep muscle (seated leg extension machine). So that is not functional for me. And in my experience, in both the gym and in the clinic, I can’t think of a time that it was right for anyone I worked with. It simply is not a functional move. A form of that is used as a testing measure in the clinic, but just because it is used it doesn’t make it right, nor does it make it any more functional. I had mentioned that when you use these seated machines, at least 50% or more of the work was being done by the machines, robbing you of some of your strength gains. Better, more efficient movement is everyone’s objective. In movement there are 2, well 3 primary moves that go into it. 1st there is the movement itself. 2nd, in conjunction with movement, and at the same time, something has to provide stability or they won’t be controlled movements. When we walk, run, jump, climb, skip or whatever, the smaller muscles in the body – the ones you don’t see – and the core muscles muscles provide the stability. But when you perform seated exercises, the seat and back support of the machine provides the stability. This, consequently, shuts off the ones that you are supposed to be using when you are active. And 3rd , there is movement sequencing/timing. This is when one muscle has gotten as long (or as short) as it is going to get and another muscle has to take over to complete the movement. When muscles – movements – are isolated, you do just that, you isolate them, disrupting the sequential timing that is supposed to happen with functional movements. In my 1st post I mentioned that there was only one machine that I thought was appropriate for most anyone to use. That machine is the dual pulley system. This machine – well, system – is phenomenal because you can perform virtually any exercise (movement) that you want to, while standing – allowing the core and smaller muscles to engage to provide the (stability), and it allows (sequential) movement patterns to the muscle’s end-range. It also has a unique feature that I will discuss in part 3 of this 3 part series. You will not want to miss this final part. If you missed part 1, or you want to read some of my other posts you can do so by clicking here. Or, if you want to learn more about me you can visit my main page by clicking here.

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BG-4: My Least Favorite Exercise Machine…..EVER??

Coach T — Thu, 08 Jun 2017 17:30:26 +0000

I recently had a conversation with one of my high school athletes who was complaining of back pain. He was one of my top athletes, mind you….phenomenal in all of his events, and probably would have been great in others if he were allowed to do more. He was in great shape, he was disciplined and would work harder than just about anybody else on the team and was coachable. During our conversation I asked him some questions about his off season regimen, to try to determine where/how the pain started. He said he had been working out with the coach of his summer team, so of course I asked what the workouts consisted of. He goes down a list of running activities and stops. So I ask him about any strengthening and he said “oh, yeah,” and started naming a few, one of which included my most despised pieces of exercise equipment…..in the WORLD!! Can you guess what it is? Yep, you guessed it, the leg press machine. That machine is the most anti-functional machine in the world. Nowhere in life are we EVER in a position that we want, or need, our quads and hamstrings to work, while our glutes – the butt muscles – are biomechanically shut off. As you learn more and more about me and my fitness training/exercise philosophy, by reading my posts and ebooks, or hear me speak at workshop or whatever, you will learn that the best exercises are (typically) the ones that do not shut off one group of muscles in order for another group to work. In early stages of rehab or in dealing with an injury, that could be the case, but not in an athletic-based training program. But that is exactly what the leg press machine does, it shuts off the glutes (the butt muscles) so that the quads and the hamstrings can work. One of the biggest things that I’ve found when it comes to back pain is that we try to perform certain activities with the glutes being in a weakened state. In any movement, the body expects certain muscles to perform or to assist in whatever movement you are trying to do. And when that muscle cant “pull its weight” other muscles have to perform in order to complete the movement. The term that I use to describe this is misfire. When it comes to running, jumping and sprinting, the glutes, which are the most central muscle of the core, have a very important job. But when I tested the strength of the glutes there was nothing there, literally. He was unable to be tested because there was too much pain in the hamstrings and in the low back to complete the test. The leg press machine encourages poor movement mechanics which in turn reinforces muscle misfiring and muscle imbalances, which, when done creates and prolongs aches and pains, and also increases the risk for injury.

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BG-2: Pain, Pain Go Away

Coach T — Tue, 16 May 2017 15:20:36 +0000

If you were to ask anyone in the gym or someone that you know why they workout, there is a 99% chance that they will say “to lose weight.” Weight loss is a great reason to move, however, it should not be the only reason and, in fact, for some, there is a more important reason. We know that exercising and staying active makes us more physically fit, gives us more energy and lowers our chance of developing a number of different chronic health conditions. But did you know, by staying active and exercising you can also reduce joint and muscle aches and pains and reduce your risks of being injured? It’s sad to say but one of the top reasons people give for not exercising is because of their aches and pains. And because of that, in most cases, the pain only worsens over time or the it show up in places that “had nothing to do with” the original pain. Although pain doesn’t “move” from one place to another, you can experience pain in places away from the original site of pain or injury. And not only that, but an injury that may have happened years ago, that you let rest back then because you thought it was the best thing, could be a major contributor to the reason you have the aches, pains and injuries now. The human body was designed to move. So while we are sitting around letting muscles rest and trying to keep one thing from happening, we are creating or reactivating something else. Unless you are ordered by a doctor not to, it is more important that you get up and move, and move often. You don’t have to add weights and id doesn’t have to be a high impact activity, but movement helps keep joints from tightening up and muscles from becoming weak. This helps lower your chances of getting injured again and helps with reducing the long term affects. Coach Tim

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