Excellence Chiropractic Seattle

Salt in the wound Part II: "Welcome to the world. It's salty and awful out here."

2012-02-08T18:16:00.000-08:00

New skin is innocent. It's vulnerable and naive to the threats which thrust it into existence. For this reason many athletes have trouble breaking the cycle of broken/soft skin and getting their hands to harden up in a timely manner to return to competition. The only way to throw this rose pedal soft epidermis into the wood chipper of your life is to let it know: "Welcome to the world. It is salty and awful out here."

I've devoted the past week and a half to testing the commonly held gymnastics theory that soaking a torn callus in a super-saturated salt mixture 3x/ day makes the skin grow back with the callus already in place. Calluses typically form as the result of physical irritation but this theory employs a chemical irritation to reach the same result.

Right Hand (Experimental Group) day One:
The Salt Soak Group

Left Hand (Control Group) day One :
The Neosporin Group

I've been diligently salt soaking my right ring finger in super saturated salt water for over a week now. I soak the right hand 3x/day for 20 minute spells. This is easy to do. I simply walk about handling my business while carrying a mug of salt water that I have my right middle finger submerged in. I look like an unhygienic waiter. Due to inherent base line of salinity in the body, the salt soak has only a minimal burn.

RESULTS:

Just look at that hardened digit on the right! Tell me that scaly talon isn't ready for ropes.

In the interests of full disclosure, I will admit that I contaminated these results. I gave up on the Neosporin and started salting both hands a few days ago. I made the early switch when the skin on The Experimental Group was healing tough, dry and resilient as opposed to the goopy mess of flesh which often opened and bled on the Neosporin hand.

The 2 draw backs to this salt soak technique are:

Cracking- The wound dries out quickly and is susceptible to cracking. For this reason, I recommend applying an unflavored chap stick to the tear a couple times per day and before workouts.
Convenience- My walking mug trick worked for me, but this technique is intended for torn calluses in the palm of the hand as well. Unless you are a security guard at a junior college, you probably don't have the time to sit with the palms of your hands in two saucers of salt water for an hour every day.

SOLUTION?

I have a couple new tears on the palms of my hands. I've abandoned the soak and have been employing a new technique that I'll call a salt rub. Instead of soaking the tears I just wash them, wet them, then pack salt into them. This feels awful- an electric sort of burning pain that takes about 90 seconds to reach it's peak. It is awful and it is effective. It's not for everyone. The choice is yours.

Salt In The Wound

2012-01-31T10:48:00.000-08:00

I'm realizing that I'm in an abusive relationship with my skin. We've had some rough times. We're hot and cold. Our families do not approve. We're back together right now. We're a passionate, fiery duo but we're meant for each other so we're making changes and making it work. I left town with guns blazing and the wind in my hair but recently came crawling back with with benzoin tincture in my hands and a promise on my lips. "I'm a changed man." Me and my skin, we're going to make it this time. This time is going to be different. . .

Saturday Squall is when my coach pairs me off against a man who is a friend, an in-house rival, and a notorious chauvinistic womanizer. Squall for us is a a head-to-head competition designed to turn our enormous egos into fuel. It keeps us sharp. No one can mentally terrorize us like we can to each other. He has a habit of innocently asking me "how old are you?" before we compete. Out of respect for his chauvinistic privacy, I will refer to him as Shmryan "Shmollywood" Shmandrews. We have a well established rivalry where he wins some, and I look really muscular with my shirt off in others. Anyway, this past Saturday me and my fresh, unblemished skin walked into squall that turned out to be a hand tear buzzsaw:

SQUALL #2
75 DU's
hand stand walk across gym
30 power snatches
"all good thus far"
3 rounds of 10 chest to bar pull-ups/ 12 wallballs
"C2B's can be tough but my super-amazing gymnast tape job holds up great and my baby soft skin is still intact."
3 Rope Climbs
"Dang."

3 rope climbs isn't really a problem. I did 11 touch and go last week, but after those C2B's and the rushed tempo of no recovery between climbs, the three rope climbs became "a problem."

I'd typically tape my legs, my shoes, my face, etc. for this sort of wod but the events were announced just before we began and I foolishly dove right into it rather than slow down the momentum of the moment for my adhesive ritual.

I had a fast tempo going with butterfly chest to bar pull-ups that gave me a big lead on Shmryan heading into the final 3 climbs but he is very tan and he was gaining on me fast. The first guy to touch the ceiling on the 3rd climb would win this squall.

I took off on the 3rd climb before he did. I had to. He is quite tan after all and a fast climber. I began that climb with enough energy in the tank to make it to the top but not quite enough to make a controlled descent back down. The result:

I get to the top before Shmryan does and reach for the ceiling and my hard earned victory. I miss- I miss a freaking wall! I fall part of the way back down the rope. His small strong hands and leathery skin are nipping at my heels. I struggle back up to the top, take another desperate grab at the ceiling and promtly fall 17' to the ground, leaving a good amount of arm, leg, and hand skin on the rope. I'm not sure if I even touched the ceiling but the judges gave it to me. For the moment my burning lungs and gaping flesh command my attention. Squall #1 ended with a controversial missed rep by Mr. Shmandrews and my victory. Squall #2 ended with an equally murky conclusion. Until next time my mute, hairless, leathery friend.

That night I went to Foundations Crossfit's holiday party and got some interesting hand recovery advice from trainer Adam Wenzel. Apparently, it is a commonly held belief in the gymnastics community that soaking hand tears in super-saturated salt water causes the skin to grow back strong and with the callus already in place. I had several nasty tears available to test this theory and that's how I've spent the last few days. I chose the right hand as the salt dip hand and the left hand as the traditional neosporin/soap and water control hand. The right hand had the bigger and deeper tear so if it healed better than the left, this salt soak concept would be validated.

PICS!
Here's a pic of the poor digits immediatly after I removed the bandages when I got home on Saturday.

This poor bastard is my right hand. This is The Experimental
Group= salt soak 3x/day

left middle finger: the smaller tear of the two. I will refer to it as
The Control Group= neosporin+soap and water

This salt soak concept comes from Coach Sommer of Gymnasitic Bodies . It works like this:

Step 1) Make a super-saturated salt mix

Fill a small glass of warm water with so much salt that it no longer dissolves and their is a small pile of undisolved salt in the bottom of the glass.

Step 2)

Put your ripped finger into that glass and keep it there for 10-20 minutes.
Repeat 3 times per day

24 hours later. Sunday, Day 2. This photo is taken immediately after a 20 minute salt soak on The Experimental Group which is the miraculously normal looking digit on the right.

My skin and I are back together. We're making a go of it, but as long as it has the unfortunate fate of being attached to me, it will always be in peril.

The Ripping and The Tearing Part II: Tape It Like a Gymnast

2012-01-23T18:43:00.000-08:00

Here's how I tape my hands. My previous technique was the one where you split the tape and run it between your fingers. For me, this works much, much better. I went straight from this video to a nasty KB/ pull up wod. This heavy kb/ pull up combo usually opens my hands up. I got through today without a blister.

You can see the specs of the training that I follow here at oldcountrystrong.

The Ripping and the Tearing

2012-01-16T13:46:00.000-08:00

If you've ever wondered what to do about your hands ripping and tearing during crossfit workouts, I can relate. My coach likes to say that I'm made of paper. I prefer to think of my flesh as a weak link that struggles to keep pace with the demands of the futuristic roboskeleton that resides beneath.

This guy can relate too. If he had the for site to read this blog before traveling back in time, he may have kept his flawless Futrure-Austrian skin intact as well as saving the planet from a robo-apocalypse.

The fact is that I rip my hands for a combination of reasons:

Paper flesh/ futuristic cyborg strength etc. as described above
Technique- I should let the bell skip to my proximal interphalangeal joint in the bottom of the swing, but I get all excited in competition and hold too tight.
My taping techniques have all failed me. In the photo beneath, the tape that I used was little more than bloody streamers by the mid-way point of the event. I learned how to make a gymnastics grip from tape that is legal in all kb/crossfit events. It will be the subject of my next post. This post is about what I've done to harden up my hands.

Example:

Attempt #1 at The Lab

One workout that tore me up pretty badly was in an IKFF competition at The Lab a few months back. It was a 5 minute demolition derby of #53 kettlebell snatch with unlimited hand switches. I got 118 reps and the stigmata pictured on the left.

War wounds like these are cute for a minute. They make nice FB profile updates, but it gets old pretty quick and I'm always on the lookout for a new technique that will keep my skin on my hands where it belongs.

I put two new techniques to the test this weekend at the Oregon Crossfit Winter Games. Keep an eye on the Old Country Iron Club blog for a full write-up. I hear it will be posted on Wednesday.

This turned out to be a perfect opportunity to compare the results as it turned out by random chance that event #1 at the OCFWG was the exact same event that opened my hands up just 3 months ago at The Lab. The only difference was that this time the snatches were preceded by a 2k row and 60 seconds of rest. Gross.

More Lab grossness

The intervention:

After my event at The Lab, I was approached by a spinal surgeon who was watching the event. He told me that he uses a product called Benzoin Tincture on patients before surgery. He applies it to the skin before putting people in casts and before they are bed ridden post surgery. It toughens the skin to prevent tears and bed sores. It's a natural product derived from the bark of styrax benzoin trees. I came across a liquid compound at the Rite Aid in Jefferson Square, West Seattle for $6 just before I left for the OCFWG. It has a tacky, sappy consistency which explains why one of it's uses is to hold athletic tape in place. I didn't want any more stick than was necessary so I applied it twice on the day before the event then washed it off. After washing it off, I still felt the thin protective layer but without the stick.

RESULTS:

Boom! This flawless future-Austrian skin is alive and well.

Success.

116 reps for a #1 overall finish in that event without so much as a blister.

Above is a shot of my hands after those events and the 4 more that followed. As I eluded to before, I also employed a new taping technique that I'll cover at another time, but there is something to this Tincture of Benzoin.

The Perfect Ice Bath

2011-10-26T18:26:00.000-07:00

A Quick Recipe For Chilled Man-Stew

There are those times when you train so vigorously that you know you will be worthless for the rest of the day and be sore for the next three. On those occasions I turn to the ice bath. This thing is magical. I step in feeling beaten down and bad, five minutes later I step out feeling well, still beaten down but good.

Everyone knows to ice an injury. I'm not breaking any paradigms there. When you apply ice to an inflamed tissue, vasoconstriction occurs and fluids are flushed out of the area. That is why an ice pack on a swollen ankle is helpful. Now imagine the effect of submerging your entire lower body to the lower back in ice water and chasing that inflammation 3-4 feet away from the source of pain.

Everyone has their own technique for coping with the raw physical discomfort of an ice bath. Here's mine:


It doesn't have to be like this.

Well it doesn't really have to be like this either, but this guy has the right idea.

If you're inflamed enough to consider an ice bath you are probably exceeding your free radical tolerance too, so start off with some CoQ10 and vitamin C.

I Keep 4-6 large water balloons filled and in my freezer at all times. My kids had a phase when they froze everything so I came upon this idea by accident. I like to use big birthday balloons or the grenade colored water balloons. You don't want to skimp with those little hand held balloons.

These are particularly useful when you are hitting the ice bath when you are still a hot, boiling mess from whatever terrible sport/wod/event you just took part in. The ice cube ice bath heats up as the cubes melt, but not the frozen balloon bath.

Fill the tub half way and add a cup of Epsom Salts and 4 frozen water balloons with the balloon peeled off.
Fill the rest of the way
Add two trays of ice cubes
Pull on a wool hat, a scarf, grab your phone, set a 5 minute timer
Climb into the tub. If this is only for your legs, get a FIRM grip on your phone and pull up a mindless app. I recommend Plants vs. Zombies. I've actually let the timer run through 3 times trying to keep those pesky undead beasts off my lawn.
If your arms are trashed too, as mine were this morning from a thorough Franning, then put the phone down. It's time for full commitment.
Grab one of those orbs of ice that's floating around and give yourself a deep ice massage in the biceps and forearms.
Step out of the tub 5 minutes later and feel WAY BETTER than you did 5 minutes ago.

Vitamin T: The Testosterone Experiment

2011-09-29T16:37:00.000-07:00

There was a time when men were men. A time when Testosterone flowed through America as the Ganges River flows through India. I am speaking of course about the 1970's.


Where does the bear end and the Burt Reynolds begin?

It's not just fashion. Brazilian wax has nothing to do with the fact that men just aren't this hairy anymore. It is a well documented fact that testosterone levels in American males have been on steady decline over the past 40 years. (1) Gail and Laughlin demonstrated in a 2008 prospective, population-based study of 794 men that Testosterone insufficiency in older men is associated with increased mortality independent of risk factors and co-existing conditions. (2)

As a tribute to our fury brethren of the 70's, and to baseball players of the 90's (and perhaps as a way to compensate for the fact that I was the last guy in my middle school to grow a mustache), I devoted last month to naturally raising my testosterone levels with over the counter nutraceuticals provided by my friend and colleague, Dr. Christopher Merlino.

The Plan:
I- Establish my baseline free Testosterone levels with a blood draw. (After which draw he warned me that this experiment was likely going to fail.)

II- Take whatever supplementation Chris threw at me over a 40 day span to move those numbers.

III- Re-test the T numbers after 40 days.

Merlino went with a concoction of following:

DHEA at a 3x physiologic dose
American Ginseng
D-Ribose
Co- Q10

His goal was to enhance pathways and provide the body with pre-coursers that result in testosterone production. As is illustrated in the Testosterone Pathway chart below, it is reasonable to expect increased exogenous DHEA to drive a deficient testosterone pathway.

Results:
After 40 days of supplementation we re-checked my numbers: My free Testosterone levels came in at a whopping 779.

According to a study by Vermeulen et al published in journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism, normal total testosterone in healthy men are: Age 25-34 , average 616.

This would have been enough to send the mustacheless masses of the Seattle area knocking down Dr. Merlino's door had my baseline number not also been 779.
Before 779/After 779= Net Change of 0.
As it was, my little experiment likely drove higher estrogen levels in my system as the testosterone wasn't able to go any higher. Let this experience be a warning to you:

Disclaimer- Always track the results of new supplementation under medical supervision or risk inadvertently and ironically raising your estrogen levels.

Conclusion:
It would appear that my diet and lifestyle (lifting heavy things and eating meat) spike my T levels just about as high as they are able to go. Either that or my high T levels compel me to lift heavy things and eat meat. . .

Free Radicals, Crossfit, and Supercompensation

2011-08-24T09:59:00.000-07:00

"If eating a sandwich gives you a rash, eat paleo. If it doesn't, eat Spartan."

I eat paleo a few times year. Typically for about a month at a spell. The rest of the year I follow what Zach Filer of Old Country Iron Club calls Spartan Diet. This way of eating suits me because it has a few more food options than paleo does and I respond well to paleo no-no's such as yogurt.

The Spartan Diet is essentially The Mediterranean Diet tweaked to deliver calorie dense nutrition for athletes. The need for this nutritional plan came in response to meet the recovery needs of athletes undergoing six week long waves of progressive barbell training called Caliber Cycles.

The details on how to follow The Spartan Diet will be the topic of future posts but some basic foundational principals include:

High white meat intake
High vegetable intake
High olive oil intake
Moderate red wine intake
Low red meat intake
Limited grain intake
Yogurt with berries daily- see as follows.

This is a performance diet. Will you lean out? Yes, but that is not the point. There are dozens of weight loss diets out there to choose from if that is what you are looking for. This nutrition gives you your best shot at recovering from a heavy 5,5,5+ on Monday in time to do it again on Wednesday without over training.

The Spartan Diet: Part I- Berries have all the anti-oxidants you need.

If you google search "oxidative stress" with "Exercise" or "Crossfit" you will likely come across alarming blogs and studies that demonstrate that "extreme" exercise releases FREE RADICALS! For example: P90X and Crossfit Athletes Beware

The relationship between increased free radical production (RONS) and exercise was first demonstrated by the early work of Dillard and his colleagues in 1978. Since that time there have been nearly 300 original studies published exploring this relationship and how to mitigate it. Wellman and Bloomer's Acute Exercise and Oxidative Stress: A 30 Year History is a comprehensive summary of that work and is worth a read. The main points are summarized below.

This post began as a research project on which anti-oxidant supplements would be most effective for blunting the spike in Free Radical (RONS) production associated with high intensity exercise. My research pointed me in another direction though. Free Radicals are not the villains they appear to be.

RONS are produced by high intensity exercise
Conditioned athletes only produce spikes in RONS with higher intensity training
Free radicals are agents of cellular damage and aging
Anti-oxidants can act as "mops" that soak up or neutralize free radicals
For decades researchers have attempted to isolate the perfect combination of anti-oxidant supplementation to minimize the post exercise spike of RONS.
These studies were rarely successful
When the proper dosage and timing of vit. C, E, Co Q10 etc. was isolated, the results were surprising
Those test subjects who experienced a successfully blunted RONS production also experienced a blunted training effect.

They did not exhibit the typical positive results of exercise such as increased insulin sensitivity, strength gains, increased production of superoxide dismutase etc. (1,2)

RONS appear to play a role as messenger to stimulate a compensation response that causes the health benefits of exercise.
As with all stimulation, there appears to be an ideal volume of RONS production which stimulates an acute anti-oxidant response (4) and adaptation or supercompensation. Below that volume, the body does not respond. Above that volume tissues are damaged. (5)
Anti-oxidant supplementation for the purpose of mitigating exercise induced RONS production is only recommended when training beyond your fitness level in the case of an unusual event that exceeds your body's capacity to respond such as a 50 rep max, marathon, competition, etc.

For normal training I recommend low volumes of whole food sources of anti-oxidants in the form of blue berries, cherries, raspberries etc. The anti-oxidants found in these whole food sources evolved over millions of years to withstand the oxidation of constant sun exposure. The relative volume of anti-oxidants present in this whole food sources is low but diverse and has been shown to improve anti-oxidant response following acute training bouts of training. (6)

Conclusion:
Yes free radicals cause cell damage which causes aging and yes intense exercise causes an acute spike in free radicals but please don't throw the baby out with the bath water. Those regular spikes in ROS free radicals cause your body's adaptive reactions that make you a fitter athlete and person. It makes your body more resilient to normal daily free radical deluge that your body endures every time you consume food and every time you are exposed to sunlight. The best way to manage your ROS balance is to have a fit oxidative response. High intensity exercise is how your body gets it's oxidative swole on.

It is not necessary to attempt to suppress the ramped up RONS production associated with regular high intensity exercise. Daily doses of complex anti-oxidants in the form of whole foods such as blue berries is all the nutritional support you require to maintain an ideal volume of exercise induced free radical exposure.

Sources:

1) Wellman and Bloomer's

Acute Exercise and Oxidative Stress: A 30 Year History

2) Gomez-Cabrera
J Physiol. 2005 Aug 15;567(Pt 1):113-20. Epub 2005 Jun 2.

3) Free Radic Biol Med. 2008 Jan 15;44(2):215-23. Epub 2007 Jul 31.

4) Acute Exercise Increases Plasma Total Antioxidant Status and Antioxidant Enzyme Activities in Untrained MenBerzosa,Cebrián,Fuentes-Broto

5) SCOTT K. POWERS and MALCOLM J. JACKSON

Exercise-Induced Oxidative Stress: Cellular Mechanisms and Impact on Muscle Force Production
6) Traustadóttir, Davies

Tart Cherry Juice Decreases Oxidative Stress in Healthy Older Men and Women

Clubbells and Indian Clubs: Legit Rehab Tools or Passing Fitness Fads?

2011-07-29T11:53:00.000-07:00

For thousands of years Indian Club training has made guys in their underpants way stronger than you are.

If this is the first time you've heard about Indian Clubs or Clubbells, you're a little behind the curve. They've been used as training tools for fighters from all around the world from Russia to Iran for thousands of years. You could argue the case that the club has been around as a weapon and training tool for about as long as the opposable thumb.

Pehlwani wrestlers popularized club training in India in the early 1900's. To this date The Great Gama is the only wrestler in history who has remained undefeated his whole life which was substantial, as his career had spanned more than 50 years.


The Great Gama

Club training clearly worked for Gama. If you are looking to dominate the Pehlwani Wrestling circuit you would be a fool to leave clubs out of your routine. The more relevant question is whether or not this training has a universal application. Are Clubbells merely a fun way to mix up the routine and run the house in obscure Indian Wrestling circuits, or are they useful tools for adding stability to injured shoulders and strength to competitive olympic lifters and kettlebell competitors? I just began working with clubs recently. The following are my initial observations:

PROS

I'm Not Good At Clubbelling. This is good. Beginers make progress fast, progress that may transfer over to stability and strength in other areas.

Accuracy- You must be precise when performing a clubbell move. A wrist angle slightly off is amplified by the length of the club bringing an otherwise acceptable snatch crashing down onto your shoulder.

Grip- In many moves, you are throwing the club away from the body and stopping that momentum with the strength of your grip. This move is called The Mill. When performed with the proper intensity, it replaces an athlete's hands with what feel like monkey claws.

Variety- Due to the specific angles that can be created at the wrist with this long lever arm, there are infinite applications and movements to train.

"The night time is the right time. . . "

CONS

Perhaps due to their perceived Indian roots, many feel compelled to attach a psuedo-spirituality to the teaching and practice of clubbelling. See photo.

Plan:

Master a few basic clubbell moves that address my shoulder weaknesses (mills, casts etc.)

Add these moves as a supplement to my typical crossfit training

As an experiment, compete in a USAW olympic lifting competition and an IKFF Kettlebell Competition in September and see if the clubs lend some universal strength and stability


If it works for this guy. . .

Hamstring Strain: Rehab For Rapid Recovery

2011-05-10T12:28:00.000-07:00

A strained hamstring is worse than it sounds. It means that your hamstring muscle is torn. A first degree strain is a tear on a microscopic level, while a third degree strain is a muscle torn in half that collects in a ball above the knee. A second degree strain is a partial tear accompanied by bruising and a palpable notch in the tissue.

How do you know if you pulled/ strained/ or tore your hammy? You'll know. A good sign that you are about to tear your hammy is that your age to strength ratio is out of balance and you are about to play flag football.

Prognosis:
A grade one strain is the most common and is what is usually referred to as a "pulled hammy." These should still be taken seriously in the first 3-5 days as it doesn't take much to turn a grade one strain into a grade two, or a grade two strain into a grade three. As a general rule, grade one hamstring strains should be rested from competitive sporting activity for about 3 weeks and grade two injuries for about 4 to 6 weeks. In the case of a complete rupture, the muscle will have to be repaired surgically and the rehabilitation afterwards will take about 3 months.

If you know any athletes you know that these general rules are almost impossible to enforce when there is a game to be played. For that reason let's explore some techniques to accelerate this lengthy and tedious healing curve.

1) Avoid the Injury:

Build up to full speed over time when preparing for a max effort sprint particularly when recovering from a hamstring pull. You'll need 10 minutes of general warm-up before getting serious. An example of escelating intensity post warm-up could look like: 100m @ about 85%, 200m@ 85%, 300m @90% before going 100% on subsequent 400m, 300m 200m and 100m. This scheme would have been a good idea for me a week ago.

Here's an image of my right hamstring at the time of this posting. I'm 7 days into a grade II and feeling pretty solid. I'm on pace to return to balistic movements next week. The following is the approach I'm using to get those results:

2) Rehab the Injury:

Control inflammation in the first 3-5 days-

RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation) I iced 5-7x/day for 10-20 minute spells
Anti-Inflammatories- I do not recommend NSAIDs, but I have had success with the topical anti-inflammatory Traumeel. It is better than tiger balm. I know this to be blasphemous among many of my mentholated friends but traumeel is a blend of topical anti-inflammatory herbs supported by research and found to be equally effective at combating inflammation as NSAIDs but with a different mechanism without NSAID's well documented side effects.
Avoid inflammatory foods by going paleo for the initial 3-5 days at a minimum.
High-end your fish oil intake. I went to 4 tbs./day for the first 5 days.

Reduce muscle spasm- Muscle spasm is a common and painful symptom of a hamstring injury. Because of the trauma to the muscle, signals of contraction are confused, and the muscle may be stimulated.

Keep the muscle lengthened but not stretched.
Avoid the seated position as much as possible.
General soft tissue work can help with both the inflammation and the spasm of an acute strain. We're not talking deep tissue massage here. I used Graston on mine on days 2-5 by day six I was feeling pretty good. Rather than breaking up adhesions, the goal was to facilitate healing by combing the broken edges back together.
Other useful techniques are foam rolling and pin and stretch.

Increase growth hormone and healing factors to your leg by continuing to train vigorously- The hamstring is off limits for a while so hit everything else like it owes you money. This is your chance to break away from those righteous functional movements and indulge in a Jersey Shore-esque upper body jackage fest. Baby oil, while lacking any medicinal or anti-inflammatory properties, is often liberally applied to the arms during and after these workouts. Go ahead and hit those bench presses, those bicep curls and don't forget the shrugs. For cardio, you can remove all of the sleeves from your t-shirts for time. Enjoy yourself. You've popped your hamstring and you deserve it.

Fist Pump'n Like a Champ.

What is an Exertional Headache?

2011-04-27T09:41:00.000-07:00

An exertional headache (AKA thunderclap headache, exercise headache or sex headache) delivers the abrupt sensation of giving birth through the head. They strike at moments of high exertion such as when lifting heavy objects, while having an orgasm, or while doing both. They are often accompanied with the thought: "Am I having a stroke?"

The pain of a primary exertion headache is the result of compromised biomechanics in the neck leading to a spasm of the suboccipital muscles that attach the base of your skull to your neck. This results in increased blood pressure in the vessels in the brain and causes a benign but exquisitely intense wave of throbbing pain that can last between 5 minutes and 24 hours.

There are two classes of exertion headaches: Primary and Secondary.

1) Primary Exertion Headaches are the direct result of high exertion and simple biomechanical factors without an underlying pathology. Approximately 3% of the population suffers from benign primary exertional headaches. (Neurology. 1996;46:1520-1524)

2) Secondary Exertion Headaches are exertion headaches that crop up because of an underlying lesion such as a brain tumor or brain hemorrhage. While the vast majority of exertion headaches are of the primary benign variety, sufferers of exertion headaches have an increased rate of intracranial lesions when compared to the general population according to numerous published studies.
If you are having exertion headaches, you would be well advised to have your medical doctor give you a physical to rule out signs of the worst case scenario. Ideally, this would be a physician with a sports medicine background so as to avoid the irritating questions of "why do you lift heavy things?" "Don't you know that squatting below parallel is bad for your knees?" or "who told you that is how people procreate?"

How to Address Primary Exertional Headaches

When someone presents in my office with an exertional headache I address the biomechanics of the neck with cervical traction, Graston Technique for deep soft tissue work, and a chiropractic adjustment called an occiput lift. Due largely in part to the Crossfit Games Open wod #4, I have had many opportunities to work on exertional headaches lately and this combination gets results.

K-Starr has some handy self care techniques that will keep your symptoms in check long enough to get an appointment with someone who can do some corrective work for you.

Is it safe to continue training with exertional headaches?
To get back to normal training, it is typically the case that you have to lower your intensity levels and go 1-2 weeks without inducing the headache before you can return to normal levels of pain free exertion.
Primary exertional headaches are benign. After getting confirmation from your MD that there's no underlying cause, it is safe to train with or through the pain. It is however not always possible to continue to train as it feels as though you have been punched in the brain and Trent Reznor has built a nest behind your eyes.

You think Mastodons Used Tubing For Shoulder Stability? Dude, They Didn't Even Have Hands.

2011-03-22T15:36:00.000-07:00

I once had the bad habit of partially dislocating my shoulder. An MRI revealed a torn labrum in the right glenohumeral joint. The solution- surgery. I wasn't too keen on this as I was a young man bent on playing rugby every weekend. I decided to give it six months of conditioning (and rugby) to see if I could avoid the surgery and stabilize the joint on my own. It was the success of this experiment that led me to where I am today.

From my many years spent breaking and fixing myself and subsequent years fixing others, this is what I've learned:
1) Isolation movements are boring.
2) Things that go unused are not effective.
For these reasons, there is only one simple criteria for determining the single best exercise someone should do: The one that they will perform regularly and with intensity.

Done regularly, with intensity and over a sustained period of time tubing isolation exercises for the rotator cuff might be the world's best stabilization exercises ever. EVER! The problem is that they are mind numbingly simple and no one has ever EVER stuck with them long enough to be preventative. When the pain goes away, so does the tubing. Look at this image below. Does she look to be having a great time?

Exactly.

In your shoulder you want a strong flexible joint, but what the shoulder gains in range of motion, it often compromises in stability. To maintain the balance of stability and flexibility, you'd be well served to use movements that demand both. Enter Kettlebell Conditioning.

I like that Kettlebell movements begin in what is call the Warrior Stance. The humeral head is pulled deep into the socket accentuating the depth and stability of the labrum. This is easy to do but difficult to remember. Stand as far away from a wall as you can and still reach it with your fingertips. Now keeping your arm straight and without pulling your shoulder up toward your ear, draw your hand away from the wall by retracting your arm deep into the shoulder socket. Easy right? Now keep it that way while you perform the following movement:

The Arm Bar

This guy's form isn't great, but he's huge so he's in the post.

Could you picture this mastodon rocking hard to 80's glam rock while pounding his external rotators with tubing exercises? Perhaps he left his medical tubing and his disappointment in the trunk of his car next to his World's Largest Person trophies and he's just making do with the Arm Bar in a pinch.

If you own KB's you already do Arm Bars with the KB you own right? So if this posting is useful for you, you can't do anything with the information for lack of equipment. Solution?

The Broomstick Arm Bar

What makes a kettle bell superior to a dumbbell is that the weight is off center. For that reason when substituting a stick for a bell you don't hold it in the center. The longer the stick the greater the stability demands on the shoulder.

After the press set your arm deep into the socket (warrior stance.) Keep the stick parallel to the floor and at a 90 degree angle to your torso. I do it like this: 3 sets on each side without a rest between, just a reset period as you saw above in The Arm Bar clip. The time spent in the position is determined by the weight you use. Stay there for several moments beyond your comfort level and rest when it begins to wobble and sway.

If it takes several minutes to get to that point of fatigue, it is time to make a change. 3 arm bars + 1 Turkish Get Up followed with 2 more arm bars all on the same arm before switching to the other side. That should do the trick.

The Arm Bar isn't the only thing out there but it gets results because it's a challenging functional movement that pushes stability demands and flexibility limitations in the same movement. Before the next time you sit down to dutifully knock out a long cycle of elastic band rotators ask yourself:
"What would a mastodon do?"

WWAMD?

Rhodiola and Adrenal Fatigue

2011-03-10T14:06:00.000-08:00

Adrenal Fatigue is the sort of thing that would stop a marauding viking or a Communist regime dead in it's tracks if it weren't for adaptogens such as rhodiola.


Being a Viking can be stressful.

Your adrenal glands are what allow you to respond to stress. They are small glands that rest on top of your kidneys and they are an important part of your sympathetic nervous system as they release the catecholamines which we associate with the "fight-or-flight" response. It appears that these glands have a finite capacity to produce these important hormones.


Freedom hating is demanding on the adrenals.

A life well lived can be pretty stressful. Most of the people that I know like to drink lots of coffee, lift heavy things, and procreate. All of these activities are demanding on your adrenal system. When your lifestyle demands more stress hormone then your adrenal glands are able to provide, you run at a deficit which manifests in the symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue.

Symptoms include:
Mid line weight gain, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, difficulty concentrating, reduced sex drive and other upleasantries.

We all know that being a marauding Norseman or a Communist Empire bent on defeating freedom can be somewhat demanding on the adrenal system. How then did Joseph Stalin and Sven Svensvenson not fall to the aforementioned ailments of chubbiness and morose fatigue?

They used adaptogens such as Rhodiola that's how:

"Rhodiola has long been used in traditional medicine, primarily in Russia and Scandinavia. The Vikings used rhodiola to enhance physical strength and endurance, and it was commonly used by many Northern peoples to treat fatigue, poor physical endurance, nervous system disorders, and infections, and to enhance fertility."(1)

USES:
Rhodiola has been shown in studies to improve cardiovascular performance by reducing perceived exhaustion and by improving the cardioprotective capacity of lung tissues in hypoxic environments.(2,3) Decrease lactate levels and skeletal muscle damage due to prolonged exercise(4,5.) Rhodiola has long been used for treating the perceived effects of stress and anxiety as well. This is not the sort of supplement that I have used on a maintenance basis as I do fish oil or vitamin D. An early study showed decreasing cardiovascular returns with prolonged use but more recent long-term trials have showed continued benefits with chronic use. (4,5)

WHEN TO USE IT
You don't have to wait until you suffer overt symptoms before you supplement. I start to consider this supplement when I'm training hard and I start to wake up at 2am.

HOW TO USE IT
Rhodiola has a more stimulating effect at lower amounts, and a more sedating effect at higher amounts. In medical treatment, the usual amounts taken are 200 to 600 mg per day of a standardized extract to at least 3% rosavins and 0.8 to 1% salidroside. The nonstandardized amount would be 1 gram three times daily of the root, the amount for the alcoholic extract (40% alcohol) is 5 to 40 drops two to three times per day (with a weight to volume ratio of 1:1 to 1:5 ). Rhodiola is usually taken before meals.

Golden Root, Rhodiola rosea, Roseroot

Visualization and Mental Practice- Take Off Your Shirt and Charge Around Like You Are On Fire. The Wold Cup Goal Will Be Soon To Follow.

2011-01-10T16:30:00.000-08:00

My first experience with mental training came in the second grade. I was at recess playing my first game of rugby. We were uncertain of the rules and it took me only 10 minutes to find a way to break my collar bone. Clavicle fractures are common and pretty painful. Where the x-rayed clavicle once held smooth margins it was formed into the shape of a jagged X. I wore a butterfly brace and initially a sling too. After a couple of weeks, the orthopedist called my parents to schedule a time for me to come into the office and begin moving the arm again. My parents were delighted to tell him that I wasn't available because I was on the mound pitching for my little league baseball team.

My parents love that story. They take full credit for my rapid healing due to the fact that they had me practice a healing visualization each night as I went to sleep. As I remember it I pictured a video game similar to Centipede where I blasted bits of material into the cracked bone.

An example of an effective visualization for manifesting butterflies.

The world is full of successful people who have built empires or defeated diseases who will tell you that positive visualization was pivotal to their success. If you think the guy in the picture above got where he is today without some solid mental practice think again. Bill Starr recently published an article detailing the techniques he successfully implemented in competitive olympic lifting for decades. Now that he has retired he continues to use these same visualization techniques every night to prepare for for running errands the next morning. That may appear a little OCD for most people who would rather being doing instead of visualizing but does it really work, and if it does why?

The overwhelming majority of research on the topic of mental imagery/ mental practice is supportive and is statistically relevant. From healing times in stroke victims,(1,2,3) burn victims, (4) depressives (5) to performance based outcome measures,(6,7,8) mental practice has been well studied and its utility validated.

Based on these studies and many others we could say that Mental Practice "works," but research is never very good at explaining why something works. For that, you have to turn away from the measurables of research labs and into the touchy feely world of metaphysics and philosophy.

Visualization is a skill that improves with practice. There are many different approaches and step by step models to follow that all basically revolve around visualizing yourself accomplishing a task with as much detail as is possible without getting distracted during the process. Techniques involve engaging as many of your senses as possible to effectively create the scenario and engage your nervous system.

It was proposed by Geshe Michael Roache in The Diamond Cutter and in popular New Age films such as What the Bleep Do We Know, and The Secret that any technique can work but only if it effectively convinces some part of your conscious or subconscious mind that the event visualized actually occurred. This establishes a pathway and a neurological precedent that the body can use and replicate. Proponents of this theory would tell me that the reason why my Centipede visualization sped my clavicle recovery was because during those visualizations I effectively tricked myself and "felt" as though I was healing faster giving my body no alternative but to go ahead and heal faster.

Also at work here is an idea that the physical world or objective reality is the construct of our internal subjective experience. Have you ever noticed that some people have it easy because things always turn out well for them? This idea proposes that it's the other way around.

The take home here is not the old "Fake it til you make it." The intent of which statement is to mislead others about your success until you eventually embody that success. Instead, the goal is to "Fake it in a way that some part of you believes it." The point is to manipulate and mislead yourself so that you will get out of your own way. Still lost? Try this out. To manifest a successful visualization you simply skip the struggle and go straight to the celebration. Here is an example:

Only suckers wait for objective reality. Fire your kids' soccer instructor. The four step process of scoring a game winning goal in the 2014 World Cup is simple:
1) Remove Your Shirt.
2) Throw Said Shirt Into the Stands.
3) Run In Circles As If Engulfed In Flames.
4) Wait for objective reality to conform to this otherwise irrational behavior.

1-http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21073100
2-http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20022993
3-http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19608100
4-http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2502071/?tool=pmcentrez
5-http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2672052/
6-http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16368636
7-http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20508474
8-http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2525972/

$1 Chinese Food

2010-12-28T09:08:00.000-08:00

Does this sign look familiar? It does to me. It resides just South of Tacoma by Fort Lewis. You know that overpass that always has yellow ribbons flapping from it and Support Our Troops picketers? That's the one. Any seasoned traveller of I-5 between Seattle and Olympia is familiar with this disheveled sign and wondered just how far one dollar goes on exit 119. This blog is not typically a restaurant review but I'm making an exception for this Northwest landmark.

I attended undergrad at TESC in Olympia, Washington and played for a rugby team in Tacoma at the time. With my practice commute alone, I've driven past this promise of sketchy frugality hundreds of times but I never considered it a legitimate piece of advertising. Until recently, I thought of it as part of the landscape like the Tacoma dome, or the really bright sign in front of the Emerald Queen Casino. My parents live in Olympia and my little brother is in Portland so I still drive past this sign regularly enough to get me wondering if this offer is legit.

This holiday weekend, with our bodies and minds still polluted with the trappings of yuletide spirit, my little family and I ventured to see just what $1 buys South of Tacoma.

Jackpot.

I was surprised to see that the Wok In Wok Out was open to the public much less busy but it was both. The $1 Chinese Food sign implies the sketchiest Chinese Food Restaurant in history complete with a murky fish tank and red dank carpeting. In reality, Wok In Wok Out was a more like an Asian taqueria. Everything on the menu isn't $1, but for $6.14 the whole Pond family left satisfied. Disregard the pained facial expressions below. We are a solid 48 hours out and we appear to be clear of any volatile GI symptoms.

Thrive Under Pressure: Recover Rapidly.

2010-11-16T18:25:00.000-08:00

This posting is designed to help a group athletes out of Crossfit West Seattle in their upcoming Caliber Cycle. These recommendations are general and are applicable to supporting recovery from any high intensity training cycle. This is the 4th Cycle that Zach at CFWS has run this year and we've learned a lot about how to get the most out of our efforts. Most importantly: Recover rapidly, Don't get hurt, and Don't get sick.

General:

Many people commit to a fundamental nutrition change for the duration of the 6 week cycle. Some go the Full Monty with strict Paleo. Others go ala carte and cut out alcohol, gluten, dairy, or some other nefarious element of their lifestyle. Do this. Take a look at your nutrition and lifestyle and decide on your priorities. What are you willing to commit to for six weeks to get the most out of this cycle? Before the last cycle I made a 2 column list with Goals in the left hand column and Commitments in the right hand column. It looked something like this:

Goals: Commitments:

Weigh #200 Add 6 tbs. olive oil a day,GOMAD, 6 grams creatine/day

Squat #370, OHS #225 Sauna on Wednesday, fish oil 20g/day, sleep by 9pm

57" box jump Find or build a 57" box and Jump On It.

Everyone will have their own goals for the end of this cycle but the key is recovery and the path there is the same:

Fuel Recovery
Control Inflammation
Prevent Injury
Don't Get Sick

1-Fuel Recovery

Whether you hope to gain or lose weight in this cycle it is important that you increase your caloric intake. If you wish to lose weight then you are in the right program. Adding a few pounds of skeletal muscle over the following 6 weeks will increase your metabolism. Remember that calories are a measurement of energy. You are planning on expending a lot of energy and you plan to recover quickly, so it is wise to plan on consuming a lot of quality calories. The calories you consume will not cause you to grow. They will pass through the following hierarchy:

Fuel Your Efforts in the Gym
Fuel the Recovery From Your Efforts
Fuel Adaptation/ Strength Gains
Fuel Growth

Many people who are afraid of "getting too big" only satisfy the first requirement and risk injury because they lack sufficient energy to recover and continue training without injury. A simple way to increase your calories is to add something with a high caloric density such as nuts, avocados, olive oil, or a post-workout concoction of milk and protein powder. For those of you who wish to add an alarming amount of volume to your stature, it won't be easy. You'll have to eat in a way that is extreme and uncomfortable. A wise man named Scotty once told me "The meals should be harder than the wods."

2- Control Inflammation/ Advil is not a vitamin.
Inflammation is not the enemy. Inflammation is the initial step in the healing process. It would be a mistake to rely on NSAIDs to suppress the pain of inflammation. NSAIDs weaken your joints leaving you susceptible to injury. Chronic consumption of NSAIDs often leads to serious gastric and kidney problems.

Instead relying on NSAIDs, control inflammation with:

Fish oil- That's right. Lots of it too. The guidelines in this link are extreme but if you are ever in your life going to take a high volume of fish oil, now is the time. Buy it. Then drink it.

Contrast Therapy- Several minutes in barely tolerable heat and going right into shockingly cold water. The occasional rest day at Banya 5 or the Y are easy ways to get this done. After a series of particularly heavy training days make your tub into an Ice Bath and submerge your whole body to your chin for 5 minutes. This constricts your capillaries and hastens recovery. Its also strong immune support. For a convenient alternative simply alternate your shower hot 2 min/cold 2min for three cycles.

NSAID alternatives- When you're looking from the relief that you typically get from NSAIDs, try proteolytic and digestive enzymes. They speed the inflammation and healing process instead of suppress it.

Don't Get Sick and While You're Up, Don't Get Hurt

3-Support Immune Function

It is well documented that the immune system can be suppressed during periods of high stress and intense training. There is evidence that supplementing Vitamin C with bioflavinoids during periods of intense training decreases the frequency of upper respiratory tract infection. A gram/ day of Vit C is enough to keep you well. Make sure a that your supplement contains at least 500 mg bioflavinoids though. Without this important co-factor, your vitamin C levels may actually drop due to poor binding and competitive inhibition of your food based Vitamin C intake.

There is some evidence to support the claim that supplementing the minerals Zinc and Magnesium during intense training cycles prevents hormonal imbalances and the resultant over training symptoms of fatigue and malaise. The dose used in this study was 3mg/kg body weight/day. Zinc is an excellent supplement for preventing and fighting upper respiratory infections anyway which makes it a quality supplement to use anytime you feel you may be close to your training threshold. Just be sure to have something to eat first. Zinc supplements on an empty stomach deliver a "rowdy tequila bender" level of nausea.

4- Prevent Injury
Everyone will experience some physical discomfort during this cycle. It is normal for muscles to get sore after a hard workout. It's not always necessary to "listen to your body" because your brain will often misinterpret terrible and glorious things like Fran and 400m sprints. "Help. Stop. Take a break. You are killing me." It is an important skill to filter these false alarms and recognize true warnings of impending injury.

Now is the time to get proactive about the weak links in your kinetic chain. You know your spots: shoulder, elbow, wrist, back, hip, knee, ankle- address your weaknesses. Mobility issues in any of these joints will be exposed in the basic olympic lifts. Make it a priority to get to class early and spend 5-10 minutes improving your range of motion. The MWOD has dozens of quality mobilities for the major movements that we'll be implementing. Supplemental therapies such as ART and Graston are sometimes necessary to make progress in areas with a history of injury.

Summary: There you have it. It is easy to thrive under pressure: Recover quickly, don't get hurt, and don't get sick. Contact me with any specific questions regarding recovery and supplementation. Have a great cycle.

Conditioning for Parents aka- Rough Housing for Time

2010-11-11T13:39:00.000-08:00

AKA Burn your Ergo Pack.

Most great gyms (the ones with the stank of chalk and glory) don't have child care facilities. Even if you were fortunate enough to find a Chuck E. Cheese/ Barbell Club hybrid, most parents are typically way too busy to make the time for such an oasis. For all of you parents who don't have time to get to the gym, this series of postings is for you. While all the rest of us suckers have to pay money for resistance equipment, you clever procreators made equipment from your own DNA. Well done. Now put it to use.

Here are a few ideas that my two rowdy boys (Finley and Sullivan) and I use around the house. Please feel free to expand on these with your own moves and for God's sake share those ideas below in Comments.

EQUIPMENT:
I have a back yard trampoline which makes several of these moves far safer, more fun and more challenging. This first posting will focus on trampoline workouts. There will be other sorts to come.

Trampoline Wods

Tackle the Team. With children of the right temperament, you wouldn't believe what a burner this one is. In my family it rivals the WOD Karen in suck factor.
First: Place three small mammals on a trampoline and zip yourself in there with them. These mammals would preferably be children and would preferably be your own. (If you lack the requisite offspring, borrow some from your neighbor.)
Next: Attempt to tackle all 3 mammals AT THE SAME TIME. This gets very challenging when they learn to spread out and to get up quickly after being brought down. If one is back on its feet by the time you bring down the third, you missed that rep. It is sometimes necessary to resort to threats of spankings if they don't hold still. This is undoubtedly underhanded cheating, but a great man once said "If you ain't cheating, you ain't trying." When using this underhanded technique lengthen the WOD to a 20 minute AMRAP to keep it RX'd.

Person Toss. This one is pretty straight forward. Take three warm up bounces before heaving your precious offspring into the heavens and trust your parenting instincts to kick in as they come hurtling toward you. Work up to max effort height gradually. If they get spooked by the abrupt height they will likely flail a sharp elbow into you nose. I catch them under the arm pits and set them aside and grab the next one. This could be performed like Karen (150 for time) but I prefer to treat each toss as a single rep attempt at max height.

Stay tuned for future installments which will cover the following movements and more: Sully and Fin KB swing, People Turkish GU, Child Zerkers, Mammal Front Squats, Finley Thrusters, Over Head Sully, Walk on Dad While he does plank, Burn Your Kelty AKA Farmer's Walk, Offspring Pistols, Etc.

Graston Technique: Hard Tools for Soft Tissues

2010-10-29T10:03:00.000-07:00

What is Graston Technique?

I was in a Graston lecture last weekend when a friend named Dan who is facing knee surgery texted me these probing questions: "What is Graston Technique? Have you had it done? Does it Work? How does it work? How is it different from things like Foam Rolling?" These are pretty good questions and deserve a better answer than my somewhat terse response: "Foam rolling is great, but good luck getting a roll of foam between your femoral condyle and your torn meniscus." As a favor to you Dan I'll expand on that answer here.

"Have You Had It Done Before?"

I have had ankle and wrist injuries treated with Graston and what impressed me was the immediate increased range of motion. I fractured my right scaphoid 6 years ago and have a lot of scar tissue and mobility issues from that wrist surgery. My wrist extension is painful and limited during some of my favorite crossfit movements such as hand stand push ups and cleans. Immediately after treatment my wrist range of motion in extension is about 15 degrees improved and those movements are no longer painful.

Here is the simplified cliff's notes version of the answers to the rest of Dan's questions:

Graston instruments allow a clinician to feel adhesions in muscles, tendons, ligaments, and fascia. These adhesions form in the tissues over time in accommodation to postural strains and in response to healed injuries. Those restrictions are then smoothed and "ironed" out like the wrinkles out of a shirt allowing the tissues to glide smoothly over one another as they did before injury. The research supporting the technique is a small but promising body of work.

For those of you who would like to geek out with me on some of the details, here we go:

The Graston Technique was founded in 1994 but instrument assisted soft tissue mobilization has been used for the past 10,000 years in the form of gua-sha in Eastern Asia.

Gua-Sha uses Horns, Bones, and Stones

"How Does it Work?"

When a soft tissue (any tissue that is not bone) is injured it goes through 3 phases of repair- Inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling. These phases leave us with what is equivalent to a physiologic patch job that conforms to normalized tissue only with normal physiological use of the area. The new tissues align along planes of tension. This process is known as tissue remodeling. When an injury or surgery is followed by a period of immobilization or compensatory movement, the result is long-term fascial adhesions that limit range of motion and cause increased tension in the area.

Not all injuries require the sort of therapy that Graston treatment provides. The areas that show up on an initial scan of the area are those that fail to re-align optimally.

"Is it Effective, and What sets it apart from other techniques?"

Foam rolling is an excellent self-care practice to apply pressure to sore and tight muscles and speed the recovery process from hard work outs. ART applies self guided friction to adhesed muscles much as Graston does but it is limited to the tissues that are accessible with the thumbs. What sets this technique apart from therapies such as foam rolling and manual techniques such as ART is the ability to detect subtle changes in tissues and apply friction on those otherwise inaccessible tissues. GT therapy is then followed with specific ranges of motion that guide the healing process into optimal remodeling.

The instruments have specialized design features which accommodate the shoulders, elbows, wrists, knees and ankles which make them ideal post-injury and post-surgical tools.

"Does The Inflammatory Nature of the Treatment Just Cause More Adhesions?"

This is a question that I had myself. A controlled inflammatory response is initiated by the treatment. This is the same healing principal behind homeopathy and even immunizations. The more severe your adhesions, the more inflammatory the treatment. It can leave you red and sometimes bruised. When that is the case, it indicates that you had a lot of work that needed done. Sometimes the worse it looks, the better the results. The reason why one adhesion is not simply replaced by another is because the healing process is guided for optimal healing with ranges of motion and post-treatment icing.

"Who practices Graston Technique in my area?"

There are over 9,000 Physical Therapists, Chiropractors, and Occupational Therapists in the United States who practice Graston Technique. I am one of them, but if you are not in the Seattle area, this a is a link to find a clinician in your vicinity.

Lumbar Disc Herniation

2010-10-19T14:26:00.000-07:00

It is common for people to wonder if they have a herniated disc in their lower back when they feel pain radiate down the leg. There are several differential diagnosis that must first be ruled out before that conclusion is made. The only way to confirm a herniation diagnosis is with an MRI but a good physical and neurologic assessment is often enough to determine the cause of lower back pain that refers into the leg. If you are wondering if you are suffering from a herniated disc in the lumbar spine and you want to know what your options are, this posting is for you.

Presentation

Sudden onset of lower back pain with severe pain down the leg possibly beyond the knee.

The leg pain may be more severe than the back pain.

Pain may result from heavy lifting, twisting or repetitive stress trauma.

The leg pain is described as "electrical", "sharp" or "shooting." The pain follows a dermatomal pattern determined by the spinal level of the herniation as pictured below.

The leg pain is worsened by increases in intra-discal pressure: coughing, sneezing, weight bearing, and positional changes that involve forward flexion of the low back and at the hip.

Additional findings: Dermatomal numbness/ decreased sensation, weakness, decreased reflexes.

Etiology

Age 25-45 this is when the nucleus is most hydrated
male >female 3:2
Prevalence: 1-3% lower back pain cases
95% of lumbar herniations occur at the L4-5, L5-S1 levels

Differential Diagnosis

Piriformis/sciatica- Sciatica feels like a disc herniation but it is not. Sciatica is when the sciatic nerve is entrapped distally from the spine, typically by a muscle such as the piriformis. This still presents with pain down the back of the leg to the foot and is best treated with chiropractic manipulation of the sacrum and soft tissue work on the piriformis muscle.
Myofascial Trigger Point- A trigger point is a small region within a muscle that refers pain distally. They are easily treated with trigger point therapy involving light repeated pressure into the source muscle. The source of this referred pain can be quite a distance from where it manifests as is illustrated in the trigger point map pictured below. Acupuncture also has very effective treatment strategies for trigger points.
Acute hamstring spasm or strain must also be ruled out as a possible source of sharp pain down the back of the leg.

Risk Factors

Biomechanical and lifestyle factors that expose you to increased risk of lumbar disc heritaion include:

Lower Cross Syndrome: A postural shift toward anterior pelvic tilt caused by imbalanced forces across the hips as pictured below. Weak abdominals, a tight lower back, and tight, weak hamstrings and glutes result in excess pressure on the posterior disc fibers.
Lack of exercise/ poor general health and nutrition. This is why I promote vigorous physical activity with my patient population. I encourage my patients to learn how to safely move very heavy weights and to practice those motions regularly.

Treatment Options

Conservative:
Cauda Equana Syndrome presents with saddle parasthesia and urinary retention. It is an emergency situation. Care of all presentations except Cauda Equana should begin with conservative care.

Conservative care of a disc herniation is the non-surgical and drug free route. Except in the case of Cauda Equana Syndrome, this is where all initial care should begin. It involves mobilizing the vertbrae to accomodate the return of the disc material out of the intervertebral foramen. In chiropractic, several techniques are used including Flexion/Extension, The McKenzie Protocol and Chiropractic manipulative therapy. Yes, it is safe to adjust a spine with a disc herniation. It is infact the standard of care. [2] [4] An estimate of the risk of spinal manipulation causing a clinically worsened disc herniation in a patient presenting with lumbar disc herniation is calculated from published data to be less than 1 in 3.7 million. [1] Alternative conservative care modalities include Massage, Acupuncture, and physical therapy.

Surgical:

This is the best option with acute Cauda Equana Syndrome, and is the last option when progressive neurological deficiencies are present during the course of conservative management. That means you are doing the exercises and being adjusted but you continue to digress measurably with loss of muscle strength, tone, and reflexes. This is also the preferred treatment option in cases of sequestration of the disc material into the spinal canal as pictured above. This is a last resort in care because of recent reviews of the literature that reveal that even in successful spinal surgeries, the benefits are short-lived and are indistinguishable from conservative outcomes on an 8 year time line. [3] I nearly placed photo of a lumbar surgery in progress here but after the achilles shot last week, I thought that might be too much. For the curious in the group, click here for link to a short youtube video. When going through these videos I found the most interesting part to be the comments left by viewers. They all have had the procedures themselves and they are a solid random sampling of outcomes that reflect a hit and miss level of relief.

Summary:

Recent MRI studies of asymptomatic populations find that as many as 52% of asymptomatic people have lumbar disc bulges and hernitations! [5] The difference between a benign asymptomatic lesion and a debilitating one is likely your personal bio mechanics and how you use your spine day to day. Because of this, the best way to treat a symptomatic disc herniation is to avoid one. An assessment of the bio mechanical forces that your lower back is exposed to both statically and with your lifting technique will have you on the right path. If it is too late for that and you already present with symptoms then beginning a course of conservative care now will typically result in 50% improvement in symptoms within the first 3 weeks of initiating care.

Achilles Tendon Injury

2010-10-13T21:18:00.000-07:00

Injuries to this part of the body go by many different names depending on location and severity of injury: Achilles rupture, achilles tendinitis, achilles tendinosis, tennis leg, gastroc strain, soleus strain, the list goes on but I will refer to the rupture of a lower leg tissue generally as an achilles strain from here on out. The purpose of this post is to help the reader avoid ever having this injury by recognizing risk factors and developing skills that neutralize those risks.

The achilles tendon is the largest and strongest tendon in the body. It can sustain a tensile load of 1 ton. That is the weight of a VW beetle. Despite it's inherent strength, it remains the second most frequently torn tendon in the human body. The achilles is as substantial as it is because it is made to withstand the dynamic stress of an eccentric load. What that means is that when you jump and land on your toes, the gastrocnemius contracts to slow your heel from hitting the ground at the same time that it lengthens to accommodate dorsiflexion at the ankle. That makes the achilles tendon a rope in a powerful tug of war. When you gain strenth, weight, or increase work load rapidly, you run the risk of out pacing the relatively avascular tendon's ability to adapt resulting in pulling it apart with your own body's forces.

Because of the inherent strength of this structure, it is unlikely for it to tear or rupture when it is healthy. It is far more common for a previously inflamed gastroc-achillis complex to give way to a major tear. This is a peculiar tissue that runs when it is torn, much like a piece of paper with a small tear in it- pull on both ends and you'll soon have two pieces of paper. Athletes are used to performing through discomfort and pain and rarely take the necessary steps required to avoid an impending tear. Most of the successful athletes that I know don't "listen to their bodies." They have another chain of command where their bodies do as they are told. That being said, have a look at the wrecked tendon below. This is what was left of my older brother's achilles after he blew it out in a basketball game. He played through the pain. He went to the gym the next day! He didn't get in to have it looked at for 3 days. I love him, but he's a big dumb animal. Don't be a big dumb animal.

How to avoid a gastroc/ achilles rupture:

Know when you are vulnerable:
There are 3 major ways that you may be vulnerable to an achilles injury right now.

1) Demographic:
Are you an athlete between the age of 25 and 40?
Have you recently gained weight or increased your strength?

2) Achilles Abuse

Do you like to train cold? Take off from a stop to a sprint? Do you do workouts with rapid repetitive jumps? Do you frequently run on the road? Are you experimenting with barefoot running?

3) Previous Injury
Are you sore and tight above your heel when you first wake up in the morning? Does it wear off as the day goes on?
Have you noticed any swelling making one calf muscle appear larger than the other? Remember it doesn't have to be painful.
Have you noticed a "twang" in that area. The day after a REALLY long run I felt the sensation of guitar strings being strummed in my achilles followed by them being cut one by one. I iced it and steered clear of dynamic training for a week.

This injury can still be avoided even if you meet several of the at risk criteria above:

Mitigate The Risk

Be Proactive:
Listen to your body- I know. You don't want to but when your body speaks from your lower leg you listen. When your lower leg hurts even a little, ice it and give it space.

Warm the area. I don't mean "warm up." Waving your arms and crunching your core won't warm your achilles tendons. Use the muscle before you stress it and for God's sake don't warm up with double jumps or you're asking for trouble.

Make gradual progressions- The 10% rule is a conservative way of extending your distances by 10% per outing.

Train on diverse surfaces- Consistently running forward on pavement will overwork the mid line structures of your lower leg.

If you are experimenting with the idea of bare foot running, do it step by step- Losing the heel you've had you're entire adult life places an additional 1/2 inch stress on your achilles/gastrosoleus junction.

Stretch the gastroc statically post work out and throughout the week- This can be done with simple moves such as down dog but I like this wall stretch posted to MWOD last month. The guy (K Starr) yammers on for 3 minutes before he gets down to it, but there is a quality mobility in the end:

Keep in mind that the gastroc is part of a larger fascial plane that runs from the bottom of your foot to the origin of your hamstring at your ischial tuberosity. Maintain global range of motion all the way to the toe by working a ball into the base of the foot while you are at your desk.

Summary:
If you injure your lower leg it is typically all or nothing:
All- you feel like you've been kicked, hit, or shot in the back of the calf. You will probably even turn around to see who did it. It may hurt a lot as in a 1st or 2nd degree tear, or it may only hurt a little as with a total rupture which can be less painful due to the nerve damage. Either way, it will probably swell and a palpable lesion may be present. Tape your ankle into plantar flexion and get to a sports medicine doc as soon as possible. Do Not Stretch It.

Nothing- This is the small lesion or inflammation that later leads to "All" as described above. With a chronic presentation of lasting discomfort in the lower leg, fascial adhesions are likely built up between the muscle and the fascia. The soft tissue modalities of ART and Graston Technique (tools pictured below) are the methods of choice for releasing those adhesions before they cause larger problems.

With an acute onset PRICE is the rule here: Protect, Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevate. Remember that the P in protect may require you to Protect your lower leg from your ego and whatever achilles busting plans you had for it when you woke up this morning.

GOMAD Part II

2010-09-28T12:07:00.000-07:00

Milk exists for one purpose: to make baby mammals grow.

I am a baby mammal.

There is only one week left in the GOMAD Project. Here is an update.
The Plan: Drink One Gallon of Cheap Whole Milk in Addition Other Foods Daily For One Month or Until I gain 13 pounds. Whichever happens first.

Background:
I did not invent the GOMAD (Gallon Of Milk A Day) diet. It is a common choice among young men in a pinch to put on pounds fast. The reason why GOMAD works is simple. For one thing there are two thousand five hundred and sixty calories in a gallon of whole milk. In addition to that caloric push, milk has unique hormonal attributes including IGF-1 that drive growth. Dairy products also drive a strong insulin response that is out of proportion with its modest volume of sugar.

This is my third consecutive intervention experiment: July= Paleo, August= Vegan, September=Milk

This is a good way to contrast the acute effects on strength, energy, body composition, beard growth etc.

Results so Far:

Beard? Luxurious. Energy? Down. Strength? Up. Handsomeness? Down. Markedly. (Friends tell me I'm beginning to resemble Vince Vaughn. Not his charm or his height. His trademark puffy eyes and his pasty swollen party face.)

Body Composition:
My numbers have plateaued. I was initially gaining weight at an alarming rate. A full pound every other day going from 192.6 on 9/11/10 to 196.2 on 9/17/10. That is just 6 days. Imagine what that looks like after 6 months?! As I told my wife "imagine how great it will be when there is twice as much of me!" A surprising thing happened after that. I plateaued and then lost weight leveling out for the last ten days at 194.4 pounds. I am today only 3 pounds heavier than I was when I was a vegan nearly a month ago. This doesn't seem reasonable.

The 3 Phases of Acceptance-
1) Confrontation:
The scale doesn't lie. I came across some facts about the dairy industry that made cheap milk an unacceptable option. If you would like to continue to enjoy the simple pleasure of cheap milk then do not follow this link. You can't unring the bell. It made me question why on earth I was doing this to my body and I made the switch to organic milk.

2) Blame:
There is something wrong with this milk. It clearly doesn't work. I wish I could take it back but is too late. What kind of dwarven pygmy cattle are they milking at Horizon? I blame the cows. Maybe I should have stuck to my guns and stayed on the cheap milk.

3) Acceptance:
I Blame Myself.
I became complacent. I depended too often on the Moo Juice to supply all that I needed. I'd occasionally pull down half a gallon after my morning workout then charge off to the clinic without breakfast.

With only a week to go the question is what to do now? I'll complete the task but I've been told to switch to chocolate milk if I want to get past this weight plateau. Interesting. I'll let you know how it goes next week. Moo.

GOMAD: Gallon Of Milk A Day

2010-09-12T19:12:00.000-07:00

So what's the best way to rebound from eating vegan for a month? Exactly. Drink a gallon of cheap whole milk every day and hope for the best.

The Plan

Drink 1 gallon of whole milk every day for 30 days or until I weigh #203 whichever happens first- My baseline weight is 191

Eat normally otherwise

Do a bodycomp and strength test before and after

This is a common "diet" for aspiring football players or anyone else who desperately needs to get ridiculously large and bloated quickly. I've heard that it can be difficult to drain the entire gallon by sundown. Some use the strategy of keeping gallons everywhere: in the car, at the office, in your briefcase, under your pillow etc.

I've been at it for a week now. My first day was rough. I started late in the day and tried to down the gallon during my lunch break. I think that physically I could have done it. What I failed to account for was the time needed for naps and long sour looks into the mirror. I came up one cup short of a gallon in 3 hours.

So to get you up to speed; eating vegan left me strong but battered. My body fat increased 33% in just 23 days taking me to a personal record of 13%. My muscle mass dropped by four pounds. Those are ominous figures if I was to stick it out for the long haul. After the first 5 days of this GOMAD experiment my numbers all rebounded: back down to 10% bf and the 4 pounds of muscle came back.

So far so good. The biggest challenge thus far has been one of storage. I'm keeping a jug at the clinic, one at Crossfit and a couple at home. I'm going with the cheap stuff because I'm looking for growth right? Why pass on the free growth hormone that conventional cattle are pumped full of? I should probably get a full blood panel at the end of this one.

Gandhi DLP Part II: Eat Like a Hippie/ Lift Like a Bull

2010-09-03T14:27:00.000-07:00

The plan was to train for one month eating completely vegan to see if I could make a significant strength gain in the absence of meat based protein.

I stuck to this plan for the most part only having some egg in a birthday cake I had and an insignificant amount of soy. The training cycle had to be cut a week short not giving me much time to make an increase but I did the most I could with a 23 day cycle.

I went with a dead lift regimen designed by Zach at CFWS: 5x5 deficit lifts, single rep rack pulls, these terrible things called front squat 1 1/2's, and some Crossfit Football WODs on off days. The plan was to grind me into a fine powder and see if my body could recover from these beatings while eating like a hippie.

I tried to do this without supplementing any processed protein: no hemp powder, no soy, nothing weird. I went at it like this:

I ate a lot of vegetables.
I ate a whole lot of quinoa.
I drank olive oil like it was my job.

Here is my first attempt at #455 after 23 days training vegan:

It is a little known fact that olive oil has a whopping 120 calories per tablespoon. That is nearly the same number of calories that you'll find in an entire cup of 2% milk (130 cals.) Whole milk gives you 160/cup and causes spikes in insulin which may cause long-term health problems. I kept my caloric intake high by adding one to two salads per day with 1/2 cup one each = 1000-2000 salad cals per day.

I realize that this isn't the typical vegan diet but it worked for me. I failed to wither away. I gained 1.5 lbs.

I came off of the Paleo Diet heading into this vegan experiment and the stark contrast of meat intake is not the biggest difference between the two diets. The biggest difference is the wide amount of options that you have as a vegan. When you eat Paleo you would have to go a long way out of your way to eat poorly.
Example: Eat nothing but celery and ham for 30 days.

You have to go a long way out of your way to be a healthy vegan. You can follow STRICT vegan and have a destructive lifestyle with crappy nutrition.

Example:
First tie-up your pleather shoes and walk to your favorite brunch spot.

Pancakes, mimosa, and bagels with soy spread for breakfast-

Red Vines and two American Spirit cigarettes, and a liter of diet Coke for a snack-

Engage in domestic violence then have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and malt liquor for lunch-

Chips and salsa with a salad for dinner- Then kick an old man down some stairs.
You see- Destructive right?

The way I did vegan worked. The predetermined marker of success for this program was to pull #455 (a #15 gain) in a 23 day training cycle. I took on a ridiculous amount of volume training from Coach Z, recovered from each training session well and pulled a much bigger weight off the ground than I had hoped.

Here is the #475 pull: I changed my form a little and it turned out ugly.

I'd like to thank my friend Eric for inadvertently editing this cut. His shirt is better looking then that pull but it doesn't have to be pretty to count. At the end of the day I went from #440 to #475 bringing me just over a 2.5 body weight DL after 23 days intensive pulling training. I gained 1.5 pounds but my body fat went up 3%!

Conclusions:

1) The body fat increase may have been due to the relatively high sugar intake.
2) Don't believe the hype. Vegans can get strong.
3) Gandhi probably had a sick dead lift.

Garage Gym: Make Your Own Medicine Ball

2010-08-20T10:58:00.000-07:00

The medicine ball is the simplest and most versatile piece of functional equipment you can own. The best medicine balls are the size of a large pumpkin, are equally weighted and cost about $100. "$100 for flippin heavy ball?" you say? I agree.

I made my own beloved med-ball and I wouldn't trade it for any other. It weighs 44 lbs when it's dry but because I often toss it in dewy grass, it is rarely dry and weighs as much as 52 lbs.

Materials

For Every Ball you make you will need:

One Old Ball

One Roll of Gorilla Tape

One Old Towel

It is great to have a couple different weights and sizes so get over to your local Goodwill and get a basketball and a soccer ball of different sizes. My ball is HEEYUGE and heavy because I used my son's old rubbery ball from Target- you know those cheap marbled looking balls?

Now cut a flap in each ball large enough to easily scoop sand into it.

Get a bag of pea gravel from Home Depot ($3) or do as I did and take those balls down to your local beach and fill them with sand. I did this on a hot day last summer at Alki Beach where I received a lot of quizzicle looks. That's just not fair. I'm doing something awesome that is great for me and there they are doing the typical Alki Beach Posturing:

Two pit-bulls on one leash, Check.

Ridiculously over-sized shades, Check.

Heinous new Batman tattoo prominently displayed across your back, Check (I actually saw that one.)

Give humble local chiropractor who is making incredible homemade medicine balls the stink eye, Check.

Seal the hole in the ball. Some people recommend sewing it shut. Some people say to use hot glue or a bike flat repair kit. I'm not that crafty so I duct taped it shut. It holds up well.

Wrap the towel around the ball.

Wrap the entire roll of duct tape around the ball and towel. DONE.

I call my medicine ball workouts Pet Rock sessions. I take the thing to the football field across the street from my home and do stuff like:

See how FEW throws it can take me to get from one end of the field to the other.

See how many times I can throw the ball over the field goal post in a row before I miss one- look out for that falling ball when you chunk one against the post.

Run one lap without the ball, run one with the ball for x miles.

You can always use it as a weight for normal lifts in a Tabata format too: Push Press, Wall Balls, Thrusters etc.

Post your Pet Rock WOD ideas to comments.

Barefoot Running Technique

2010-08-17T10:07:00.000-07:00

The following video has great British accents as well as quality drills that will help you to adapt a running posture more conducive to minimalist running.

Learning the Skill of Barefoot Running from Terra Plana on Vimeo.

The first problem people make when they begin to experiment with a barefoot style of running is that they try to avoid heel striking. This happens naturally when your posture is correct. This video does a great job of illustrating how to lean forward from the ankles not at the hips.

Adjust Your Strength: Studies Demonstrate Significant Strength Increases With Spinal Adjustments

2010-08-11T18:47:00.000-07:00

I can be a bit of a skeptical person. This makes me difficult to live with but it also makes me a pretty good researcher. It is because of this trait that I shy away from emotion-driven claims on the power of chiropractic to raise the dead and heal all wounds. That being said, a recent review of the literature has opened my eyes and has me a little emotional myself. The research states that my two favorite things- chiropractic and strength gains make each other better. I'm stoked.

I performed a very simple review of literature where I searched the terms “Chiropractic, Strength” in a Pubmed search engine. This is what I found:

I found seven studies that compared full force isometric contraction of muscles including the quadriceps, rotator cuff, cervical extensors and low back extensors before and after chiropractic adjustment of the spine. All seven found increased strength and/or decreased muscle inhibition post adjustment (1,4,6,7,9,10,11). One study showed as much as 66.8% increase in muscle recruitment as tested with surface electromyography (4). These results are compared to placebo groups and control groups. Summary: This is a big deal.

Two of these studies were of particular interest from a sports medicine perspective as they studied the effect of chiropractic adjustment on the vastus medialis oblique of subjects with anterior knee pain (6,7). Both studies found decreased inhibition immediately post adjustment. This is very useful information to anyone trying to regain strength after a knee injury. As any Physical Therapist will tell you, post injury the primary focus of rehabilitation is to activate the VMO which easily inhibits and leads to lifelong strength and stability problems. Take home- if your knee is injured, get your spine adjusted.

The first question I am usually asked when I tell people about the previous studies is “how long after the adjustment do these effects last?” I like this question. It means to me that the patient is trying to plan how fast they'll have to drive after leaving my office to take full advantage of this phenomena. Two of the above studies attempted to answer this question by performing multiple strength assessments at predetermined intervals following the adjustment. Wang and Meadows 2010 (9) found a measurable increase in the strength of the rotatror cuff muscles for up to ten minutes after the cervical spine was aligned and Grindstaff, Hertel 2009 (10) found acute measurable increases in quadriceps strength of 3% and muscle recruitment of 5% for twenty minutes post adjustment. 3% may not sound like much but if you have a 400 pound back squat, 3% means another twelve hard-earned pounds.

These serial assessments are a difficult way to determine how long the effects last because fatigue obscures maximum efforts. What is also missed by these studies are the accumulative effects of multiple adjustments over the span of a treatment period. These only measure the acute changes after a single adjustment.

I did come across a long-term case study (2) that followed the treatment of an 18 year old patient who had a greatly reduced lumbar curve. The clinician sent the patient to his high school strength coach to test his baseline bench press single repetition max which was 245 pounds. Over the course of a 16 week treatment period which restored his lumbar curve to 31 degrees his bench press max increased by 60 pounds to 305 pounds and he was not bench pressing at all over that entire four month stretch. You would expect his numbers to go down not up. This study supports the premise that a normal lumbar lordosis provides inherent biomechanical stability and strength.

This case study shows the potential for long-term effects but the duration of the study allows for potential confounding factors that can be difficult to control: was he eating and sleeping the same? Was he under the same amounts of stress? It is hard to say. With a larger study with more subjects to compare individual results to you can account for these factors and that sort of a follow-up study is necessary to validate the findings of this case study.

Discussion:

These findings are exciting to most people and everyone who I've told about them wants to know: "Why are people stronger after adjustment?" They typically speculate that increased circulation is at work but the idea of increased circulation does not look likely. That wouldn't explain why adjusting the lower back benefits the strength of muscles up stream in the neck and shoulder girdle (2,3).

It is my opinion that there are two contributing factors to this phenomena:
1) Decreased muscle inhibition, and 2) the effect of stability on strength.

1) Muscle inhibition (MI)-
Would you rather lift a weight with 90 or 99% of your available muscle cells? Decreased muscle inhibition as was demonstrated in the above studies (4,9) means that you have access to a greater percent of your total muscle mass. Inhibited muscle is the percent of your muscle cells that are dormant even during maximum effort. When you decrease MI you are firing on more cylinders. This factor has far reaching potential for long-term strength gains far superior to the acute effects documented in these studies. Accessing and training a greater percent of your muscle mass chronically would have a potentially compounded training effect.

"Why are muscles inhibited in the first place?"
Injury frequently results in muscle inhibition. You could also argue that our modern lifestyle is one that actively fosters MI. How many hours a day do you spend in arch supported shoes and low back supporting chairs?

2) The effect of stability on strength: If the hips are out of alignment and it is potentially dangerous to have the strength to pull 300 pounds over your head your body may have neurologic controls to ensure that you don't have the muscular strength to over shoot the limitations of your stability. Having a huge overhead press and no lumbar curve is like having a cannon on a canoe.

The old adage "the iron never lies" explains why post adjustment strength is an excellent outcome to measure objectively. The previous studies isolate the effect of an adjustment on a single muscle or group of muscles involved in a motor task but the measurable impact of an adjustment is most likely body wide as is demonstrated by Giggey, Tepe (3) in a 2000 study that exhibited an 8.18 lbs. increase in cervical muscle extensors following a sacroiliac adjustment. This is also evident from the 2009 study by Smith and Dianoff (8) that demonstrated a 9.2% improvement in fine motor skills with a movement time test (rapidly point a pointer at a target on a computer screen) post adjustment compared to control groups.

To better understand the body wide effects of the chiropractic adjustment on the body, a more diverse set of outcome markers that include more motor units would be essential. The above studies only use isometric/static contractions to measure strength changes and it is likely the case that the sort of neurological adaptation facilitated by adjustments is best displayed with explosive movements that involve motor skills and maximal muscle recruitment. Olympic style functional movements such as snatch and clean and jerk would assess both motor skills and muscle strength.

All of your basic body functions may very well benefit from these same adjustments just as skeletal muscle does but it is not as easily studied or measured. The general strength of your immune system for instance may be enhanced post-adjustment but until a "maximum effort contraction" of the immune system is devised we won't be able to quantify that effect. That will take some clever research design and I will report back when it happens.

1) Hillermann, Gomes, Journal Manipulative Physiological Therapeutics - 2006

2) Morningstar, Grand Blanc, Journal Chiropractic Medicine, Autumn 2003; 2(3):137-41

3) Giggey K, Tepe R., Journal of Chiropractic Medicine 2009 June

4) Keller TS, Colloca CJ, Journal of Manipulative Physiological Therapeutics. 2000, Nov-Dec

5) Jorgen Sandell, Palmgren, Journal of Chiropractic Medicine. 2008 June

6) Suter, McMorland, Herzog, Journal of Manipulative Physiological Therapeutics. 1999. March-April

7) Suter, McMorland, Herzog. Journal of Manipulative Physiological Therapeutics. 2000 Feb

8) Smith, Dianoff, Smith. Journal of Alternative and Complimentary Medicine 2009 March

9) Wang SS., Meadows J. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics. 2010 Feb

10) Grindstaff, Hertel. Manual Therapy 2009 Aug

11) Suter, McMorland. Clinical Biomechanics 2002 Aug

The Ghandi Deadlift Project

2010-08-05T08:45:00.000-07:00

Many of you may already know that I grew up on a strict vegetarian diet. My parents have been eating vegetarian for the past forty years and meat was not really considered food in my childhood. This is not such a big deal now but back in the 80's in rural Washington in a hot bed of meat, mullets, and musk it was a much bigger deal. It was a rare meal that I had without someone asking a brilliant question that warranted an answer such as:

"Well that's a good question but no, turkeys are not effing vegetables so no, I don't eat them."

This continued through undergrad where I played division I men's rugby. It blew my mind how a person who I just literally spent an entire afternoon kicking around a field would inform me after that "you can't grow muscle without meat." Rage. Blind Rage.

Despite medical advice from authorities the vegetarian diet worked fine for me until my early 20's when I met my beautiful, meat cooking wife Alicia. I now eat large pieces of flesh at every meal and I will admit that I am significantly stronger now then I was in my early 20's (ten years ago.) I'm the same size and weight that I've always been but my training is more intense and focused on strength gains so to determine if it is the meat or the training that has me strong I am undergoing what I call:

The Ghandi Deadlift Project:

4 weeks strict vegan (not vegetarian) diet

Intensive deadlift training similar to deadlift cycles I have done over the last several months.

Culminating in a deadlift single rep max attempt to beat my current record which stands at #440 on 5/1/10.

This lift was a #25 pound jump for me and was the result of a 6 week long deadlift strength program.

For this experiment to be a success and prove that Ghandi most likely had a SICK deadlift I will have to make a jump that big in only 4 weeks instead of 6 bringing me up to #465.

The project begins Monday, August 9th.
The max is on Monday September 6th. I'll report back then.

Barefoot Running Part II: Nike joins the party

2010-07-26T09:53:00.000-07:00

Always one step ahead of the curve, Nike provides 3 shoes that fill the gap between what I referred in the last posting as the "modern shoe" and the minimalist approach of barefoot and Vibrams. I hope that is clear from the last post that a gradual transition is absolutely necessary in order to harden the intrinsic ligaments of your feet as well as the tendons that flex your ankles. You'll notice that the heel remains raised in both the 7.0 and 5.0 versions and is not significantly lower until the 3.0 model. This gives the gastrocs and achillis tendons time to adapt to the significant increase in tension placed on them in a flatter shoe. Because of this the Nike Free series may be the most comfortable way to progressively reduce your foot's dependence on external support.

A friend at Nike provided me with the following review of the Nike Free series in response to my last posting. It looks like round #2 goes to Nike.

Nike Free Shoes
The Revolutionary Running Shoes

The first shoe in the Nike Free shoes series is the 7.0, which is designed for Beginning Foot Strength Training that provides excellent everyday support.
1. Nike Free Barefoot Running Concept For Stability

Nike Free Shoes Among the Nike Free shoes, this shoe is the one that provides the most support, which makes it great for starters of the barefoot running concept. The Nike Free 7.0 is very flexible and has a very strong surface grip for better stability.

The shoe helps the foot retain a stable position, which assists in the natural transition of the feet from the strike of the heel to when the toe sets off. The 7.0 also distributes the impact of landing well so that impact will not hurt the legs and knees a lot. Both men and women can benefit from the offers of this shoe.

Let us look at some of the other editions :
Nike Free Running Shoes: The 5.0 Edition

The Nike Free 5.0, the second shoe in the series, is for Increased Foot Strength Training and provides medium support. It has deeper grooves for greater flexibility both on the forefoot and the rearfoot, thus allowing the feet to move the way it wants to. Despite this, the Nike Free 5.0 provides adequate support to the foot where it’s needed.

The shoe provides additional cushioning for shock absorption. The sturdy but comfortable cushioning also gives a stronger and more solid thrust forward to the foot, which propels the runner on a faster, more powerful stride. Even with the flexibility that the shoe has, it still provides sufficient protection on the sole for when you are running on rough surfaces. The shoe also comes with a comfortable upper with a suede feel. Even this small detail is specifically designed to move as your feet do. Most users remark that the shoe fits like a glove but still does the work that a good running shoe should do.

This is great for runners who want to feel the freedom of running practically on bare feet but still need support and cushioning for their feet. If you find that this is the shoe for you, check out the special training schedule for the shoe that Nike has prepared to help you ease into the shoe.
Nike Free Shoes: The 3.0 Edition

And for Advanced Foot Strength Training, there’s the Nike Free 3.0, which provides minimal support. This shoe is highly responsive. Using it is almost like running barefoot, and it can also promote foot strength. The shoe is more widely known for its track spikes minus the weight.

Very comfortable and very lightweight, the shoe also offers an unexpected cushioning support centered on the compression-molded EVA midsole.The shoe also has two panels of mesh and synthetic leather for a snug fit and a BRS 1000 outsole.

Barefoot Running Part I: The Cheap Shoe Revolution

2010-07-22T14:47:00.000-07:00

Taoist Proverb: “It is easier to put shoes on your feet than it is to wrap the earth in leather.”

I was not even familiar with the term “minimalist runner” when a guy on a mountain trail had the audacity to pass me while wearing a pair of rubber slippers. I was only on mile 4 and working hard for it but I could see by his belt of empty bottles that he had run much further than that. I chased him and his ridiculous footwear down and demanded answers to the following questions:

Q: How many miles have you run?-

“18.”

18?!!! I wasn’t letting him pass me now, not even at my car- I ran all the way back to his car with him.

Q: Isn’t gravel getting into your beige gardening slippers?-

“They’re Crocs and yes rocks get in but I stop every few miles and shake them out.”

Wow. This guy was a beast. It turns out that he competes in vertical marathons. This guy runs up mountains in garden slippers for time.
I bought my beige Crocs at noon the next day.

I have always trained in indoor soccer shoes like Sambas. Even with my excursion into Croc running, I personally have never fully committed to the barefoot lifestyle. I fit into the much broader category of individuals who are intrigued by the idea. Of those who enjoy the books and the blogs that trash the oppression of modern footwear technology but never totally follow those ideals into the filthy and sharp world of barefoot running. I garden barefoot. I sometimes deadlift barefoot. I read books about barefoot running while barefoot but actually run barefoot? No. As I mentioned, it’s dirty and sometimes sharp out there. I know my ancestors didn’t evolve in running shoes and barefoot is “natural” but so are sharks and hurricanes. Furthermore my ancestors didn’t charge around on the refuse strewn pavement that our modern tribe does.

The topic of Barefoot running has several converging concepts from footwear and running mechanics to cultural and historical perspectives. I have sat down to write this post dozens of times now and each time I go a different direction so I’m going to try and keep this simple. This is the first of what will likely be many postings. Rather than dive right into barefoot running, let’s start with comparing the merits of simple shoes vs. the modern shoe.

For simplicity’s sake the “modern shoe” I refer to will be defined in this post as: The shoe has an elevated and cushioned heel and pronation control features that can be tailored to foot type.

The “simple shoe” is anything from racing flats and Sambas to Vibrams. Anything that protects the bottom of the foot without intentionally altering the motion of the foot.

Since the 70’s and the advent of Nike’s Swoosh, there has been a revolution in the running footwear industry. We once had simple shoes that did nothing more than protect us from sharp

objects. Four decades of technology and innovation have brought us motion control, arch support, inflatable parts-don’t forget the Reebok Pump, and heel cushions made of gel, air, foam and springs resulting in the modern running shoe. The result: nothing. Today runners experience the same injury rate as they did before these technologies were introduced.

This broad sort of observational data can be misleading as industry advocates will point out. There may be other factors at play such as the age, size and lifestyle of runners today vs those in the 70’s and before. They will claim that modern shoes may be preventing what would otherwise be a large increase in running injuries- hard to prove. Let’s get into some details and figure it out for ourselves.

This is a great topic because it is very difficult to demonstrate in a study the superiority of either barefoot/minimalist or the modern shoe. In my mind, the only way to demonstrate such superiority is to show a causative relationship resulting in greater injury prevention and improved performance. The data is there but great care must be taken in order to establish a causitive relationship. For instance an observational study that shows that those in worn shoes ran faster in a given race may do so because they run more often thus always having shoes that appear “worn.” Or, those same results may have been caused by the fact that people with injuries seek motion control shoes and it is the injury that is causitive, not the footwear.

Many intervention studies are flawed as well such as when a group of heel strikers is taught to run on the balls of their feet to see if they are faster and less prone to injury. Well they’re not faster and they often get hurt because in a short 2 week study they are thrown into taking the lion’s share of the impact in their untrained achillis tendon and gastrocs. There are many clever studies out there that demonstrate a causitive relationship. We'll look at some that support and some that dismiss the utility of the modern running shoe.

The basic arguments for and against the modern shoe are as follows:

MOTION CONTROL-

Pros:

Proponents claim that the motion control shoe is necessary and helpful for those with severe pronation and other gait abnormalities. This is a logical assumption but the data to support this claim is sparse. I did however come across a study that indicates that the intervention of motion control shoes in severe over-pronators lowers fatigue rates of certain muscles of the lower extremity (1). This study does not demonstrate a reduced injury rate or improved performance but it is plausible that one could lead to another.

This is the perspective of Tim McConnell of West Seattle Runner who I briefly consulted with before writing this article. He feels that “neutral” runners can get away with flats while pronators need more support.

Cons:

1) Proponents of simple shoes point out that there is no evidence that the careful assignment of specific motion control shoes has any effect on injury rates or improved performance. (4) This is hard to believe given the massive resources available to the Research and Development departments of companies such as Nike and Adidas. An example of one such study is a recent and very large study of Air Force recruits in Basic training showed that assigning personalized shoes based on a foot shape evaluation did not improve injury rates when compared to placebo. (5)

2) It’s “natural” to run barefoot.
Again, it may be true that bare feet is natural but before you march your Reebok Pumps to your local shoe burning keep in mind that Leprosy is natural and so are poisonous berries. Nature has more interests than your health and safety. Until there is some data to sink our greedy little teeth into we’ll curb this line of logic under the “interesting but irrelevant” category.

3) Proponents of cheap/simple shoes aslo point out the proprioceptive inhibition of bulky footwear-

Anyone who suffers from chronic ankle sprains is aware of the importance of proprioception at the ankle. Proprioceptive nerves tell your brain where your feet are when you are not looking at them. Severe ankle sprains tear these nerves and they only grow back to their pre-injury state if rehabilitated with balance exercises. Studies show that the relatively bulky modern shoe decreases the brain’s capacity to know where the foot is in space while running and the study points out that it is this decreased proprioception that leads to running injuries in later years.(3)

HEEL CUSHIONING-

Pros:

Proponents point out that the perceived level of impact is diminished while running in a heel cushioned shoe allowing a heel strike and a longer stride.

Cons:

Advocates of flats, vibrums, barefeet etc. point to the fact that the body has its own mechanisms for reducing impact that are retarded by the built up heel of the modern shoe. There are several proposed mechanisms by which this happens. Here are a few that I find most interesting:

1) A recent study (2) by Kong et al compared ground impact forces of built up heels vs. lower heels in a novel and clever way. They compared impact forces of new vs. worn shoes. What I like about this study is its clever design allows us to eliminate a lot many distracting variables because these old shoes are the same in all ways except they are slightly lower profile and have a decreased capacity to absorb the impact of heel strike. The findings:

“As shoe cushioning capability decreases, runners modify their patterns to maintain constant external loads. The adaptation strategies to shoe degradation were unaffected by different cushioning technologies, suggesting runners should choose shoes for reasons other than cushioning technology.”

So there you have it. New shoes are no better than old worn-out shoes thus the modern shoe is a waste of money that robs you of your innate ability to run light as a deer right? Not so fast. The way that the lower extremity modifies to absorb the shock in the absence of adequate heel cushioning is by activating the gastroc and taking the impact through the achillis tendon. Just ask the over eager reader who gets all excited after reading this article and goes out for a brisk 5k on the balls of their feet tomorrow how their achillis tendons feel. It takes time to build up that strength.

So there. Now we have it. The modern shoe is superior because it allows us to expend our muscle energy running rather than mitigating impact forces. We can finally put this issue behind us. Again. No. The fact that those muscles are at rest during the running stride may be what causes high impact forces and is the source of potential injury.

Think of it like this: if you get up off of your chair now, stand on your table or desk next to your monitor then jump to the ground you will probably be OK especially if you tense your muscles and brace for impact causing you to land quietly. This is analogous to expending energy in stance phase of the gate in worn shoes. If you instead attempt to “save energy” by strapping on some new shoes and step off the desk completely relaxed and land unbraced into your heels at impact, even a fall from that modest height will cause injury. Another great analogy is anyone unfortunate enough to have done wallballs. It feels great to rest with your arms by your sides while that #20 ball is falling toward you doesn't it? We all learn sooner or later that it is far less taxing to stay tensed and ready to decelerate that ball.

2) This bracing phenomena occurs in the muscles of the lower leg and foot millimeters from the ground and is not present when wearing a modern shoe that prevents the bottom of the foot from ever getting close to the ground. (6) Tension in muscles at impact prevents vibration of those tissues and may decrease fatigue rates. Thus the purpose and popularity of single-ply recovery suits in sports such as crossfit.

3) Just the THOUGHT of heel support makes you a worse runner! (7) This is the most interesting study I came across so I saved it for the end to reward you loyal barefoot blog readers:

Here is a summary of the study from http://www.sportsscientists.com/.

In 1997, Robbins and Waked (7) made people step onto a material that was the same as is used in the midsole of running shoes. They did this a number of times, but the difference was that they were either told that the material was a state-of-the-art cushion, with all the latest technology to minimize injury (they even drew graphs and made up fake endorsements from athletes), or they were warned that it was the same as the material used in cheap shoes, responsible for many injuries. This is the WARNING trial shown in the graph below. Effectively, they were evaluating how belief about cushioning affected impact.

It turned out that when subjects thought they were landing on the soft, high-tech material (Deceptive trial), the impact forces were actually HIGHER than in the Warning trial when they expected the cheap and ineffective material. And barefoot had the lowest impact forces of all. The other amazing finding, as is shown in the graph above, is that in the barefoot and cheap material trials, the impact forces get lower and lower as the subjects repeat the step, which shows a learning effect that is not present in the ‘Deceptive’ trial where subjects thought they were landing on a soft material. So this is remarkable – it shows how an expectation of impact can actually alter impact, and again, it supports what Benno Nigg and others are saying about anticipation of impact, with the ability to adjust muscle activity to defend some other variable.

I had a similar experience yesterday at West Seattle Runner with owner Tim McConnell when he was gracious enough to let me try on nearly all of his shoes as research for this article. His shop is a great one-stop shop for all of your pre-race needs. I wish I would have gone in there for his super-powered gummies before my cheap shoe marathon experiment last month. Anyway I tried all of his top-end modern shoes with novel forms of the raised cushioned heel and they felt great, like walking on a water bed, but I found that I ran differently in each pair. These felt nothing like the flats I usually wear and I found myself relaxing my gastrocs and heel-striking hard to feel the cushy bounce of the gel sole.

Conclusion:

I'd say that round one went to Cheap Shoes but this is not really a conclusion as much as a starting point. If you are compelled to experiment with these ideas my advice is to take it slow. If your feet are deconditioned by support shoes and a raised heel, it will take time for your body to develop the strength to become its own shock absorbing system especially in the achillis tendon and gastrocs.

I forwarded this posting on to a few friends in the shoe industry with the invitation to write a response posting or leave me a vigorous tongue lashing in the comments section so expect more to come on this topic. Your feedback as always is welcome in comments.

1)Am J Sports Med. 2010 Mar;38(3):486-91.

Motion control shoe delays fatigue of shank muscles in runners with overpronating feet.
Cheung RT, Ng GY.

2)Br J Sports Med. 2009 Oct;43(10):745-9. Epub 2008 Sep 18.

Running in new and worn shoes: a comparison of three types of cushioning footwear.
Kong PW, Candelaria NG, Smith DR.

University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX, USA. venikong@yahoo.com

3)Age Ageing. 1995 Jan;24(1):67-72.

Proprioception and stability: foot position awareness as a function of age and footwear.
Robbins S, Waked E, McClaran J.

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
4)
Br J Sports Med. 2009 Mar;43(3):159-62. Epub 2008 Apr 18.
Is your prescription of distance running shoes evidence-based Richards CE, Magin PJ, Callister R.

5)No effect of shoe/injury rate. Am J Prev Med. 2010 Jan;38(1 Suppl):S197-211.
Effect on injuries of assigning shoes based on foot shape in air force basic training.
Knapik JJ, Brosch LC, Venuto M, Swedler DI, Bullock SH, Gaines LS, Murphy RJ, Tchandja J, Jones BH.
U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland 21010, USA. joseph.knapik@us.army.mil
6)
Nature. 2010 Jan 28;463(7280):531-5.
Foot strike patterns and collision forces in habitually barefoot versus shod runners. Lieberman DE, Venkadesan M, Werbel WA, Daoud AI, D'Andrea S, Davis IS, Mang'eni RO, Pitsiladis Y.

7) Br J Sports Med. 1997 Dec;31 (4): 299-303
Hazard of deceptive advertising of athletic footwear.

Paleo Challenge Summer 2010

2010-07-08T09:41:00.000-07:00

The official Challenge runs from July 12th through August 11th.

If you have to start late just run late and complete the 30 days.

To get started, email me at skylarponddc@gmail.com and I'll send you a pdf of the food journal and schedule a time for you to get your body composition numbers for your before and after comparison.

There is a $10 buy-in for all participants and the money and prizes are divided among the winners. There is a point system to quantify compliance and a before and after body-composition test to reward your training efforts as well.

This will be a running posting throughout the month. Post your questions, recipes, and heart felt grievances to comments and I'll post a reply. When you come across a novel solution to a Paleo-Problem: ie- "What on earth do I eat for breakfast when I am sick of eggs?" or "Where do I get macha?" or if you come across a good sale on meats at a local store please post that golden info to comments. This challenge can be difficult at first but it is a LOT easier when we share ideas and do our best to keep our diets diversified.

New Balance Paleo-Challenge

What is Paleo? What is Gluten, and why go through such an uncomfortable challenge?

Paleo is simple. It is eating in a way that is congruent to your genetic needs. You don’t have to hunt or gather. No raw meat or foraging for huckleberries. It is following a few simple rules:

No grains, No Processed Foods, No Dairy, No Legumes (beans and peanuts), No Salt

The Paleo Diet is not a weight loss diet. It has equal value for those trying to gain weight as to those trying to lose weight. The strength of the Paleo Diet is in the quality of the foods you consume, not in the amount of calories you take in. That is why it is not necessary to weigh or measure any of the meals we eat.

What is Gluten?

Gluten is the protein found in all grains.

It is a mild to moderate irritant on the stomach lining and in those who are vulnerable (due to increased stress, decreased sleep etc.) can lead to a condition called “Leaky Gut”- see the August 09’ cover article in Scientific American: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=celiac-disease-insights

Leaky gut is a condition when the intestinal lining is so damaged that gluten protein passes through the stomach wall into the bloodstream before they are even digested! This results in inflammation as your body creates antibodies to these proteins to eliminate them from your bloodstream. The more protein antibodies that your body creates, the greater the likelyhood of creating an antibody that attacks your own body’s protein. This is the definition of an Auto-immune disease and is commonly referred to as Celiac Disease. There are some who believe that this sort of reaction is responsible for a number of auto-immune disease. For example- if your body creates an antibody for the mylin of your nerves the resulting damage is called Multiple Sclerosis. This is not an elimination diet. This is an insulin regulating diet that eliminates Gluten. The purpose of this diet is two-fold:

1) Lower blood insulin levels and increase insulin sensitivity

a. Insulin is a master hormone. Your insulin sensitivity determines:

i. If you will be lean or chubby

ii. If you will live long or short

iii. It’s pretty important.

2) Remove Gluten from the diet to establish levels of gluten sensitivity which can lead to:

a. General inflammation/ Pain also Leaky Gut and Auto-immune disease

New Balance Paleo-Challenge

A guide to Paleo Points:

This is a game that is scored like golf: the lower your score the better. That being said you can achieve huge gains without ever coming close to a zero.

Points are awarded for every deviation from the Paleo Diet at each meal/snack/bender and tallied for the day. At the end of the month, the day’s tallies are totaled to give you your final Paleo-Score.

Organic foods are preferred but can be a financial stretch for many people. They are always encouraged but no points will be added for non-organic foods.

Points Guide:

50 points for every serving (approximately a handful) of:

Gluten Grains, Dairy, Refined Sugar this is the most important stuff to avoid- thus the 50 pointer.

Gluten Grains:

Slice of bread both white and wheat, ½ bagel, a pancake, slice of cake etc.

Cereal, non- gluten free Oats, millet etc. BEER.

Beer: Each bottle, can, or Pint is worth 50 points!

The only exception is Redbridge, a gluten-free beer by Anhieser Busch (they have them at the WestWood Village QFC) those are only worth 10pts.

Refined Sugars:

Candy, Cookies, Cakes, Artificial sweeteners- High Fructose Corn Syrup etc.

Dairy: Milk, Cheese, yogurt, Kiefer, Cottage Cheese etc.

10 points for every serving of:

NON-Gluten Grains, Starchy Vegetables, Non-Gluten Alcohol, Processed Foods/Meats, Food Coloring

Ie- corn, potatoes, hot dog meat, pepperoni, gluten free breads, oats, rice, yellow #6 etc.

5 points for every serving of:

Natural Sweeteners Agave, xylitol, raw honey etc.

tofu

Single pointers: 1 point-

Legumes: That’s right all beans: soy, pinto, black, lentils, all of them even the dreaded peanut can mar your perfect scratch round of the paleo challenge.

Black Coffee, Quinoa

Salt- Condiments, Salted Meats- bacon, salted salmon, marinades etc.

100 point Extra-Bonus points will be added for the following heinous aberrations from all things Paleo:

McDonalds and GrandeFrappaMaciato, Pizza, pre-packaged foods with Trans Fat or hydrogenated oils.

The Common Sense Rule:

If you eat something that would have been inaccessible to your paleo-ancestors who were operating without sharp metal tools and fire- give yourself a point.

If you have a question about a specific food that I haven’t addressed, look at the ingredients list and add up the points. Ie- Almond Milk. This could be clean and zero points. It could be 50 points or more. It depends on what they use to sweeten and preserve that specific product. If you are hoping to keep a scratch score, play it safe and make it yourself: blend raw almonds and water.

You can get around all of the above rules with packaged products that are largely processed. That may be a significant step in the right direction for you at a level of comfort you are comfortable with. If you feel you are too busy to do this challenge any other way then go the prepackaged route. Just mark a point with it to document your level of compliance.

Example: tofu/mushroom noodles- with a low sodium marinara from the jar. 5 points tofu and whatever you get for the additives in the sauce.

Example day:

How to earn 238 points in one day-

Breakfast (Total points 165)- Ham, Cheese, broccoli quiche (crust=50, cheese=50) seven grain muffin- no butter (50 pts.) orange juice, non-gluten oatmeal with soy milk (15pts.)

Snack- Cliff Bar (10pts) -depends on ingredients

Lunch-Cesar Salad with water (cheese=50, salt=1)

Snack-apples and peanut butter (1pt)

Dinner- Chicken Fajita (1pt salt marinade) no tortilla, 1 shot of tequila with soda and lime (10pt)

Total Points: 238

New Balance Paleo-Challenge

Before you begin stock up:

Supplies List

STEW, STEW, and STEW. This is the only effective way of satiating the Carb hungry pizza/ sandwich cravings of the first couple weeks. My favorites were of tuber base (rutabaga +turnip+parsnip+buffalo steak in a tomato base= Happy PaleoPerson.

Stew is great until it is 95 degrees out. The stew of Summer is the same ingredients on the grill or roasted in the oven. Oven roast 2-5 of your favorite vegetables with a meat in herbs, spices, and olive oil. A favorite example from last challenge was pork chops with apple slices, cinnamon sticks and brussel sprouts.

Meat and Eggs!

I prefer the Omega-3 eggs.

If you can get it unsalted and without sugar- Eat Jerky!!! Beef, Buffalo, Salmon, Deer, Rattlesnake, Human, whatever! (special prize may be awarded for most unusual jerky consumption)

Canned Salmon (Costco’s is MUCH better thanTrader Joe’s Wild salmon), tuna (low sodium in water), sardines etc.

Have lots of chicken, buffalo, fish and other lean meats around both frozen and fresh

Fruits and Vegetables

Sacks of easy peeler oranges and little organic apples are your friends

Bags of frozen broccoli and blueberries from TJ’s are lifesavers

Unsweetened Apple Sauce

Dried figs, prunes etc. help with the sweet tooth. No points for dried fruit but they are dense sugar sources so use with fats and proteins and in moderation.

Nuts and seeds

Walnuts, macadamias, cashews (raw and unsalted) they are expensive if you plow into them as meals but they are so calorically dense that a small handful at a time should suffice- you’re going to want tins of these at arm’s reach 24 hours/day

Quality fats and oils

Walnut Oil

Coconut Milk (Thai Kitchen has no preservatives)

Coconut oil- excellent for curries, high heat tolerant

Flax Seed Oil

Olive oil- no salad is complete without tons of this on it

Fish oil- .5-1 gram per day of DHA/EPA per 10 pounds body weight

Ie.- Dr. Pond weighs 180 pounds so he needs 9-18 grams/day of EPA/DHA. In the product that we stock, that means 2-4 tbs./day.

This won’t be fun without a solid supply of spices- double check that you are well stocked

Curries, Basil, Dill, Tumeric, Coriander, Nutmeg, etc, etc.

J Replace your beer supply with some Vodka and Tequila, wine- these are only 10 pointers so have them around for “cheat days”

Green tea is not a point gainer so find a good strong one (Macha will rock your socks off)

Quinoa is an essential quasi-grain. Many challenges allow it on the grounds that is gluten free and is classified as a seed. I’m giving it one point just to keep us from getting too lazy and going on a 30 day quinoa bender. It can be used in the place of rice but I’ve never had quinoa sushi.

Don’ts ---

Lock these up for the month-

Grains

Lock them up- Whole grain breads, pastas, cereals, Rice, millet, etc. etc.

The only “Good Carb” in the month of January is either a fruit or a veggie

Dairy

All milks and cheeses are banished in January. Get used to espresso! \

As an alternative, try unsweetened almond milk.

Refined Sugars

“Cookies?” “No.” ______“Cakes then?” “No Zach, no cakes either and get rid of that Grizz.”

New Balance Paleo-Challenge

How to cook like a Cave Man:

For many of us this challenge will be a welcome opportunity to simplify in the kitchen. For them, every meal will be a combination of the following equation:

meat + vegetable+ some kind of cooking oil+ spice + hot pan= FOOD

Get LARA BARS. They are clean power bars (nuts and fruits) sold at Trader Joe’s

For some (my wife) the thought of giving up complex and interesting meals for a month is unbearable. She found the following website that has TONS of options and recipes that meet the Paleo parameters www.paleofood.com

Here you will find recipes to make your own low sodium condiments also breads, pancakes, muffins and the like using nut meals (make these by roasting raw nuts and grinding them into a meal using a sharp food processor)

Here is an example from the site that my wife made last summer:

We made it with macadamia/cashew butter and they are pretty good. It would have been even better with fresh blueberries or dried apricots though. Add cinnamon for flavor too.

Almond muffins

--------------

1 cup almond butter

1 cup sliced raw almonds

1 cup pure coconut milk

2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut

3 eggs

Beat and pour in muffin cups. Cook at 400 for 15 minutes.

Paleofood.com also has recipes for low salt, homemade ketchup and salad dressings.

Replacements and Recipe ideas:

Vinegar: No need. We’re allowing vinegar. I know, it is fermented but we can’t put the cork back in the bottle on this one so apple cider, balsamic etc.-enjoy.

Butter: I was recently asked how to get away from using butter. If you are using it for cooking that’s easy, substitute it with olive, walnut, canola, flax seed, avocado oil or coconut oil depending on the taste you are going for. In this case it was being used for flavor over steamed carrots. No need to replace the butter on this one. Instead of flavoring bland steamed veggies, try pan frying or oven roasting your vegetables with onions, garlic, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, black pepper and other spices. You’ll never go back to steamed.

Salt: This is everywhere. Have you noticed? If you are preparing food from home you can avoid salt by using: 21 season salute (a Trader Joe’s product), Powdered garlic, powdered onion, lemon juice, lime juice, lemon crystals, lemon pepper free of salt, cayenne pepper, chili powder, commercially available salt-free spice mixes such as TJ’s 21 season salute, black pepper, cumin, turmeric, ground cloves, oregano, ground allspice, celery seeds, coriander seeds, ground cardamom seeds, or any spice or combination of spices can be used to replace salt. I do not recommend using any of the so-called "lite" salts or potassium chloride salts because chloride, like sodium, is undesirable when it comes to your health. Braggs liquid Aminos (still get a point on this because it is processed from soy but is very low sodium compared to table salt)

Breakfast: For those of us who are unwilling to let go of the “breakfast foods” notion here are a few ideas in a pinch:

http://www.paleoplan.com

Almond Flour Pancakes (cook down some frozen berry blends for a syrup)

Breakfast Smoothie (anyone else like raw eggs?)

Carrot Banana Muffins- These look well worth the one salt point- or leave the salt out.

http://www.thepaleodiet.com/nutritional_tools/recipes.shtml#Condiments

thepaleodiet.com is my favorite inline resource. This site has a lot of unique condiment recipes for making your own ketchup, mayonnaise, dressings etc.

http://paleofood.com/ This site has a huge selection for the adventurous types. You’ll need Arrowroot and nut flours/meals (ground almond, walnut etc.) You can buy the arrowroot and almond flour from PCC on California Ave. Or you can make your own almond and walnut flours and meals in your grinder at home from fresh unsalted nuts.

What Happens when a strength althlete runs 26.2 miles?

2010-06-28T11:25:00.000-07:00

Rock ‘N’ Roll Timeline:

December 12th 2009- The last time I ran further than a mile- At that time it was as far as I'd ever run: 5 miles for time down 48th to Lowman Park.

October- February 2010- Began training in earnest for the Crossfit Games. Read Mark Rippetoe’s Starting Strength, and Practical Programming. Abandoned all cardio conditioning and focused on my barbell weakness with Texas method linear progressions on all major lifts.

March 2010-Present- After the NW Crossfit Sectionals, began training at Crossfit West Seattle in a strength cycle that runs at 100% intensity for <20 durations. Runs kept under 800 meters and usually loaded down with heavy awkward objects.

May 2010- Got crazy idea to attempt the Rock N Roll Marathon in June- Looked into it- sold out already- forgot about it.

Thursday, June 24th- Research for a blog posting on barefoot running and cheap shoes- Planted seeds in my mind that will later cause me significant physical discomfort.

6 am Friday, June 25th (three days ago)- Participate in my Friday morning patient metcon (The Sevens: 7 rounds for time- 7 #60 d-bell thrusters on each side/ seven inverted burpees.) After which a friend talks me into baniditing/stealing the marathon the next day. (Thanks Jimbo)

Noon Friday, June 25th- Score a marathon bib for $50 on craigslist.

Seriously consider acquiring “running gear.”
Stop by CFWS for support: bought a book to record heavy lifting in. What was I here for again?

7-11pm, Friday June 25th- Date night with Alicia: Nachos, margarita, and Shutter Island.

The Run

7am Saturday, June 26th- Run the Rock N’ Roll with a goal of 4 hours. Someone told me that was “good” and I’m “good” right?

Gear:

The same cheap Nike indoor soccer shoes that I’ve been training in for the last 6 months
A sleeveless Pineapple Classic shirt
Awesome knee-high tube socks

Mile 1-5: Awesome.

Mile 6-10: New PR for distance ran. Trochanter and TFL pain. Still tolerable but noticeably less awesome.

Mile 11-14: Severe foot pain. Experience violent mood swings, bipolar peaks of ecstasy and agony. Re-evaluate my life and abandon initial delusional goals of a 4 hour finish.

New goal: Keep running.

Mile 15: Significant hunger and desperation. Physical and emotional distress. Saved by angel with salvation in a large shining bowl of Gummie Bears.

Mile 16-20: Fight my way uphill joyously chewing gummies.

Mile 21: Locking cramps set in: lose all motor control of my lower
extremities. Develop a new gait- Zombie/ Frankenstein/ Ben Johnson. Begin to receive concerned looks and frantic encouragement from strangers.

Mile 23.5: Break down and walk for the first time.

Mile 24-26: Uphill? Seriously? Head down. Elbows out bull rush for the finish line. This was a super-slow motion bull rush though. (Picture a geriatric power walker chasing down an adversary who has stolen their orthopedic shoes.)

Mile 26: While geriatricbullrushing down the hwy 99 off-ramp toward the finish line, catch inspiration from a WAY FIRED UP Sean O’Donnell.

11:30am, Saturday, June 25th- Finish in 4 hours, 30 minutes, 12 seconds- engulfed by medical staff “Really I’m fine.” who promptly quarantine me in the medical tent as if buffoonery were a contagious disease.

11:31am, Saturday, June 25th- Swear-off cardio forever. Look forward to returning to strength program when I can walk again.

Monday June 28th- Ice feet and heinous blisters continuously. Write ridiculous time-line blog and plan for next act of physical buffoonery/ marathon.

Conclusion #1: The Crossfit Football style training that we do at CFWS is sufficient cardiovascular conditioning to do anything.

Conclusion #2: Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should.

Conclusion #3: My gym needs Gummie Bears.

What to keep in your gym-bag after you realize that Advil is not a vitamin:

2010-06-17T18:21:00.000-07:00

What to put in your cupboard after you clear out the NSAIDs? If you are the type who depends on Ibuprofen for sprains/strains and headaches, start with Proteolytic Enzymes or Pancreatic Enzymes such as Wobenzyme N (which you can find at Pharmaca), or Intenzyme Forte by Biotics Research Corp. This company is not open to the general population. I can place an order on your behalf at your request. These products are combonations of digestive enzymes such as amylase, lipase, protease, trypsin, chymotrypsin and bromelain. Some people use these enzymes to help boost their body's digestive potency when taken with food but this posting is focused on the ability of these enzymes to combat inflammation in an acute setting when taken on an empty stomach.

Bromelain's theraputic properties include: (1) interference with growth of malignant cells; (2) inhibition of platelet aggregation; (3) fibrinolytic activity; (4) anti-inflammatory action; (5) skin debridement properties. (J Ethnopharmacol. 1988 Feb-Mar;22(2):191-203.)

Bromelain has been shown in a recent 2008 study to decrease neutrophil migration to sites of acute inflammation. What that means is that this is what you want to have in your gym bag when you injure yourself training or at an event and you want to give yourself your best chance at rapid recovery. The 2002 review article by Maurer does a great job of explaining the biochemistry of proteolytic enzymatic activity anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory effects.

Toxicity and Contraindications
Allergy to pineapple
Proteolytic/Pancreatic Enzymes have a potential anti-coagulant effect so they are not advised if you are having surgery or if you are already taking an anti-coagulant medication

Dosage and Administration
Bromelain can be used in isolation and has a dose-dependent effect. Doses as small as 200mg per day have been demonstrated in a study by Walker et al to be effective treatment of osteoarthritis. Acute inflammation responds well to doses as large as 400mg taken 3 times throughout a day. Most products are a polyenzyme preparations consisting of pancreatin, bromelain, papain amylase, trypsin etc. and dosage is determined by product. (Vasquez, Integrative Rheumatology)

Additional Information
Some studies have shown Proteolytic Enzymes to have enhanced effect when taken with 500mg Citrus Bioflavinoids. The research on these alternatives is not performed as often as with mainstream drugs but I recommend these as your first line of defense for life's aches and pains because they are an effective, safe alternative to NSAIDs that help you to feel better but often at the expense of your own long-term health and strength.

The research on bromelain's effect on headaches is sparse. There were some studies that looked promising for the treatment of acute sinusitis but they were performed in the 60's with little follow-up. Will pancreatic enzymes knock-out a headache like an Advil liquid-gel? Usually not, but what do you have to lose by treating proteolytic enzymes as your first line of defense? At a minimum you are decreasing your systemic inflammation, improving your digestion and possibly decreasing your chances of tumor growth. You can't say that about liquid-gels.

NSAIDs Kill Tens of Thousands of People Per Year and Weaken the Joints They are Meant to Protect.

2010-06-08T18:13:00.000-07:00

A wise man once said that as much as of 50% of what we call “fitness” may be pain tolerance. This may be true. In life it is sometimes necessary to continue on long after we exceed our comfort zone in order to do what we must. Whether you are a working person (kids or job) or an athlete we all have times that we do not “listen to our bodies.” We have those critical moments when we tell our bodies to shut their yaps and do as they are told. Anyone who has run 400 meters for time or has risen for a 5th time in the night to care for the needs of a child knows what I am saying. Whenever you push your body beyond its previous limits, it sounds the alarm. That sensation that your blood is on fire or that you are so tired that you feel stuck to the bottom of the ocean- that is your body panicking, having a tantrum: “STOP. YOU ARE CRAZY. YOU ARE GOING TO KILL US.” With training and experience we become familiar with this warning and decipher true alarms from the pangs of exertion.

The point to all of this is that we all bite off more than we can chew at times and in order to cope with the pain of injury or growth we do what we must to continue on with life. Most people reach without thinking for a bottle of NSAIDs to ease the pain. What do you reach for when you are in pain?

Disclaimer: I am not a pharmacist or a medical doctor. I do not prescribe drugs nor do I recommend changes to prescriptions that I don’t make. If you are self medicating with NSAIDs I’m about to give you some good reasons to stop. If they were prescribed to you, I’m going to give you some good reasons to discuss the necessity and safety of that prescription with your physician.

NSAID stands for nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The most common over the counter versions that many of us have in our cupboards are Ibuprofen, Aspirin, Aleve, Motrin etc. These drugs act by counteracting the Cycloxygenase (COX) enzyme that produces prostaglandins that begin the body’s inflammation cycle which is the first stage of injury repair. Most people self-medicate common aches and pains or mild fevers with NSAIDs but they are also prescribed for cardio-protective and anti-inflammatory purposes. The intended effects of NSAID use are decreased pain and swelling.

The less desirable effects include:

Promotion of bone necrosis, cartilage destruction, and prolonged tissue healing time:
This is the horrible and ironic byproduct of NSAID use. The very joints that these drugs are effective at relieving the pain of inflammation in the short-term are degraded and weakened in the long-term. The mechanism of action is the interference by NSAIDs on chondrocyte function and thus cartilage formation within synovial joints.(7,3) This is likely the reason why NSAID use slows tissue healing time in athletes with severe muscle strains.(6) Think that over the next time you have a sore muscle. You can have relief from the bottle in the cabinet but it is relief on credit. It is relief that makes you weak and vulnerable to future injuries.

Gastric Ulceration and gastrointestinal bleeding: Nearly all NSAIDs promote gastric ulceration and gastrointestinal bleeding. Endoscopic studies indicate that among people who chronically use NSAIDs, up to 30% will develope gastroduodenal ulceration.(3,4) Conservative calculation estimates that approximately 107,000 patients are hospitalized annually for NSAID-related gastrointestinal (GI) complications. According to a research review article by Singh (5) 16,500 NSAID related deaths occur annually among arthritis patients alone.(3) There are no reliable warning signals for impending serious GI complications. - >80% of patients with serious GI complications had no prior GI symptoms and currently, limiting NSAID use is the only way to decrease the risk of NSAID-related GI events. (5)- These effects are compounded by the co-administration of or chronic use of alchohol.

Increased intestinal permeability due to damaged mucosa- “Leaky Gut” contributes to many rheumatic and musculoskeletal disorders by promoting the formation of immune complexes that are deposited into synovial tissues causing local inflammatory responses within the joints. (2,3) Anyone familiar with the Paleo Diet and the adverse effects of gluten on the small intestine is well aware of the importance of a patent intestine. For more information see my posting titled The New Balance Paleo Challenge: 30 Uncomfortable Days to Define Your Optimal Nutrition.

Kidney Disease: Chronic NSAID use is a critical risk factor in renal failure. (8,3)

Liver Disease: Liver disease is not as common in NSAIDs but is prevalent with Tylenol (Acetaminophen) this damage is especially likely when Tylenol is used with alcohol. The take home here is that Tylenol is not an acceptable solution for a hangover.

*All of the previously stated side-effects are compounded by the co-administration of alcohol or the chronic use of alcohol.

Inflammation is a necessary step in the tissue healing process- it is how broken materials are cleared out of the area before new tissues are laid down. That being said, the healing process is faster and more effective when this step is reigned in. In an on-line lecture Kelly Starette recently likened the degree of inflammation that the body mounts in a common injury to ripping a building down to its foundation to begin the process of fixing a small dent in one of the walls. This excessive and reactionary response was likely useful and necessary for our ancestors who had no access to sterile dressings or clean hot water to manage possible infection that often comes with tissue damage.

So what to do to reign in the inflammation process and speed healing time without the harmful and counterproductive effects of NSAIDs? Stay one step ahead of acute inflammation with an anti-inflammatory lifestyle that includes: Paleo Nutrion and regular supplementation of fish oil and glucosamine sulfate.

Prevention is key but sometimes sprains and strains happen. Then what?
The inflammatory phase of the tissue healing process lasts approximately 72 hours. For quicker healing times and stronger recovery from injury, follow a combination of these suggestions for the initial 3 Days post-injury:

1) Ice. Yes ice. It is almost too simple to take seriously, but seriously, take ice. You know the routine, now use it. That muscle that is sore after a workout/ game/ bout with lawn maintenance- ice it down through a towel for 20 minutes of every hour for the first 3 days following injury. If you are unwilling to make the time for icing try ice massage instead. It only takes 5 minutes of rubbing an ice cube directly into the injured area to achieve the effect of 20 minutes passive icing through a towel. While you’re at it, you may as well compress and elevate the area as well.

2) What to put in your cupboard after you clear out the NSAIDs? Start with Proteolytic Enzymes such as Bromelain. Bromelain has been shown in recent studies to have measurable anti-inflammatory effects for acute injury (9,10) and the only major side-effect for those without pineapple allergies is an anti-tumor and anti-cancer effect. (11,12)

There are several other well researched and well established herbal and natural anti-inflammatory products on the market but each deserves its own posting. Look out for future postings on Citrus Bioflavinoids, Boswellia, and Arnica etc. to guide you in the acquisition and administration of your own gym bag injury kit.

(1) Brandt KD. J Rheumatol Suppl. 1991 Feb;27:120-1. The mechanism of action of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs.
(2)Inman RD. Antigens, the gastrointestinal tract, and arthritis. Gheum Dis Clin North Am. 1991 May; 17(2): 309-21
(3) Vasquez, Alex. Integrative Rheumatology 2007 :147
(4) Blower AL. Scand J Rheumatol Suppl. 1996;105:13-24; discussion 25-7. Considerations for nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug therapy: safety.
(5) Singh G. Am J Med. 1998 Jul 27;105(1B):31S-38S. Recent considerations in nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug gastropathy.
(6) S Afr Med J. 1995 Jun;85(6):517-22. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs fail to enhance healing of acute hamstring injuries treated with physiotherapy.
(7) Brandt KD. Am J Med. 1987 Nov 20;83(5A):29-34. Effects of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on chondrocyte metabolism in vitro and in vivo.
(8) Segasothy M Br J Rheumatol. 1995 Feb;34(2):162-5. Chronic nephrotoxicity of anti-inflammatory drugs used in the treatment of arthritis.
(9) Walker AF, Bundy R, Hicks SM, Middleton RW Phytomedicine. 2002 Dec;9(8):681-6. Bromelain reduces mild acute knee pain and improves well-being in a dose-dependent fashion in an open study of otherwise healthy adults.
(10)Walker JA, Cerny FJ, Cotter JR, Burton HW. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1992 Jan;24(1):20-5. Attenuation of contraction-induced skeletal muscle injury by bromelain.
(11) Chobotova K, Vernallis AB, Majid FA Bromelain's activity and potential as an anti-cancer agent: Current evidence and perspectives. Cancer Lett. 2010 Apr 28;290(2):148-56. Epub 2009 Aug 22. Review.
(12) Bhui K, Prasad S, George J, Shukla Y. Bromelain inhibits COX-2 expression by blocking the activation of MAPK regulated NF-kappa B against skin tumor-initiation triggering mitochondrial death pathway.
Cancer Lett. 2009 Sep 18;282(2):167-76. Epub 2009 Mar 31.

Glucosamine Sulfate and Chondroitin Sulfate: The Promotion of Cartilage Regeneration

2010-05-28T11:06:00.000-07:00

Six years ago, for my 25th birthday my wife sent me on a ski trip with friends. A trip which I took as an opportunity to research the process of injury and recovery. After overshooting the landing on a tabletop and fracturing my right scaphoid and dislocating my lunate, I was left with two large pins stabilizing my wrist for the following four months.

Joints do not like to be immobilized. The hyaline cartilage that prevents bone on bone contact in synovial joints lacks any direct blood supply. It depends on regular compression and decompression to act as a pressure pump that draws blood from the surrounding chondrocytes. Because of this, even in ideal situations where the scaphoid heals well and the articulation with the lunate is restored, severe cartilaginous degeneration and resulting arthritis is a likely long-term outcome from this sort of trauma.

With my hobbies, goals, and livelihood I am well aware that it is worth the minimal investment to get the right nutrition and supplementation to give me my best opportunity to have wrists that are both mobile and pain free.

Glucosamine Sulfate is marketed for its promotion of cartilage regeneration. Glucosamine is not necessarily a building block for cartilage in your synovial joints but it along with Chondroitin stimulate the synthesis of glycosaminoglycan, proteoglycan and hyaluronic acid, which are the “building blocks” of joint cartilage. Recent studies have shown that glucosamine sulfate 500 mg TID (3 times per day) and/or Chondroitin Sulfate 1200mg are effective treatments for joint degeneration and pain seen in osteoarthritis.(1) They have also been shown to be as effective and safer than Ibuprofen in the treatment of knee pain.(2)

I have supplemented Glucosamine Sulphate and fish oil for the past several years and they seem to have helped my recovery. I now experience nearly full ranges of motion and my wrist causes me only minimal discomfort and only when I push it into full weight bearing extension during presses and handstands. That being said, as with all things nutrition I recommend you try for yourself and see if it works for you. If you have a demanding physical lifestyle and pain that localizes to a particular joint try 8 weeks of glucosamine/chondroitin supplementation. There is an anti-inflammatory effect that is useful in the short-term, but do not judge this product's effect until you give it at least 8 weeks. That’s how long it will take to have an effect on cartilage regeneration.

Toxicity and Contraindications:
Glucosamine is derived from shellfish sources so beware if you have a known allergic reaction to shrimp, crab or lobster.
Dosage and Administration:
Glucosamine Sulfate: 1500 mg divided into 3 seperate 500mg doses (1500mg TID)
Chondroitin Sulfate: 1200 mg
Can be taken with or without food.

Additional Information:
Stay away from HCl. The cheaper products on the market are typically bound to HCl instead of Sulfate (Glucaosamine HCl/ Chondroitin HCl) It is cheaper to produce this way and the product MAY be just as effective but the above research and major studies that validate the use of Glucosamine /Chondroitin were done with Sulfate bound supplements.

Should I take Glucosamine alone or compounded with Chondroitin?
Some studies show that these two products have a cumulative effect. I have seen studies that show Glucosamine to be just as effective on its own. The important thing to remember when selecting the supplement is dosage; many compounded products will water down the amounts of each supplement to get more names on the label. If you find something that has both and they are both bound to sulfate, and the dosages add up, go for it. Otherwise keep it simple and stick with Glucosamine Sulfate alone.

(1)-- Alex Vasquez, N.D., D.O.,D.C. Integrative Rheumatology Pg. 449
(2)-- Muller-Fassbender H. Bach GL, HasseW, Osteoarthritis Cartliage. 1994 March;2 (1) 61-9

Track and Field for All

2010-05-25T10:10:00.000-07:00

It has recently been brought to my attention that there is an "All Comers" Track and Field community here in the Northwest. This is an opportunity for people of all ages and backgrounds to compete against their peers at anything from triple jump to discus. From long jump to 1500m sprint, it is all there for you for a paltry $5 entry fee. They will be held every Wednesday for the following 12 Wednesdays at Shoreline District Stadium • NE 185th & 5th NE • Shoreline, WA. You can also buy a season's pass for $30.

42nd Annual Club Northwest Summer All Comers Track and Field Series!!!! See you there.

For more information about upcoming events and challenges like Crossfit West Seatte's Pipe Hitter's Classic, follow the Events and Challenges link off of the main page.

Paleo Frosty

2010-05-24T11:31:00.000-07:00

The number one problem that people on the paleo challenge struggle with is getting that sweet tooth under control. I feel your pain. Three days into my first challenge I felt like I would rather eat my own shoes than eat another salad. Enter the Paleo Frosty. This is NOT a pre or post workout shake. This is what you turn to after dinner when you start to here the siren song of Cupcake Royale.

This thing is loaded with natural fats and sugars. Several sugar starved cave people have told me that it is the best shake they've ever had. Of coarse this is akin to having the best saltine of your life after not eating for 2 weeks. Just the same, it scratches the itch and keeps you from falling off the paleo-wagon and depending on how you are scoring your challenge, can cost zero points against your caveman cred.

The Paleo Frosty:
1 can coconut milk. (I prefer the regular milk but some can only handle the low fat)
2-3 whole pitted dates (all the sugar, none of the points!)
5 ice cubes
1.5 Tablespoons baking cocoa- the unsweetened bitter stuff

That is the base I add cashew butter sometimes and frozen fruits are solid too.

Put it all in a food processor or a burly blender and serve it in a champagne glass.

2010-05-22T14:21:00.001-07:00

"Do you know how much teeth weigh? I lost 4 pounds on the scurvy diet!"

Sit Up Straight! The Brugger Relief Position isThe World's Best Micro Break

2010-05-13T09:55:00.000-07:00

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Does the picture of the guy in the headband look familiar? If you have a job it probably does. We live our lives in flexion. We wake up. We drive to our place of business and we hunker down over our work and drive home after a long day to have a meal and fall into a comfortable piece of furniture.

Whether you suffer from a stiff back and tight shoulders or you are an athlete who has difficulty maintaining lumbar extension during a heavy deadlift, intervening on this chronically flexed lifestyle will make you stronger, decrease your frequency of injury and help you remain strong and mobile into your later years.

In addition to causing aches and pains and diminishing the strength and functionality of the spine, increased thoracic kyphosis (flexion) is associated with increased mortality rates and subjective poor health in elderly populations. *

OK- I think you get the point now that slouching isn't good but your mom has been telling you that for decades to no avail. What is useful about this posting is the solution: The Brugger Relief Position as pictured below is your tool to have balanced biomechanics in the context of your imbalanced lifestyle. This position is not intended to be held all day. It is a vigorous static exercise meant to tip the scale of your equilibrium back to neutral: 2 hours in a passive flexed position + 20 seconds in active extension = Balance.

Here's how it works:
Best results when performed hourly (try setting your outlook calendar to remind you), or 8x per day and held for 20 seconds each bout.

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1) Actively engage the muscles of your foot arches by pressing your toes down and scrunching the aches of your feet up and off of the arch support in your shoes.

2) Push your hips back.

3) Drive your chest forward. The image to use here is a hollowed back as though sitting against a beach ball.

4) With your elbows at your sides, rotate your hands away from your body and supinate your hands (turn them all the way upwards)- remember, this is not a relaxation position. This is work. That is why 20 seconds of effort can neutralize hours and even days of destructive habits.

5) While gazing directly forward, pull your chin back into your neck. When done correctly this will give you the appearance of having up to four chins.

6) This is the most important part; Lower Your Shoulders. They won't go far, maybe a quarter inch down. You will know when you have it when you feel the muscles below your shoulder blades feel tight and crampy. You'll also feel a stretch that goes up to the base of the skull.

7) Start from the bottom at your feet and redouble your efforts to push a little further with each step. You can always go a little further.

This is the best micro break around and it is effective even when only held for a moment. It directly addresses and counters the postural strains that had you needing a break in the first place. What I like about it is that it changes your posture without you having to consciously "sit up straight." It changes the tone of your muscles so that through sustained efforts over time your natural resting posture is stronger and more erect.

*Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine
Publisher Springer Japan
ISSN 1342-078X (Print) 1347-4715 (Online)
Issue Volume 12, Number 6 / November, 2007

Fish Oil- Believe Me Now and Listen To Me Later.

2010-04-22T11:09:00.000-07:00

Let’s start from the end and work our way back here-
If you are a person you should take a fish oil supplement. Good. I'm glad we have that covered. The following paragraphs will explain how much to take. A future posting will explore the fats debate in detail but in the immortal words of Hans and Franz: “Believe me now and listen to me later.”

How Much Do I Need To Take Per Day?
Disregard the label on your supplement. Serving sizes are not determined by physiologic need, they are determined by price. Ever notice that a serving size almost always amounts to 1$/ day regardless of the supplement?

This is how much you should take per day:

There are two ends of this spectrum. At one end is the minimal daily dose of a teaspoon per day of whatever is in the product you bought. This dose has a proven cardiovascular benefit and should be considered your buy-in. The other end of the spectrum is promoted by the likes of Robb Wolf and has added benefit for tissue healing, fat ratio balancing, is anti-inflammatory and is especially useful in high stress situations. The following is how you determine your high end intake:

Between .5 Gram to 1 gram per day for every 10 pounds of body weight. If you are demanding on your body either from heavy training and high stress load or from deficient sleep your body requires the higher 1 Gram per 10 pounds body weight. (Robb Wolf) When I say .5-1 gram I do not mean one gram of “total fat.” I mean one gram of EPA/DHA. That’s the good stuff. (1000 mg=1gram)

If you are confused because your product is measured in ml’s instead of mg’s then dig a little deeper. You are probably looking at the number at the top of the label under “Serving Size.” That number is not of interest because it is a volume measurement that includes flavoring agents etc. Follow along with the label below:

Example:
For your typical crossfitter or other highly active 180 lbs. individual the calculation looks like this:
1 gram/10lbs body weight= 18 grams/day.
For your average sedentary or 3 days of cardio/ week type that is .5grams/10lbs = 9 grams/day

This is the Innate Choice Omega Sufficiency supplement facts label from the gel caps. That's why there is a range.
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I use Innate Choice in my office which is pure but not necessarily significantly different than market brands such as Carlson’s. Innate Choice smells good and does not degrade in the bottle so it’s the one I go with. My product has 4 grams “total fat” per teaspoon but total fat is not what we are interested in right? We want the good stuff: EPA/DHA so look further down the label under “Omega-3 Fatty Acids”

Per teaspoon (5ml) my product has:
825mg EPA/ 550mg DHA= 1375 mg= 1.375 grams per teaspoon.

For our 180 pound crossfit athlete to get 18 grams we divide 18 by 1.375 to determine the number of teaspoon sized servings he needs. This equals 13 teaspoons of fish oil per day. This would be obnoxious and who uses teaspoons anyway? So use 4.3 Tablespoons instead. (3 teaspoons= 1 Tbs.) Answer= 4.3 Tablespoons/day.

Your average person (Low stress load/ minimal training) requires half that amount: about 2 tablespoons per day.

This amount is not a problem as long as you can tolerate taking the oil straight without the gel cap which gets cumbersome quickly: To get the same amount of fish oil in 4.3 Tbs. from gel caps would require 52 caps per day!
So if you are a person, find a product that you like the taste of and follow the formula below.
(#pounds body weight divided by 10) times .5-1.0 grams= grams EPA/DHA per day.

For those of you who eat a lot of wild fish you can subtract the amount of omega-3's that you get from your diet from the amount that you supplement. Every serving (3 oz. piece) of wild salmon has about 2 grams of omega-3 oils. Other seafood has about half that; 1 gram per 3 ounce portion. A three ounce serving is about the size of a deck of cards. That's a little serving so you can get a significant amount from diet alone.

This equation is appropriate for anyone who weighs under 200 pounds. If you do the math it starts to get out of control at higher body weights. Exercise some restraint and common sense. If your fish-oil bill competes with your mortgage payment you have a problem. It is most important to get started and to be consistent. A large randomized trial called the GISSI Prevention Trial demonstrated that 1 gram/ day regardless of body weight decreased 3 year mortality rates by 10%.

To Supplement or Not To Supplement Part I: Creatine Monohydrate

2010-04-18T11:50:00.000-07:00

Creative Monohydrate is the most thoroughly studied supplement on the market. I wrote my bachelor's thesis on its safety and effectiveness on sports performance but I'm going to keep this article brief by explaining 4 aspects of the research on Creative monohydrate: 1) It appears to have no long or short-term adverse health effects. 2) It is an effective supplement for increasing strength and speed in short bursts of effort in some individuals. 3)There are varying degrees of response to this supplement per individual basis. 4) The research on creatine monohydrate done thus far has not been sufficient to assess it's accumulative impact on sports performance.

Stay tuned. I'll connect the dots in my next post. . .

Do Not Weigh Yourself

2010-04-16T09:36:00.000-07:00

The scale will lie to you. It will tell you that you are getting fat when you are growing muscle. It will tell you that you are getting thin when you are accumulating fat and stifling your metabolism. A great example of this was last year when a friend was dropping pounds fast on a caloric restriction, all fruit diet. She lost 7 pounds in 3 weeks. She was thrilled but I rained on her parade. When I checked her body composition we found that she had lost 10 pounds of muscle and gained 3 pounds of fat. Her metabolic rate had slowed to a crawl. It is no wonder why weight comes back so quickly when you get off this sort of diet.
Performance based goals are the best way of knowing if you are changing your body.
Time yourself, challenge yourself and have fun: How fast can you run a mile? How fast can you run half of a mile backward? How many pull-ups can you do consecutively? Improve all of these numbers and you’ll have the body you want.
The second best way to monitor your progress is through a bod-pod or bioimpedance machine.
These are simple scales that pass an electric current through your body. That current travels differently through water, bone, fat, and muscle so a good machine will give you a consistent if not accurate measure of your body composition. This is very important because a quality exercise program should not result in immediate weight loss. Initially, while you are “building your motor” your weight should go up a few pounds as you add lean muscle mass. We use a bioimpedance machine as part of our initial physical examination in the clinic. The best results show people dropping body fat and gaining muscle right away but it usually takes several months to result in any net weight loss. Once that begins though, it keeps going. It is not necessary to go work out to lose weight once you have tweaked your fuel economy.
A friend of mine was on this program for 3 months when he hurt his low back severely. He had just reached that tipping point where he had gained 3 pounds of muscle and lost 3% body fat. His metabolic age had dropped 8 years and he was very disappointed that he was going to lose all of that progress by ceasing his exercise routine for several weeks. We were all surprised at his next weigh in that he had lost another 2% body fat even without the intense exercise. He continued to eat the same amount but his metabolic demands were now larger. A few weeks later he was ready to return to his training intensity and got back into it without missing a beat.

Running out of muscle Part II: Get off of that ridiculous contraption and get to work building a bigger engine.

2010-04-09T17:43:00.000-07:00

Remember that big engine I told you about two postings ago in Part I? You will not build the engine you want by staying in the “fat burning zone” of your heart rate. In fact your 40 minutes on the elliptical will only burn a couple hundred calories and will actually SHRINK your muscle mass. A calorie by the way is nothing to be afraid of. It is a unit of energy required to raise the temperature of one gram of water by 1 degree Celsius. Your muscle mass is your metabolic engine that runs on calories. Lower muscle mass equals lower basal metabolic rate (BMR). You can get the same caloric results of a 40 minute cardio workout by skipping one glass of milk or one Cliff Bar. Discouraging isn’t it? It is no wonder why so few people are able to stick with their routine and why craigslist is always stocked with relatively new home cardio equipment.

How cardiovascular training reduces muscle mass and ultimately impedes your basal metabolic rate:

Pictured above are the World's Greatest Marathon Athletes. The man on the left runs marathons at a sustained rate of 4:14 per mile! Their physiques are ideal for their sport and are the product of their training. Pictured below are the male and female world record holders for the 100 meters dash. Notice the differences in the volume of muscle mass supported by each event.

Both marathon runners and sprinters cross train with weights. The short distance running of the athletes below supports that muscle growth while the distance running of the athletes above depletes those muscle gains.

Have you ever been to a track and field event? If you havn't, take another good look at the athletes in the pictures above. It is no coincidence that sprinters are built like Spartans and endurance athletes are not. It is a physiologic necessity that the endurance athlete has an optimum vasculature/musculature ratio. The training of an endurance athlete forces the vasculature to adapt and to grow. This is called capilirization. Sustained cardiovascular training also causes the musculature to atrophy thus producing the highest vasculature / muscle fiber ratio. The result is that if you took a cross section of a distance runner’s leg you would find a tremendous amount of that area is occupied by arteries, veins, and capilaries. Any muscle mass that is too far from a supporting NAV (nerve, artery, vein) bundle will get hypoxic and be an energy drag on the system.

The opposite end of the spectrum is your classic 5’4” 220 lbs. body builder who cannot run 5 miles. Those massive muscles are out of proportion with the blood supply necessary to make them functional to all of the demands of the real world. You may have noticed that when a massive defensive lineman picks up a fumble and has to run a mere 90 yards that he collapses with the effort. That is why there are no bodybuilder marathoners. Only a small amount of their muscle mass is of any utility once the short-term anaerobic phosphagen/glycolytic system is expired. This is only about twenty seconds of efficient energy production and all effort beyond that results in the accumulation of oxidative byproducts. Beyond that twenty second to one minute window, ATP (energy) is derived from efficient oxygen delivery. Thus for cardio work, a low muscle mass/ high vascularization ratio is advantageous.

What does this mean for you and your training goals?
Most people who attempt to create a balanced routine do something like this:
Lift heavy weights on M,W,F and do 30-60 minutes of cardio on T,Th,Sat.

So on Monday you put an hour of effort into building your muscles and decreasing your vasculature/musculature ration. Fine. You then return to the gym the next day to apply an hour’s effort into decreasing your muscle mass and increasing your vasculature/ muscle ratio. This bipolar attempt at balanced fitness works for some people but it is inefficient because as you can see you take two steps forward and one step back. It wastes time and energy. The alternative to this approach is strength based metabolic conditioning (met-con) that obscures the line between strength a cardiovascular training.

The strength based met-con is an attempt to reproduce in a gym the diverse metabolic demands on the body in a sport such as rugby or hockey. An archetypal crossfit example is Cindy: 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups, and 15 air squats. As many rounds as possible in twenty minutes. This workout blurs the line between cardio and strength training. This is appropriate because there is no boarder that separates strength from cardio in nature or in your life. Your body does what it is called upon to do regardless of “cardio day” or “legs day.” With this hybrid strength/cardio training, you build your engine and you do so without compromising your cardiovascular capacity.

Running works for some people. They look forward to it and they will run regularly their whole lives. Traditional cardio training is perfect for this small portion of the population.

I am asking the rest of you to change the way you think about exercise. The fundamental change I am asking of you is to stop segmenting your training. Be inclusive. There is no need to restrict or "burn" calories when you apply those calories toward building a Bigger Engine. If you are spending time in the cardio room, you are in the gym anyway. Now get of that ridiculous contraption. You have work to do.

The New Balance Paleo Challenge: Define Your Optimal Nutrition in 30 Uncomfortable Days

2010-03-31T18:18:00.000-07:00

What is Paleo? What is Gluten, and why do something as inconvenient as avoid all gluten containing foods for an entire month?

Paleo is simple. It is eating in a way that is congruent to your genetic needs. You don’t have to hunt or gather. No raw meat or foraging for huckleberries. It is following a few simple rules:
No grains, No Processed Foods, No Dairy, No Legumes (beans and peanuts), No Salt

The Paleo Diet is not a weight loss diet. It has equal value for those trying to gain weight as to those trying to lose weight. The strength of the Paleo Diet is in the quality of the foods you consume, not in the amount of calories you take in. That is why it is not necessary to weigh or measure any of the meals we eat. That being said, those who have used paleo as a means to replacing body fat with muscle have had striking results in our office lately: In 30 days of eating paleo one gentleman lost 5 percent body fat and gained 6 pounds of muscle. One of our massage therapists who we explicitly instructed to not restrict caloric intake dropped 6% percent body fat while packing on 7 pounds of much needed muscle. Now she's significantly leaner and has a bigger motor to make use of the quality calories she takes in.

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What is Gluten?
Gluten is a protein found in grains.
It is a mild to moderate irritant on the stomach lining and in those who are vulnerable (due to increased stress, decreased sleep etc.) can lead to a condition called “Leaky Gut.” Leaky gut is a condition when the stomach lining is so damaged that gluten protein passes through the stomach wall into the bloodstream before they are even digested! This results in severe systemic inflammation as your body creates antibodies to these proteins to eliminate them from your bloodstream. The more protein antibodies that your body creates, the greater the odds of creating an antibody that attacks your own body’s protein. This is the definition of an Auto-immune disease and is commonly referred to as Celiac Disease.

There are some who believe that this reaction is responsible for a number of poorly understood auto-immune diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis, Crohn's Disease, Grave's Disease, and Ulcerative Colitis to name a few. For some mainstream information linking gluten to auto-immune diseases read the August 2009 cover article in Scientific American

An example of how gluten sensitivity could potentially result in an auto-immune condition is as follows: if as a result of producing anti-bodies every time you eat a gluten meal, your body mistakenly creates an antibody for the myelin of your nerves your immune system has now mistakenly identified your own nervous system as an outside threat. That line of antibodies does not go away and the resulting condition is called Multiple Sclerosis.

The paleo diet is not simply an elimination diet. This is an insulin regulating diet that eliminates Gluten. The purpose of this diet is three-fold:

1) Lower blood insulin levels and increase insulin sensitivity
Insulin is a master hormone. Your insulin sensitivity determines:
i. If you will be lean or chubby
ii. If you will live long or short It’s pretty important.

2) Remove Gluten from the diet to establish levels of gluten sensitivity which can lead to:
a. General inflammation/ Pain
b. Leaky gut
c. Auto-immune disease

3) Identify and eliminate mild irritants from your diet and establish your own personalized Optimal Performance Foods.

I have done this challenge with groups of patients and friends twice now and I have found that the most useful aspect of the challenge is immediately after the 30 days. This is when we do something I call Violent Food Reintroductions. This is a chance to expose foods that we do not appear to have allergies to but that drag us down chronically over time. I for instance appear to do fine with gluten and wheat products but when I reintroduce dairy my energy and mood hit the cellar. Thanks to the paleo challenge I know what my body requires to be at it's best. At the first signs of a cold emerging, or when I am preparing for a competitive event I now keep dairy out of my diet I and I feel my best.

When it is all said and done the final word on optimal nutrition is still a long way off. The only reliable marker for optimal nutrition is this: If eating a certain way makes you feel better, perform better and look better then it is YOUR optimal nutrition. You will never know what yours is until you take the challenge and find out.

For a complete start to finish guide on how to run and score a paleo challenge for yourself go the the nutrition section of newbalancechiropractic.com and download the forms. It should be a stand alone set of documents but let me know if anything is unclear.

Useful Resources for recipe ideas:
http://www.paleofood.com/
http://www.paleoplan.com/
http://thepaleodiet.com/
http://www.performancemenu.com/
http://www.robbwolf.com/

Dr. Pond Lifts Heavy Stuff

2010-03-31T15:36:00.001-07:00

Running Out of Muscle Part 1: Why Target Training Doesn’t Work

2010-03-30T08:17:00.001-07:00

Think of your metabolism as your fuel efficiency. You don’t want to be a Japanese made hybrid. If you want to maintain your body at the size of a Mazda Miata you will need the engine of a Chevy Suburban. You want to be a gas guzzler. You want to be a Hummer. You want to fly through calories like a 1964 Chevy Impala that needs an oil change and a tune-up.

Your musculoskeletal system is your motor. You will not build the motor you want by selecting little pieces of your musculoskeletal system and trying to “tone” them. Target training is a myth. It is not possible to order fitness a la carte. The reason simply is that there is no metabolic pathway to convert fat into muscle.

This is a known fact but just the same, if you walk into any gym right now you will find middle aged women doing tricep presses and abdominal crunches in an attempt to “tone” the typical fat that accumulates there into muscle. It simply doesn’t happen. Consider yourself liberated. You are liberated from “sculpting and toning.” From now on just get strong and do your best to have fun in the process. You don’t have to target your problem areas anymore. If you want to see your abs and want to get rid of the flappy thing under your arm grow your strength. Grow your muscles by going after the biggest muscle groups in your hips and back. Don’t worry about isolating them either. Big movements demand work from your big muscle groups.
“Big Movements” include: Deadlift, Back Squat, Push Press, Bench Press, Thruster, Kettle Bell swings and pull-ups. These moves are the foundation of your fitness. Learn these moves from a qualified strength coach. I use the people at Crossfit West Seattle but if that is too far away let me know so I can direct you to someone in your area.

For a while give up on weighing yourself and searching for signs of progress in the mirror. Judge your progress with functional goals: How fast can you run a mile? How fast can you run it backward? How many pull-ups can you do in a row? Eat whole foods before and after workouts and get lots of sleep on training days. It is that simple. Your body will change. Your motor will grow. Calories do not have to be something you “burn” or avoid. They can be something that you turn into personal records, strength, and goals reached.

Acupuncture + Chiropractic = legal Chinese steroids for crossfitters

2010-03-19T15:02:00.000-07:00

Last month I showed up at the Crossfit Games Washington Sectionals after training with a friend in his garage for seven months. We reinvented the wheel. We designed our own programming and learned the moves I was competing in through journal articles and youtube videos. In spite of my inexperience I managed to place in the top third of this group of 150 crossfit professionals (gym owners, crossfit trainers and firefighters.) I attribute my modest success not to my strength or my fitness but rather to my ability to recover faster than my opponents.

When I pulled up to the Evergreen State Fairgrounds in Monroe, I arrived with my acupuncturist and my chiropractor because I knew I was going to need them. The other competitors showed up with an entourage of teammates and strength coaches. They showed up with strength, skills and strategies. I showed up with only a determination to hit “The Wall” as hard as I could in every work out with the faith that my health care team could put the pieces back together in time for the next event.

The Competition there at The Evergreen State Fairgrounds was very impressive. There were some unreasonably fit individuals in the building. Based on the results of last year’s Crossfit Games where Crossfit NW walked away with the affiliate cup and Jordan Holland of Washington placed 24th, Jerome Perryman of Portland placed 17th, Moe Kelsey of Washington placed 3rd in this world wide contest, a strong case could be made for The Pacific Northwest being the most dense pocket of skilled crossfit athletes in the world.

I am not one for pacing or “gaming” as it is called. Like I said before, my strategy was to hit the wall and get back up- and then repeat. I sprinted out of the gates in the first of 5 workouts over the weekend and paid a hefty price. In an 8 minute event I was nearly out of gas and out of contention after 4 minutes. I had my weakest performance of the weekend in that event placing 77th out of 150. This group of athletes earned my respect immediately. I was in for a fight. A funny thing happened though. As the events wore on I kept placing higher and scraping my way back into the top fifty which was my eventual goal.

After the second Event which demanded 40 consecutive handstand push-ups among other things my body should have been breaking down but I felt stronger and more in control. I was ready for the 3rd challenge. I won’t give away all my secrets here but one of the points my acupuncturist used on me between those events is called 3 Mile Leg. It was once used by Chinese field generals. When their soldiers dropped to the ground after a day of marching the doctors would apply this point and the general would demand "Three more miles." This process was continued three miles at a time until the destination was reached.

The following day I relied on my wellness staff again. When I woke up Sunday sore and excited I went directly to my chiropractor before heading back out to Monroe for the deadlift event and pulled a 15 lbs. PR inspite of the brutal day before. I can’t imagine why anyone would return to that event without getting adjusted. In that situation the difference for me was night and day.

I am pleased with my overall performance in this contest and I could not have done it without the help of Alicia Pond, L.Ac, and Christopher Hill, D.C. My strength was not up to the level it needed to be and it was my rapid recovery that kept me competitive and kept me from getting laughed out of that building. I have since began training with Crossfit West Seattle and with the help of their excellent coaching hope to fill the holes in my game and come back stronger next year.

Crossfit and the concept of competitive fitness is a young sport with new talent emerging every month but the growth is exponential and soon every reasonably fit man, woman, and child will know how they stack up in the crossfit standards. Competitive crossfit is more than a test of strength over broad modal domains. It is a contest of pain tolerance and rapid recovery and the next generation of the crossfit elite will not just have elite genes, elite nutrition and elite training. They will have an elite wellness team skilled in rapidly transitioning their bodies from recovery to performance.

More information at http://www.newbalancechiropractic.com/

The Stress Response and why spinal motion is the untapped secret to a better quality of life.

2010-03-18T11:34:00.001-07:00

Stress is not bad. Stress is a necessity for survival both in massive doses during an emergency and in low levels throughout a normal day. Every one of us has a stress threshold and a stress “sweet spot” where we have enough stress to make our lives challenging and rewarding without burning us out. The key to managing your personal stress load with skill and grace is to cultivate your stress threshold and spend as much time in the “sweet spot” as possible.

The Stress Response is a healthy physiologic reaction to a potentially pathologic environment. It is how your body ramps up your short term energy for immediate action. It begins as a neurologic impulse that sets off a chemical cascade resulting in the familiar presentation of sweaty palms, racing heart rate, racing mind, etc. At rest having elevated blood pressure, heart rate, and blood glucose would mean that you have chronic disease and are a ticking time bomb for a cardiovascular event, but at times of “fight or flight” it is a normal body response that should not be suppressed.

These physiological adaptations are not pathologic or harmful in the short term. Your body has internal mechanisms for shutting the stress response down and returning to baseline levels when the threat is removed.

Unfortunately, our culture is one that has turned off one of the most important mechanisms for returning the body to baseline stress levels and that is why you see such high rates of Chronic Hypertension, Diabetes, and Heart Disease. What is missing is movement.

Motion is a principal factor in turning the acute stress response back down. Think about it. What caused your genetic ancestors stress? Snakes, Bears, Storms, Droughts, etc. It was a call to immediate PHYSICAL action that resulted in changing the circumstance and surviving. The physical neurologic mechanism by which spinal rotational motion stimulates the suppression of the stress response is well documented by James Chestnut B.Ed., MSc. D.C in his text The 14 Foundational Premises. It is more detail than I am interested in going into now but it may be the topic of a future posting.

Now contrast that with what causes you stress in your daily life: Bills, deadlines, big macs, traffic, boss, more traffic, global warming etc. Your stresses are NOT followed by your body’s natural movement response! You jump from a snake and your stress goes down but you do not jump from a phone bill. You run down a hill to escape a bear and you pack up your tribe and move from the valley when there is a flood but you do not run from traffic (R.E.M. video excluded.) What we do is the exact opposite of what our body needs to return us to our normal baseline. We sit. We fume. We build more stress and maintain it for years. What began as a useful, short-term physiologic response has become a chronic condition of life-long stress and eventual chronic disease. (See James Chestnut, 14 Foundational Principles)

It is no wonder why exercise is known to be one of the only effective treatments for common chronic conditions such as hypertension, glucose insensitivity and depression. Your body needs motion to return itself to normal. All of these effects are well documented and do not require sourcing but please contact me if you would like for me to send you specific studies. The benefits of general exercise are achieved without even addressing specific segments of your body that are most at risk. Just imagine the benefits of exercise when you have an expert in biomechanics checking your body regularly and keeping all of your joints supple and mobile.

It is clear to most people that a sedentary lifestyle is one that leads to pain and disease. It is also the case that when you have sedentary segments of an otherwise active body, those segments degenerate. That is why knee surgery is no longer followed by a period of immobilization in a cast. The modern approach to recovery is to get the joint moving again as quickly as possible because joints that do not move degenerate. Just as with an casted immobilized joint there are joints in the spine that due to the hours spent in chairs and cars lose motion, degenerate and become sedentary sources of stagnation and stress even in generally active people.

As your chiropractor it is my job to free the motion of your joints and return your body to the state of fluidity and resiliency that your ancestors enjoyed with their hunter and gatherer lifestyle. It is my job to educate you in ways of eating, moving and thinking in ways that keep you in your stress “sweet spot” where you are challenged but not overwhelmed. It is my job to intervene before you have a problem.

In this unnaturally sedentary culture it is very important to have a personal motion specialist assessing your motion patterns. Bring us your aches and pains and we can deliver to you a better quality of life.

Coffee is Definitely Good For This Blog.

2010-03-11T11:06:00.000-08:00

Is it good for you? That is a different question and the answer appears to change constantly. The reason being that it is VERY difficult to isolate foods and their long term health effects. For instance coffee alone has drastically different health implications than coffee with 2 packs of Sweet&Low, cream, and a cigarette. Many of us are familiar with the early studies on coffee which showed a correlation between coffee drinkers and heart disease, breast cancer, and pancreatic cancer. We now realize that coffee was not the reason for that correlation. It was the cigarettes that went hand in hand with the coffee intake that was causing the spikes in disease.

It is equally misleading to isolate coffee: What are the health outcomes for people who consume nothing but coffee for 5-10 years? Well scurvy for one.

The only reliable studies out there are the HUGE cohort studies such as the Nurses Health Study. These studies have so many individuals tracked over such a long period of time that cohorts can be isolated and compared. Ie they may have 500 people who live and eat nearly exactly the same with one exception- half of the group also drink 4 cups of coffee per day. These studies only tell you that certain foods are associated with certain health outcomes they do not tell you how or why. Now that is a study worth looking at. Here are the findings from those studies:
Those who drink drink coffee regularly as opposed to non-coffee drinkers experience-

-Lower chance of developing kidney stones*

-Lower rates of developing Gall Bladder Stones*

-Lower Risk of Developing type 2 Diabetes*

-Fewer Suicides*
Are all of these outcomes a direct cause and effect relationship? Probably not. I would not say that abstaining from coffee causes suicide. And don't forget that Coffee is a habit forming drug, but just to play it safe drink your coffee as black as night, as hot as hell, and as strong as love.

*Willet, Eat,Drink, and Be Healthy Pg.152

In defense of the dead lift: Why lifting heavy stuff from the ground is good for you.

2010-03-05T18:57:00.000-08:00

Pain is something that we are wired to avoid. It is the hand that guides the fly out the window. It is there to hurt us when we move incorrectly and guide us toward a better way to move. Many people misinterpret that pain as a signal not to move at all. It is for this reason that many people with low back pain never consider performing a dead lift and why those with knee pain avoid deep squats.
Individuals who do not know how to flex at the hip safely find themselves in catch-22: I do not know how to bend over so I will only do so in an emergency situation. This inevitably leads to degrading of the musculature of the low back stabilizers and the hip extensors leading to progressively worse form and more pain and injury.
The problem is that these are basic movements and they must be practiced and perfected if you are to live a normal life with a strong healthy back. How else can you tie your shoe? Pick up a paper clip? Play with your children and hope to get on the ground and play with your grandchildren someday?
First you must understand that your body is not something that wears down with miles. You cannot save your knees for a rainy day. Because of this I cringe when I hear the expression “wear and tear.” It is a common visual that people walk away from a surgical consult with. This is akin to your body wearing down like cheap tires with high mileage when the true physiology of the body is more like a car that gets better fuel economy and gets more reliable the more frequently you drive it.
The trainee who perfects the basic movements of barbell dead lifts, back squats, front squats, and yes even Zerker squats has a surplus of strength to easily handle the demands of daily life and has put in time to committing proper motor unit firing patterns. These are the firing patterns that will kick in through muscle memory when it is time to move a mattress, to catch yourself when you slip on the ice, or to hold yourself upright in a chair while you read blogs.
I encourage you all to kick the elliptical habit and find a qualified strength coach to teach you the basic barbell moves: Dead lift, Squats , All even Zerkers. If you don’t know a qualified coach contact me and I’ll put you in the right hands.

We all need to get lots of Calcium Right? Wrong.

2010-03-04T17:39:00.001-08:00

Calcium is not a simple building block that your body uses to make bones. It is charged ion and a neurotransmitter. It may be more accurate to state that your skeleton is the bank that your body deposites Ca into and withdraws Ca from. This is a very important characteristic because no matter how much Calcium you ingest through dairy products or supplementations, you will remain calcium deficient and osteopenic if your lifestyle is one that forces a net loss of calciuim from your skeleton. This is why there is no relationship between the amount of calcium intake and rate of pathologic hip fracture. In fact, the relationship is inverse with Hong Kong, Singapore, and Yugoslavia having both the lowest calcium intake and lowest rates of hip fractures in women. Conversely, The United States and New Zealand have the highest hip fracture rates despite their relatively high calcium consumption rates. *

How can you maintain a high Calcium Balance?
Maintain a net alkaline Ph by avoiding grains- Regardless of how much calcium you ingest, eating a net acidic diet (one rich in grains, meats, and dairy) will cause your body to leach the calcium from your bones to regulate your body's Ph. The calcium (and the $$$ you invested into your Ca supplements) is then excreted into the urine.

That means save the money you are wasting on Calcium supplements and dairy products and take it to your local farmer's market. Fruits and vegetables tip the Ph toward the basic side of the spectrum.

Engage in weight bearing exercises:
2-5x per week:
Free weights: Squats, lunges, thrusters, deadlifts, ankle and wrist weights, weight vest
Gymnastics: Pull-ups, Push-ups, air squats, Jumps
Metabolic Conditioning: Jumping, Running etc.
*- Willet. Eat , Drink and Be Healthy, Pg.163

More information at www.newbalancechiropractic.com

Excellence Chiropractic Seattle

Salt in the wound Part II: "Welcome to the world. It's salty and awful out here."

Salt In The Wound

The Ripping and The Tearing Part II: Tape It Like a Gymnast

The Ripping and the Tearing

The Perfect Ice Bath

Vitamin T: The Testosterone Experiment

Free Radicals, Crossfit, and Supercompensation

Clubbells and Indian Clubs: Legit Rehab Tools or Passing Fitness Fads?

Hamstring Strain: Rehab For Rapid Recovery

What is an Exertional Headache?

You think Mastodons Used Tubing For Shoulder Stability? Dude, They Didn't Even Have Hands.

Rhodiola and Adrenal Fatigue

Visualization and Mental Practice- Take Off Your Shirt and Charge Around Like You Are On Fire. The Wold Cup Goal Will Be Soon To Follow.

$1 Chinese Food

Thrive Under Pressure: Recover Rapidly.

Conditioning for Parents aka- Rough Housing for Time

Graston Technique: Hard Tools for Soft Tissues

Lumbar Disc Herniation

Achilles Tendon Injury

GOMAD Part II

GOMAD: Gallon Of Milk A Day

Gandhi DLP Part II: Eat Like a Hippie/ Lift Like a Bull

Garage Gym: Make Your Own Medicine Ball

Barefoot Running Technique

Adjust Your Strength: Studies Demonstrate Significant Strength Increases With Spinal Adjustments

The Ghandi Deadlift Project

Barefoot Running Part II: Nike joins the party

Barefoot Running Part I: The Cheap Shoe Revolution

Motion control shoe delays fatigue of shank muscles in runners with overpronating feet. Cheung RT, Ng GY. 2)Br J Sports Med. 2009 Oct;43(10):745-9. Epub 2008 Sep 18.

Running in new and worn shoes: a comparison of three types of cushioning footwear. Kong PW, Candelaria NG, Smith DR. University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX, USA. venikong@yahoo.com3)Age Ageing. 1995 Jan;24(1):67-72.

7) Br J Sports Med. 1997 Dec;31 (4): 299-303Hazard of deceptive advertising of athletic footwear.

Paleo Challenge Summer 2010

New Balance Paleo-Challenge

What is Paleo? What is Gluten, and why go through such an uncomfortable challenge?

Paleo is simple. It is eating in a way that is congruent to your genetic needs. You don’t have to hunt or gather. No raw meat or foraging for huckleberries. It is following a few simple rules:

New Balance Paleo-Challenge

Example day:

New Balance Paleo-Challenge

New Balance Paleo-Challenge

Carrot Banana Muffins- These look well worth the one salt point- or leave the salt out.

What Happens when a strength althlete runs 26.2 miles?

What to keep in your gym-bag after you realize that Advil is not a vitamin:

NSAIDs Kill Tens of Thousands of People Per Year and Weaken the Joints They are Meant to Protect.

Glucosamine Sulfate and Chondroitin Sulfate: The Promotion of Cartilage Regeneration

Track and Field for All

Paleo Frosty

Sit Up Straight! The Brugger Relief Position isThe World's Best Micro Break

Fish Oil- Believe Me Now and Listen To Me Later.

To Supplement or Not To Supplement Part I: Creatine Monohydrate

Do Not Weigh Yourself

Running out of muscle Part II: Get off of that ridiculous contraption and get to work building a bigger engine.

The New Balance Paleo Challenge: Define Your Optimal Nutrition in 30 Uncomfortable Days

Dr. Pond Lifts Heavy Stuff

Running Out of Muscle Part 1: Why Target Training Doesn’t Work

Acupuncture + Chiropractic = legal Chinese steroids for crossfitters

The Stress Response and why spinal motion is the untapped secret to a better quality of life.

Coffee is Definitely Good For This Blog.

In defense of the dead lift: Why lifting heavy stuff from the ground is good for you.

We all need to get lots of Calcium Right? Wrong.

Motion control shoe delays fatigue of shank muscles in runners with overpronating feet.
Cheung RT, Ng GY.

2)Br J Sports Med. 2009 Oct;43(10):745-9. Epub 2008 Sep 18.

Running in new and worn shoes: a comparison of three types of cushioning footwear.
Kong PW, Candelaria NG, Smith DR.

University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX, USA. venikong@yahoo.com

3)Age Ageing. 1995 Jan;24(1):67-72.

7) Br J Sports Med. 1997 Dec;31 (4): 299-303
Hazard of deceptive advertising of athletic footwear.