Monday Motivation: Live True

DEWAR'S - ALEX HONNOLD - "LIVE TRUE" from Xavi Santolaya - COLORIST on Vimeo.

Weekend Coffee 2: Good Reads

Get your coffee and peruse the following.

I read the book "Free to Learn" last year.  This article talks about the concept and has some good points about how children are suffering from lack of play.  Couldn't agree more.  Basically to much forced learning/activities, not enough time just playing, has it's consequences. The Play Deficit. 

Speaking of consequences, the loss of mobility has more pronounced consequences then just physical health as we age.  One test that can be easily monitored for the elderly is the get up and go test.  Person sits, gets up, walks ten feet, turns around, walks back and sits back down.  Measure and record.  Don't lose your mobility. 

If that has you clenching your teeth in agreement, be careful.  The position of your jaw may influence muscle activity.  Short abstract on how jaw placement can effect knee muscular recruitment.  Knee mechanics. 

But, we are getting super freaky fine tuned if we start talking about 1mm of jaw placement.  Perhaps we are over thinking things at times.  For the runners out there, this article describes several scenarios where awesome runners overcame serious setbacks.  The body can adapt.  Sometimes we don't give it credit for being just an amazing organic organism instead of just a nuts and bolts machine.  The Running Machine Myth.

So your not going to have excuses for not being able to run, but you want to run faster! 7 myths of the 40 yard dash.  Nice article on some very common practices that coaches/athletes do in the hope to get faster.  I like how there are several tips that are proven to work and not just a list of don't do's.

With all this running, you are probably going to be breathing hard.  This is a good thing.  Strengthen up that diaphragm.  It's a muscle and when it lack endurance it may correlate to low back pain.   Very short abstract.  Diaphragm.

Have a great weekend.

Monday Motivation: What's Your Purpose?

Weekend Coffee 1: Summery of Articles for the Week

I've used Evernote for a few years now.  Each use, it grows more useful for me.  Kinda like a personal storage engine.  One of the prime ways I use it is with a quick save of articles and ideas that come across during the week.

I will find an article on a blog, website, Facebook , twitter or email that interests me, but I don't have the time in the moment to read it.  So I will tag it, save it,  and come back to it when I get some time.

So these are a few from the last week or two.  Grab a cup of coffee (unstoppable coffee if you're in the know) and see if any of these reads interest you to read further.

Stretching is actually a complicated subject.  Is it good, is it bad?  Whats the best way to do it?  What is actually happening when we stretch?  This paper talks about some possible theories and refutes a few as well.   Stretching on Physther.   Conclusion from the paper that it is most likely an modified sensation by the person stretching that allows more muscle extensibility.

Using what is called Flux Based Analysis, supplements were analyzed.  This was an interesting paper as it goes into what could be the future of supplementation for human metabolism and health.  Methionine, Arginine and BCAA's seem to increase protein synthesis post exercise.  Supplement or Not to Supplement.  It talks about how perhaps using this model type 1 (slow twitch) and type 2 (fast twitch)supplementation may be used to target these fiber types.  Interesting.

Benefits of Non-Functional Training.  Basically prepping single joints for better movement.  Getting local tissue ready to handle uncertain situations.  I'm looking forward to the Functional Range Conditioning seminar I'm taking in a few months.

Vimeo has some pretty sweet videos available for free.  One is Erwan LeCorre talking about MovNat: Evolutionary Natural Fitness.  45 talking about modern health and why we are losing it.

Don't give your kids fancy shoes to run.  Old fashioned plimsoll's shoes allow kids to learn to run more naturally.  Now as an adult, don't read this and think it's best for you.  If you've worn a 2" inch athletic heel for 30 years.  You are in a different category.  Help your kid though, not become you.

Nothing really about health and fitness, just plain fascinating.  Insects show these micro gears that perhaps we will learn how to use to advance our mechanical knowledge.  Fascinating.

Copper has shown to destroy highly infectious norovirus.  Virus can live on surface such as door handles.  Hopefully this information trickles down to schools, hospitals and other public places.

Loose connective tissue in the neck may play a roll in Chronic Neck Pain.  This was just the abstract.  

Golden Arches: Human Feet.  Quick take on perhaps the foot's lateral arch is more flexible then we previously thought.

Problem Solving: Honesty, Weakness and Priority

The foundation to a new project, goal or venture, the starting point has to be honesty.  You have to be honest at where you are at.  This can be very humbling.

Last May, working out with some buddies, I realized I did a pitiful 3 pull ups.  For someone that used to be able to do 20 pull ups with a 45lb plate attached, this was a big wake up call.  First, as always seems to be the case, excuses started rolling through my head.

 "That was 15 years ago."

"That was before all your shoulder injuries."

"That was before you elbow surgery."

"That was before you worked on people 8 hours a day."

Then after a few minutes of remembering what used to be, I just decided 3 isn't enough.  Maybe I won't be strapping weight on and ripping off sets of 20, but I certainly don't have to be where I'm at.

1.  Honesty evaluation.  Realizing I was just plain weak and realizing I had been avoiding them because they were hard for me was humbling.

2.  Accountability.  I made a bet with my training partners.  12 reps in 8 weeks or coffee was on me.  This brought a timeline.  Who likes losing bets?

3. Problem solve.  Grip strength was an issue after work.   My hands are pretty darn tired after doing manual therapy 8 hours a day.  I started to do a few sets of pull ups before work.  Nothing earth shattering there and nothing to failure.

4.  Prioritize.  I did pull ups every day.  Several times a day.  Weakness isn't overcome by once a week training.  It has to be attacked aggressively.  

5.  Do the work.  I started to do windmills with kettlebells and extra self myofacial work on my shoulder blades to help improve shoulder health.  Every day.

6.  Creativity.  Think outside the box.  I started to work on the front lever for a different stimulus and this improved my pull ups by leaps and bound.  Doing assistance work is important.

Although this formula was used for my sad pull up dilemma, you can replace the concept "pull ups" with anything  It
doesn't have to be a physical goal, just a goal.  It works every time.  This morning I did 15 pull ups before work and my shoulders haven't felt this good in years.  

Monday Motivation

Intrinsic big toe function w band traction