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Massage, Recovery, and Massage Sticks

If you can’t afford a daily massage, then I recommend at least a weekly massage as a bare minimum.  A good therapist will cost anywhere above $70 USD per hour.  I find 1 hour insufficient for the lower body, so my sessions are usually 75 or 90 minutes long.
$70 bucks may be pretty steep for […]

How Much Sleep Do We Need? Use REM Cycles

Once again, with standard time approaching and daylight savings time ending, you actually gain an extra hour of sleep and that alone can screw up your sleeping patterns.
At least temporarily.
But what about oversleeping?  How many people, especially teenagers, sleep over 10 hours a day?  WebMD carried an article on Physical Side Effects of Oversleeping.
So the […]

More Natural Painkillers - MSM and Celadrin

I am currently based about 40 minutes north of Rome in a town called Nepi.
Nepi is famous for their natural bubbly spring water (Acqua di Nepi) where locals can bring their empty bottles and fill them up for free between the hours of 2-6pm.  The bubbly water tastes like Perrier but the price is right.  […]

Foam Roller Exercises to Strengthen Hamstrings?

GoFit 6-Inch by 18-Inch Foam Roller with Core Performance DVD
I am a big advocate of using foam rollers and tennis balls for self massage when on the road or when I simply don’t have access to my massage therapist.
I covered the topic of foam rollers in a variety of past articles:

Self […]

Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate - Hope or Hype?

Let me go on record with this fact:
Once injury or osteoarthritis has occurred on a soft tissue such as your shoulders, knees, elbows or Achilles, there is NO magic pill to fix the athletic injury.  Lower back pain also fall in this same category.
That pain and damage you feel is from weeks or months or […]

25 Travel Tips for Long Flights

With the upcoming meets in Lahti Finland (WMA) or Sydney Australia (WMG), some of you may be making trans-oceanic flights anywhere from 6 to 20 hours long.
So here is a huge list to take with you.
The 3 most important things are staying hydrated, good food, and sleep especially if you are traveling West to East. […]

Treating Sore Muscles - Try Arnica or Traumeel

At every indoor meet, I still remember vividly the scent of Ben-Gay in the locker rooms.  Now combine that smell of muscle rub ointment, sweat and the musty locker room, and you can guarantee that rancid combination is a smell you’ll never forget.
Depending on your country, famous brands other than Ben-Gay (recently changed to […]

Speed and the Masters Sprinter

Speed decreases with age.  That’s a fact of life.  Check the World Records in different age groups if you don’t believe me.
I call it "The Law of Attrition".
I used a random sample of the 2007 WMA results in Ricionne, using the M40 – M65 5 year age groups as my sample pool:

100m 0.4 seconds […]

Low Level Laser Therapy for Pain and Injuries

Low Level Laser Therapy is also known as Cold Laser Light Therapy, or Low Intensity Laser Therapy.  This is not to be confused with the Far Infrared Radiation “heating healing” pads which treats another set of ailments.  I’ll cover that in another article.
Last year, I was fortunate and unfortunate to experience this alternative form of […]

Rest and Taper After a Maximal Performance – Thoughts on Tyson Gay

We all know to rest and taper BEFORE the big meet.  That is just common sense.  For a good review, check out Derek’s 10 Day taper DVD.
Here are two of many guidelines I like to use for my sprinters:

10 day taper AFTER a major Personal Best or World Record.
5-7 100 meter races before […]

What Causes Shin Splints, How to Prevent them, and Treatment

What Causes Shin Splints, How to Prevent them, and Treatment

What are shin splints?

Shin Splints is more common in distant runners than sprinters, but I’ve seen long sprinters and 800 meter runners get shin splints from too much volume, especially “intensive tempo” interval training.

In short, it is caused by overuse and abuse.

The term “shin splints” refers […]

Product Review: Globus Premium Sport Plus Electronic Muscle Stimulator

This article was guest blogged by Derek M. Hansen of Running Mechanics.com. Derek is also the Head Coach of our Metro Athletic Club.

Having used electronic muscle stimulator (EMS) technology for over 12 years for both personal and professional applications, I am always on the lookout for innovations with this type of technology. There […]

Mens Athletic Compression Shorts and Benefits

In our 2009 BC Strength Fitness and Conditioning Conference, Dr. Donald Chu gave a wonderful presentation of Recovery and Regeneration.

He gave an overview of the 3 main restorative means for Recovery and Regeneration.

Physical (Passive and Active)
Medical (Pharmacological, Psychiatric, Surgical, Nutritional)
Psychological

One of the items he briefly mentioned was the rising use of compression shorts.

Our Bobsledders have […]

PRECOVERY - Improving Performance with Tart Cherries

This article was written by Marie Spano, MS, RD, CSCS

Traditional Post-exercise Recovery

There are many factors that can influence an athlete’s success: for example, strength and conditioning, sport specific training, nutrition, rest and recovery all play important roles. However, the least well-known but arguably most important aspect is recovery. Athletes who routinely push their physical limits […]

Blood Doping vs. Platelet-Rich Plasma PRP Therapy

Like any good thing in life, you can use it or abuse it.

Somewhere, somehow, you have to draw the line.

Take for example blood doping.

(1) You draw the athlete’s blood, centrifuge it (i.e. rotate it) at high speed, separating the red blood cells (RBC) from the plasma.

(2) Your body will produce its own red blood cells […]

Static vs. Dynamic Stretching on Vertical Jump and Standing Long Jump

Here is some original research from the Department of Physical Therapy, Wichita State University, that further proves why a Dynamic Warm Up may be better than Static Stretching. For a brief introduction, see the article on Dynamic Warm Up vs. Static Stretching Controversy.

The original research article can be found here (PDF)

Introduction

Our research study looked […]

Dynamic Warm Up vs. Static Stretching Controversy

Somehow, when the NY Times speaks, everyone listens. This stretching article was referenced in many Blogs with mixed reactions. Earlier this month, they had an article on Relaxation - The Key to Victory and Success. While this was not a landmark or pillar article, it did mention Clyde Hart which caught my […]

Preventing ACL Injuries Videos

LA84foundation.org is the web site for the Legacy of The 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games that has several excellent Free Track and Cross Country Coaching Books.

There is a web-based lesson for athletes, coaches, trainers and parents on how to prevent ACL injuries. While it may appear to focus on soccer, it applies to any […]

Copper, Magnetic and Titanium Bracelets - PhysioBalm

This is Part 2 of a 3 part article. Part 1 can be found here.

Do you love Heavy Metals? No, I am not referring to the music bands.

I previously wrote about the big surge of sales for Titanium products, particularly bracelets and necklaces. I’ll feature magnets in an upcoming post, but one […]

Yoga, Resistance Stretching, and now Pilates Exercise?

I had a funny feeling Pilates was going to be popular with Track and Field athletes one day, along with the Alexander technique. In the personal fitness industry, we’ve seen the fad go from step classes, spinning bicycles, Tae-Bo, Bikram Yoga, kettlebells, swiss balls, bosu balls and other “core” fads.

I personally like good old-fashion […]

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