Prevent Injury and Perform Better

  Here are some definitions that will help navigating this post. There are three planes of motion that our body moves in: sagittal, frontal and transverse.  Frontal is side to side movement, transverse is any type of rotating movement and sagittal is forward and back movements. Here is a picture which should help a little more.

                Now that you have a little schema on the subject I will let you know why you would want to train in these planes and not just in the traditional saggital plane.

Most every activity occurs in all three planes of motion: sagittal, frontal and transverse. Even though some movements are dominating in one of the planes of motion the others are still needed. Say you dropped something on the floor and you pick it up; let us say that you choose to pick it up in this manner.  

We all have done it, and let’s face it most of the time we do not have a golf club or something to help us balance. Yet we still do it, and if you look at the different planes you would say that this movement is in the sagittal plane. You would be right with, yet the other two planes of motion are also in play. The musculature of the legs, core and even upper body are battling to keep you moving in a straight line. The muscles that help you rotate in the transverse plane( core, and hip muscles) are actually stabilizing your knee and upper body so that it does not rotate, the same goes for the muscles that move you in the frontal plane( hip muscles, abductors), that are stabilizing you so that you do not tip over and fall.  So why do we still only train in the sagittal plane?

                The only reason that I can think of is lack of exposure and/or relevant information.  Which is the reason for this post, and even if people know about the different planes, they might not understand the importance of training in them. Two main reasons that I can think of are; to prevent injury, and to improve performance/ active life style.

                Weather you are trying to stay healthy for sports or to do some gardening, you need to prevent injury to continue to do what you enjoy. Training in different planes will allow your muscles to gain; strength, endurance, and be recruited when they are needed.  When doing a movement we would hope that all muscles that can help will, which is not always the case. When that happens injury is sure to follow.  View the clip bellow to see a great multi-planar exercise.

                Once your body is able to move in the different plans of motion it can actually produce force and give you  higher performance. Now who does not want more muscles doing their job. So look up more ways to train in different planes of motion and you will prevent injury and perform better.

#8 Peanut butter ( all- natural, sugar-free)

Superpowers: boosts testosterone, builds muscle, burns fat

Secret weapons:  protein, monounsaturated fat, vitamin E, niacin, magnesium

Fights against: obesity, muscle loss, wrinkles, cardiovascular disease

Sidekicks: cashew and almond butter

Imposters: mass-produced sugary and trans-fatty peanut butters.

Just incase the 12 power foods sliped your mind, here they are again.  

Almonds and other nuts

Beans and legumes

Spinach and other green vegetables

Dairy (fat-free or low-fat milk, yogurt, cheese)

Instant oatmeal (unsweetened, unflavored)

Eggs

Turkey and other lean meats

        Peanut butter

Olive oil

Whole-grain breads and cereals

Extra-protein (whey) powder

Raspberries and other berries

#7 Turkey and other Lean Meats ( lean steak, Chicken, fish)

Superpowers:  builds muscle, improves the immune system

Secret weapons:  protein, iron, zinc, creatine (beef, Omega-3 fatty acids (fish), vitamins b6 and b 12, phosphorus, potassium

Fights against: obesity, various disease

Sidekicks: shellfish, Canadian bacon

Imposters: sausage, bacon, cured meats, ham, fatty cuts of steaks like t-bone and rib-eye

Just incase the 12 power foods sliped your mind, here they are again.  

Almonds and other nuts

Beans and legumes

Spinach and other green vegetables

Dairy (fat-free or low-fat milk, yogurt, cheese)

Instant oatmeal (unsweetened, unflavored)

Eggs

· Turkey and other lean meats

Peanut butter

Olive oil

Whole-grain breads and cereals

Extra-protein (whey) powder

Raspberries and other berries

# 6 Eggs

Superpowers: builds muscle, burns fat.

Secret weapons:  protein, vitamin b 12, vitamin A

Fights against:  Obesity

Sidekicks: None

Imposters: None

Creatine ?

Creatine has been used as a legal supplement with the purpose of increasing; muscular power, strength, helping with cardiac therapy, and muscular size. There has been a grey area in the understanding of whether claims made by supplement companies are true or if they are scientifically based. One of the main concerns with any supplement is whether it is safe. Many scientific experiments have been performed and have stated the side effects of creatine, however, we must also understand that side effects can be viewed as positive or negative. Some side effects we will look into are increases in total body mass, fat-free mass, and skeletal-muscle mass, as well as muscle cramps, gastrointestinal complains, and liver dysfunction.

            Let’s take a look at some of the positive side effects that creatine has been shown to have.  According to (Francaux, M., & Poortmans, J. R. (2006), the response of creatine on total body mass as been shown to be the same whether the subject was active, an athlete, or one living a non active lifestyle. They also suggest that the response to supplementation was not reliant on a work-out routine, however, the effects would be more substantial with one set in place. Another positive effect would be that of fat-free mass and skeletal-muscle mass which has been seen to have a 12% increase in muscle volume with creatine supplementation. (2). We have also viewed 17% increase in muscle-fiber area(2).

           

            Now looking at some of the negative side effects that creatine has been shown to produce, such as muscle cramps, gastrointestinal complains, and liver dysfunction.  (Francaux, M., & Poortmans, J. R. (2006) In regards to muscle cramps, cramping can be effected by lack of adequate hydration and the intensity of activities being performed, and not creatine its self.  As for gastrointestinal complains, research has stated that some discomfort can come from supplementation, yet most coming from not mixing the supplement correctly.(2). However some studies have shown that abuse of the supplement can cause gastrointestinal issues, (Ostojic, S. M., & Ahmetovic, Z. (2008). If creatine is taken in the correct amounts and directions are followed, issues can be diminished, yet if taken excessively, diarrhea can become an issue. Finally, concerning liver dysfunction, there is no data that supports any claims that have been made in regards to oral supplementation of creatine and liver dysfunction in healthy individuals. (2). It has also been suggested that creatine supplementation does not affect liver function in highly trained football players.(3)

             The research indicates that creatine paired with a resistance training regiment can improve; agility, body weight and muscular power output (1). Which indicates that sports such football, soccer and baseball would benifit. However it has been shown that short-term use does not have the same effects as if supplementation was on a regiment of seven days and grater(5). Other activates that might benefit would be sprinting and other anaerobic activities. Also creatine has been shown to alleviate cardiac diseases, which in turn can benefit individuals that are interested in the physical activities stated. .(7)

           

            We must also take into consideration that there might be some physical activities that can be hindered with creatine supplementation. The increase of muscular mass and size across different joint can cause loss of range in that joint (6).  Activates that demand a greater range of motion such as, gymnastics, ballet, and cheerleading can be adversely effected by creatine. Whether an athlete or an individual that wants to be active, having an adequate joint range of motion is critical. The choice will ultimately come down to the athlete, which would have to weigh the positive and negative effects of supplementing with creatine .

         Take aways

        Creatine is a safe supplement for healthy individuals which have been seen by a medical professional and deemed healthy. The main things to understand is that research still has to be done and that if creatine is taken you must follow directions correctly and consistently.

           

References

1)    Arazi, H., Rahmaninia, F., Hoseini, K., & Asadi, A. (2011). EFFECTS OF THREE, FIVE AND SEVEN DAYS OF CREATINE LOADING ON MUSCLE VOLUME AND FUNCTIONAL PERFORMANCE. Serbian Journal Of Sports Sciences, 5(3), 99-105

2)    Francaux, M., & Poortmans, J. R. (2006). Side Effects of Creatine Supplementation in Athletes. International Journal Of Sports Physiology & Performance, 1(4), 311-323

3)      Mayhew, D. L., Mayhew, J. L., & Ware, J. S. (2002). Effects of long-term creatine supplementation on liver and kidney functions in American college football players. / Effets a lon terme de la prise de creatine sur le foie et les fonctions renales de footballeurs americains. International Journal Of Sport Nutrition & Exercise Metabolism, 12(4), 453-460.

4)    Ostojic, S. M., & Ahmetovic, Z. (2008). Gastrointestinal Distress After Creatine Supplementation in Athletes: Are Side Effects Dose Dependent?. Research In Sports Medicine, 16(1), 15-22.

5)    Rosene, J., Matthews, T., Ryan, C., Belmore, K., Bergsten, A., Blaisdell, J., & ... Wilson, E. (2009). Short and longer-term effects of creatine supplementation on exercise induced muscle damage. Journal Of Sports Science & Medicine, 8(1), 89-96.

6)      Sculthorpe, N., Grace, F., Jones, P., & Fletcher, I. (2010). The effect of short-term creatine loading on active range of movement. Applied Physiology, Nutrition & Metabolism, 35(4), 507-511.

7)    Webster, I., Huisamen, B., & Du Toit, E. F. (2011). Creatine and Exercise -- Strong Evidence for Stronger Heart Muscle?. Journal Of Exercise Physiology Online, 14(5), 85-108

Light Weight High Reps To Not Gain Size?

This has been one of the most misunderstood concepts in training. Many ( more gals than guys) think that lifting light weights for higher reps is the key to not gain size. This is completely opposite from what the science has found, if you open most strength and conditioning or exercise science text you will see that they touch on the subject of muscle growth also called hypertrophy. They all say that to add size, the muscle needed to be torn, those slight tears in the muscle will cause growth. The way that you get that growth is "time under tension" which means how long the muscle is being worked. There are 2 ways to get this tension:

1. Tempo- this has to do with the rhythm that you lift or lower a set weight. There are 3 muscle actions, concentric (shortening of muscle) , isometric (stabilization of muscle)  and eccentric (lengthening of muscle). Remember that grown comes from tearing the muscle, the eccentric or lengthening of the muscle is were the highest levels of muscle tearing happens. Which means if you extend the time that you lengthen a muscle the more growth you can see in time. For example, when performing a curl, try lifting the weight for a 2 count and than lowering it for a 8-10 count, for about 10 reps and you will see what I mean.

2. Volume- adding volume or changing the sets and reps in your workout is another way to get time under tension. This is were the statement that many believe about doing light weight for low reps gets debunked. The more volume your muscles are under the more tears will develop, which inherently will cause your body to adapt by adding muscle, which is size!! 

Why Do I Keep Getting Hurt?

Being able to understand how the Human Movement System works and how it can affect an individual’s performance is critical. Taking a look into the set up of the system, it has been shown that the joint support system, which is responsible for supporting the joints of the body, can be split into two different units, the local muscular system ( Stabilizers)  and global muscular systems ( Movement).

The local muscular system is comprised of stabilizers, or muscles that help keep a joint in place or limit movement.

 The global muscular system encompasses most of the major movement muscles and the muscles are more superficial.

With these two systems in mind one must have ideal functional posture, through and with the help of the systems mentioned, in order to have the least amount of stress on the kinetic chain. Dysfunction can come about through less than ideal posture, which has a systemic way of being identified.

To have ideal posture the individual would like to have a strong kinetic chain, the 3 links in that chain are

1.      Myofascial (muscular/ tissue/ length tension relationships/ reciprocal inhibition)

2.      Neural ( electrical impulses/ force couple relationships)

3.      Articular ( joint/ arthrokinematics)

A snag in a part of the chain can ultimately cause the start of the cumulative injury cycle. The worst case scenario if injury, poor posture, and/ or muscular imbalance are introduced into the human movement system is, reoccurring injury.

1. Myofascial

Let’s say that we have a volleyball player that has just suffered their first ankle sprain. It has been suggested that a lateral ankle sprain can be caused by limited range of motion in the sagittal plane (dorsiflexion)(2). Another study also found that strength in the plantar flexors also played a role in ankle sprains in volleyball players and in army recruits.(1, 3) It can be inferred that lack of strength in the dorsiflexors  or over active plantar flexors can be the issue. In this case a over active plantar flexor (i.e. gastrocnemius  and/or soleus) would be a dysfunction in the myofascial potion of the kinetic chain(1). This can also be referred to as a length tension relationship dysfunction. A muscle has a set length where it will be at its optimal functionality, and when that length is shortened, as it is in this case by an over active muscle, it can cause dysfunction. This can also lead to reciprocal inhibition, which is where the antagonist of the over active agonist will decrees the neural drive of the antagonist. This is a snag in the first of the 3 links.

2. Neural

Continuing with what could happen with this dysfunction, once the antagonist has decreased neural drive another phenomenon begins to surface, synergistic dominance. Synergistic dominance is the improper recruitment of synergistic muscles, or muscle that have the same function of that muscle, (neural chain) in this case it would be the dorsiflexors of the ankle.

3. Articular

The reason this is not ideal, is that the synergistic muscular that is know taking main stage is being over worked and can become over used and weak. This weakness of the dorsiflexors has been shown to limit range of motion in the ankle ( articular chain), which in some studies has been shown to cause ankle sprains (2).

The next post will review what one as an athlete, fitness client, or the sports trainer can do to help limit this from happening. Oh yeah I'm a Mavericks fan, hence the first image!!

References:

1. Hadzic, V., Sattler, T., Topole, E., Jarnovic, Z., Burger, H., & Dervisevic, E. (2009). Risk factors for ankle sprain in volleyball players: A preliminary analysis. Isokinetics & Exercise Science, 17(3), 155-160.
2.  M. de Noronha, K.M. Refshauge, R.D. Herbert, S.L. Kilbreath
and J. Hertel, Do voluntary strength, proprioception, range of
motion, or postural sway predict occurrence of lateral ankle
sprain? British Journal of Sports Medicine 40 (2006), 824–828.

3. R. Pope, R. Herbert and J. Kirwan, Effects of ankle dorsiflexion
range and pre-exercise calf muscle stretching on injury
risk in Army recruits, Australian Journal of Physiotherapy 44
(1998), 165–172.

# 5 Instant oatmeal ( Unsweetened, Unflavored)

Superpowers:  boosts energy, reduces cholesterol, and maintains blood sugar levels.

Secret weapons:  complex carbohydrates and fiber

Fights against:  heart disease, diabetes colon cancer, obesity

Sidekicks: high-fiber cereals

Imposters:  cereals with added sugar and high –fructose corn syrup

Mobility or Strength?

I had to ask this question to myself today as I was training with a new athlete. We where showing the front squat and had him do a few reps, and saw instantly that his ankles and knees caved. For most in the strength and conditioning sector you would start thinking of what is really going on. Mobility or strength? So does the ankle need strength or more range of motion, do the hips need more range of motion or do they need to be stronger? That is the main question. Let me break it down as easy as I can.
You need to know that the body is made up of many joints stacked on top of each other, starting at the bottom with the ankle joint going all the way to the shoulder and cervical spine. Starting at the bottom we will look at the Ankle, Knee, and Hip.

Ankle- inherently the ankle needs to have more range of motion than most people think. The ankle is a very complex joint that needs to be able to move around to give the force production, the force absorption, and the mobility for daily activity. Many think that strength is needed because someone rolled an ankle, more time than not mobility is needed in the joint because it is not moving correctly. The use of incorrect shoes, having flat feet, or having a structural issue can be reasons for not moving correctly.


Knee- The knee joint is the total opposite, the knee is meant to be stable, and most know this if they have torn any ligament or cartilage in their knees. The ACL, LCL, PCL, are all ligaments that help to stabilize the knee joint, yet they are only strong enough to hold so much. Know this is where it gets tricky, the ligaments are strong enough to hold great amounts of force, but when other joints are not in alignment ( ankle, hip ) they cause unwanted and forces that the ligaments in the knee where not made to handle. There are great strength programs for the knee, strengthening the VMO, and other things, yet this is not the key to stability. You always need to look at the joints above (hips) and below (ankle) for the answer. If your knees cave in like my new athlete, check the hip and the ankle and you will find your answer.



Hip- The hips are meant to be mobile, most of the time the hips are not mobile enough for everyday movement or correct movement. However not having correct muscle activation can cause incorrect movement. In the case of the hip in my new athlete he has sub par glute medius strength, how do I know this? I tested it :). We will show a video next post on this. This muscle has been over looked in many things, it is responsible for helping keep the hip in correct alignment for better positioning. When this muscle is not working correctly, the knees could turn in like my new athlete.


All this too say that if you test your athletes right when you start training you can see these things and train to correct them before they get out of hand. Next post we will talk about testing the athlete and what to do, and I will record him so you can see what I am talking about.

#4 Dairy ( Fat- Free or Low-Fat Milk, Yogurt, Cheese and Cottage Cheese)

Superpowers: builds strong bones, fires up weight loss.

Secret weapons: calcium, vitamins A and B12, riboflavin, phosphorus, potassium.

Fights against: osteoporosis, obesity, high blood pressure cancer

Sidekicks: none

Imposters: whole milk, frozen yogurt.



Best way to Burn Calories! HIIT and Don't Miss!!

HIIT - High Intensity Interval Training

HIIT is a form of interval training.

What is interval training?

         Alternating periods of work with periods of rest.  

What is Aerobic and Anaerobic mean?

        Simply the terms "aerobic" ,running slower longer periods of time, and "anaerobic", Short intense bouts of exercises, refer to the presence and absence of oxygen, respectively.

Why intervals? 

        In the Gibala  study, two groups were tested. It compared 20minutes of interval training 30sec on 4min off, compared to 90 -120 minutes of steady endurance heart rate zone, same improvements in oxygen utilization.(1)

A great app I have used in the past is this Tabata Timer, very easy to use. 

        This means that both groups had the same effect on there VO2 Max and one did more then half the work. So...

• Intervals develop aerobic capacity better then aerobic training.(1)

• The fastest way to raise VO2@ max, the standard measure of aerobic fitness, is through interval training.(1, 2)

Interval Methods

• Work to rest- uses a set time for work and a set time for rest 

Work to Rest ratio

:15-:45 (3-1)

:30-1:30 or :30-1:00 ( 3-1 or 2-1)

1:00-2:00 or 1:00-1:00 ( 2-1 or 1-1)

As the interval gets longer the recovery time does not need to be as long as it relates to the interval.

Why do people still do aerobic training?

• Easier then interval work, and interval training is hard.
• Slow steady jogging or walking for long periods of time ( aerobic) is all they know. 

 Why should people do aerobic training?

• Aerobic training helps beginners.
• If you are going to or want to do aerobic sports; 5k's, 10k's, half and full marathons.  
• The reality is that conventional aerobic training is only good to get a person fit enough to tolerate interval training (2)

        If you want to lose weight, and be in great shape, interval training is the way to go. Interval training is great if you are pressed for time and can be done effectively and safely in about 30 minutes. It is also a great way to compete with your training partner.

 References

1.Gibala Study

Journal of Physiology, “ Short Term Sprint Interval Versus Traditional Endurance Training: Similar Initial Adaptations in Human Skeletal Muscle and Exercise Performance Sept 2006, Vol 575 Issue 3

2.  Interval Training for Athletes and Clients: DVD, Micheal Boyle 2007