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All machinery is designed to work with a specific alignment.  When a machine’s design parameters are compromised or it’s parts become mis-aligned, then things within the machine do not work as they should.  Parts begin to grind and accelerated wear and tear  occurs as the result.

The same goes for our human bodies.  Our spines and the major weight bearing joints are designed to work within a specific design and alignment too.  If your posture is compromised, then things within your body will not work they way they should.  This translates into muscle weakness/tightness, pain and loss of movement.

It’s a concept called “Tensegrity” and it is derived from the two words “tension” and “integrity”.  All structures are supported by a balance between tension and compression…including our bodies.  We carry on a constant battle with gravity .  As Ida Rolf so eloquently said,”When the human energy field and gravity are at war, needless to say gravity wins every time.”

According to Buckminster Fuller, who first introduced this concept, the skin, muscles, and connective tissues are the tensional elements which are separated by the hard elements of the body – bones.  The tensional elements serve as “spacers” that sustain proper tension within our body structure.  They also distribute stress throughout the entire body.  In the case of poor posture, this tensegrity turns into a compressional structure that causes uneven wear and tear in our body structure.

It’s not uncommon for me to observe 2″ of anterior forward head posture in new clients. Would you be surprised that your neck and shoulders hurt if you had a 20-pound watermelon hanging around your neck?

Although it may have annoyed you to hear your parents say “stand up straight,” it was very good advice. Good posture when sitting or standing puts your spine in alignment so that stress is properly distributed to the intended muscles and ligaments. With good posture, your muscles work properly causing less wear and tear in your body.

Think about that one next time you are texting or working at your computer.  I think it’s time for me to get up and take a short walk in my building now!

Cheers, Drock

Want to learn more about improving your functional movement and sports performance? Follow Dianne’s blog: https://dtasmblog.wordpress.com

Dianne Rockefeller is a Licensed Massage Therapist, National Academy of Sports Medicine – Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Orthopedic Manual Therapist, Certified Myoskeletal Therapist, Certified Kinesio Taping Practitioner, Certified Cupping Therapist, and Muscle Activation Techniques Practioner (MAT). She has treated athletes of all levels, from youth to professional, from all sports. She brings a very unique perspective to manual therapy utilizing her experience with motion analysis and sport. Her blend of advanced integrated skills along with practical and rehabilitation experience deliver exceptional results. Additionally, Dianne is a self-proclaimed scholar of “Applied Performance Manual Therapies“. Contact Dianne at drock@dtasm.com or 210-973-4848.

You might understand that body movement is pretty complicated, almost a lucky accident happening beyond your control. Each of our movements is a brain and Central Nervous System (CNS) solution to a complex problem. The “rules” of the problem are called constraints. Typically, they fall into three categories:

1. Task           2. Environment           3. Organism

Task constraints involve exactly what you might imagine. Pick up an object of “X” pounds. Carry it “Y” distance. So, if the task at hand is picking up a bowling ball, then picking up a pebble doesn’t follow the same rules. Environmental constraints are equally intuitive. What sort of environment are you performing this task in? This involves varied textures and terrain, or social factors like peer pressure or support.

OK, now note how you can’t do a whole lot about those first two constraint types. This is where the organismic constraints come into play. These involve things like strength, mood, fatigue, and similar items. When you combine all these constraints, you get something like this happening (Image A) , and all of your movements emerge out of this complex Plinko board-like interaction that your brain and Central Nervous System controls.

Mobility plays a huge role here. Just think of mobility as “movement potential.” It’s a key constraint on what muscle options your brain has access to. Improve control and coordination of your muscles and you increase ranges of motion in joints. When this happens, you radically expand what you’re capable of in sport as well as in day to day life. Body mobility widens in your body “Plinko” box and your brain has access to more efficient options. More options make you a more resilient, adaptable, and decrease injuries.

Cardio doesn’t do that. Strength training doesn’t (always) do that. Mobility and stability is like compound interest in the body movement world. If you consistently put a little bit in, then you can expect improvement in all other areas across the board. Which means less wear and tear on body parts due to less compensation by your brain.

Here’s the thing: It takes a heck of a lot more than just stretching, foam rolling and exercise to improve your mobility and stability. Those might slightly improve your flexibility, but they don’t do much to teach your body how to put that range of motion to use or provide you with joint stability. They have nothing to do with improving coordination and muscle control either. Training on a Bosu ball for stability when muscles are already unstable just results in more instability or injury.

Constant training and exercise can’t control muscle contraction timing because the harder you train and push your body, the faster your body’s stress threshold is going to be reached.

Put more simply: To increase your range of motion, you have to be able to train muscles through their FULL Range of Motion.  No foam rollers, tape, forearm strap or other toys necessary. 

.Cheers….DRock

Want to learn more about improving your functional movement and sports performance? Follow Dianne’s blog: https://dtasmblog.wordpress.com

Dianne Rockefeller is a Licensed Massage Therapist, National Academy of Sports Medicine – Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Orthopedic Manual Therapist, Certified Myoskeletal Therapist, Certified Kinesio Taping Practitioner, Certified Cupping Therapist, and Muscle Activation Techniques Practioner (MAT). She has treated athletes of all levels, from youth to professional, from all sports. She brings a very unique perspective to manual therapy utilizing her experience with motion analysis and sport. Her blend of advanced integrated skills along with practical and rehabilitation experience deliver exceptional results. Additionally, Dianne is a self-proclaimed scholar of “Applied Performance Manual Therapies“.  Contact Dianne at drock@dtasm.com or 210-973-4848.

As my clients know,  I am always striving to improve upon the therapy I provide them.  What I do now in a typical session is very different from what I was doing 6 months ago.  Mainly because I have advanced my techniques and body therapy I.Q.  I am constantly educating myself by keeping up on medical research, seeking out experts in their fields as well as taking classes from those same experts.

I refuse to accept that much of the loss of function as we age is “normal” aging.  What I have discovered is that although it might be common, it is NOT “normal” aging.  More importantly, it doesn’t have to be this way either.

So, what the heck is “normal aging” anyway?  I do not have the answer and I will tell you that I’m not sure anyone else does either. Yes, tissues in our body do lose water and become stiffer as we get older, but a big part of looking younger is based upon what we do and don’t do with and for our bodies.  Not what you inject in your face!

I can’t tell how many people I know (men and women) who will spend hundreds and even thousands of dollars every year on hair, skin products, facials, manicures, pedicures and appointments with their “cosmetic  dermatologist” on things like Botox, wrinkle fillers, and countless other procedures their doctors tell them will make them “look younger and feel better.”

For example, I took a call from someone complaining about their foot pain, how they now limped when they walked and how it’s been limiting their life for months.  The person went on to say how they had received my name from someone else who said I had helped them, “get back to tennis.”  Next thing I know, I sensed an attitude change on the phone when I told this person that I do not take insurance.  Seriously?  Are you kidding me here?  When was the last time your Botox or wrinkle filler was covered by your insurance???

Newsflash…Looking old (whatever age you pick for that) is in great part related to how we move or DO NOT move.  Ever think about what your face looks like when you are trying to reach under the table to pick up something that you’ve dropped?  What about what you look like when you get up from sitting?  All the Botox and filler in the world isn’t going to hide what you look like when you move.  Poor body movement can actually make you look OLDER than you are!

Your body is only as good as the movements it can control.  It will get from Point A to Point B using what it has available most efficiently with what it has to work with at that particular time.  In other words, an integrated system such as our bodies is only as good as its individual parts.

Constant exercise when you are restricted doesn’t make you better either.  If you’re training on a Bosu Ball when you are already unstable, then this results in more instability in your body or worse… injury.  When you are weak, tight and unstable then the harder you train or push yourself, the faster your body will break down.  If you want to move better, you gotta make your health a priority and make a commitment (whatever the cost).

Part of what we fear most about getting old is not being able not to do the things we used to do (restriction of movement).  Studies actually show that what people fear most is not dying, but being disabled.  Well, loss of function is a gradual form of disability.  Just remember that whatever musculoskeletal function you lose or give up now will remain lost — AND THEN you will lose more on top of that.  If your knee hurts and you give up running, there’s a real possibility that you will never take this up again.  The same goes for simple things in life.  If you have trouble getting on the floor, then that will become something you avoid or don’t do.  Soon, another layer of limitation will be added on top of that.  And it goes on and on… year after year…

My conclusion? Try taking this 2 minute quiz  (link below) and let me know how old you REALLY are. Be honest!

http://www.biological-age.com/index.html#

OK, there are different of types of prolotherapy injections. To date, I’ve have had the Dextrose (sugar water) in a couple of areas (with great success after a few injections) and am now getting PRP for a tear in my Glute Medius that never healed properly.

PRP, otherwise know as Platelet-Rich Plasma, has been written about as many famous athletes such as Tiger Woods, Rafael Nadal, Steph Curry and several others have received PRP for various problems such as sprained ankles and chronic tendon injuries. These types of conditions had previously been treated with medication, physical therapy or even surgery. Many athletes credit PRP with their being able to return to competition much sooner.

You ask why? It’s because platelet activation plays a key role in the process of wound and soft tissue healing. The use of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is a portion of the patient’s own blood having a platelet concentration above baseline. It can be 5 to 10 times greater or even richer.  Since platelets contain hundreds of proteins called “growth factors” the concept is that PRP promotes faster healing of injured tendons, ligaments, muscles, and joints as well as can be applied to various musculoskeletal problems.

PRP injections are prepared from one to a few tubes of the patient’s own blood with strict aseptic technique. After being centrifuged, the activated platelets are injected into the abnormal tissue, releasing growth factors that recruit and increase the proliferation of reparative cells. Ultrasound imaging may or may not be used to guide the injection. Dr. Fullerton used a sonogram on me for mine (which you’ll see soon).

Several clinical studies have demonstrated that PRP injections have improved function and decreased pain to various maladies, including – but not limited to – elbow, wrist, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle tendonosis. Early work is also showing promise for osteoarthritis.

Side effects of PRP injections are very limited as the patient is utilizing their own blood, which they should have no reaction to. Some relative rest is needed immediately following the procedure, then usually followed by a progressive stretching and strengthening program.

As you witnessed in my first blog entry, I video documented my blood draw. They ended up taking 120cc’s of my blood this day to net 10cc’s of PRP for my Prolotherapy. The platelets are separated from other blood cells and their concentration is increased during a process called centrifugation. Then the increased concentration of platelets is combined with the remaining plasma.

My blood was separated twice. First time is to separate the red blood cells from the plasma. Second time, the plasma is put in the centrifuge to get a higher concentration of platelets. Below is a video of my blood draw going into the Centrifuge…very cool!  

Please excuse my video editing here…I’m bound to get the hang of this iMovie thing soon!

[wpvideo qZNEIDc4]

I bet you’ve wondered why you just can’t get out there and start jogging, lifting weights, or take a boxing fitness class without it producing some sort of discomfort in your body soon after you start. Just Do IT…isn’t that all we need to do? Just get out there and get moving?

Well, not exactly…

The reason why your knee starts to swell when you go jogging or your elbow hurts when you start playing tennis is because random exercise doesn’t correct body misalignments. AND, with continued random exercise and repetitive sports you actually risk making yourself worse. Your strong parts keep getting stronger while your weak parts get weaker, hence perpetuating any malalignment in your body. And well…you could be exercising for weeks, months and years and actually be putting yourself farther down the road to dysfunction.

It always amazes me how long someone will keep doing things and ignoring pain.

For example, if your upper back is hunched over all day working at a computer and you take a spinning class…you will tend to do this class in the same hunched over position. This reinforces the position of your muscles that keep you hunched over your desk. If your body is out of alignment, then starting that 8-week boot camp or spin class isn’t going to magically correct it.

If you ask me, I think all weight machines, free weights, stationary bikes, golf clubs , tennis racquets, and reformers (and even yoga mats need to be on this list too!) should have “Warning Labels” on them.

You ask why???

Because of things like age, previous injuries and gravity, our alignment gets off, as we move, it hurts, so we move less, as we move less and less, our range of motion becomes less and less. What used to be enjoyable to do in sport or recreation (or even turning our head to check the blind spot in our rearview mirror), has now become uncomfortable or harder to do.

Face it. The body doesn’t like pain. No exception.

In any physical activity, we naturally favor using our strong muscles. Same thing goes for that exercise class you signed up for last week. In an attempt to keep up with your instructor, you’ll end up using whatever muscles necessary to get the job done. Hence, we move within our own set Range of Motion boxes. Stiffness and inflexibility prevent us from accessing and using the very muscles we need to use.

Even if you do all your exercises with meticulous correct alignment…feet shoulder width apart, eyes looking forward, etc. Its not going to get you back into proper alignment (though it does help). Your stronger muscles will end up doing the work and the disparity between the two just keeps getting bigger.

BEFORE your weaker muscles can become stronger and alignment corrected, space must be created for this change to happen. This means stretching and opening things up in your body and taking away the restrictions. I’m not talking about a few brief attempts at touching your toes or a few cat-camel back stretches. I’m talking about REAL tissue stretching that genuinely opens up tight areas and creates space for your weaker muscles to get stronger.

Most of the time, attaining REAL space can only be accomplished through one-on-one help. I spend an enormous amount of time during therapy sessions properly stretching, creating space for alignment corrections, and then teaching my clients how to maintain this at home in between our sessions. My custom integrated therapy programs are based upon this concept. I spend time listening to my clients, assessing their movement with motion analysis, testing muscles, correcting imbalances with various techniques, doing corrective exercises, and then assessing and testing them again. I stress that getter better aligned is a process and this process takes time and effort. In other words, time isn’t spent chasing pain and rubbing on what’s hurt in my therapy sessions.

Just as we become more fixed in our ways as we grow older, so do our bodies. What was once a slightly forward head posture has become more forward. All the gyrating and twisting you do in your attempts to enlist the weaker muscles in the pilates class ends up relenting to your stronger muscles…and to another compensation in your body movements.

The way I see it…you have 3 choices:

1. Keep doing what you’re doing and see minimal improvement (if any at all). Keep paying for your stubbornness the next day with unnecessary soreness.
2. Keep on pushing your body relying on what you know and at the risk of hurting yourself or doing serious damage that will eventually require having some part of your anatomy cut on or shaved off (do you even know that part of your scapula is shaved off in most rotator cuff surgeries?).
3. Get HELP. Approach your training from a different perspective and truly improve your performance. With One-on One expert guidance, you will get your body back to moving the way it was designed to move.

Why One-on-One? Let’s face it, fitness classes and clubs are a business. Their goal is to make money. That’s why they have these attractive 20 somethings’ with abs and butts of steal in their ads.   It’s impossible for group instructors to monitor and personally coach individuals in a class of 20 or 30 in a hour. Let’s do the math…

• 60 minutes divided by 20 = 3 minutes per person
• 60 minutes divided by 30 = 2 minutes per person

From my experience, I know how long it can take for me to get someone to perform a corrective exercise properly and to contract the right muscles while relaxing wrong ones…usually way more than 10 minutes to get this done correctly…and you think you are the exception to the rule?

Now, I’m not bashing the exercise industry. Let me interject that I have the utmost respect for those who exercise regularly without causing damage to their bodies. Anyone who does this to maintain health and sticks with it is a hero in my book.  It’s just that the ones who usually succeed at these programs or sports are usually a select group. They are usually the people who already possess the attributes needed for that class…strength and flexibility.

Rather, I just want to stress by aligning yourself first you bring more efficiency, results and enjoyment to your sport or exercise program.

So, we often avoid what we really need. It’s human nature.

Recovery is a critical component of any successful training ,as well as after your session at Dominion Therapeutic and Sports Massage.  Recovery is also the least thought of and underutilized way to enhance Integrated Muscle Therapy.  No matter what your injury or sport, your recovery is dependent upon your body healing yourself.  Whether your injury is a tear or strain or sprain or inflammation or improving range of motion for performance enhancement, your soft tissue is repaired by your own body – no exception.  Although discomfort is gone after a session, that doesn’t mean your body has fully recovered.

Sometimes there is no choice, sometimes people just don’t know any better.  That is why I am constantly trying to enlighten my clients’ awareness about aftercare.

Critical components of recovery include:

• Body Awareness
• Rest
• Hydration
• Nutrition
• Pre & Post Stretching
• Self-Myofascial Release
• Stress Management

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PAY ATTENTION:  You may be sore after the session. This is normal with Integrated Muscle Therapy.  Sometimes you may not feel the soreness until the next day (DOMS-Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness). Why? Integrated muscle therapy is a sort of passive exercise. If you are not one to get soft tissue therapy often, or do not exercise and are not used to using the muscles, then they may respond with soreness after a session at Dominion Therapeutic and Sports Massage. This should only last for a day or perhaps two. You can help prevent DOMS by stretching before you arrive for your session. Remember anything that was particularly painful and report this at your next session.

Delayed onset muscle soreness is common after exercise, training and Integrated Muscle Therapy and usually means your muscles are getting stronger.

REST: Most easily defined as a combination of sleep and time spent NOT training, rest is the easiest to understand and implement. How you sleep and spend this time is very critical. Adequate levels of rest help to provide mental health, hormonal balance, and muscular recovery. Everyone has individual needs based on their lifestyle, workouts, and genetic makeup. However, most athletes need between 7-10 hours.

HYDRATION: Drinking adequate water amounts is critical to health, energy, recovery, and performance. Athletes tend to be very attentive to hydration levels close to and during competitions, but keeping that awareness during recovery times can make just as large an impact. Water helps all of our functions

A simples way to check your body’s hydration is to look at your pee. If it is clear to pale yellow you are hydrated. The darker and more color in your pee the less hydrated you are and more water you need to drink.

NUTRITION: Everything you eat has the ability to help heal your body, or to poison it. This may sound strong, but alcohol and processed foods contain toxins and are harmful to the body. I do not like to recommend a specific diet, but eating clean and balanced meals in moderation is proven to be effective to remain healthy and increase performance. My personal rule of thumb is if you have a difficult time pronouncing it, then your body will probably have a hard time processing it!

Yes, we all go out to dinner and most social events we attend have food. The key is balance and moderation. You can get the results you want AND function as a normal person and enjoy life.

I defer nutritional advice to the experts…like my good friend Tim DiFrancesco, PT, DPT, ATC, CSCS.  Tim is the Head Strength Coach for the Lakers and President of TD Athletes Edge. 

POSTURE: It’s one of the least focused components of integrated muscle therapy recovery.  Time is spent lengthening tight restrictive muscles so that your over-stretched and inhibited muscles can be put back in their resting state for recovery.  After sessions, time sitting, driving and using your electronic devices (computers, phones and tablets) put your body back into the positions that made it unbalanced or injured in the first place. Be aware of your posture in work place and home.

Tips: Find a chair that is ergonomically correct (like my yoga ball chair). Take breaks in your work day and move often. If you struggle to sit upright use a foam roller or ball in your back to give you a tactile cue and help force good posture.Don’t lean to one side or on an object for support while standing or driving.

STRETCHING: You need proper range of motion in your joints and flexibility to move well and remain pain free. Include dynamic stretching in your warm-ups, while saving static stretching for after your workouts. Use the Therabands, stretch ropes, stretches and exercises I’ve given you post session. Attempt to self-identify tight areas and work on them. I’m only a email or text away if want new variations. Look through link articles I’ve posted, attend a yoga class, or check out Kelly Starett’s Mobility WOD.

SELF MYOFASCIAL RELEASE: Self-myofascial release is critical to session aftercare. This method can be performed with a foam roller, lacrosse ball, Theracane, or your own hands. By applying pressure to specific points on your body, you are able to aid in the recovery of your muscles and assist in enhancing your session outcome.

STRESS MANAGEMENT: Your goal is to prioritize life and maximize performance without sacrificing quality. Kick back, relax, and enjoy an evening out with friends. Order that favorite beer and get those BBQ ribs once in a while. They may mentally benefit you way more than another night of broccoli and chicken. Life for an athlete can grow tiresome. Give yourself a day off now and then.

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We have different systems in our bodies that need to recover. These include hormonal, neurological, and structural. In our structural system we have muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones. Muscles recover the quickest because they receive direct blood flow. Tendons, ligaments, and bones receive indirect blood flow and therefore can take longer to recover and be more susceptible to overtraining stress.

A balanced recovery and exercise/training routine should be a part of any fitness regimen. Unless you are competing at an elite level, you should generally follow the 80/20 rule. Eighty percent of your time can be spent focusing on diet and exercise, while twenty percent on enjoying life. In other words, don’t let yourself get too wrapped up in perfection!

Cheers and Happy Holidays!!!