When one thinks of their core, I doubt the quadratus lumborum (QL) comes to mind. The average person in the gym is not walking around saying: “I’m going to work hard on my QL today!” Despite that the fact that most don’t work on it or may never have heard of it, the QL is an important muscle and should be included in a person’s fitness programming.
Navigating a post-pandemic world can be difficult. After years of living in isolation from family and friends, and without the social stimulation from in-person interactions, teenagers are suffering. This severely affected demographic is in crisis after lacking the social, emotional and physical growth that would have otherwise occurred inside the classroom due to remote learning.
A sedentary lifestyle has become the norm, and the need for belonging is being fulfilled by addictive and oftentimes destructive social media platforms. Chronic diseases such as depression, eating disorders, and drug and alcohol addiction have lead to an unprecedented number of suicide rates in teenagers across the United States. Stress levels are on the rise, and this steadily growing demographic needs our help.
In a recent double-blind study of over 100 young adults ages 13-19, 48.5% reported that they experience high levels of stress a few times each week, while 39.6% reported they experience high levels of stress on a daily basis.
As the world opens up, so does the need to educate teachers, coaches, parents, counselors, and teens that there are tools available to help overcome feelings of loneliness, isolation, depression and anxiety! Learning the most innovative and evidence-based methods to improve both the physical and mental health of our future generations is paramount. It is time to learn the power of pressure point techniques to unlock physical, emotional and cognitive potential both in and out of the school environment.
In another double-blind study, over 100 young adults ages 13-19 were asked if they would be open to learning about pressure point techniques if they knew it could help improve concentration and mood. A resounding 90.1% said YES! Let’s start to better understand and educate this demographic on the tools to not only survive, but thrive in the post-pandemic world.
In addition, by learning the most effective pressure points in the body, it is possible to help manage “the most important stress hormones…cortisol, glucagon and prolactin. However, it’s cortisol that has the greatest impact on the physical and mental health of our mind and body” (Vihande, 2022). There are tremendous benefits to infusing pressure point techniques into physical education and academic classes that have been shown to improve concentration and memory, increase blood flow and circulation, as well as decrease stress and anxiety. Hence, fostering social and emotional health and wellness for everyone!
But that’s not all…
According to New York University neuroscientist, Wendy Suzuki, “exercise stimulates growth factors and stores up cells in both parts of the brain… protecting your brain from aging and neurodegenerative diseases.” Therefore, your brain will function at a higher level for more years as you age.
Research shows that exercise enhances short-term brain function by stimulating “…the release of a wide range of neurochemicals and neurotransmitters and growth factors….They include serotonin, dopamine, endorphins. (Suzuki & Horton, 2020). In addition, long-term effects of exercise impact the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for problem solving and decision making, and the hippocampus, the part of the brain critical for memory and highly susceptible to aging.
Now, you may be wondering how using pressure point techniques is related to the effects of
exercise on the brain and the answer is quite simple. Once you learn the locations and purpose of major pressure points throughout the body, you will be able to emulate its effects. Fascinatingly enough, it IS possible to replicate the physiological effects of exercise on various regions of the brain.
If you are ready to explore the endless possibilities of infusing pressure point release techniques, this is your call to action!
Written by Christine Conti, M.Ed., with contributor Makenna Ellis.
Christine M. Conti, M.Ed, BA is and international fitness educator and presenter. She currently sits on the MedFit Education Advisory Board and has been nominated to be the 2020 MedFit Network Professional of the Year. She is the author of the multiple MedFit Classroom courses and is the CEO and founder of ContiFit.com and Let’s FACE It Together™ Facial Fitness & Rehabilitation. Christine is also the co-host of Two Fit Crazies & A Microphone Podcast and the co-owner of TFC Podcast Production Co. She is also the best-selling author of SPLIT-SECOND COURAGE.
References/Resources
Imposter syndrome is when, no matter what level of success one might achieve, an individual doesn’t feel like they earned it, deserved it, and/or that they have fooled anyone who thinks otherwise. This feeling of not being not being good enough can stop people from trying something new. It can diminish their efforts, because if you’re going to fail anyway, how much effort will you put into it? It can also, at minimum, increase anxiety and decrease pleasure surrounding the task.
Those individuals that are likely to experience imposter syndrome includes successful women. (In fact, the original research paper in which the term “Imposter Phenomenon” (1978) was coined, was on high achieving women.) It is also prevalent in entrepreneurs, high achieving performers, athletes, and anyone trying something where the outcome is unsure.
There are many reasons that imposter syndrome may manifest itself in gender stereotypes, cultural norms, having had skills and abilities belittled, and self-comparison to others.
The strategies to help overcome imposter syndrome begin by understanding its triggers.
1. Believing you’re the only one feeling this way. You’re not! According to Psychology Today, 25-30% of high-achievers experience imposter syndrome. This includes people such as Tina Fey, Maya Angelou, Michelle Obama, and Tom Hanks.
2. Being a perfectionist. Perfectionism is a sure way to be disappointed in yourself because perfection is never attainable. Learn to accept and be happy with doing a good job and providing value to others.
3. Believing that failing at something makes you a failure. The label of “being a failure” plays into the hands of the imposter. Approach new endeavors as “experiments” that simply carry the expectation of working or not working with increased knowledge being the outcome either way. You can keep a journal of those “experiments” and write down the things that you learned from it. Focusing on what you’ve learned helps keep the effort a positive thing. “The one who falls and gets up is stronger than the one who never tried. Do not fear failure but rather fear not trying.” –Roy T. Bennett.
4. Comparing yourself to others. The judgement of your own value or success by comparing yourself against others is unfair. Other’s perceived lives or successes is an incomplete story. We see what others want us to see. Everyone puts their best foot forward because they want you to think highly of them, hiding their own struggles and insecurities and allowing you to make this lopsided comparison.
5. Not affirming your own capabilities and successes. It is the nature of our society to dwell on the negative and not the positive. i.e. How many positive stories do you see in the news? Train yourself to look for your successes not your failures. Based on an idea taken from Shawn Achor’s “The Happiness Advantage”, write down three things that you succeeded at each day (and they have to be different things each day). This helps you to refocus and look for the positive instead of the negative. This practice can help you to own your own successes.
Experiencing imposter syndrome can hold you back from reaching your full potential and diminish the pride and enjoyment from the successes that you do achieve. Knowing imposter syndrome’s triggers and coping strategies can help you overcome them.
Further readings on imposter syndrome:
Mark Nutting, CSCS*D, NSCA-CPT *D, ACSM HFD, ACSM CEP, is the Owner/Master Trainer at Jiva Fitness in Easton, PA. Mark is the PFP 2016 Trainer of the Year Legacy Award and NSCA’s 2009 Personal Trainer of the Year. He holds 12 certifications in the field, 38 years in personal training and health club management, and has been educating and coaching Personal Trainers for 36 of those 38 years.
Wellness: the quality or state of being healthy in body and mind, especially as the result of deliberate effort.
For some, the month of March signifies a period of transition and transformation – from dark to light. Our modern species gravitates toward a tendency to want to hurry into Spring, Summer and then the holidays. Leave the darkness behind. Say goodbye, farewell and good riddance to the days marked as short by the diminished presence of light. Go. Go. Go. Our bodies and brains remember a time when fear served us. All of the physiological responses that go along with stress are activated in our body, even when our current situations do not necessitate us fleeing for our life. This begs the question, how can we allow March, April and the events that follow in the lengthening of days, to unfold in a way that is calm, reflective and appreciative of what has been gained in the darkness of winter?
Perhaps another perspective of darkness, is a recognition that there are light sources that only exist because of darkness – stars, phosphors and chemical reactions, to name a few. From the celestial to the terrestrial we all have the capability for being self-luminous.
Now, for others the month of March might be thought of as a verb, which connotes adopting a rhythmic stride. We can create a rhythm by physically marching, or we can turn inward to our natural rhythms (e.g., breath rate, heartbeat, circadian, etc.). According to findings in a recent study, it is suggested that cognitive functioning increases with the adoption of rhythmic step training.
The winter can be about a time of discovering the spaces where there is beauty in rest. Comfort in darkness. Appreciation for the remarkability of stillness. We are beginning the transition from Winter to Spring and not all needs to be left behind. In what ways can you find a place, in March and the about to unfold Spring days, for the stillness you cultivated in winter?
I invite readers to consider finding spaces where you can allow your own rhythmic stride to unfold. How might you honor and appreciate the stillness you cultivated in Winter?
Let’s engage in a 1-minute practice of honoring our internal rhythms and light.
Where you are right in this moment is the perfect place to practice. You have everything you need.
Repeat steps one through four.
Dr. Adrienne Ione is a cognitive behavioral therapist and personal trainer who integrates these fields in support of people thriving across the lifespan. As a pro-aging advocate, she specializes in the self-compassion of dementia.
Website: yes2aging.com
Guided Meditations: insighttimer.com/adrienneIone
Facebook: silverliningsintegrativehealth
References
Park SK, Jee YS. Effects of Rhythm Step Training on Physical and Cognitive Functions in Adolescents: A Prospective Randomized Controlled Trial. Healthcare (Basel). 2022 Apr 12;10(4):712. doi: 10.3390/healthcare10040712. PMID: 35455889; PMCID: PMC9029147.
According to the National Institute on Health (NIH), fibromyalgia affects over 5 million U.S. adults and an estimated 3-6% of the world population. While fibromyalgia is most prevalent in women (75-90% of those with fibromyalgia), it also occurs in men and children of all ethnic groups. People with fibromyalgia experience aches and pain all over the body, fatigue (extreme tiredness that does not get better with sleep or rest), and problems sleeping.
Fibromyalgia may be caused by a problem in the brain with nerves and pain signals. In other words, in people with fibromyalgia, the brain misunderstands everyday pain and other sensory experiences, making the person more sensitive to pressure, temperature (hot or cold), bright lights, and noise compared to people who do not have fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia has been compared to arthritis. Like arthritis, fibromyalgia causes pain and fatigue. But, unlike arthritis, fibromyalgia does not cause redness and swelling, or damage to the joints.
Up until recently, fibromyalgia has been very difficult to diagnose coining the condition as the “invisible disease” believing that the syndrome was “all in the head” of those who suffer from fibromyalgia. However, currently fibromyalgia can be identified through a questionnaire and the Manual Tender Point Survey test. There has been a breakthrough recently with a blood test that may identify fibromyalgia making it even more possible to treat fibromyalgia. However, more testing is needed to be more widely accepted. Here is a short list of what may cause fibromyalgia:
Moderate exercise is known to improve use of oxygen, energy levels, anxiety, stress and depression, sleep, self-esteem, cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, and mobility. While the pain and fatigue associated with fibromyalgia may make exercise and daily activities difficult, it is crucial to be physically active. Usually, there are no specific exercises to avoid if one has fibromyalgia. Aerobic exercise (running, jogging), weight training, water exercise, and flexibility exercises may all help.
Golf, tennis, hiking, and other recreational activities are also healthful. However, exercising hard (overexertion) leads to the problems people experience post-exercise, which are called “post-exertional malaise.” This occurs because people with fibromyalgia don’t have the energy to condition like others who can handle the increase in exercise and conditioning. Instead, if the exercise uses more than the limited amount of energy the body can make, their systems crash, and they feel like they were hit by a truck for a few days after. Because of this, the key is to find an amount of walking or other low-intensity exercises one can do, where he/she feels “good tired” after, and better the next day. Instead of ramping up in the length or intensity of the workouts, one should stick to the same amount while working to increase energy production.
Because the main focus of fibromyalgia is neurotransmitters and brain health, one key benefit of exercise is the boosting of endorphins and serotonin in the brain. Studies show that exercise can help restore the body’s neurochemical balance which in turn triggers a positive emotional state. Boosting levels of natural endorphins are essentially boosting pain-fighting molecules that help to reduce anxiety, stress, and depression which are symptoms of fibromyalgia. Elevating serotonin plays a vital role in mediating moods thereby helping relieve symptoms of fibromyalgia.
Other benefits of exercise include:
Some of your clients may suffer from fibromyalgia and you may be an important source for relief, providing them with a better quality of life through movement. This Fibromyalgia Fitness Specialist online course will educate on the fundamentals of Fibromyalgia and equip you with the skills to design and prescribe a proper exercise program for individuals with Fibromyalgia.
CarolAnn (M.S., CPT, CN) is a 25+year fitness industry veteran holding positions such as program director, studio owner, educator, presenter, and author. She develops health/fitness curriculum for organizations such as FiTOUR, Hydracize, MedFit Network, and PT Global. Along with producing and starring in several fitness videos, she is an expert contributor for publications such as Livestrong, PFP, and New Tampa Style Magazine. She serves on the Health Advisory Board for MedFit Network. She is now spreading the gospel of health and fitness targeting churches with Chiseled Faith®. She has been selected to be a 2019-2021 National Fitness Hall of Fame Fitness Superstar. You can find her work at CarolAnn.Fitness and ChiseledFaith.com.
Everyone has had flat feet, and probably will again – and that’s normal!
While working in a biomechanics lab, part of my job was to read nearly 500 papers on childhood foot development. In doing so, I learned something extraordinary: we all had flat feet at one time and as we get older, we likely will again. This makes so much sense if you see the foot as a sensory organ and not just a mechanical part of the human machine.
Most babies have cute, pudgy, fat, flat feet! As the child grows, the foot develops and an arch becomes more and more evident, keeping pace with the child’s physical abilities. Evolutionarily this makes sense. Before birth we are water dwellers and do not need a well-developed vestibular system.
Only a few months after birth babies begin learning to roll, then crawl, eventually sit upright, and then “find their feet”. They begin to stand and squat and the vestibular system starts to adapt to gravity. Babies’ fat flat feet give them a broad surface to sense the effects of gravity, which allows the vestibular system to orient and develop.
As balance improves, the foot becomes stronger and the arch develops. The effect is a decrease in the amount of sensory surface area dedicated to gravity, making baby less structurally stable but providing a biomechanical environment for increased speed and agility. However, now the individual must rely on a very well developed and active vestibular system, supported by the mobile proprioceptive system of the foot joints.
Understanding how and why the arch develops should then clarify the changes we experience as we grow older. The vestibular system slowly becomes less active and balance becomes more difficult. This leads to a natural decline of arch height as an attempt to increase proprioceptive input, like we needed when we were babies.
The reality is, gait assessment is a window into your clients’ nervous system and, utilized properly, it informs how we help our clients improve, at every stage. Now that you know how the arches and vestibular system relate, help your clients rediscover their feet!
Dr. Grove Higgins is a chiropractor, rehabilitationist, soft tissue injury expert, researcher, anatomy instructor, biomechanist, human performance expert, speaker, and corporate health consultant. In 2015, Dr. Higgins cofounded Neuroathlete with Coach Patrick Marques (LTC, US Army Ret.) and Peter Hoversten. Neuroathlete’s goal is to more broadly deliver neurological training to a global audience.
Interesting studies and articles:
Does My Kid Need Arch Support: March 2020: Blog. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.vivobarefoot.com/nz/blog/march-2020/does-my-kid-need-arch-support
Gray, H., Carter, H. V., Pick, P. T., Holden, L., & Keen, W. W. (1887). Anatomy, descriptive and surgical / the drawings by H.V. Carter with additional drawings in later editions edited by T. Pickering Pick ; to which is added Landmarks, medical and surgical by Luther Holden with additions by William W. Keen. Philadelphia: Lea Brothers &.
Li, F., Harmer, P., Wilson, N. L., & Fisher, K. J. (2003). Health Benefits of Cobblestone-Mat Walking: Preliminary Findings. Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, 11(4), 487-501. doi:10.1123/japa.11.4.487
Rock Walking for Healthful & Graceful Aging. (2018, December 13). Retrieved from https://www.integrativehealthcare.org/mt/walking-on-rocks-benefits/
Tubbs, R. S., Mortazavi, M. M., Loukas, M., Dantoni, A. V., Shoja, M. M., & Cohen-Gadol, A. A. (2011). Cruveilhier plexus: An anatomical study and a potential cause of failed treatments for occipital neuralgia and muscular and facet denervation procedures. Journal of Neurosurgery, 115(5), 929-933. doi:10.3171/2011.5.jns102058
Enjoyment of food should be one of life’s pleasures. Unfortunately, I counsel too many athletes who scrutinize food and talk about eating nutrients (protein, carbs, and fat). They put a lot of energy into counting macros, calories and grams of sugar. Some find meals and snacks to be sources of anxiety, not enjoyment.
Way too many athletes and fitness exercisers consider breakfast and lunch to be somewhat optional. The goal of this article is to share food for thought about these two important meals of the day—and help you fuel your body adequately, enjoyably, and effectively for your sports-active lifestyle.
• Weight-conscious athletes: please don’t even try to restrict calories at breakfast (or lunch). You need energy during the active part of your day to refuel from your morning workout or fuel up for your afternoon session. Your best bet is to fuel well by day, eat a lighter dinner, and lose weight at night when you are sleeping! As one dieter reported,“I lost weight easily when I ate dinner for breakfast and breakfast for dinner.” Give that a try?
• Remember when orange juice was a standard part of breakfast? Today, many athletes have stopped drinking orange juice because “it has too much sugar.” That might be true for unfit people with bodies that metabolize sugar far differently than the bodies of athletes. But for athletes, OJ is OK—a quick, easy, and thirst-quenching form of fruit. The natural sugars in orange juice offer helpful fuel before or after a morning workout— while simultaneously providing a day’s supply of Vitamin C, plus potassium, folate, and other health-promoting nutrients.
Ironically, the same athletes who shun orange juice often fail to take the time to eat a whole orange (or other fruit) instead. All 100%-juices are an easy way to boost the intake of this important food group. Any form of fruit—juice, canned, dried, frozen—is better than no fruit!
• Many athletes take pride in cooking their steel-cut oats, believing they are far more nutrient-dense than good ol’ fashioned rolled oats. Both rolled and steel-cut oats have similar nutritional value. The difference is steel-cut oats are cut, instead of softened and then rolled, and take far more time to cook.
• Please don’t try to “stay away from” peanut butter, believing it to be “fattening.” Rather, enjoy peanut butter on toast and bagels, or blended into smoothies, or swirled into oatmeal. PB’s fat is health-protective, anti-inflammatory, and satiating. It’s slow to digest, which helps keep you feeling fed until lunch.
• Whole grain breakfast cereals that are enriched or fortified (as noted on the label) can be good sources of iron, needed to reduce your risk of developing iron-deficiency anemia. Athletes’ diets can easily be low in iron if they do not eat red meat or cook in a cast iron skillet. Hence, iron-fortified cereals topped with fruit (for vitamin C, to help absorb the iron), milk (dairy or soy, for calcium and protein), and almonds (for a bit more protein) offer an effective sports breakfast—as well as sports-snack.
• Almond milk on cereal or in your coffee is a nutritionally poor swap for dairy milk. Almond milk offers only 2 grams of low-quality protein, as compared to 8 grams of high-quality dairy protein. The protein in dairy milk is 80% casein and 20% whey—the stuff you get in protein powder! If you prefer plant-based milk, soy and pea milks are the best options for protein. Environmentalists, please note: Cars, not cows, will “ruin the planet.”
• If you feel hungry an hour or two after lunch, you did not eat enough lunch. How much lunch is enough? By listening to your body’s signals, you can intuitively eat the right amount. The key is to pay attention to why you stop eating at lunchtime. Do you stop eating because 1) The food is gone? 2) You think you should? 3) You feel content and nicely satiated?
The correct answer is 3) You feel content. An adequate lunch will leave you feeling fed for three to four hours. You’ll no longer crave afternoon sweets within an hour or two post-lunch. A hearty lunch helps curb 3:00 pm snack attacks and helps you arrive home at the end of the day with the energy to cook a decent meal. You will eventually eat the calories, so why hold off until you can no longer white-knuckle the hunger?
• Despite popular belief, sandwich bread is NOT fattening; excess calories of any kind are fattening. You can even enjoy a bagel for breakfast and a sandwich for lunch without “getting fat”! Carb-rich bread will fuel your muscles far better than a carb-lite lunchtime salad.
• If you are among the many athletes who eat a salad for lunch—and then complain you are craving sweets and eating cookies an hour or two later, think again. While salads are a helpful way to boost your intake of veggies, you might be better off satiating your appetite with PB & J or a turkey/cheese/pesto sandwich made on Dave’s Killer Bread or other hearty bread. For veggies, simply, munch on cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, and pepper strips; far easier than making a salad!
• If you insist on eating a salad for lunch, make sure it is an “athlete’s meal” that offers a hefty dose of starchy veggies (sweet potato, beets, corn) and grains (farro, quinoa, pasta, a whole grain roll on the side). A bowlful of greens (50 calories) smothered with 350 calories of dressing will leave you with poorly fueled (i.e., tired) muscles.
To put the need for carbohydrates into perspective, a 150-pound athlete who trains hard for 1.5 to 2 hours a day should target at least 3 grams of carb per pound of body weight per day = 450 g carb = 1,800 calories from carbs/day = 500-600 calories carbs/ meal. A big spinach salad comes nowhere near that!
• Even if you want to build muscle, don’t over-eat protein to the extent it displaces carbohydrates. Poorly fueled muscles won’t be able to lift weights as well as when carb-loaded. Think again before filling up on a high protein, low carb green salad + big chicken breast + dressing for lunch. A sports diet should contain three times more calories from carbs than protein.
Please enjoy satisfying breakfasts and lunches that keep you feeling fed for three to four hours. You will feel happier, more energetic, have better workouts, be less ravenous at the end of the day—and be less likely to overeat the “wrong” food at night. Experiment?
Nancy Clark MS RD CSSD counsels both fitness exercisers and competitive athletes in the Boston-area (Newton; 617-795-1875). Her best-selling Sports Nutrition Guidebook is a popular resource, as is her online workshop. Visit NancyClarkRD.com for info.
Motor neuron disease (MND), Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also called Lou Gehrig’s disease, causes the death of the neurons that control the muscle’s voluntary functioning. Lou Gehrig was a famous baseball player who was diagnosed with ALS. Overtime, the nerve cells progressively break down and die. At first onset, muscle twitching might start to occur coupled with weakness in the limbs, and slurred speech. Eventually, a person will no longer be able to control their ability to move, speak, breathe, or eat. This disease is fatal and there is currently no cure.