Are Pain and Suffering Needed to Reach Your Fitness Goals?

The post yesterday got about half great reviews and about half  horrible reviews.  I got some really good hate mail for that one.  Here is a  tip, if you are not happy, please tell me how to fix it or atleast WHY.  Telling  me I am a jackass is not helpful.   I want to know WHY I am a jackass!

Interestingly enough I got some similar not-so-happy emails about 4 weeks ago  when I ran a post on a powerlifter lifting monster weights.

For some reason, a few people did not find the post motivational.   I got notes saying that I was encouraging people to hurt themselves by showing that.  Pleeeezzzee.

It should  be noted that 99.9% of you that read this blog has been nothing but exceptional  and I have learned a ton from all of your questions and interactions.  Seriously, I really do appreciate it more than you will ever know.

The post yesterday had references to “pain and suffering” and implied that it  was needed to reach you goals.

Is it?

This got me thinking.

For those who have read this blog, you know that I am not a fan of creating pain in the gym.    I am not a fan of hopping on the spiky foam roller or trying to  hump a baseball on the floor for “deep tissue work” before a lifting session.

If you want to create some pain before lifting, call me up and I will kick you  in the nuts really hard.  At least that is fun for ME!  Hahaa.

This never gets old to watch “The Nutty Buddy”

The Science Behind The Nutty Buddy

Now I am not exempt from this type of behaviour in the past and I have paid  large sums of money to trainers, guurs, coaches and massage therapists to create  pain FOR me.   I don’t fault them at all, I did if of my own free will with my  own hard earned money.

Do I recommend you do that? No.  Save your money for my upcoming serminar on  Metabolic Flexibility

instead (shameless I know, but hey, I pay the bills to keep the lights on around here).

This bring us ot the questions “Are their times in your life where pain and  suffering are neeeded?”

I think of them as side effects to certain goals.

Drugs

Let’s look at drugs for a second.

No, not those kinds of drugs you hippie!

Drugs, like pharmaceuticals.

In pharmacology, the term used is “therapeutic window.”

While I did a minor in Chemistry and took some high level pharmacokinetics  classes a few years ago again, I am not an expert; but here are the basics  (trust me, this will be short, so no drueling on your keyboard).

From Webster’s it states   (source therapeutic window)

1 : the range of dosage of a drug or of its concentration in a bodily system  that provides safe effective therapy <the narrow therapeutic window…the effect  may go from therapeutic to toxic with an increase of just 10 micrograms per  milliliter [in] blood concentration—Lisa Davis>

Many times this is also referred to as the Therapeutic Index.

“The therapeutic index (also known as therapeutic ratio), is a comparison of the  amount of a therapeutic agent that causes the therapeutic effect to the amount  that causes death.

Quantitatively, it is the ratio given by the lethal dose divided by the  therapeutic dose. A therapeutic index is the lethal dose of a drug for 50% of  the population (LD50) divided by the minimum effective dose for 50% of the  population (ED50).

A high therapeutic index is preferable to a low one: this corresponds to a  situation in which one would have to take a much higher dose of a drug to reach  the lethal threshold than the dose taken to elicit the therapeutic effect.”

Source Wikipedia : Therapeutic_index

For those that scrolled past all that chemistry crap, here is the recap

LD50 (lethal dose 50)  in addition to being the title of a CD by the band  Mudvyane is the lethal dose to kill 50%.   ED 50 (effective dose 50) is the effective dose for 50%

We want as much separation between these two as possible–a smaller ED and a  high LD.

Some drugs that have a very narrow window (or index) and are not very “user  friendly.”

TNT Time!

DNP (2,4-Dinitrophenol ) is one that comes to mind where some nutty bodybuilders  have used it to cut body fat in a short period of time.  It basically interrups  (uncouples) the cell’s ability to produce ATP (energy).

While is does not do this completely, it does it enough so that extra energy is  produced as heat, thus more calories are literally “burned off”.   Many years  ago it was used as a weight loss drug, but had some very bad side effects like cooking yoursel from the inside out.

While case studies are rare, there was one reported recently (Barlett et al, 2010)  that stated

“A 46-year-old man took a lethal dose of an agent called dinitrophenol (DNP). He  presented 11 h after ingestion with loin pain, diarrhoea and vomiting. He  rapidly deteriorated with profound hyperthermia, acute renal failure,  hyperkalaemia, metabolic acidosis and eventually haemodynamic instability.  Despite aggressive supportive measures and rapid sequence induction, he  deteriorated and died 21 h after ingestion.”

So, my point on this is that DNP has a very narrow therapeutic window.   A little bit may help you drop some pounds (although long term effects are unknown), just  a bit too much and you are dead.   Your arre more than playing with fire as  instead of getting burned you could end up dead.  Did I emphasize that point  enough yet?

Back To the Real World

Ok, so I think all decisions have a therepeutic window or a risk/reward to them.

I could lift this weight, but my low back is really hurting bad.

In my case last night, I could do some heavy band deaflifts, but the callous on my  left hand near my pink was not happy. I ended up not doing it past a few sets as  I felt like I was going to rip it open at any point.  The risk of ripping it off  was much higher than not doing the lift on that day.

Every decision have a risk/reward.

Lifting in pain has a high long term risk and in my opinion is not needed for  gains.

What About Life?

It has been said that only when you know the rules can you break the rules.

I try to follow the same rules in life that I do in the gym.   The goal is  performance, not how you “feel” afterwards.   I know Charles Staley has been  saying this for years.

“It’s better to use your performance as a gauge of what you’ve accomplished than  how much you hurt the next day. Numbers don’t lie; if your numbers are going up,  so is your progress. The reverse is not true however. I trashed my back a few  years ago doing something really stupid, and trust me, the fact that I couldn’t  tie my shoes for a while wasn’t a sign of progress!”

source Tmuscle: Pain Not Performance

I would agree.

Life can throw you curve ball though.

As you know, I’ve been in college going on about 16 years now.   No, that is not  a typo where I inadverntently slipped in a 1 in front of the 6.    I started in  1992 and did 7.5 years full time completing a BA, 2 years of post grad work and  a MS in Mechanical Engineering (Biomechanics), took about 1.5 years off where I  swore I was never going back and then was back in college again.    Even the  thought of it caused shivers up my spine and nauseau.

Fast forward to today where I am in the process of writing up 3 studies and a  literature review for my final defense to finish off my PhD.    Pretty much  every day I have thought of quitting.  Many days I did not want to look at  another research study or revision number 31 (not joking on that) of my study  that I am trying to submit, only to most likely get it rejected by the journal  since they like to publish high rejection rate to make themselves look good.

I had others that told me it would be a long road.  I figured that much.   I  planned on 5 years of full time work.  Wow, I never thought it would be this  long though.   Ugh.

The point of this is not a “poor me” story and “look at how much I struggle.” or  “hey, look at all this effort.”    I made the decision to do it.  Nobody put a  gun to my head and said “do a PhD crazy man or die.”    I made the decision and  therefor I also made the decision to accept any and all “side effects” that come  with it, just like the drug example above  You decide to take statins, you  accept both the benefit and the side effects.

All About Control

I can quit at any time.  That will make it all go away.  I have thought about it  many times.   I had times where I kept telling myself that I could “quit  tomorrow, but not today.”   I worked to find more efficient ways (read, less side effects) to get it done.   I soon learned that there are no shortcuts, not  even things that helped a bit.  Such is the windy path I have chosen.

The key turning point came when I was talking to a colleague and I asked him  “How did you make it out?”

His answer was, “I made the decision that I was going to finish it, no matter  how long it took, and that they were not going to break me in the process.”

I wanted to find a short cut or some better advice, but I soon realized this was  great advice and one that I adopted.   I took pride that in TIME, I would  graudate.   I had tried all other avenues and the only one left was to go  straight ahead and survive the process.

If that meant I had to scrap 11 months of work and start over, if that was the  only option, then so be it.   If I have to rewrite a paper 41 times and that is  the only way, then I will do it.

I can quit at any time, but I must accept the side effects too.  If I have to  accept them, I will do what I can to minimize their effects.   So if you are  taking statins, talk to your doc about taking ubiquinol which is the reduced and active form of Coenzyme Q10 (statins mess up this pathway and deplete your body  of it) to minmize the side effects or work to get of them entirely (Mabuchi H,et al.).

What have I become?
Thoughts like shadows swelling through my mind
What have I become?
Something else inside

-Demon Hunter

As I Lay Dying “Through Struggle” Video

only through struggle have i found rest
with a piece of me taken away
i begin to understand
hollow out this machine like chest
with its gears that turn to make me feel
and assembled thoughts that fade away

only through struggle have i found rest

-As I Lay Dying

Summary

Some times pain and suffer are the side effects we must endure to achieve our  goals.

If we want a certain goal, we must be prepared to endure everythign that comes  along with it.   We can stil work to reduce these side effects to as low as  possible however.

Comments

What do you think?  What times in your life have you accepted the risks/side  effects?   Let me know in the comments

Rock on

Mike T Nelson

REFERENCES

Tainter ML, Stockton AB, Cutting WC (1933). “Use of dinitrophenol in obesity and  related conditions: a progress report”. J Am Med Assoc 101: 1472–1475.

Bartlett J, Brunner M, Gough K (February 2010). “Deliberate poisoning with  dinitrophenol (DNP): an unlicensed weight loss pill”. Emerg Med J 27 (2): 159–60

Mabuchi H, Higashikata T, Kawashiri M, Katsuda S, Mizuno M, Nohara A, Inazu A,  Koizumi J, Kobayashi J. “Reduction of serum ubiquinol-10 and ubiquinone-10  levels by atorvastatin in hypercholesterolemic patients”. J Atheroscler Thromb.  2005;12(2):111-9.

Charles Staley,  Pain and Performance, Tmuscle, PUBLISHED 05-24-07 10:09  Accessed July 19,2010 source  Pain and Performance

New Exercises For Better Performance and Less Pain for Office Workers

Time to find out what your best exercises are for all the crazy office workers.

I unfortunately have been spending too much time lately behind the keyboard with blog writings, guest posts, an academic book chapter on “Protein Metabolism: Athlete Cases Studies”, dissertation writing on Monster Energy Drink, etc, so I know what you are going through.

• Do you have pain in your elbows, wrists, fingers?
• Are you afraid of carpal tunnel syndrome, low back pain and shoulder pain too?
• Do you spend lots of time at a desk or in front of a computer?

I find that the wrists do not want to go into extension very well (think of making a stop sign with your hand) from it adapting to being on a keyboard or draped over a mouse all day.

Is your hands starting to look like a computer mouse?

The thumbs of office workers tend to be weaker and they suffer from “dumb thumb.”   Getting the thumb strong and back up to par will pay off for lifting in the gym too as the thumb is the opposite of the 5 fingers in many grip positions.    For more on all things grip, see the Grip Series with Adam T Glass HERE

Is your thumb dumb?

Here are some suggestions to try.

This is not going to solve everyone’s issue, but I have found these 2 exercises to be quite effective. Test them and find out for yourself.

1) Plate Press from a split stance

How To Perform

• Hold a plate like a pizza or large tray and press it up
• It works to reverse the standard position your hands are in all day, especially you mouse hand
• Shout out to Adam Glass for this suggestion

Variations To Test

• Left side vs right side
• Split (lunge) stance. Play with right leg or left leg in front
• Torso Rotation: From a standard stance or split stance, rotate left or right

2) Plate Pinch

How To Perform

• Grab 2 plates and pinch them together
• A good starting point for most is two 10 lb plates or even two 5 lb plates
• Put the numbers and letters facing in, so the smooth sides are facing out
• Pinch them together and raise them up past your knees

Variations To Test

• Left hand vs right hand
• Different stances: deadlift position, split stance position

Movement and Mood

I am a happy dog!

How do you know when fido is sick?

Does fido talk to you or bark at you in morse code?
No, fido moves poorly; so you infer that fido feels bad.

How do you feel when you are sick and/or injuried and move worse?   Bad

So we know that movement and mood are related.

Move better and you will feel better.

Work on movement quality with tested movements (as shown in the video above and the Grip n Rip DVDs)

Summary

Two simple to try exercises that you can do with common gym equipment.

It is now your turn to try them out!

Comments

Try them out and let me know how they worked out for you.  Leave me some comment love on your thoughts on this one!

Rock on
Mike T Nelson

PS
The copies of the Grip n Rip DVD are going fast and only a few copies are left as of this posting. Check out the link below for 7 bonus items too, but act fast as I expect them to be gone by some time tomorrow (Saturday July 17) in the morning, if even that long!  Go to this link now

Move, Feel and Perform Better Today: Grip and Rip DVD Special Limited Time Offer

4 Stupid Fitness Things that Need To End

I have dream that the fitness world is under a revolution.   Time to stop living by all the rules of how to train based on their rules.

I WANNA LIVE IN A FEARLESS STATE
I WANNA LIVE WITHOUT THE HATE
I WANNA BE ABLE TO DECIDE MY FATE
I WANNA BREAK OUT OF THIS CAGE

LET’S TAKE IT BACK
WELCOME TO THE FUTURE

–Welcome to the Future by Left Spine Down

4 Stupid Fitness Things that Need To End

1) Seeking More Sensation During Training.

Trying to actively feel everything is a recipe for chronic pain.  I stole this idea from Frankie.   You don’t need to actively seek it.  If you screw up bad enough for your body, pain WILL find you.  Trust me on this.  I’ve done the experiments in my own lab.  If you don’t trust me, let me know if you find it not to be true.  I suggest you not test this one out.

Think of pain as an indicator light and your last line of defense.  If I don’t put oil in my car ever, and my Ford pinto burns oil like at the rate of sweat running off a fat man chasing a runaway M&M, I wil have damage.

You don’t listen to pain in your body, you too will have some damage.

When the oil light comes on, I better stop the car before I destroy it (unless someone hits me from behind and I blow up anyway)

No, I am still not convinced your body will lie to you.  If you can’t trust your own body, you are going to trust your body to someone else who does not trust their body either to tell you what is going on?  I am all for guidance and seeking help, but their goal is to help you interpret what is going on based on your feedback.

Ford Pinto: Source

2) Don’t Learn a New Exercise Until You Can Do It Correctly

Oh boy, don’t start those dangerous deadlifts since you may just suck at them since you have never done them.
Newsflash, of course you are going to suck, you have never done them!  With the exception of a few crazy athletes, you will NOT be very good at them on the first rep.

“The first rep is the worst rep!” -Frankie Faires

Did anyone not learn to play golf because they were afraid they were going to suck at it?   Or did you want to learn to play golf, took lessons, stuck with it and became pretty good (or at least better).

The first time I learned to kiteboard, I got my a$$ handed to me over and over and over, even during a lesson!  My buddy Rob had bruised his ribs earlier in the week and had to keep chasing the kite down as I floored it right into the ground.  After about 20 minutes of this I hear “You suck!”   The truth was I did suck, but over time, I got better.  I also got a free trip across the soccer fiedl on my butt, complete with sexy grass stains as the kite powered up.

If you want to learn to kiteboard, take a lesson, but don’t NOT try it.

Did I never start because I was afraid I would suck?  Nope.

Why would you not learn to do an exercise for fear you wil suck?  Stupid idea that has got to go the way of the DooDoo bird.

DooDoo bird: Source

For the new readers, I am NOT saying load a bar up to 400 lbs and go ape $hit crazy with it and send your spine across my gym.   I hate to clean up that kind of mess.

Test it, maybe you only do rack pulls. Maybe you can’t deadlift the standard way so you use a trap bar or even sumo style.  Work around it, test it (ala Grip n Rip) and get better.

My buddy Brad Nelson has the perfect line with new clients

Brad to client “Are you a perfectionist”
Client   “Yes”
Brad “Then today is not your day”

Love it.
Start today!

3) Perfect Nutrition 100% of the Time

How demotivating is that.  Sorry, you suck and you will have to eat chicken and broccoli the rest of your life, so start looking forward to that and please pay me more money so I can tell you how wonderful it is too.

I will then spend more time to tell you that broccoli has over 300 different phytonutritents and is really not the vile weed you think it is

Broccoli-A Vile Weed or Nutrient Powerhouse? Source

That is BS on a stick and you know it.

The goal of a long term program should be to eat as many “bad foods” as you can get away with WHILE keeping your body composition and health goals.

This gives the client some friggin hope.  Yes, it is going to suck for awhile as your metabolism changes, but we are working towards you enjoying food long term and not making anything off limits forever.

If 4 brownies on a Saturday afternoon destroys you for the rest of the week, there are some issues to fix.

Caveat.  I am not saying that you should mainline high fructose corn syrup, eat boxes of Twinkies for lunch and order more large slurpees with no ice from the 7-11 across the street that you rode your scooter to.

If your body composition and metabolism is a wreck, you have some work to do, but the body is amazingly adaptable and a vast majority of the time we can alters its ability to convert food into fuel with few “ill consequences”  Hint, you NEED to exercise.  This BS that exercise does not help obesity has got to stop also.    Studies has shown that with exercise we can change your metabolic flexibity in a rather short period of time (1), even those who are diabetic or borderline diabetic.

4) Isolated Exericse Cues

Why would I cue your lat muscle during a pressing movement?  Last time I checked, the lat pulls the humerous (upper arm) DOWN, which is the opposite of my goal to press the darn heavy weight up!  How about I cue you based on the movement I want you to do? Hmm, I see an experiment here.

Latissimus Dorsi Muscle: Source

Why can we cue isolated movement, but argue that compound movements are better?

This makes no sense.  Some rip on bodybuilders for doing “isolation work” (can we really isolate anything in the body?) and say compound movements are best; but in the same breath state that you need to work more on your VMO in your quads to stabilze your knee.

Or as above, you need to contract and pull your lat down while pressing.

How can you cue an isolated movement when you just stated isolation was bad?

How about we give ONE cue (yes ONE cue) at a time (no vomitting cues on them) on what movement we want the athlete to accomplish first.  Let’s start there and see how that goes.  Give their own brain a chance to fix it.  Their own brain is darn smart at running their own body (it has lots of reps).

How would you know the lat was the problem or maybe it was the lower trap since I just read an article that said the lower traps are really lazy bastards and don’t like to work.  Or maybe it is rhomboids, etc etc.  Or maybe we need more YTWLs and more corrective work.

If you are teaching better gross (large scale) movement, let’s start there by cueing gross movement.  Only get finer when needed.

Comments
What do you think on these?  Have I lost it completely?  Let me know either way!

Rock on
Mike T Nelson

Refernces
1) Diabetes. 2010 Mar;59(3):572-9. Epub 2009 Dec 22.
Restoration of muscle mitochondrial function and metabolic flexibility in type 2 diabetes by exercise training is paralleled by increased myocellular fat storage and improved insulin sensitivity.

Meex RC, Schrauwen-Hinderling VB, Moonen-Kornips E, Schaart G, Mensink M, Phielix E, van de Weijer T, Sels JP, Schrauwen P, Hesselink MK.

Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Mitochondrial dysfunction and fat accumulation in skeletal muscle (increased intramyocellular lipid [IMCL]) have been linked to development of type 2 diabetes. We examined whether exercise training could restore mitochondrial function and insulin sensitivity in patients with type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Eighteen male type 2 diabetic and 20 healthy male control subjects of comparable body weight, BMI, age, and VO2max participated in a 12-week combined progressive training program (three times per week and 45 min per session). In vivo mitochondrial function (assessed via magnetic resonance spectroscopy), insulin sensitivity (clamp), metabolic flexibility (indirect calorimetry), and IMCL content (histochemically) were measured before and after training. RESULTS: Mitochondrial function was lower in type 2 diabetic compared with control subjects (P = 0.03), improved by training in control subjects (28% increase; P = 0.02), and
restored to control values in type 2 diabetic subjects (48% increase; P < 0.01). Insulin sensitivity tended to improve in control subjects (delta Rd 8% increase; P = 0.08) and improved significantly in type 2 diabetic subjects (delta Rd 63% increase; P < 0.01). Suppression of insulin-stimulated endogenous glucose production improved in both groups (-64%; P < 0.01 in control subjects and -52% in diabetic subjects; P < 0.01). After training, metabolic flexibility in type 2 diabetic subjects was restored (delta respiratory exchange ratio 63% increase; P = 0.01) but was unchanged in control subjects (delta respiratory exchange ratio 7% increase; P = 0.22). Starting with comparable pretraining IMCL levels, training tended to increase IMCL content in type 2 diabetic subjects (27% increase; P = 0.10), especially in type 2 muscle fibers. CONCLUSIONS: Exercise training restored in vivo mitochondrial function in type 2 diabetic subjects. Insulin-mediated glucose
disposal and metabolic flexibility improved in type 2 diabetic subjects in the face of near-significantly increased IMCL content. This indicates that increased capacity to store IMCL and restoration of improved mitochondrial function contribute to improved muscle insulin sensitivity.

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Update on Kettlebell Juggling, Personal Records, and Vision

It is me going from an open palm to swing

I sent this out to my newsletter last night and the response was so crazy I just had to post it here for those who are not on my newsletter.    You can sign up to my newsletter at the link below and get some free gifts too!

Extreme Human Performance Insider Newsletter

Part 2 of my powerlifting journey (the How To part) will be up soon, so stay tuned for that.

Here we go!

Just wanted to share a short story with you.

I already shared it with my wonderful wife Jodie, but I just have to tell you
about it too!

I was at work today (editor’s note, it was actually yesterday) and I had a blinding headache. This is very rare for me as I am fortunate that I don’t get head aches very often at all.

I could feel tension creeping up the back of my neck and around to my left eye even.

I felt like my head was in a vice and it was just getting worse and it was only 11am.

I got some more coffee and no change. Crap.

I felt like I could just fall asleep too. I had zero energy.

At lunch I wondered down to the gym and tested my movement
(as shown in the Grip n Rip DVD) and it was horrible!

No surprise there as anyone watching me move could see that. I walked like I just crawled out a cave from hibernation.

I did some mobility work, curls with my left leg in front and rotated to the left and I started to feel much better.

Re-tested my movement and much better.
My headache was almost gone at this point too! Total time was 10 minutes!

How did I know which positions to work on?

I have tested my exercise before and started with ones that normally work well for me. They may work for you or they may not; you will just have to try and see.

I felt great and went outside to see the sun at the local volleyball court for some kettlebell fun.

I’ve been working on kettlebell juggling or also known as kettlebell hand to hand work.

In short, you are sort of throwing the kettlebells (KBs) around from one hand to the next in different configurations and spins.

Why? Because it is different and FUN!

Today was awesome as I just set a HUGE PR (personal record) for KB juggling–two 16kg KBs (one in each hand) and did a hand switch of BOTH at the same time, moving left to right and right to left with one going over the top and the other passed underneath in front.

The best part was that I nailed it on my first full attempt too. I could see both of them moving through the air also.

Why is this so huge?

Since about age 4 I have been diagnosed as “stereoblind” meaning I don’t see in 3D as most people do.

Now I am drive a car and play sports (which both took a fair amount of work), I still operate like I have one eye closed all the times.

In High School I was a complete detriment to any team. If their option was to play with me on their time or one man down, they would take one less person if allowed vs. have me on the team. Sad but true.

I could not track a fast moving object (like a ball) if my life depended on it.

I’ve been to multiple docs and everyone has told me flat out I will be stereoblind the rest of my life.

One actually refused to do further work with me since nothing was working.
I was left to figure it out myself with the help of some other really smart people like Frankie Faires, Dr. Cobb, The Movement Doctor and Adam T Glass.

So, to the docs I say a polite “screw you”

I am not seeing in full 3D YET, but I am better each day.

And one day I will wake up seeing in 3D and it is going to be AMAZING.

I am already saving money from Grip n Rip sales to do more full visual work once I finish my PhD.

Summary

Nothing is impossible

YOU decide what to do

If you want to move better with less pain, you must start testing your exercises (as in the Grip n Rip DVD)

KB Juggling is FUN!

Comments?

Post them below!  Let me know what goals you are working on to overcome!

Rock on
Mike N
PS
If you want to learn more about KB juggling, you have to see Logan doing some crazy stuff here
It is a great DVD with awesome tips too!

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15 Random Thoughts

Here we go again, a tip inside my brain as to what is rattling around in there.  Trust me, you have been warned!

1) Mushroomhead is a highly underrated metal band

Adam T Glass just found them and was blown away. Great stuff. I prefer their earlier work with J Mann, but the new upcoming CD still sounds pretty cool. Awesome live shows if you ever get the chance to see them–go!

2) One of my favorite quotes of all time

“The iron never lies to you..the iron will always kick you the real deal. The iron is the great reference point, the all-knowing perspective giver. Always there like a beacon in the pitch black. I have found the Iron to be my greatest friend. It never freaks out on me, never runs. Friends may come and go, but two hundred pounds is always two hundred pounds.” – Henry Rollins

3) Axial loading is key for muscle hypertrophy

It seems that loading the body axially like squats and overhead pressing seems to have a greater trigger for muscle hypertrophy (bigger muscles).

There is not any direct research that I have seen on this looking at similar loads (volume), but adding squats and kettlebell clean and jerks into your routine can pack on some mass quite fast.

I added about 3-4 lbs in the past month by adding these in. I also increased my calories again and my stress level was a bit lower too. Make sure those movement test well though (ala Grip n Rip).

4) Corrective exercise

I think we are making it entirely too complicated. An exercise/movement either makes you better or worse. If it makes you worse, you are not doing it correctly for YOUR body, or it is not good for you at THAT time. We are either getting better or worse.  Is corrective exercise any more complicated than that?

5) Bad foods

We need to stop putting foods into categories as “good” or “bad.” Very few foods are really bad.  If something is really bad it will kill you fast.   That is bad.  A poorly prepared puffer fish will kill you very fast.  I say avoid it, but even eating twinkies for a week straight will probably not kill you.  You may look similar to a twinkie by the end of the week though.

Twinkies in their natural state

6) The goal of health

Along those lines our goal of health is backwards. People think they need to eat “clean” 100% of the time. Even the most strict, pre-competition bodybuilder types don’t need to do that 100% of the time and even then the pre contest period is short compared to the rest of their life.

Having people try to get to a goal of 100% is not realistic and will set them up for massive failure.

The goal should be to eat as “BAD” as possible WHILE maintaining health (blood tests) and body composition goals.

If you can do this at a 70% compliance vs a 90% compliance, 70% is better!

The ability to take in virtually any food item and convert it into fuel (termed Metabolic Flexibility) is key to health.

Do you want to have more freedom with your diet and eat the foods you love, or feel like you are boxed in and “never good enough”?

7) PhD programs are long, really friggin’ long

I knew when I start this, that it would be a long road.  I had other warn me about it.  I thought they were nuts.  No way I was going to be in school for another 5-7 years after the 11 years I had already done.  Screw that.

Well, fast forward to many years later and I am still plugging away at it.  Very few things have I started that I have though long and hard about quitting and this is at the top of the list.  The good part is that I am fully determined to finish, no matter how long it takes.  I have decided it will not rule my life and as long as each day I am making progress, the end will come.    And I can’t wait for that day.  Wow.  Once I graduate, all hell is going to break loose as my ability to output will go through the roof.  You have been warned.

8 ) Poor exercise form

Adam mentioned this on a conference call and some are now sooooo scared of not doing an exercise correctly that they will not even TRY.

How can you get better at say a kettlebell clean and press, without ever doing one? The answer is you CAN’T.

The first rep is always the worst rep.

I am NOT recommending that you go load up the bar with a max load and do your first deadlift attempt ever with it. That is just stupid. But starting with the bar and doing a few reps and measuring your range of motion (biofeedback) to see if it is good is an excellent start. Then work to make it better every time.  Not starting will not help you.  To get better, you can video your movements and keep testing or find a local qualified coach to help determine what is best for YOUR body; not what looks picture perfect.  The goal is better, not initial perfection.

9) I still love the TRX

Very fun to use and easy to travel with too!

10) You should train for falling and ill movements

I believe that if you may fall in life (which is all of us), you need to train for falling. Special thanks to Frankie for pointing this out and covering it in the Movement Certification.
Great discuss on this at Charlie Weingrofts blog.

11) Joint mobility is just one movement

Joint mobility,while it can have its place and does work, is only a handful of movement the human body can do.  Plus, we learn by performing large (gross) movements first and then work to refine them over time.   Why would we start with the smallest movements FIRST?

If you want to learn how to squat, I want to see you friggin squat first!  I don’t give a crap at that point about your ankle dorsiflexion or the ability of you to active control your pinky finger.   I don’t care.  If I can’t correct your squat movement, I will then start to go to more fine and fin movements.   I may end up with ankle work or even thumb mobility work, but I would not START there.

You must read this post on Joint Mobility from Frankie below.  It is a MUST read.

Pain Makes You Stupid:  Purposeful Joint Mobility

12) What I learned last year

I have changed how I look at things this year once again.  Here are the top things I learned in 2009 below.  Can you see how I do things differently now?  If so, place a comment below

The Top 15 Things I Learned in 2009: A Review

13) B-Stance Deadlifts are one of the most underrated versions

If you have a weakness in one leg (most of use do) and you want to bring up your deadlift, doing a B-Stance deadlift where once foot is closer to the bar than the other (think of a very mild or shallow lunge where one leg is about 4 inches back from the bar in an asymmetric stance).    Check it out at

Raising the Dead:  Deadlift Training and B Stance work

14) Modern shoes still suck

I am still not happy with modern shoes and we would all be better off training in a pair of Vibrams, flat shoes, or no shoes at all.

15) Joint Pain

I love GLC 2000 for joint issues.  I have been using it for several months now and it is great.  Others that recommended it to have tried it love it too.  I have tried similar supplements like it in the past and they did nothing for me.

While I don’t have many joint issues, they did get a bit achy after many weeks of increased volume.    I even tried to push it a bit more and still had no issues.   I stopped taking it and within a few days to weeks, they got a bit touchy again.

GLC 2000 has a very high form of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, which are natural substances found in and around the cells of cartilage (joints). Glucosamine is an amino sugar that the body produces and distributes in cartilage and other connective tissue, and chondroitin sulfate is a complex carbohydrate that helps cartilage retain water.

I have some other theories that this should help connective tissue health, which then should help maximal strength.

If you go to the link below, you can pick up 2 for the price of 1 from Carl at Super Human Radio (which you MUST listen to).

Super Human Radio GLC 2000 Special Offer

Not sure how long the offer lasts though, so it may be gone by the time you read this.

I get paid NOTHING to promote their product.

They did not ask me to mention it at all, but I feel that if I find something that works really well I need to share it with all of you.

Try it out and let me know how it goes for you.  If my theory is right, over a couple months you should see a nice strength increase too.

Summary

So there you have 10 things that have been running around in my head lately.  Let me know what you think by posting a comment below

Rock on

Mike T Nelson

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Get Off the Corrective Exercise Bandwagon: The End of All Corrective Exercise

Hi, I am Mike’s Ego

This is based on some thoughts I’ve been having for years and was spurred by a great conversation with Adam T Glass and Frankie Faires a few weekends ago.   Scary that we all had similar thoughts.

Just like my “Get Off the Foam Roller” and “Get Off the Treadmill” posts, this one will probably not be popular either.

My goal is not to poke the hornet’s nest again, but to hopefully spark some good discussion and move the industry way ahead.  Just so we are clear, we are all adults and I can disagree with someone’s thoughts and that does not mean I hate them as a person or wish any ill will for them.  Everyone is doing the best they can at the point they are currently at.  My goal is discussion and further advancements in the field for everyone.

Feel free to throw me under the bus as my ego is becoming Gumby like,  but I am not the first person to have these thoughts, nor will I be the last.

“My biggest issue with the corrective exercise stuff, as all the bright folks who responded to the post also stated, is that any movement/exercise can be corrective. I think too many of the “experts” have been spewing too much pseudo rehabilitation stuff and now everyone is over-thinking/over-correcting symptoms and playing the role of therapist. I thought exercise in general was therapeutic and pro-active. What about true expert coaching of basics and allowing these basic gross movement patterns to do the correcting? “

–Aaron Schwenzfeier, Strength Coach

“Take a kid that can’t olympic lift well and see what his jumping abilities are. Corrective exercises ripped off from PT are just patch work reruns and tissue texture and great root training is far better than adding glute bridges”.

–Carl Valle, Sprint Coach, Elite Track

Corrective vs Functional Exericse

Send all hate mail to me, not the guys above since I reposted their thoughts, but I hear fitness professionals talk about the difference between “corrective’ vs “functional” exercise.

Heck, I just hear it again today!

What is the difference?  Is there one?  Are we really helping?  Are we physical therapists?

Stop humping a piece of foam!

Corrective Exercise Drills

Corrective drills they say are things like YTWLs (rotator cuff work), scap wall slides, glute bridges, long duration isometric holds, arm bars, Turkish Get Ups with lighter weight, etc that are needed to fix an issue using exercise.

What are YTWLs?

I like the idea of fixing stuff, so we are in agreement there.

Functional Exercise Drills

Functional work is more single leg work (since that is more functional than squats as we spend more time on one leg), push ups, lunges, bench press (or maybe not).  These drills make an athlete more “functional”.

If this guy ever shows up in my gym, he better watch out for flying kettlebells

Someone has to put an end to the madness

In all fairness, I am told the trend is moving away from the BOSU ball/balance on everything crap.  I would like to believe it, but every time I go into a standard gym I see trainer putting clients and athletes on these contraptions making them look like trained seals.  No, not Navy SEALS tough guy, the kind you see in animal shows.

Inbetween we have well intentioned ideas about HOW to do these functional things.  Make sure to tighten your glutes, really pack your shoulder in place, and so on (insert smacking my forehead Homer Simpson style)

At the same time, fitness gurus will say that exercise done well (even functional work?) is corrective.  I do like that part a bit better.

Anyone confused yet?

I study this stuff for a living and I shake my head in dismay as it is confusing!  Who is right?  Is there a right?

Hold on Tex

Before you fire off that email to me or post a comment below (I do love comments), note that I am not saying these things can’t work from time to time.  Physiology is really messy and lots of stuff may “work” but at what cost and how long does it take?  If something truly worked, why would you be doing the EXACT same corrective drills all the times?

Are you just putting a band aid over a bigger issue?

Here We Go, Hold On

Pop quiz time.  My students always hated when I would show up to class and say those dreaded three words.

• Should exercise make someone better?

I sure as heck hope so.

• Would you willingly do something that made you worse

I sure hope not.

We are in agreement for now that exercise should make you better.  Yes?  Nod your head.

If exercise makes you better, you should function better and be more “functional”, right?

Your posture,  performance in the gym and on the field, shoulder and back pains (especially low back) should improve over time also.

Do we need to deferentiate between “corrective” and “functional” if the CORRECT exercise for YOU does both by making you better?

If certain exercises are corrective are all the others not corrective?  If you are not doing corrective exercise work, are you doing bad exercise?

And Finally

If all exercise when tested, makes you better, is their really ANY functional/corrective exercise?

I don’t think so.

Everything should make you better.

If not, find something that will make you better.

If you are not sure, ask a better question.

As a side rant, I rarely ever use any of the standard corrective work at all.  I have not really used it for almost 2.5 years now.

I test exercise and see what the effect is.  If it is better, than we are on the right path.

If it is not better, we try something else.   I then show YOU how to test it yourself.

If you are not testing, how do YOU know an exercise is good for YOU?

Comments

It is a bit of a head trip and really takes an open mind to try to wrap your head around it, but I know the readers here are up to the task at hand.   Your effort will be rewarded.

Let me know your thoughts by posting a comment below!  Agree or not, let me kow.

Rock on

Mike T Nelson

PS

If you missed the post yesterday about Frank’s experience testing his exercises, you really need to give it a listen.

FREE 1 hour audio on how to gain more muscle with less pain in

record time

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Can you add 18 pounds of lean body mass in 3 months?

Joe Turner circa 1913

Can you gain 18 lbs in 3 months?

Yes.

Is this someone who is new to weight training?

No.

This sounds made up, are you sure it is real?

Yes and no drugs were involved either.

How?

Frank did this recently and was so excited with the results that he wanted to share the secrets with everyone.

I got him on the phone and extracted as much information out of him as I could.

I am now giving you the entire 1 hour audio for free.

The only thing I ask is for your email address.

Yes you will be added to my newsletter list, but you can unsubscribe at any time.

I will NEVER rent or sell your email to anyone else since I hate spam.

What are you waiting for?

Note, if you are already on my newsletter list, check your inbox as it is there waiting for you as a way to say thanks!

Rock on
Mike T Nelson
PS
Time is closing in if you want me to guide you step by step to the best gains of your life.
Check out the offer below before it is gone!

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Testimonial for Minnesota Trainer Mike T Nelson :Knee Pain and Post ACL Recovery

Mike T Nelson here again.  I’ve injured more things on my body than I care to recount.  Everything from a busted up right ankle (snowboarding), completely tore up right shoulder (broomball), separated left shoulder (mountain biking), pulled hip flexors/groins (deadlifts and being dumb in the gym), sprained wrists multiple times (snowboarding, windsurfing), and other sprains, strains, etc.  Being injured sucks large moose balls.

Other thins I learned that suck about being injured include

• having other drive your lame butt around since your right ankle is in a cast sucks
• crutches suck, period
• crawling up the stairs in your house sucks
• buying a backpack to move things around in your own home since you are on crutches sucks
• not being able to roll over in bed at night without waking up in pain sucks
• pedaling your bike 150+ miles over 2 days with 2 pulled hip flexors and groin stupid and suck

The good thing is that I have learned a ton from each incident, but it was painful and I don’t recommend that path to you!

One of the most important things I learned is that when you injury something, do everything possible to get it back to 100%.

Not 95%, not 90%, 100%

If you don’t, the odds are you will not being the sports you love to play and may injury yourself somewhere else.

ACLs, Knee Pain and Repairs

If you have had an ACL replace and completed physical therapy, odds are you are at about 70-90%.

I am not trying to piss off all my physical therapy friends, but the reality is that most of the time your rehab is dictated by your insurance.

I busted up my ankle really good from a snowboarding incident about 5 years ago and getting back the last 10-5% of function is a bugger.   Knowing what I know now, I would be able to do it in much much less time.

You need to get back to 100% to reduce your risk of injury, especially to another part of your body as it works to compensate around your knee that you don’t quite trust 100% yet.

Your body knows what is going on, so you need to get it up to par as soon as possible post therapy.

Below is a recent testimonial from an athlete that had an ACL replaced.

Testimonial for Minnesota Trainer Mike T Nelson : Knee Pain and Post ACL Recovery

I have had surgery on both of my knees over the past 18 months.  The right knee required surgery to reconstruct a torn anterior cruciate ligament and the left knee required surgery to address some bone spurs and to repair a torn lateral meniscus.

I had the benefit of the greatest physicians I could ever imagine and very knowledgeable and caring physical therapists.

I will also pat myself on the back and say I was probably one of the most compliant patients these physicians and therapists ever saw in that I diligently followed their instruction at every step with the right attitude.

Nonetheless, after the trauma of injury and surgery, I could tell that I was not recruiting all of my muscles in not only exercising but in daily life.  My therapists did recognize this but continued to have me do exercises that they thought would get things “firing” but still did not work despite my best attempts.

I contacted Mike and we set up a session.  I would categorize myself as being cautious about what I read prior to our first session. I wouldn’t say I was skeptical but how much could Mike do that my therapists couldn’t?

He immediately identified some things such as glute recruitment and over tensing my arms and body in the belief I was exerting myself but I should relax and recruit the necessary muscles to complete the activity and not everything else.  He recognized I was limiting range of motion in an attempt to protect, in particular, my left knee.  He also recognized that I was wearing highly supportive and restrictive training and running shoes and this resulted in a complete lack of foot and ankle control and, particularly, my left foot was slapping around instead of moving in a coordinated, supported, and refined manner.

Finally, I had bizarre back of the left knee tightness that actually hampered me quite a bit.  It probably wasn’t actually in the knee but was probably in the hamstring due to overuse of the hamstring and inadequate use of the quadriceps and other stabilizers.

So, here I am only 4 sessions in.

The exercises Mike has had me do have improved my gait and my exercise routine.

I have much more range of motion and functionality.  I have much better foot control and stabilization and feel more natural and fluid when I walk.  The tightness in the back of my left knee is completely gone.

I have new shoes for working out and daily life and I never thought I would have bought into this “minimalist” shoe philosophy but it flat out works.

Mike has helped me out greatly and I look forward to continuing to work with him!

–Shantanu

Engineer, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Action Time!

What are you waiting for?  Do you have an old injury that is not up to 100%?

Email me by clicking HERE today to get started on moving, feeling and performing better!  Click HERE now!

Rock on

Mike T Nelson

PS

If you still need to be convinced, check out all the testimonials from people just like yourself below
Extreme Human Performance Testimonials

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Bench Pressing and Shoulder Pain Solutions Part 3

If you just joined in the conversation here, be sure to read the posts from the start of this series below

Shoulder Pain While Doing a Bench Press Gone Part 1

Bench Pressing and Shoulder Pain Solutions Part 2

The Solution So Far

In part 1 we discused Dave coming into the Extreme Human Performance Center here in Minnesota with pain while doing a bench press without any weight on the bar (so 45 lbs) and awhile later in the same session working up to 270 lbs without any pain!

In part 2 we discussed a solution that you can try yourself and what I did to get Dave back to benching pain free in a short amount of time.

The key in part 2 was the nervous system and looking at some opposite joints.  Dave’s LEFT shoulder was the issue, so we did some very specific mobility work for his RIGHT hip.

Now in Part 3, we will discuss the other key factor to keep you moving in the right direction, setting personal records (PRs) and increasing your athletic performance both on the field and in the gym!

Biomechanics

Most of you are probably surprised that I am now discussing more biomechanics.  When I first started learning more about exercise, I was convinced that the biomechanical path had all of the answers   Heck, I even did a MS in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Tech (say what up to the Yooopers) with a concentration in Biomechanics.  I spent years looking at the stuff and read even more for fun.  I will save you the discussion about the mathematical theory of plasticity and other fun stuff; so stick with me.

When I started doing Z-Health about 3.5 years ago, I fully realized the power of the nervous system since it was actually controlling the muscles and of course your movements. WOW!  Seems so obvious I know.
If your nervous system is out of whack, your performance is not ideal!

Most of my blog posts here are about how to deal with the nervous system and get the most out of it, primarily because

1) it works

2) almost nobody is talking about it

3) it works really fast

It will probably be a surprise to some of you that I am now talking about biomechanics again!  The reality is that optimal lifting technique is always important and almost everyone agrees on that.

Integration

The key is how to integrate the nervous system into the biomechanical model.  Many fitness experts are way too focus on biomechanics ONLY.  Do we truly know if your right glute is not working and that is your issue? Maybe, maybe not.  Is it ONLY your psoas?  What about all of the other muscles around that area?  Whatever your answer, we need to stay focused on the END RESULT.  That is what matters.

Are you lifting more weight while having less pain and becoming a better athlete?

“The Answer”

The approach that I use now is simply addressing 1) the nervous system and 2) the mechanical system (soft tissue, muscle, etc).

The nervous system answer was in part 1.

The mechanical answer is that we need to change the function of the tissue to work better.

In Dave’s case, we found that he had a very hard time with right hip internal rotation with his knee straight.  After doing that, the pain dropped dramatically.

I suspect that there is some tissue in his right hip that needs better function.   How do we get better function and then a tissue change to that area?  Exercise!  Load ‘em up.

Corrective Exercise

Truth be told, I have not done any standard “corrective exercise” work for about 3 years now.  I used to do a crap ton of it and while it worked to some degree, but I was never happy with the results.

The solution In Dave’s case he ended up doing a forward lunge to 45 degrees on the right leg with internal rotation at the hip.

How?

“Test the parts then test the whole” -Frankie Faires

We tested a forward lunge – good
Next tested a forward lunge to 45 degree – better
Then a forward lunge to 45 degree with internal hip rotation – best!

The testing was a range of motion test as discussed in the Gym Movements DVD and in the new upcoming Grip n Rip DVD (which has tons of amazing info on it, coming soon, so stay tuned here).

Car Talk

Ever listen to the Car Talk guys Click and Clack?  I have only listened to them a few times and I loved that they were so excited about cars.  I get the same way about exercise and human performance – how to get you to bust even more PRs!

If your car pulls to the right going down the road, what do you do?  You turn the steering wheel a bit to the left to get the car to go straight.

Think of this steering as changing the effects on the nervous system.  Each time you do a mobility drill targeted at the nervous system, you are turning the wheel a bit to the left.    The downside is that the car now go straight (increased performance, less pain), but you need to keep providing input by turning it a bit left.

You bring the car in and find that you had a bent tie rod (or some mechanical issue) that was causing the car to pull to the right all the time.   They drop a new one in (for way more money than you expected) and hours later your car now goes in a straight line, without you having to steer it left a bit.  Nice!

Your Body As a Car

Tissue is constantly changing, and by doing this particular lunge, it is like replacing the tie rod in your car; over time the tissue will adapt to a new and better function!  The results is more performance and less pain PERMANENTLY.    The shorter the issue, the shorter this process.

Summary

For long term change to have you hitting PRs like a crazy person in less pain, you need to
1) Address the nervous system via joint mobility work (some times eye movements too, but that is another topic)
2) Address the mechanics of the tissue via “corrective” exercise

Without addressing both of these, your results may be more short term.

I know this was something that I did NOT do for quite some time.  Athletes would come in, I would address the nervous system and get them out of pain and moving better; but long term they would have other issues or the same one would crop up again.   I knew they still had some “movement issues” but once they were out of pain it was hard to get them to come back again.

Now I incorporate some type of loading into their “homework” to get them moving in the right direction in case I don’t see them again.    I also emphasize that they need to have their lifting form evaluated to make sure it is correct and good for their body!   A perfect squat may NOT be the best exercise for them.

Don’t repeat my mistakes and be sure to address both the nervous system and the mechanical system with a customized approach.

Comments?

What do you think?  Let me know below!  I look forward to your comments as always.

Rock on
Mike T Nelson

PS
For more information on how to set up your own training program to have you hitting PRs in the gym all with less pain, you will need to pick up the new Grip n Rip DVD once it is out.   As soon as it is released, I will have the info here.  Not sure what the final price will be as Adam Glass,  Brad Nelson and friends are handling it; but I know it will not be cheap.   If you are good, you are not cheap.

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Bench Pressing and Shoulder Pain Solutions Part 2

If you just joined in the conversation here, be sure to read the post from yesterday below

Trainer Mike T Nelson Testimonial: Shoulder Pain While Doing a Bench Press Gone!

The Solution

Note, this is what worked in this case for exercise and this does not automatically mean it will work for you since everyone is individual.   This not medical advice and if you have a medical issue, talk to your doc.  It if it painful, don’t do it!

Hopefully that will keep my attorney happy, so here we go.

Shoulder Issue, Check My Hip?

The body is a huge X.  I know it goes not look like one, but trust me on this one.
As you step with your right foot, the impact force is transmitted up the back of the leg, past the right knee, into the right hip where it then moves over to the LEFT side of the body (around the SI joint), up the left scapula where it starts to split into 1) left upper trap and left side of the face and 2) left shoulder and on out to the left elbow and eventually the left wrist/hand.

The formal name for this it the “Back Force Transmission Line” and I first learned of this from Dr. Cobb of Z-Health.

It makes sense that the force would have to shift to the opposite side in order to keep the body balanced in gait (walking movement).  Look at what you do with your opposite shoulder/arm when you run!    Hopefully you will see some opposite motion going on there.   If all the force were to stay on the right side when you plant your right foot, it would be very difficult!

Don’t believe me?  Test it!   Run how you would normally run and now try these 2 drills
1) Run without moving your arms.    Get a buddy to do this and video it.
2) Run by moving your arms in the WRONG directions.  Humans are so hard wired to walk that this is VERY hard to do.   If you can do it easily, that is not a good sign.

Efficiency Is Key

The body is so amazingly designed I love it.  Looking a bit deeper, we see that the tendons, fascia and soft tissue are designed to absorb and return force; thus making movement much more efficient.

We Are All One

Many of you are familiar with Thomas Meyer’s “Anatomy Trains” and the idea of biotensegrity from Dr. Stephen Levin at http://www.biotensegrity.com/ If so, you are on the right track.

Cadavers To the Rescue!

The body is highly highly connected.  If you ever get the chance to do any cadaver work I highly highly recommend it.  When you start, you will see nice clean lines and everything looks very clean.  This is because at the lower level cadaver work, someone else has already prosected (cut, chop, cut cut, chop)  the cadaver for you!   This is not bad, as there are tons of things to be learned from this method since having undergrads hacking away on cadavers is not only expensive, but impractical.

Note: I am not implying any disrespect to those that have donated their bodies to science for use as a cadaver model, just trying to not use too many techy words so people can understand what is involved in the process.

As you do more advanced cadaver work (and the lab fee goes up to over a grand just for one class; still working on paying back many lab fees myself yet), you will soon find fat and fascia EVERYWHERE.  Trust me, you want to pick a lean cadaver if you can.  Seriously.

Perhaps you got to see the bodies exhibit, which is amazing too!

So we now that the body is all connected, and it appears that the primary path is the back force transmission line.

Serape Effect: More Evidence

The serape effect is primarily referred to as a crisscrossed connection between the lower and upper body, most commonly (maybe not so commonly as I am a big geek) used in discussing the connection from the shoulder to the opposite hip (glute).   It was first mentioned by Logan, G., & McKinney, W. 1970 (1), so there are some evidence from multiple sources for a connection between the shoulder and the opposite hip.

Cross Body Connection Here?  Yes!

No, not here!

Enter the Nervous System

So far we have made the case for the mechanical structure of the body and how it is all connected from your little toe to your pinky finger.
The nervous system is entwined in the picture too since it is actually controlling and sensing movement of the entire body.

Cross-Body Nervous System Connection?

Great question!   There does appear to be a nervous system connection that works “cross-body”.  Again, this probably goes back to a gait (walking) type motion.

In an experiment done by Kline TL et al. (3),  in stroke patients they showed quote, “rectus femoris in the impaired leg was active during finger flexion of the impaired hand in the stroke survivors and all four tested muscles in the impaired arm were active during extension of the legs ”

Note, this was done in stroke patients and in a similar study done by Ellis MD et al. used non stroke patients (um, normal people) they did not show a pattern in them (4).

Any Evidence In Non Stroke Patients?

In a very cool study from  Huang HJ,  et al. (6) published recently stated,  “We found increased muscle activation in passive lower limbs during active upper limb effort compared with passive upper limb effort. Likewise, increased muscle activation in passive upper limbs occurred during active lower limb effort compared with passive lower limb effort, suggesting a bidirectional effect”

English Please

While these neurologically intact (read = normal) people did an upper body movement, they saw increased muscle activation in a NON MOVING lower limb.    Back to our running example, try to move your arms in the wrong direction and it is really really hard.  It looks like our wiring is set to faciliate moving the opposite limb!

Can We Alter It?

Cortis C et al. (5) showed that interlimb coordination was better in soccer players, quote,  ”Regardless of age, soccer players always showed better performances (handgrip: 383 +/- 140 N; CMJ: 28.3 +/- 8.7 cm; IP: 55.2 +/- 12.9 s; and AP: 31.8 +/- 25.0 s) than sedentary individuals (handgrip: 313 +/- 124 N; CMJ: 21.0 +/- 9.4 cm; IP: 46.7 +/- 20.2 s, and AP: 21.1 +/- 23.9 s).  ”

While this is not the exact same thing, it is similar and appears to be trainable.  I know I am reaching a bit with these data here, but there is not one perfect study to directly point to any of this yet.  I think in the next 2-3 years (so someone is doing it right now) we will have a more exact study.

Enough With the Science!  Solution!

Back to our friend Dave and his bench rising from the dead from painful with the bar to 270 lbs in one session.

Note: If you have any medical issues, see your doctor.  I am not claiming to cure or fix anything that you have currently going on.  Don’t move through pain and see a professional!

For the sake of entertainment, here is the process I used for Dave to get his shoulder pain reduced.

My goal was to get him to bench heavy again in a short period of time.  It just so happens that when you get someone to move better, many many times (with acute pain) there pain levels drop dramatically.  As my buddy Frankie says “the body really cares most about FUNCTION – what can you do.”

Step 1

Find out what movement is painful.

This may take a bit of work, but you want to isolate the painful movement.  In Dave’s case, it was primarily left arm external rotation with his elbow bent.

Step 2

Do the EXACT opposite motion with the opposite joint

The opposite joint to the left shoulder is the RIGHT hip.  Heck, they even look scary similar as both are a ball and socket joint.

We know that LEFT arm EXTERNAL rotation with his elbow bent created the pain.
What is the exact opposite of that movement?

Do you have it?

Are you sure?

Correct!  Right hip internal rotation with a straight (not bent) knee (knee is the opposite to the elbow).

Step 3

Perform a joint mobility drill in the new position

So with his right hip internally rotated, knee straight, laying down, we had him create a circle at the hip joint (joint mobility) very slow, with no pain.  He did 3-5 reps in each (clockwise and counter clockwise) directions.

Step 4

Walk around for about 20 seconds, retest the painful motion

Any difference?

If they stare at you like a 2 headed purple space alien, you are on the right track.  Then yell at them “Never doubt my VooDoo”  That always helps!

I learned this method from Dr. Cobb initially in R Phase, so thanks again!

I Left Something Out

Come on back tomorrow for part 3 as we are still missing something.

Can anyone guess what it is?

The hint is in the first part of the article.    What other exercise do you think we had Dave do for his homework?  No, you can’t ask Dave directly (nice try).

Put your guesses in the comments below, and the winner gets a free 30 minute phone consult with me (valued at about $50).

Comments must be posted by tomororw Friday March 12 at midnight CST to be eligible. You may only enter once, but you can leave multiple comments and the latest comment you left will be used for your answer.  I will do my best to scan my spam folder too, but I can’t promise that if your comment ends up in there that I will find it (getting over 100 spams a day now).  Once comments are in, I will post the answer and the final installment of part 3 (so Sat AM).

Summary

Today we went on a tour of the body to show that it is all connected by both mechanical links (muscles, soft tissue, tendons, etc) and the nervous system.     We provided data to explain how it all works together, gave some demos for you to test it yourself, and provided you a possible solution to try on your own.

Your homework is

1) If you have an issue, try it out first and see if it works for you.   Do this on your own risk and if you have an issue, go see a doc!

2) Figure out what component we did not address yet and place your comment below.  Closest one get a free 30 minute phone consult from me.

I am excited to see how gets it!  Don’t worry, even if you did Z-Health training, you can still enter below too for the missing component.  In the event of a tie, the first one posted (by time stamp) gets it.

Rock on!
Mike T Nelson

REFERENCES

1) Logan, G., & McKinney, W. 1970. The serape effect. In Anatomic Kinesiology (2nd Ed., pp. 154-561). New York: William C. Brown, Co.

2) Publications for Biotensegrity at http://www.biotensegrity.com/index.php

3) Kline TL, Schmit BD, Kamper DG. Exaggerated interlimb neural coupling following stroke. Brain. 2007 Jan;130(Pt 1):159-69.

4) Ellis MD, Acosta AM, Yao J, Dewald JP. Position-dependent torque coupling and associated muscle activation in the hemiparetic upper extremity. Exp Brain Res. 2007 Feb;176(4):594-602.

5)  Cortis C, Tessitore A, Perroni F, Lupo C, Pesce C, Ammendolia A, Capranica L.    Interlimb coordination, strength, and power in soccer players across the lifespan.  J Strength Cond Res. 2009 Dec;23(9):2458-66.

6) Huang HJ, Ferris DP.  Upper and lower limb muscle activation is bidirectionally and ipsilaterally coupled.  Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009 Sep;41(9):1778-89.

PS

Get those answers in the comment section now before the clock his midnight on tomorrow (Friday, March 11) for a chance to win a free 30 min phone consult with yours truly!

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