Have you seen the new iPhone commercial for their face recognition on the Apple iPhone X? There’s a man and his dog snoozing by the water enjoying an afternoon nap. The man’s iPhone “pinging” notifications keep interrupting his rest, so he slowly raises his electronic reclining lounge chair up and then squints one-eyed at his phone’s screen. The device unlocks. The man sees it’s only ‘Craig’ and then begins to resume his nap as the recliner slowly lowers.
Actually, it’s really our own intelligence and evolution that has made us not want to do any more than we have to in life. Why walk when you can ride? Why stand when you can sit? Why get up and turn on the TV when you have a remote? We’ve become a world where it makes no sense to move or do more than we have to in life.
Modern society has reached a point where it no longer requires much physical effort nor supports functional movement for our bodies. Don’t believe me? Then Google a page from an early Sears Roebuck catalog…do you see any nail guns, electric saws, power screwdrivers, kitchen mixers, or Cuisinart food processors? Life back then required a person to pound, push, turn a screw, chop, beat an egg, and to knead dough. Today, you can use an app to do your grocery shopping and deliver the food to your door. All the while, hardly moving a muscle.
Your Mind, Your Body and Your Lifetime…the first two will determine the last one.
As we age, the “use or lose it” rule becomes more and more applicable. Unused neural pathways of movement are regularly pruned in our brains, while stronger connections are strengthened. While this process in early life is necessary, as we age neurons left out of use become damaged. Rather than trying to repair them, our brains just go around the obstruction and make do with what’s available. Without proper neural input from the brain, our muscles cannot perform at their best.
Without regular use, your neural pathways in your brain begin losing their ability to communicate effectively with your muscles. The eroding results in limited Range of Motion in the body. Eventually, this improper muscular sensory information causes muscular force-couple relationships to become altered and this altering of information skews how you feel and disrupts your proprioception. Since the body is an interrelated system, where the pain is ain’t the problem.
It’s simple. In order to keep your body performing at it’s best, you need to do varied movements often and regularly. Functional movement should not be limited to a personal trainer certification or a movement assessment system. Just like you take supplements and vitamins that your body needs, why not try supplementing movement into your day? It’s really easy to do and costs you nothing except a few extra calories. Plus, you might even enjoy it!
This said…It’s time to get up from my desk and get moving now!
Cheers, DRock
Want to learn more about improving your functional movement and sports performance? Then follow Dianne on her blog https://dtasmblog.wordpress.com
Dianne Rockefeller is an Athletic Performance Therapist, Licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Muscle Activation Specialist, MAT Certified Jumpstart Trainer, National Academy of Sports Medicine – Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Orthopedic Manual Therapist, Certified Myoskeletal Therapist, Certified Kinesio Taping Practitioner, and Certified Cupping Therapist. She treats athletes of all levels, from youth to professional, ALL sports. She brings a very unique perspective to manual therapy utilizing her experiences with motion analysis and sport. Her blend of advanced integrated skills along with practical and rehabilitation experience deliver exceptional results. Dianne is a self-proclaimed scholar of “Applied Sports Performance Therapies”. Contact Dianne at drock@dtasm.com or 210-973-4848.
Fantastic and so true @@@