Archive for the ‘Common Injuries’ Category

What you need to know about “CORE” training

Sunday, March 28th, 2010

outer-unitWhen it comes to needing strength in your abdominal muscles everyone out there from Yoga Instructors, to Physical Therapist, to Personal Trainers and even Mds will tell you that you have to strengthen your core muscles.  What exactly does this mean and do these professionals have a complete understanding of what muscles make up the core?

We have been told over and over again that the in order to get a stronger core you need to do sit ups and crunches, this information isn’t false but it is missing other valuable information.  The core as we know it and how it has been taught to us is that it is just made up of your abdominal muscles.  This is not true.  Did you know that when it comes to core stability you have two systems that are made up of groups of muscles… these two systems are the inner unit and the outer unit.

The inner unit which provides segmental stabilization is made up your diaphragm, pelvic floor muscles, multifidus and the transverse abdominus.  The outer unit is made up of 4 other muscular systems sometimes described as slings and they are…The Deep Longitudinal System (DLS), Anterior Oblique System, Posterior Oblique System and the Lateral System.  Each of these systems is then made up of groups of muscles that provide us not only with stabilization but also become prime movers.

Deep Longitudinal System:  erector muscles of the spine, bicep femoris (hamstring muscle) and the peroneus longus muscle of the foot.

Anterior Oblique System:  Internal Oblique and contra-lateral external oblique and the contra-lateral adductor muscles (muscles of the inner thigh).

Posterior Oblique System:  Latissimus dorsi and contra-lateral glut maximus

Lateral System (fig 4):  Glut medius and minimus, ipsilateral (same side) adductors and contra-lateral Quadratus Lumborum

For some of you reading this, this may all sound foreign and a little over your head.  The point that I am trying to make is that when it comes to core stability and strength there are other muscular systems that need to strengthened and strengthened appropriately.  If you are someone who suffers from low back pain and have been given sit ups and crunches as exercises with no results you many want to find someone who understands these systems that I have written about.  Your body is a chain, a set of systems that are dependent upon one another and just as you can’t spot reduce for weight loss you can’t spot fix either.

If you would like to learn more about the inner and outer units I recommend reading Paul Chek’s book How to Eat, Move and Be Healthy.  You can also search for CHEK Practitioners in your area, CHEK practitioners have been educated on the systems above that I have spoke about and are taught to treat the person not just their parts.

 

Lori Metroka Yu

Nutrition & Wellness Specialist

CHEK Practitioner

Picture by http://www.coachr.org/outer_4.jpg

Reference http://www.coachr.org/outer_unit.htm

http://www.coachr.org/innerunit.htm

Personal training Los Gatos, Nutrition Coaching San Francisco, Chek Practitioner Los Gatos, Chek Practitioner San Francisco, Core strengthening, muscles of the core, how to exercise the core correctly, exercising the core correctly, core exercises, exercise tips for the core

Posted in Common Injuries, Exercise Tips, Prevention information | 2 Comments »

Constipation & Low Back Pain Connection

Saturday, March 13th, 2010

low-back-painDo you suffer from chronic low back pain?

Have you tried every modality out there with no relief?

Is your chronic low back pain worse some days than others?

Are your bowel movements inconsistent?  (Meaning you should have 2-3 movements daily 6″ or longer)

Are your stools difficult to pass or pebble like?

 

If you answered yes to any of the above questions then there is a very good chance that your chronic low back pain is coming from constipation, not because of something structural.  Let me explain.

When you do not have proper elimination of your bowels the contents within your intestines can build up leading to bad bacterial overgrowth, inflammation and pain.  When the intestines become inflamed/swollen they inhibit (stop) the abdominals from working.  The abdominals are important stabilizing muscles for the back and when they stop working do to inflammation your back has no support and now you are suffering from back pain.    Think of it this way you have a long garden hose that you tie off at one end.  You keep pushing water through it but it has no way out, overtime the hose tries to compensate by expanding, getting bigger and bigger, this is the inflammation in your body.  The majority of you out there that are currently suffering from chronic pain and inflammation are because of what you are putting into your body.   The American diet consists of C.R.A.P.  (Caffeine, refined sugars, alcohol and processed foods).    These foods offer no nutritional value and instead cause constipation.  Constipation overtime will lead chronic inflammation and chronic back pain and that is why many of you out there get no relief no matter what you do. 

There is good news to all of this and that is that you can reverse inflammation.  It will take some hard work on your end by changing your lifestyle but you need to ask yourself what’s more difficult, suffering from back pain or making lifestyle changes that overtime will make  you pain free, have more energy and possibly loose weight along the way.

Below is a list of tips that will help get you started to a healthier GI system:

  • A great place to start is your diet. Take a look at what you are eating day after day, writing it down will help immensely in helping you become aware of what non-foods you are putting into your body on a daily basis.
  • Drink more water: general rule of thumb is taking ½ of your weight and drink that many ounces of water. Dehydration alone will slow the bowels down and cause constipation.
  • Drink water upon rising. This helps to awaken the GI system and get things moving.
  • Replace foods that have a shelf life with real foods like fruits and veggies. These foods offer fiber that shelf-life foods do not.
  • Begin taking a high quality fish oil supplement: Fish oil offers healthy fats that become a lubricant for the intestines.
  • Begin taking a high quality probiotic: probiotics help to replace the bad bacteria with good.  Read our blog article “What are probiotics doing in your digestive tract”? for more information.
  • Exercise: Get yourself moving…when you move around it helps stimulate the intestines.
  • Mange your stress: Stress gets stored differently in all of us. Some of us hold stress in our shoulders, low back or belly region. Take a minute to see how much stress may also be contributing you’re unhealthy GI system.
  • Watch for food intolerances: when we eat foods that our body cannot tolerate this too can lead to bad bacterial overgrowth and inflammation. Signs of food intolerances can be anything from a headache, to gas, bloating diarrhea or constipation.

If you have any specific questions about the health of your GI system feel free to contact us for a consultation.   We can also assist you in food intolerance testing, gut testing or hormone testing.

Here is to a healthier you.

 

Lori Metroka Yu

Nutrition & Wellness Specialist

 

Picture supplied by www.media.rd.com

 

Gut testing San Francisco, hormone testing Los Gatos, Causes of Constipation, Leaky gut syndrome, Personal Training Los Gatos, Personal Training San Francisco, Nutrition Coaching Los Gatos, Nutrition Coaching San Francisco, Nutrition Workshop in the bay area

Posted in Common Injuries, Digestive Health, Hormone Health, Nutrition Tips, Prevention information, Stress, Weight Managment | 1 Comment »

Benefits of Cod Liver Oil

Friday, February 26th, 2010

Omega-3 for youCod liver oil is beneficial  as a dietary supplement for many reasons:

  • It promotes heart health and normal cholesterol balance
  • Supports immune system health, mood, memory, joint health, blood sugar health and helps to relieve stress
  • Helps to increase energy level and promote cognitive function
  • Provides immune system support
  • Aids in regulating cell growth
  • Supports a strong skeletal system
  • Supports a healthy inflammatory response

Cod liver oil is able to provide all of these great health benefits because it contains Omega 3 oils.  Omega 3 fatty acids also contain DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid), EPA (Eicosapentaenoic acid) and ALA (Alpha-Linolenic Acid).  All are important and therefore when purchasing Cod Liver oil make sure what you are purchasing contains all of the above.

Essential fatty acids are essential to your health and one important item to understand is that your body does not make them on its own and therefore supplementation is recommended.  There are many brands on the market and  each distributor manufactures  fish oil differently, some better than others.  Therefore, when purchasing brands you should look for the following:

  • Make sure your brand is free of mercury, PCBs and other contaminants.
  • Confirm low oxidation levels in the fish or cod liver oil.
  • Check that your fish or cod liver oil contains vitamin E.
  • The taste test - lemon flavoring adds a fresh taste.

Fish oil is very safe to take however contraindications are below:

  • If you have been diagnosed with the relatively uncommon condition of sarcoidosis, you should rigidly avoid sunshine and vitamin D.
  • If you are allergic to shellfish, have a blood coagulation condition, or are taking anticoagulants such as Warfarin (Coumadin®), do not use fish oil.
  • Cod liver oil contains both Vitamin A and D and over consumption of any supplement is never a good thing. Therefore, you many want to get your levels checked before taking fish oil as a supplement.

 

Lori Metroka, Nutrition & Wellness Specialist

Reference:  www.mercola.com/cod-liver-oil.htm

Los Gatos nutrition coaching, San Francisco nutrition coaching, Los Gatos Personal Training,

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Common Injuries, Digestive Health, Hormone Health, Nutrition Tips, Prevention information, Vitamin D information | 2 Comments »

Repetitive movement injuries

Saturday, January 16th, 2010

neck painTime and time again we see so many people coming into our studios with complaints of aches and pains.  Pain in their necks, shoulders and low backs are generally what is seen.  After spending some time with our clients both verbally as well as observing their posture and movement we find one common denominator and that is…repetitive movement syndrome. 

What is repetitive movement syndrome?  Well just as the name states it, it is the same movement done over and over again that over time leads to muscle tightness, poor posture, over use of the musculature involved, muscle weakness and eventually injury.  I would like to you stop for a moment and just ask yourself these few questions…

Do you carry a purse, briefcase, bag etc on the same side of your body every time?

Do you perform the same exercises/routine at the gym over and over again?

Do you perform the same activity/sport daily/weekly? (I.e. you love to bike and therefore that is all you do.  You perform no other forms of exercise such as stretching, yoga or weight training)

Do you spend countless hours at a desk or in front of the computer?

Do you have a job that requires the same movements daily such as a hairdresser, cashier clerk, dentist etc?

Repetitive movement injuries can be rehabilitated with great success and therefore if you are someone suffering from a repetitive injury you should seek care for it immediately before the situation gets worse.  Rehabilitating a repetitive injury takes skill and therefore one needs to not only have the skill to visually see the mis-alignment but also needs to have an understanding of anatomy and body mechanics other wise they can make the situation worse.  Individuals who have the skill set for this situation would be…Physical Therapists, Kinesiologists, Chiropractors and C.H.E.K. Practitioners. Personal Trainers can also be of help however make sure they have studied anatomy and understand it.  If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact us at www.replenishingsoul.com/blog .

 

 

 

 

 

Personal training los gatos, personal training san Francisco, nutrition coaching los gatos, nutrition coaching san francisco, corrective exercise, physical therapy

Posted in Common Injuries | 2 Comments »