Archive for Health and Fitness
Diversify Your Movement Portfolio [Updated]
Posted by: | CommentsDifferentiated movement patterns provide a key to unlock yourself from whatever repetitive, compensated motions, exercises or the lack thereof you no longer engage in.
Since no two people have the same structure, let alone movement patterns, history of injuries, etc. We find ourselves subject to the very movement habits we’ve learned and continue to practice.
Without changing those patterns, you can just run yourself into the ground.
Running or lifting more, doesn’t do anything to increase the intelligence of your movement. Challenging the diversity in your movement changes the nature of how well you can articulate your joints or move your spine.
Somatic Exercises work with your brain since your brain thrives on novelty. It’s in this novelty that we approach this system of movement with differentiation or diversification of your movement portfolio.
If you think of movement as a system, your brain needs different stimulus until it finally integrates the work or explorations of your movement into a more cohesive movement system which can be changed or updated at any age.
Somatics moves into the specificity of your motor-sensory system so that you’re able to re-program your capacity and potential to move as effectively as you can.
At some point, you have to create and plan your movements, then you practice until they get stored as learned patterns so you no longer have to think about it.
Think About This
If we stop playing in this natural realm of evolving our movement patterns, are we bringing the entropy and decline within ourselves at a greater rate?
As children, no one had to tell us to move.
As adults, we are a nation of overweight, couch potatoes ever limiting our movements to a desk, office, room, automobile, and possibly sitting in front of a television set for hours at a time.
Your brain is getting wasted in terms of its capacity to grow via movement and the conscious use of the motor-sensory system. We are putting the brakes on our own evolutionary process in terms of the ability of our joints, the movement of our muscles, and the usefulness of our bones.
How are we going to improve our movement portfolio?
You can’t get there by sitting there, nor can you improve by repeating the same patterns over and over.
OK, you could visualize movements or do them with incredibly subtlety in the manner of many somatic traditions which focuses on sensory awareness and different ways to move.
When you have to closely pay attention to your movements with a conscious awareness, then you are engaging in the process of voluntary movement which is rather complex.
Look at how these muscles are grouped as a system.
This system and the overlapping systems need to used, refreshed, and rested appropriately for long term health.
With injuries (small and large) or the same posturing day in and day out, this can continue to further our decline and decreases the value of your movement portfolio.
We can keep moving the way we always have or you can pay attention to your movements with a keener awareness which affords you a glimpse into the many different ways you can manipulate yourself and do so comfortably.
If you don’t, your brain will just check out and leave the possibilities in the dust bin leading to an eroding value in your movement’s funds.
Creating and recreating new neural pathways leads your brain towards health, vibrancy and it’s need to continue to learn.
You’ve got 600 muscles which require use or some attention among the various levels even if it means simply giving attention to your hamstrings and how they relate to the various layers of your muscles and movement system.
Can this be done on your own?
Yes! If you’re paying attention as you once did as a child by sensing your movements and being delighted by the sheer feelings of movement itself.
It’s a shame and a sham that many adults can no longer feel truly comfortable for any length of time.
I often hear of the aches and complaints of why I can’t do this or that or I gotta get in better shape. The answer is simple and lies within us.
So if you go back to the well of where things began, that is on the floor and go back to the natural process of restoration. Your brain can re-wire, re-adapt itself, and you can continue your evolutionary process of well-being even if things have gone a little south over time.
Who knows? You may even increase the value of your movement portfolio so you won’t remain sedentary, desk-bound, home bound, injury ridden and add to decay.
Evolve, Evolve, Evolve Otherwise Decay at Your Own Peril
You can utilize the brain in a conscious, differentiated manner so you can move easily and freely with patterns your brain is perfecting and changing.
Diversify your movement portfolio and imagine the wealth and vitality you can live with since the brain is changeable.
Somatics exercises uses a natural movement process (that we’ve known about since the time of Aristotle) in which today you play with conscious differentiated movement patterns that we’ve mapped out. It may be just the thing you can do to remain vital.
Diversify your movement portfolio and find out for yourself what can happen.
Body and Balance (Revised)
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A loss of balance can happen even if we’re messing around with our body.
Balance can seem elusive at times since it can be affected by a number of factors.
1 – Compensations such as shoulders rolling forwards, palm facing backwards, bent knees, a slumping chest or even having a bad day can happen enough to begin to form such a posture over the long run.
2 – This can lead to discomforts in the chest or upper back where high stress levels can put the weight of our world on our shoulders and can prevent us from reaching states of comfortable balance.
While we might attempt to straighten up, the weight of what is going in internally can continue to undermine us.
3 – Bad life (fun) events such as being a Cleveland Browns sport fan like I am, who for the past 50 years, have lost incredibly more than we’ve won (especially lately). C’mon Brownies!
Those losses can a negative effect on the brain and body since I know how my shoulders can slump over yet another loss.
Letting go of bad (fun) events can be difficult since we can go to that sinking (movement) feeling over and over.
Over time, if we’re not careful or don’t have a way of letting life’s (self-imposed fun) stresses leave or get calmed down, the brain can reinforce our (negative) emotions.
So life and how we participate in it can affect us and challenge our internal balance since the brain can get altered over the course of the long run.
Plus, there are any number of other factors such as dealing with diseases, what we eat, our environment, and the small and large negative life events which can lead to the brain going haywire to keep us out of balance.
A Way to Restore Balance
One way to restore balance (and change the brain) is to employ mindful, conscious, easy movement where you tap into the brain’s ability to reset tension levels thus leaving you feeling calmer and more refreshed.
See you can find a safe zone – where you’re reasonably comfortable (or at least do the best you can given your circumstances) because this is the place where positive change can happen.
Even if you live in states of chronic pain, high tension or stress, there can be a small place where there is comfort or safety when it comes to doing a mindful movement.
Simply put, you gotta start from where you are to discover where those places can be.
Doing vs. Feeling
See, the “doing” of a movement is one thing.
Another is when you also pay attention to the “feel or sensing” of any number of movement actions taking place during a specific movement.
This may not be obvious to outside observer since this is an area you have to feel and self-observe within yourself.
When you direct the mind and body together while targeting the brain’s motor cortex in a specific manner, you can enhance one of nature’s most potent acts to restore the body in order to re-balance.
Not Exercise in the Usual Manner
This is a far different approach than regular exercise where that is “more about doing”.
Mindful movement is about feeling and sensing smaller movements or movement adjustments while noticing certain either a grand or minute orchestration of a particular movement.
Q.O.M vs R.O.M.
You simply notice the inherent quality of your own movement taking place.
Again, this may not be what we usually tune into since we tend to go for range of motion (ROM) rather than quality of motion (QOM).
Since the movement system involves any number of layers of muscles and fascia – which actually has more sense receptors than the muscles – there can be a lot of information to process, be aware of, and simply explore from a qualitative view rather than the end goal of moving to one’s end limit.
This more mental-feeling embodied approach can augment other physical types of activities in order to rebalance our faster or hectic pace of life.
You can recharge in a more playful and intelligent manner.
See, this can be done in a lazy, gentle, yet highly tuned in or focused approach where you learn to dissolve tension so balance naturally returns giving you back control.
8 Somatics Tips for Balance
Somatics, defined as the body experienced from within, covers many areas and here are some everyday useful tips you can use when you do easy, mindful movements such as somatics exercises to help restore balance.
You can also apply this to other forms of exercise too.
1. Move with the least effort
This often goes against many people’s idea of how to exercise, yet when we live in discomfort, this naturally makes more sense.
Even if you are highly active, you can pay attention to your movements by noticing your sense of effort rather than pushing with your efforts.
Again, this has more to do with noticing the quality of movement itself.
This slight difference in attention can make a big difference to help healing, recovery and living in an easy, flexible, fluid moving body.
2. Breathe with your movement
Since we tend to go on autopilot when it comes to breathing, becoming aware of breathing and how this is impacting our sense of effort or the quality of a movement can be quite revealing.
You can use your breath differently and explore the differences it can make when you shift your awareness.
You can do a movement and notice how you are breathing.
Do the same movement and hold you breath to feel or notice how this can impact the quality or feel.
Reverse your breath in terms of how you would normally think to do it as this can also affect a movement or the quality of feeling it too.
3. Move as a system not as a muscle
The big muscle–the brain–sends messages to the muscles and receives back information in our sensory-motor feedback loop.
When we become aware of how intimately involved our sense and level of effort is involved, that exploration can improve overall body balance since you’re tuning in to how you are connected throughout your entire body.
Once again, the “quality of a movement” and what you notice or feel lets us process or feel sensations which lie beneath the surface (where we ordinarily may not go by doing a movement).
4. Thoughts can affect movement and impact our body and balance
Simply sit and think.
Conjure up a thought and feel how your muscles respond.
As you do any exercise or movement, choose to think a thought and feel how your body responds.
You can play with different emotions to feel how your body responds as you move.
What does a thought or state of emotion do to what you feel as you move?
Can you tune in your sense of muscles turning on or off during a particular movement, exercise or simply noticing or feeling from a quality viewpoint while sitting or standing?
5. Comfort is king
Any small adjustment such as using a pad or pillow can alleviate any struggle (with tension) when it comes to positioning ourself for a movement, exercise or simply sitting or lying down for that matter.
There’s no need to tough it out.
A slight adjustment of an angle or body position may be the necessary thing to do so our body can be as comfortable as possible at that moment.
Of course, I get it if you live in states of chronic pain so experiment and find out what works for you.
When you are more comfortably propped, this can let you more fully experience yourself rather than taking away your focus in a movement or exercise because some of the tension can lessened in the moment.
6. An exercise can’t hurt us
People will tell me they tried a certain exercise or even our gentle somatics exercises and hurt them self or say – “that exercise hurt me”.
It’s not the exercise or movement, it’s simply that our brain can respond in a programmed way.
If we try to force our body (and it doesn’t have to be much of an effort), it can naturally react and pull itself back quickly since it will want to protect itself, especially if it is in an injured or chronic state or we’re early in healing.
Even a random, thoughtless or thoughtful movement or exercise can turn up tension levels so pain signals can be ramped up if we over do it or rev it up too fast–even if we didn’t intend to.
This is the tricky part to getting back to the comfort zone on a more permanent basis.
So it’s normal to err back into the pain program while learning how to get the brain to change.
So any arbitrary movement or exercise can seem to lead us to flinching, wincing or holding our breath, for instance.
Get Back to the Fundamentals & Quality of Movement Itself
To learn how to re-navigate our internal terrain of our movement system successfully is where we simply go back to the fundamentals and building blocks of movement itself.
… and if we pay attention to the quality of movement rather than the range of the movement, you will benefit with more internal awareness on the road to more lasting comfort.
“If” we bump into discomfort during any movement, exercise or exertion, we can use that information to bring our body and balance back as quickly as possible.
I’m not saying this is easy at first glance or first try, however, you can regain control of the brain by observing the quality morso than the quantity of movement or exercise.
See, more often than not, our compensations and habits of movement get us to bump the pain switch on – even if we don’t mean to – though this can be reversed with a more mindful approach which will have its normal course of learning to readjust.
So it’s both what you do and how (qualitatively) you do it.
You can change the quality of your movement in order to successfully exercise and comfortably move about.
7. Imagination is the least effort
In difficult times, you can use your ability to imagine a movement or exercise.
It’s highly likely you won’t hurt yourself using this approach, even though–sometimes just getting to the position of a movement or exercise can test our limits.
So to imagine or eke out even a micro-movement, can start the process to get the brain to change the body’s negative response to a more pleasureable response of calming feelings, restoration and healing.
Since it might seem like you’re not doing much with small or micro-movements to the point of imagining a movement, this counter-intuitive approach of doing less, wakes up the nervous system since the brain doesn’t know the difference between you imagining a movement and doing it.
-Try this: Imagine this movement taking place. (You can even close your eyes if you want to after you’ve read it).
-Sit. Bring your ear to your shoulder slowly. Then imagine the ear and shoulder moving away from each other.
- Now that you have the idea.
– Go ahead and actually do the movement.
- How did the actual (entire) movement feel as compared to your imagination of the (entire) movement???
- Did it feel the same or a little different? Only you will know.
Unleash Your Imagination
Only you will know (and feel) where you comfort zone is.
Only you will know (and feel) what you sensed.
Only you will know whether you were able to feel a shift down in your hips or weight in your feet.
And if you didn’t feel a thing – that’s merely sensory information where you may have some SMA.
The least of efforts
See when we shift to what I’ll call the “least of efforts” in terms of doing a movement, i.e. imagining a movement.
This might reveal more from a slow purposeful internal observation and provide keys to successfully getting out of a particular body-mind jam.
Successful athletes have used imagination and visualization techniques for quite some time.
You can do the same by simply visualizing and feeling to the best of your ability – what it might feel like to move by not moving.
When you spend the Somatics time – tuning in as deeply as you can – this can become a highly interesting, fun, focused and mindfully effortless way to regain balance in the body.
8. Pain is our greatest teacher and gives us back our body and balance
In the practice of somatics exercises, you learn how to wield pain and discomfort to your advantage.
Pain is treated as a signal that you can change, intensify or dissolve since you can use the brain and body to change the output of tension levels through various feedback loops of information.
With a little practice and familiarity of a simple 3 step method which mimics one of nature’s acts to reset tension levels, negative experiences can move towards more comfort and pleasure with a little internal know-how.
Once the brain remembers that it can produce more positive feel-good sensations, you’re well on your way to restoring and maintaining balance.
Somatics Body and Balance Movements
Somatics exercises were initially designed to help heal, resolve pain, and lower tension and stress.
Since these types of gentle movements are mindful and involve the brain’s motor cortex, they fall under the category of motor control exercises and mindful based stress reduction.
These are now proven to be “the first thing to do to relieve pain”.*
In general, somatics exercises work with many different lifestyles, circumstances, issues and with different types of pain, stiffness, discomfort, and injury all leading to increased levels of comfort.
Plus, they are now used by “somatic” athletes to prepare the body and help restore it after vigorous activity.
As a matter of fact, many “somatic” athletes have entirely given up stretching since they’ve learned how the brain is the one big muscle to regain control while at the same time restoring comfort levels.
General enthusiasts now have learned to consciously maintain comfortable levels of range of motion (without going for it) and are naturally flexible feeling more control and balance to boot.
It’s really up to you to go inside and take control of:
• your brain and your own awareness,
• mindfulness,
• breathing,
• coordination,
• tension levels,
• comfort
• and the effortless effort which allows a fluid body to Move Easily and Restore Balance.
Recapturing the feelings of childlike, easy movement happens since this is kinda like coming back to youthful memory patterns which are buried in the brain.
You have the ability to restore this or enhance it by reconnecting the brain and body from within.
The brain can be programmed to bring the body back to its natural state of comfort and pleasure.
This is what we do in the Somatics Un-Exercise Classroom.
This is where we explore conscious movement to learn more about how we are connected (or not) and we relearn and remind ourself to easily move from the inside out.
Simple (yet powerful) conscious movement patterns which can boggle the mind and leave the body refreshed, restored and in balance for more happy days ahead!
* 2017 ACP (American College of Physicians)
Simple Differentiation of the Spine
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When our back is out of whack, we can use the brain and our conscious attention to release held tension to restore comfort.
A simple differentiation of the spine where we pay attention to the feelings or sensations – along with the quality of a simple targeted movement – can set us up to relieve morning stiffness and ready the back for the day.
Plus, it’s a great way to free things up later on if we feel it’s necessary.
The spine is designed to extend and flex so it’s vital to remind the spine of its capacity so the rest of our body can move more easily.
When things are tight, stiff or off kilter in the middle (the spine), then certain muscles get pulled one way or the other — and this lower brain program can hold us in check.
Listen and follow along to this tuning into the spine and simple intentional movement.
Was it easy for you to feel your spine in the manner described?
If we don’t check in every now and then, the brain is very clever and begins to shut down which is why it might have not been easy for some of you to get a clear picture or set of feelings.
That’s ok. With a few reminders and a little practice, you are waking up the brain’s command center.
If you did feel a little fidget or jerky quality that is very useful in order to regain control.
If you felt a twinge of pain or discomfort, then it’s time for a tuneup so your back can feel good and in control.
We do that using what is called somatics exercises which are generally done in such a lazy, easy and yet focused manner so that brain’s motor cortex is targeted.
When you get it down pat, the upper brain frees up the lower brain program of keeping things held in check so you can feel comfort and natural flexibility restored.
Simple differentiation to wake up both the brain and body
That easy movement (which may not always be easy if the spine isn’t cooperating) is part of a movement pattern to help wake up the brain’s cerebrospinal fluid so that brain bucket gets a little movement hello.
That Sitting Thing
If you’re in the unfortunate position of having to sit all day long, for instance, at work.
No matter if you do regular exercise, that may not be enough to change the known ill counter effects of sitting for too long.
See, certain muscles are getting programmed to be switched off and the brain will go – ok I’ll turn that department off.
Later in the day you might feel that gnawing sensation creeping in.
We can get so used to those sensations that we can bury them since we gotta do things in life – until they remind us once again.
Standing up is a simple differentiation which can help
Simply standing up every 20 minutes when you sit, will wake up the muscles so they don’t get used to checking out.
If you have a job where you can’t – like being a driver for instance – then you can mindfully do the easy spinal differentiation movement seated to remind the spine that it can extend and flex.
Otherwise, certain back muscles can go to sleep and begin to be trained to be useless and the brain can start to give us the signal of pain
Good news is.
Just get up and stand or be aware of how you are sitting and adjust your position consciously.
To further vary that – stand on one leg or walk around for a minute or so. Then you can sit back down.
Differentiate Your Way to Comfort & Freedom
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Even as I type a blog post such as this, I too am mindful of how sitting for too long in the same way can have the brain and body go to sleep even while I am sedentarily active in this manner.
This is why I will vary the sitting position or move mindfully to keep things fluid.
If you’re gonna keep sitting, then at least sit differently or be mindful of how you can shift your spine around.
Maintaining Comfort
All that tension we keep taking on in life, can be remedied with simple mindful movements to disperse, renew and refresh both the brain and body.
Yep, it’s really, really that simple to maintain life long comfort.
By refreshing the spine with your awareness, you can reset your muscles throughout the day, especially when they get amped up with too much tension.
At the same time, you improve the function of the brain by taking a full-brainer of a moment where you tune into movement done with awareness.
Simple differentiation movement classes
Life is movement and movement becomes easier when you can do any number of simple conscious differentiations with the central part of yourself, your spine.
And if you can get enough of these on a daily basis, then sleep becomes easier so you wake up feeling refreshed and not wiped out getting back in the grind of life.
We’d love for you to join us to learn as many simple differentiations as you’d like to remain comfortable for life.
Let me know what you thought of the movement and how your body responded
7 Tips to Get You out of Back Pain (update)
Posted by: | CommentsBack pain or stiffness is quite common over the age of 40.
So what can us older stiffer duffers do about it?
Tuning into the brain will actually help.
Easy, simple movements where you tune into the quality of movement or the nature of movement itself enhances your brain and body.
Today we know more about the brain and how it can change which means that our brain can change feelings of stiffness or reverse pain.
Rigid tension or harmful stress can be melted so we can feel more pliable, flexible and a return of pleasurable feelings.
Here are 7 tips to help us get the back… back to feeling great.
1. Use it consciously or lose it unconsciously
Many of us take our back for granted since we’ve mostly forgotten about tuning into the spine (unless it’s stiff or aching).
This unconscious behavior happens over time since we aren’t tuning in enough, until there is an issue.
The spine’s ability is enhanced when you give it some attention with your conscious awareness.
All it takes is just noticing whatever activity you are doing for a few movements and hone in on your spine.
Notice how your spine feels when you move around.
If feeling the spine is fuzzy or isn’t clear, simply tune in from the top of the spine to the bottom or vice versa.
This is just sensory information to be aware of and will wakeup the brain and body.
2. Move your spine in a variety of directions
Sounds reasonable, but who is actually thinking it through and then doing it afterwards.
If we keep using the spine the same way day in, day out. Then we set a program in the brain of what muscles are being used and others which are not.
The brain grows when you give it something different such as tuning into your spine when you move.
You up the level of the connection when mindfully bending, flexing, and twisting in a variety of ways.
3. Being sedentary or sitting too long works against us
You’ve probably heard that sitting for too long is the new smoking. Well kinda sorta since you can sit comfortably for long periods – if you are aware.
Go team!
Sitting for long periods can undermine us since we can be unconsciously programming the brain and muscles to certain contractions, tension patterns or pulls of the spine – and before you know it they are held in check.
A key is to vary how you sit.
Plus, get up more often than you think, especially if you feel stiff or tension creeping in.
With back pain, mindful movement and awareness is paramount since this can free us while you cheer to your heart’s delight.
4. Wake-up your spine with gentle mobilizations
Easy, gentle small movements helps to rebuild and maintain the capacity of the spine.
The more gentle you are, the better you can tune into both – the how of how you are moving – and what the feelings in your back provide as feedback.
Certain neurological feedback loops can be targeted to enhance your ability to free up the back.
So let your back warm up easily and gently – and feel as much as you can in terms of how your spine can adjust (or not) before going full bore with the rest of your day.
5. Update the movement software
Our computers and devices can get bogged down if the software isn’t updated.
By paying attention to your feelings and awareness, you can change the structure of the brain through a movement software update
This way you can enhance the memory and the information to the muscles, tendons, joints and fascia – which has many sense receptors .
A conscious movement update can smooth out the kinks and let us remain flexible
This will help maintain the spine’s ability to function when you need it most.
6. Floss your back joints
Your spine is a series of joints where you can take the plaque out of it.
Feel both sides of the spine and notice if you can feel each segment or notice if there are any blank spots in terms of feeling each segment.
Gentle movements joint by joint (or in each group) from top to bottom and on each side helps to maintain comfortable freedom.
7. Breathe as you move
Consciously play with your breath as you move to add in another level of difference so the brain can enjoy the novelty of different ways to breathe and move.
Or don’t breathe and feel what happens to your ability to move your spine.
A Comfortable Back
Mindfully paying attention to the little movements you can do helps build and maintain a foundation for overall comfortable, easy, effortless movement.
Getting in tune with the building blocks of movement helps us become more familiar with the nature of movement itself.
It is here to serve you to feel free and in control.
In nature, healthy vertebrate animals have the good sense to program and reprogram via the act of pandiculation.
For the human animal, we’ve made it simple to naturally move easier with a conscious mindful 3 step method where you delve deep into the nature of movement.
So go ahead and explore small, minute adjustments which can make all the difference to keep the back feeling good.
Myth? of Icing
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Seen this or done that before?
This is something we do – in this country – if we feel pain, are sore from an injury or we over do it.
If you watch tv sports, been at a local kids soccer game, seen runners, softball players or know people who’ve had injury or experience pain.
Icing seems to be part of the game (of life) in the U.S and has been a big part of sports medicine.
How did this become our way?
Rice stands for:
• Rest
• Ice
• Compression
• Elevation
This has been a mantra on playing fields since Dr. Gabe Mirkin came up with this formula back in 1978.
Since then he has changed his tune for this earlier “misinformation”.
Rest is out.
Now there is evidence ice can even delaying healing.
This might come as a surprise. It’s more than likely better to avoid icing.
Using ice does not fix the problem other than numbing an issue in our tissues. It may even do more harm than good.
Since many people use ice to block pain.
It’s likely they don’t know how to effectively relieve or control pain on account of ice being the prevalent cheaper alternative.
The Rest of the World
Interesting to note that most of the rest of the world does not use ice to manage injuries.
When I mention using ice to many of my foreign soccer playing friends, they simply shrug their shoulders and give me that “really” look.
Recovery & Performance
Since ice is still the accepted method and highly popular among recreational athletes to help recover, relying on this method is at best a band-aid approach.
There is usually little benefit derived from post exercise icing as well.
During an event, you may actually numb yourself and then push through pain rather than using this signal to begin to turn things around. This can increase the risk of injury.
Even performance can be altered since it is likely that icing interferes with the information highway of the nervous system.
The info can get slowed down and can change how our muscles respond. Not a good thing when you are either trying to do some work around the house or participating in one of your favorite activities.
Inflammation
People might think inflammation is a bad thing, yet is part of the normal restoration process.
While we can have a pain in the knee for instance, have you ever seen someone’s knee swell up or experienced this yourself?
Swelling is a normal part of the body attempting to get back to square one or homeostasis in this case.
We might think the swelling is too much or keeps snowballing, so of course, a lot of people will think ice is the solution.
What’s going on?
The lymphatic system helps reduce swelling.
So when we see or feel what we consider an excess of swelling, the drainage of the lymphatic system is kind of clogged and is in slow-mo mode.
Going backwards
To use ice to speed it up is counter productive.
Thawing out of this mindset may not be easy.
So you can check out the illusion of the ice age.
What Speeds Up Healing?
Since the lymphatic system helps to reduce swelling, it’s when we begin to contract, tense or mobilize the surrounding movement system.
M.I.C.E stands for:
M = Mobility
I = Ice
C = Compression
E = Elevation
M.I.C.E. has replaced R.I.C.E.
Now given what we’re discovering with ice, we can drop our freezing ways.
A conscious use of the muscles helps to push the fluid back into the cardiovascular system.
Movement System
The movement system is not just the muscles, it includes the nervous system or highway of information which can be altered.
It’s also the fascia which surrounds the muscles and is connected in a variety of patterns throughout the body.
The muscles, fascia, tendons, ligaments and bones have sense receptors where we can change the output through mobility and where we can change the offending output to our muscles and movement system.
When we apply mobility in a more conscious manner, then the myth of ice can fade like the ice age.
Is is time to give up the myth of icing?
Give up the Myth of Icing
Find out what to do to help injuries, pain and stiffness leave.
Click here to access Conscious Mobility
… and chuck the ice to feel warmer too!
Head Movements [Making the Connection]
Posted by: | CommentsWouldn’t you agree that your neck, shoulders and head oughta move freely, easily and without pain or discomfort?
Simple, easy head movements done with a certain level of awareness can give you a:
• more comfortable neck,
• ease tension in the shoulders,
• and this can shift good feelings to other parts of yourself too.
Hijacked by tension
If your head or shoulders have been hijacked by tension, there is a natural way to release the build up muscular tension.
However, it might have to do with the fact that an important and vital connection may be “off”.
By lying on the floor, you can find out for yourself if:
a) you can do a particular movement comfortably and
b) if you can feel or sense the connection.
Watch the video below and see if you can feel the connection.
Head movement and connection
Have you checked in with your noggin like that lately?
If you haven’t, it’s never too late to dial in.
You see, if we’ve endured enough head and neck pain, that movement among others can prove to be difficult.
When my years of neck pain felt like a hard sore block that wouldn’t budge or let me move freely. Moving my neck seemed like it was one of the hardest things to do.
Yet when you consciously remind your body of the available movements that you can do, your brain can release neurochemicals of relaxation.
Making the connection – even if it isn’t there initially – will come with a little practice.
Not just 1 muscle
Mobility – the ability to move freely and easily – can be restored by regaining necessary function of a number of muscles involved, not just one specific muscle.
So if we are limiting our movement on account of pain or high tension, then this type of splinting or guarding can actually reinforce it since the brain is subject to programs and will begin to feed in information to keep things held in check.
Counter-intuition
Of course, it might seem counterintuitive to move, if it hurts.
So instead, you can imagine the movement taking place since that way you won’t upset the apple cart, yet the brain and nervous system will get the idea that the possibility to move, still exists.
The brain doesn’t know the difference between an imagined movement and an actual movement. The information and nervous system pathways turn “on”.
You can even go so far as imagining the connections too.
This all helps to prime the pump for eventual successful comfortable movement.
Head movements and the connection to the rest of your body is evident when you play with mindful ways to feel or sense your self as to how it relates with the rest of your body.
We are one piece, last I checked. The more you check-in in a different way, the far easier it is to self-adjust and turn down pain, discomfort and tension naturally.
Somatically speaking
When you move somatically, which is where you fully experience your connections and subtle feelings or sense perceptions.
You can experience the freeing up of pain, stiffness and aches as you fine tune further and deeper into your information highway of the nervous system.
This type of internal exploration is what you naturally did as a baby and child.
You were exploring deep into your sensory and motor system of both movement and the subtle feelings of small probing movement.
And if you recall or watch any baby, there’s a heckuva of a lot of exploration with misfiring, falling over and work to do to get a movement down pat.
Remember how long it took us to snap our fingers? What a triumphant moment that was.
Besides, if you’ve lost your snap, you can get it back.
Of course, as we age it can feel like ages to get it back, but it doesn’t have to be that way when you begin to experiment and tinker again.
What’s It Take
So if you go to the well of stored memory and spend some worthy time to reopen some dusty files and connections, then comfortable feelings in movement can be restored as easily and as effortlessly as it used to be.
It just calls for some quiet internal observation of your present ability.
When done in a specific “slow manner”, the part of the brain which can make the necessary changes of tension, will move the body back towards comfort and control.
To be more comfortable, may take a variety of easy, gentle movements so the connection is clear and you regain the ability to maintain comfort for life.
So have fun and keep that head sliding, gliding, turning and twisting comfortably so by feeling and making the connections.
The Evolution of Medicine Summit
Posted by: | CommentsWanna know how to reverse chronic disease?
Learn some of the latest in innovative and new proven health care models and strategies during the Evolution of Medicine Summit which you can attend online for FREE.
Medicine is evolving.
FREE and online September 8-15, 2014
Register for Free Here.
You’ll learn what 4 major factors can cause type 2 diabetes, autoimmune disease, anxiety and heart disease.
This worldwide online (and free) event will feature more than 30 people leading the change for a more empowered, proactive and patient-valued focused healthcare system.
Share the wealth of knowledge with: Deepak Chopra, Mark Hyman, Joe the Juicer, the Food Babe and many others.
Find out how to:
• Disease proof yourself.
• Raise the bar on optimum health.
• Get a glimpse into effective strategies to reverse chronic autoimmune disease.
• and More.
See you at the Evolution of Medicine Summit.
Napping Towards Better Health – Update
Posted by: | CommentsLove to nap?
According to Brain Rules author, John Medina, we all need a nap.
So whether it’s a power nap or get into the nap zone, watch what John has to say.
Napping Benefits
- Increased productivity (up to 34% according to research).
- Improved memory.
- Being more alert later in the day.
- More energy.
Listening to your brain and body?
In the afternoon, your brain will try to get you to go down.
There is a battle of the brain cells telling you one thing and you getting your brain cells to do another.
Of course, chowing down that huge bowl of pasta or pizza may give you the signal to fuzz out and lie down.
In our hectic, busy, everyday life, our mind has got to keep us going so we can go-go-go and do-do-do. So it might make sense to do it with a clearer mind after all.
Overall, a loss of sleep can harm you since you can get in a foul mood, your logical reasoning can slow, and your attention can drift.
NASA found pilots performed better when they took a short afternoon siesta.
Napping On the Job
While it may be hard to convince your boss, napping on the job or napping during the day may help.
People like Pablo Picasso and many others knew napping, increased productivity.
The evidence is gaining and we can all benefit just like other countries or regions which understand how nature has some of the answers to better health built in.
Brain Health
Check out John’s updated book, Brain Rules…
Find out more napping benefits and other cool brainiac things which can lead to a healthier and fun productive life.
Sugar in School for Athletes Please Get Off the Bus
Posted by: | CommentsRemember the days when we didn’t have a soda machine in the school. I know as you know, things have changed. Kids still want to be or act like adults, like we did, for better or for worse.
How sports drinks ever made it into schools and be acceptable for young athletes still puzzles this 52 year old athlete who has greater hamstring flexibility than most 15 year old athletes.
Granted, as a young athlete I drank raw eggs in orange juice, ate a piece of Brach’s cherry candy in between sets at tennis practice, tried the protein drinks, and remember trying electrolytes. Maybe it was the 100 degree heat of West Texas which caused my eyes to squint and tastebuds to go off… Who would drink this stuff?
It seemed to taste awful, but a lot better than cod liver oil.
Today, I can’t tell you how many young athletes I see drinking what amounts to sugar – in their drinks, and in their coffee too. And I hear them say how tired they feel? At 15 or 17, that statement wouldn’t have occurred to us old school types who walked or rode a bike to school.
Wonder what would happen if we took away the busses and the sugar at school? How would any young person function? They could be all a twitter, no doubt.
When it comes to their future health care costs, they may roll their eyes. For you, what steps do you take to make sure you can feel well and keep on playing like you used to?
Related Blogs
Cat Stretch – Daily Maintenance Somatics Exercises Program
Posted by: | CommentsThe Cat Stretch is what Thomas Hanna called the daily maintenance somatics exercise program in his book, Somatics.
The cat stretch is a misnomer even though we often see our furry felines appearing to stretch.
Cat Stretch is not Stretching
The result of a cat stretch could make one more restful.
When a cat stretches, it is actually tightening or contracting a series of muscles. We’ve come to find out this is called a pandiculation. When we do this entire act, our muscles lengthen and become more relaxed.
Our clever cat uses its brain’s motor cortex to initiate a movement, which at first glance looks like a stretch. You’ve seen a cat round its back. It’s not stretching the back, it’s pulling the belly in and using the abdominal muscles to pull back.
Then… it’ll release itself. The abs are reset and ready to be used. Healthy vertebrate animals naturally reset their muscles and movement system periodically throughout the day. No wonder they rest so well. If only we could do the same.
Cat Stretch – 7 Simple Movements
Fortunately, some 300 years after we learned about pandiculations. This very act brings muscles to rest. The system of somatics exercises teaches us how to go cortical and re-establish length and comfort in our movement system. Watch the fast version of the cat stretch below.
Here is what the 7 simple movements of the cat stretch address.
1. The first movement wakes up the brain, spine and hips.
2. The second movement helps to release tightness in our front side, such as the abdomen. This will allow the back to further lengthen.
3. This movement relaxes the muscles of the back, from the neck all the way down to the foot.
4. The fourth move releases held tension levels in the hips and chest. If we’re locked-in from too much sitting or hard work, this is a go to release.
5. Most everyone’s favorite movement, this delicious move lengthens the spine, frees up the hips and shoulders… and is enough to purr along.
6. A 3 part lower body sequence to free up the feet and ankles and connect up to the hips, back and head. This helps to straighten out the legs for better walking and balance in running.
7. The final movement of the cat stretch addresses the neck, back rotation and hip mobility in a delightful seated manner. You may not need the car mirrors anymore after this.
Cat Stretch Audio Recording
Healthy animals do a number of morning resets. We can simply follow along with a morning routine of the cat stretch somatics exercises designed for the human animal. Once you learn the routine, it only takes minutes to remind the muscles of their natural length, while at the same improving the mobility we need for the day.
Just like a good cat stretch at night, we can drift off and sleep more easily too.
The Cat Stretch daily maintenance somatics exercises program is now available to download and enjoy in the comfort of your home – meow.
