BodyGrades Blog

BG-18: My Daughter Health Update

Coach T — Wed, 30 May 2018 17:18:42 +0000

If yall read my last post yall know that my daughter was involved in a bad car accident, 2 weeks ago, monday. She had just gotten back from a 4-day cruise after her spring semester and was heading back to Atlanta when it happened. She was with her mother and a couple of their friends. Before I get into her current status, I do want to say thanks to everyone who has donated to her go-fund-me account and to everyone who will donate. Every little bit helps and it all will go towards her and her recovery process. It would be great if everyone who sees this post could donate as little as $25 (or more). The website is https://gofundme.com/sydney-williams or you can click here to be taken to her page where you can donate. Or, some people would prefer to remain anonymous, you can send a check or money order, payable to Tim Williams, to the following address: Tim Williams, c/o Sydney Williams, PO Box 768206, Roswell, GA 30076. Sydney is a 20 year old college student who had just finished her 5th semester. She had already registered to take summer classes but will miss those and likely the fall semester, and maybe more. Plus it is too soon to tell if and when she will be able to start taking classes again, or even get back to work. So anything collected thru the go-fund-me would go towards her expenses and to help her get back on her feet. Its been 2 weeks since the accident. When I first got the call from her mother, who was in the vehicle with her, she couldn’t tell me much except that she had to be life-flighted away from the scene. So for the 5 hour drive to get to her I had no idea what I would be coming up on when I got to the hospital. By the time I got there she had already gone to surgery and was in ICU. As a physical therapist, I’ve walked in and have worked with I don’t know how many hospital patients, and with just about any and every condition that you can think of, including ICU patients. Let me tell you, its a completely different something when you walk in and it is your child laying there, and there’s nothing you can do. You can read more details of what happened by clicking here and going to my previous post. Today, however, and for the past 2 and a 1/2 weeks I have sat here in the hospital beside her. She has a few more surgeries that she needs to go thru, but I can say that she has made some great gains and am feeling optimistic about her recovery. One of the surgeries that she is scheduled to have, so far has been cancelled twice because of there being too much swelling and was too risky to perform. At this moment, as I type this (wednesday, 12pm central time) it is being put on the schedule for one of the next few days and is likely to happen this time, Im keeping my fingers crossed. If it does, and everything goes well, we are hoping to get her back to Atlanta soon after where she will get started in a pretty intense rehab program. She has made pretty good, steady gains all week. She is conversing pretty well and more often, is interacting more often, complains of pain less often and is recognizing people and things again. So we are hopeful that this progress continues. Again, a donation of just $25(or more) can help her greatly in her recovery process. You can click here to donate to her go-fund-me page or you can anonymously send a check or money order donation, payable to Tim Williams, to: Tim Williams, c/o Sydney Williams, PO Box 768206, Roswell, GA, 30076. We greatly appreciate your donation and greatly appreciate you taking a moment to read some of what she is going thru. Again, anything you donate would be greatly appreciated. Tim Williams BS, EP-C, PTA, KTP BodyGrades www.BODYGRADES.com www.BLOG.BODYGRADES.com

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BG-17: My Daughter Sydney

Coach T — Thu, 24 May 2018 20:31:09 +0000

A week ago monday, I got the call that no parent wants. I had just sat down for lunch when I got it. It was my 20 year old daughter’s mother calling to let me know that they, her, my daughter and two friends had just been in a bad accident leaving Alabama and that they had to life-flight my daughter to the hospital. Im not sure how the accident happened but everyone else in the vehicle had some pretty good bumps and bruises, but nothing too, too serious. Sydney, however, was ejected from the vehicle and suffered some pretty good head injuries, and was taken immediately to surgery. Today, as I type this, I am fortunate to say that I am sitting here in the hospital beside her. She had a pretty good weekend after only 1 week from the accident, but the last 2-3 days have been difficult. Our expectations went thru the roof after the great weekend, but monday and tuesday both were quite difficult, yesterday was a tad better, getting a little more interaction, and today has been better than yesterday. Today she’s moving around in bed on her own, with intent, shifting side to side and, in fact, tried to get out of the bed. There are some adjustments that need to be made to some of the levels with her blood work, but once thats done I think we will be in a good position. I want HER fixed now, but after getting ejected from the vehicle, I’m simply happy she’s here. She does have a few surgeries to go but, I think im seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Its been hard for her, because she’s relatively aware of her surroundings, and is quite afraid of all the busy-ness that is going on with her care. It is extremely rare that anyone survives getting ejected from a moving vehicle on the highway, but it happens. She, so far, is now one on that one-in-however-many list. Had the life flight gotten their two minutes later, this might be a completely different post, and thats IF I would have been able to write one at all. But because she has survived, and is making good progress, I can write this post and actually feel ok about writing it, now, 11 days later. Normally I’m rather private about matters like this BUT, there are a lot of people who have been in her corner, keeping her in their thoughts and prayers…so Im ok with doing this because, the more support she has, I feel, the better the outcome for her, no matter how far away they come from. So, not only am I asking for those two things, but I am also asking that you and everyone who rides with you or you ride with, that you all do buckle up. I don’t exactly know the details, as to whether she had hers on or not, at this point I don’t care. Moving forward, whether it was on this time or not, she better have it on!!! Her father has spoken!! Personally, Ive worked in just about every setting within the medical field and have worked hands-on with hundreds and hundreds of patients in just about every condition you can think of, as a physical therapist. BUT, it all changes when it is your child laying there needing the help. I am relieved that she is making good progress. She had just finished her second full year of college and had gone on a weekend cruise to unwind before summer semester starts. My brother has set up a go-fund-me page to help with some of the expenses surrounding her care, and, hopefully there could be enough for her to help her get the ground up under her feet, once she does get out of here and out of rehab. Anything you can donate will be used 100% for her and for her care. In fact, i’m open to itemizing on the go-fund-me page so you can see where every dollar is going. If its nothing but good thoughts you can give, Im ok with that too. I would however, like to show her that across the globe, even people who have no idea who she is, contributed to the fund to help get her moving again. You can click here to be taken to her go-fund-me page or go to https://www.gofundme.com/sydney-williams. Again, anything you can donate will be greatly appreciated, and, please feel free in sharing the link. Oh, if you donate $25 USD or more, I will set up a webinar for you and others who need help with weight loss, strength training, or joint and muscle pain management (ie, knee pain/arthritis, shoulder pain etc etc) goals, where you can participate for free. If you donate $50 or more you can join one of thosee webinars PLUS get a 20 minute phone consultation on any one of those three topics. You just have to message me to let me know which one you are interested in, and what you need help with and I will add you to the list to set up the call. Thanks in advance for keeping her in your thoughts, and thanks in advance for any donations. Please feel free in sharing this post. Sincerely, Tim Williams, BS, EP-C, PTA, KTP BodyGrades www.BODYGRADES.com

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BG-16: In The Beginning…

Coach T — Tue, 27 Feb 2018 22:05:12 +0000

IN THE BEGINNING…. If you are new to working out, or it has been a while, one thing to remember is that consistency is important, but not giving up is paramount. In the beginning of any workout program, regardless of workout experience, people all-too-often stop, giving up way too soon because they “aren’t seeing any changes” fast enough. However, just because you don’t see the changes happening, as quickly as you would like, doesn’t mean that changes aren’t happening. Any time any one start or get back into a working out, changes immediately start taking place, starting on day one. Everything from the workout mindset to blood pressure adjustments on up to an increased activation of the digestive system start to kick in, and on up to, of course muscle activation, just to name a few. But before your goals of standing in the mirror and seeing a slimmer, more fit you, something else has to take place, which also starts on day one and goes on forever (or until you quit – whichever comes first). This something is something that you will never see happening and is something that HAS TO take place before any muscle can respond to any work that you do and before any cardiovascular conditioning can be improved. In fact, for the first 2-3 weeks (or more) of starting any program it is this that you are (unintentionally) working on. This something is something that always happens behind the scenes, works harder than any muscle you will ever work, works even when you are at rest, and is something that you will never actually see working but will noticed that it has been worked. Our neurological system is the most amazing system that we have. It is because of our neurological system that any other system is able to do anything. When it comes to fitness training it is no different. Most people give all the credit to one’s gains to the muscular system, because that is what they can see when they look in the mirror if they stay at it long enough. However, what we are able to see when we look in the mirror – or what others are able to see – really, is because of what we are unable to see, which is our neurological system hard at work. One way to think about the neurological system is if you walk into a dark room and you flip the light switch on. Even though the light bulb is 10 or 15 feet away from the switch, once you flip it on, the light comes on instantly, unless the bulb is burned out. You don’t see the protons and electrons traveling up the wire to the light bulb, but you know they are working because you the light came on. Although there are some differences, our bodies pretty much work the exact same way. With just a thought – the flipping of a switch – our muscles will contract the same way a light bulb comes on – instantly, unless, of course there is some trouble with the body’s wiring (which is what happens with a stroke). With every workout, whether you are just (re)starting after a hiatus or returning after yesterdays, you are initially and consistently training your body to send a stronger nerve signal to the working joints and muscles of the body, which starts to take place, even from day one. It is because of what you have done, in any workout leading up to the present one, that allows you to have some strength as you return to working out. This is what many people like to call muscle memory. It is because of this, especially when getting (re)started, that you will always notice strength improvements and better body control long before you see any see any muscle growth. But if you stay consistent, you are sure to see the muscles start to respond as well. You can check out the rest of my posts by clicking here, or, if you have questions or need help with your fitness program or joint and muscle pain management program, you can contact me by clicking here.

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BG-15: Getting Faster Results and Breaking Through A Plateau

Coach T — Tue, 07 Nov 2017 20:30:30 +0000

It was about a month ago that I sent out MY LAST POST. And in that post I talked about what I found to be 7 key factors to consider when planning your workouts. Now that you have an idea on how to plan them I’m going to tell you about 5 hacks that you can include in your workouts that will not only take you to the next level, but will help you break thru ANY plateau. But before I go into that, let me first mention that nobody, EVER! has started a fitness training or rehabilitation program and said that they did NOT want to get better, they didn’t want more energy and that they didn’t want to feel stronger, faster or healthier. None of my physical therapy patients have EVER said that they did NOT want less pain, didn’t want to move better or didn’t want to lower their risks of falling either. It just doesn’t happen. Every client or patient that I now or have worked with in the past comes to me with one goal in mind….and that is to leave better off – health-wise – than how I found them. I’m sure you’ve heard that if you simply do more, consistently, on most days than what you have been doing on any of the previous days that you can get results – especially if your eating habits stay the same or get better. And its true. But at some point, unless you are okay with plateauing, and in some cases regressing, then you’ll want to consider this concept, because it is this concept that allows my clients and my patients to get results. That concept is called the OVERLOAD principle. And just as it sounds and as I tried to describe, it is simply doing more in todays workout than what you did during the previous workouts. There are 4, well 5, elements that I use in every one of my workouts to get the people that I work with results. The nice thing about them too is that they are not independent of each other. Although not every one can handle this, but two or more of these elements can be changed simultaneously. But, let me advise you, changing two or more of these elements during the same session IS NOT FOR EVERYONE Doing any of these 4 things can enhance (or destroy) your next workout, so proceed with caution. You can – Add weight weight – Do more repetitions – Increase the number of sets – Decrease the amount of rest time between sets, or, one of my personal favorites, – Increase the speed at which you move the weights (while maintaining control of the weights and still with good form) Feel free in getting creative. It doesn’t have to be the same modifications every time. Mix it up. And not just on varying days but also during the same workout you can switch it up at different points within the workout. For example, with your first set of upright rows, do your normal number of reps, wait your normal 2 minutes between sets, but then on the second set, increase the number of reps but wait only 1 minute before starting your 3rd set. Do you need help getting started or do you need alternate exercises because of some limitation? Well, now you can get workouts that are customized to your needs and your limitations. CONTACT ME for details…. CLICK HERE to view all of my previous posts and CLICK HERE to contact me.

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BG-14: 7 Key Factors To Getting Strength Training Results

Coach T — Wed, 11 Oct 2017 13:55:27 +0000

If getting fitness results were only as easy as pushing a button, we’d all just be average. But do you know how, no, I mean, really know how people are getting fitness results? I don’t just mean fitness results, as in looking lean or appearing to be in shape, because not all in shape people are healthy. I mean, results because of the work that they put in consistently, that actually leads to better health, greater strength, more energy, fewer or no chronic health risks, that beach body, less joint and muscle aches and pains……shall I go on? Most people start fitness programs with the speed of a Tesla Model S P100D, but then stop with the abruptness of a fully loaded dump trunk that has run out of gas going up hill. It’s no wonder the get-fit-quick schemes outsell gym memberships, because it takes conscious effort. So the next time you start and stop, and then turn to extreme measures, think about this, the get-fit-quick schemes sell easily and are what 67% of the population is doing. But the 33% of the population who are healthy and staying fit are simply eating well and staying active, consistently. It takes the same 21 days for someone who is not healthy to establish healthy habits that it takes for someone who is. One of the reasons people give up so quickly is because they aren’t seeing the results fast enough. But what they don’t realize is that, even in just getting started, – just in doing more than what you have been doing – changes are already happening on the inside, even though you can’t see them happening. But that is where it all starts. Remember, it is the unseen that leads us to and creates for us what IS seen (in the mirror and on the beach). If you’ve read any of MY PREVIOUS POSTS you’ll know that I believe certain kinds of equipment should be reserved for certain types of exercisers. You’ll also know that I believe that anyone who walks into a gym, under their own power, should not be sitting down to exercise once they get in there. I don’t like the “one-size-fits-all,” single-plane-and- machine-supported-movements-approach-to-exercise, because that is not how we normally move or function. Let me ask you this, when was the last time you had to be super-strong while sitting down? SIDEBAR: If you’re not sure on alternatives, CLICK HERE to contact me. But what, along with consistency, are the key ingredients that make up a good strength training program? Here are seven: Select a weight that allows you to perform 8 to 12 reps per set (10 to 15 reps for older adults or if you are just getting started in the weight room) Train each major muscle group for a total of 2 to 4 sets Perform each set to the point of muscle fatigue but not failure Rest for 2 to 3 minutes between sets to improve muscular fitness Perform 8 to 10 reps with proper technique Resistance train two to three days per week on alternate days (allow 48hrs pass before working the same muscles to let the muscles recover) Continually progress the training program by gradually increasing the weight each week In my next post I will discuss the various ways to manipulate each session so that each one is different. If you need help in getting started or need ideas on “what to do next,” CLICK HERE to contact me. Tim Williams, Performance Coach BodyGrades Blog: Blog.BodyGrades.com Website: BodyGrades.com

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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-11: I Don’t Like To Use Big Words

Coach T — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 15:46:03 +0000

I don’t like to use big words because I don’t like to sound too pretentious when I write or speak. Occasionally, however, a word pops up in my head that I simply have to use because of its impact on how our bodies function, how we manage pain and on how we prevent injuries. In fact, because of those things the word is even bigger than what it appears. Proprioception, is the brain’s ability to know where all of its body parts are in relationship to its surroundings. It is part of the body’s sensory and neurological system that helps to protects you. Have you ever walked down a level hallway and got to a point where the floor is uneven or it drops off and you didn’t see it coming? Well, at that very moment that you take that next step, gasp and tense up, all at the same time, because the floor is not where you thought it would be…..that is your proprioception at work. Another good example is when you are lying on the edge of the bed and you start to roll off. The muscles throughout the body contract, without you even having to think about it, in an effort to keep you from falling out. Our neurological system is hard at work all the time, and our body’s ability to protect itself depends heavily on this system. In one of my previous posts I wrote about how sitting to exercise is one of the worst things that someone can do, especially when that person doesn’t need to. This posts builds on that because when we sit, our proprioception does not become stronger, it actually becomes weaker. In fact, sitting suppresses the neurological system, which, in turn causes a delay in the muscles contracting. So next time you are lying on the edge of the bed and start to roll out, it may not be until you hit the floor that the muscles contract. And, by then, they are contracting because you have already hit the floor, not because your proprioceptors recognized that you were falling out. Next week, in my next post, I will discuss some of the things that you can do to improve your proprioception. The first one will sound so simple, but it very well may be one of the hardest things you’ve ever done. Up for the challenge? Check back next week to find out just what that activity is. CLICK HERE to read all of my previous posts and CLICK HERE to learn more about 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-9: Joint and Muscle Injury and Nutrition

Coach T — Fri, 07 Jul 2017 14:07:39 +0000

When most people think of food and nutrition, most only think about how good or bad something tastes, and occasionally the impact it has on their waste lines. But did you know that good nutrition also plays a role in your bone, joint and muscle health as well? CARBOHYDRATES When we are low on our primary source of fuel, carbs, our thought processes and the signal that tells our muscles to move, when we them to move, gets delayed. And since you learned in one of my previous blog posts that there is a timing element in (fluid) movement, that timing element gets disrupted. These kinds of delays can cause a number of issues from muscle strains to joint dislocations and ligament tears. PROTEINS Muscle is primarily made up of protein. When we exercise, we get little micro-tears within the muscle. Muscle building and greater strength happens when those micro-tears – holes, if you will – are filled in with protein. But the job of protein doesn’t stop there. In addition to building muscle, it is the job of protein, as you can see, to help rebuild tissue. While building and rebuilding may sound the same, some see building in the preventative sense and rebuilding in a rehabilitative sense, such as after an injury or a surgery has occurred. Either way, it is protein’s responsibility to get the body’s tissues to a functioning or improved state. FATS Most people see fat in foods as a bad thing when, in actuality they are not, some of them are not, anyway. The good, healthy fats play a significant role in the body. Since this is all about how nutrition plays a role in injuries and pain, lets talk about bone. The bones of the body provide protection to the organs and give the body shape and structure. Osteoporosis is a condition that can put the organs at risk and disrupt the body’s shape and structure. Osteoporosis can cause the bones of the body to become thin and brittle, especially the weight bearing bones such as the hips. It occurs for a couple of reasons, one of them being a deficiency in calcium and vitamin d. “But wait,” says one of my clients, “my doctor told me I was low on vitamin d” – as are most people in the world, creating an epidemic – “so he prescribed me a very high dose of vitamin D.” Some sources say that vitamin D deficiency affects close to a billion people. But since this epidemic began, and vitamin d has been passed out like candy, the numbers have not changed. In fact, they may have actually gotten worse. Any clue as to why that is? It is because most people don’t realize that vitamin D (and vitamins A, E and K) are fat soluble vitamins, meaning, they need to be consumed with some type of (healthy) dietary fat in order to be absorbed. As with my client, a number of people take vitamin D on an empty stomach and with water, so its no wonder the rates of vitamin D deficiencies – and cases of osteoporosis – are not changing. The consumption of fats is not just about preventing osteoporosis and building up the strength and resistance to bone fractures, or about “not getting fat.” It is about consuming fats so that other (micro)nutrients, vitamin A, D, E and K can do their job as well. All 3 macronutrients, carbs, proteins and fats all contribute to our overall health and in more ways than just with our waist lines. Our energy levels, our movement efficiency, our muscle development and our resistance to bone fractures and muscle and ligament tears are greatly impacted by what we eat and how much we eat. Learning how to include each one of them in your daily meal plans can keep you off the sidelines and on the fields for much longer, as well as help you recover if an injury does occur. You can read any of my other blog posts by CLICKING HERE, or, to learn more about me you can CLICK HERE.

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