I am writing this while flying back from the Z Health Level 2 (www.zhealth.net) cert in AZ. All I can say is that my head is swimming just trying to comprehend all the information. It was insane! At the risk of this making no sense, below are just a few more take aways
It can't be emphasized enough that you need joint mobility work! Jammed joints cause muscular weakness via the arthrokinetic reflex. The OPPOSITE of this is true also, as open and mobile joints ENHANCE strength! How cool is that!
Joint mobility work IS strength work. Not in a direct sense, but based on the point above.
A vast majority of athletes (athlete is defined as ANYONE that uses their body to make a living, so that counts virtually everyone), NEED more PRECISE joint mobility work. Again, waving your hands around like an ostrich trying to take off does not count. While I at it and destroying dogma, get off the foam roller too. That is another blog topic coming soon (start the hate mail now if you like, hehehehe)
The Z Health Bone Rhythm method will revolutionize lifting as we know it today. Is that a bold statement--yes, and I stand behind it even though it sounds like I went swimming in the Z Kool Aid pool. It is the most radical change to lifting I have ever seen and my guess (I have no evidence of this yet) is that most elite lifters are already doing it and they probably don't realize it.
What is it? Basically you think about levering the bones in your skeleton to lift the weight. Wow, on a surface level that seems so darn simple. Let's take the squat as an example. For the squat you think about levering the femur (thigh bone) to move up the weight or bring it down. In a tall (neutral spine, that includes the head so no looking at the ceiling due to the extensor reflex--a whole different topic that I will cover soon), as you lower the weight you think about moving the top part of the femur near the hip back as you move the bottom part of the femur forward. Think of a teeter totter, as one end goes down, the other end MUST go up (assuming it is rigid and some fat ass did not break it). For optimal efficiency, BOTH ends MUST move at the same rate. This takes some practice and cueing for a coach to get it down, but it feels awesome.
Why is this so cool? You can lift more INSTANTLY and there is LESS stress on your joints! Read that again. Sounds like a win win to me if I have ever heard one. You can also increase your neural drive to the motion since your brain is only thinking of two things 1) neutral spine, 2) bone rhythm of the femur (in this case)! This allows you to use more of your brain (increased neural drive) to move the femur, thus moving the weight! You are much stronger than what you think you are.
Chad Watebury (1) pointed this out when he took athletes and had them do a set of squats normally, and then one other group that had to count backwards WHILE doing squats. Guess which one had their performance go into the hopper--yep, the ones counting backwards which makes perfect sense.
Find a Z Health trainer near you and ask about Bone Rhythm. I guarantee you will not regret it. If you live in MN, click here for more info (shameless plug I know, but I would have paid huge money to know this 10 years ago).
I Phase
Now on to I Phase stuff as the above info is covered in Level 1, but we did more bone rhythm work for different joints and lifts. Need more evidence? 2 FEMALE clients who were relatively strong but had not done any powerlifting work (and minimal strength work recently) were deadlifting. The first women deadlifted 225 lbs and the second women deadlifted 175lb!!! They had been doing Z Health for awhile and also had 3 days of pure Z Health I and R Phase work, but they still deadlifting a lot of weight with no to very little experience in that lift. They did have expert coaching from Dr. Cobb and Geoff Neupert , but that is amazing. Amazing. Man, my first deadlift years ago was a pathetic 95 lbs in college (college the first go round) and it looked horrible. It took me a full year of training to hit 225 lbs and my form was still not the best. Again, it is hard to put a price on good coaching and great information.
Just by doing some visual and vestibular testing you can dramatically enhance the effectiveness of any Z Health drill in minutes. The results are jaw dropping. For myself, I had to do my Z Health drills with a specific eye position and head position since I had a positive eye and vestibular test. By doing only 1 precise Z Health drill, my posture, ROM and gait improved dramatically. My head alignment even got better and felt like a space alien took my head and screwed it back on "wrong" since I was not used to that position (even though it felt MUCH better, just very odd). The best part is I now have drills to do to keep improving it and update my "neurological software".
No one that I can see (bad pun I know) is currently integrating eye movements, vestibular, proprioception and visual training for optimal results. Some are doing some of each, but you need a SYSTEM to know when to use each one. Always using a screwdriver when you have nails is not optimal.
Your peripheral vision is better at detecting movement, so some people (myself included) will switch at the last minute away from focusing on an object coming towards them (like a ball) and use their peripheral vision. Yep, this makes for some bad timing, but you can train to get better at it! Remember that you eye movements and focus is controlled by muscles; so you can train these muscles!
Kids that are piss poor at sports at a young age probably have a visual and/or vestibular issue. See the above info. If you suck at baseball, do you really think you are going to enjoy it? Wow, this explains why I hated baseball, softball, and most sports that have a ball in the equation and was always picked dead last for every sport growing up! Correct their visual and vestibular issue and enjoyment goes up. Imagine that.
There is still more beyond this, but that should keep your head spinning for awhile. If you have any questions about the certification process for Z Health, please drop me a line and I will be happy to answer any questions you have. The best part is that once you have passed a certain level, you can retake that level as many times as you want for free currently. I know I will be doing I Phase again for sure.
If you live in Minnesota and are interested in a session, click here. If you are in other parts of the country and want to locate a Z trainer click here
I am all signed up for Level 4 (T Phase) this Nov and Level 3 (S-Phase) next year. APPLIED information is power. I can't wait. Sign up for a Z cert today. Click here for info
Rock on!
Mike
References
1 Waterbury, Chad "Building Your Rep Part 1" Testosterone Nation accessed on July 31, 2007
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Z Health Level II Update #2 from Sunny AZ
Just a quick update from AZ on Z Health Level II training on day 3.
Wow, this information is just insane. I highly recommend the Z Health system to anyone. I would trade in my CSCS info for just the R Phase (Level I) cert alone. This is not meant as any disrespect to the NSCA CSCS cert, but the information in the Z Health system blows the doors off of it.
"Argue for your limitations and they are yours"--?
Not sure who said it, but it is amazingly true. All those old sayings "you are what you eat", etc do have a very large true component. Don’t' buy it? Try this
Do a simple range of motion with your shoulder out to the front, side and neck rotation. Now think of your favorite food. Imagine it, in all its glory, the scent, mouth feel, everything. Now check your range of motion (ROM). You should see some improvement. Now think of a horrible bill that is due, something that is looming out there coming towards you, a bad boss, evil client (or trainer--ha), etc. Imagine it in full detail. Now check your ROM. Normally it will be worse.
Need more? Everyone knows there is a placebo effect and there are many studies on it. That is why a randomized, placebo controlled study is so highly regarded. Bottom line--monitor your thoughts AND actions. Make sure they are what you truly want to hear and become.
The body is organized neurologically in the following priorities
1) Visual
2) Vestibular (inner ear function)
3) Proprioception
Therefore, for rapid change you must respect this hierarchy.
An example is myofascial winding. If your tissue is wound to the right, you see a standard massage therapist who does some myofascial work on you. You leave and feel better for awhile, but it never seems to get better long term. Why? You probably need to address the visual and vestibular systems!
In my personal case, my standard eye position was off to the left and my body compensated by winding my tissue the other way so that I could walk a straight line. Standard myofascial work would have not been effective since as soon as I was off the massage table and walking again, my vision was still off and my body would wind back again. Once I addressed the visual component with some Z Health I Phase drills, the results were amazing. I felt better, my movement was better and I added 20 lbs to my best deadlift even though the heaviest pull (deadlift) I did in training at that time was 140 lbs BELOW my PR (personal record). The point is that I was not training heavy, but by clearing the compensation my body did not have to fight against itself and could apply more force to the bar!
The I Phase training demonstrated tests for myofascial winding ,visual and vestibular. As far as I can find, NO ONE else is addressing these systems in the training (and most rehab) communities. Click here for more info.
Gotta run, any comments leave them below!
Rock on
Mike
Wow, this information is just insane. I highly recommend the Z Health system to anyone. I would trade in my CSCS info for just the R Phase (Level I) cert alone. This is not meant as any disrespect to the NSCA CSCS cert, but the information in the Z Health system blows the doors off of it.
"Argue for your limitations and they are yours"--?
Not sure who said it, but it is amazingly true. All those old sayings "you are what you eat", etc do have a very large true component. Don’t' buy it? Try this
Do a simple range of motion with your shoulder out to the front, side and neck rotation. Now think of your favorite food. Imagine it, in all its glory, the scent, mouth feel, everything. Now check your range of motion (ROM). You should see some improvement. Now think of a horrible bill that is due, something that is looming out there coming towards you, a bad boss, evil client (or trainer--ha), etc. Imagine it in full detail. Now check your ROM. Normally it will be worse.
Need more? Everyone knows there is a placebo effect and there are many studies on it. That is why a randomized, placebo controlled study is so highly regarded. Bottom line--monitor your thoughts AND actions. Make sure they are what you truly want to hear and become.
The body is organized neurologically in the following priorities
1) Visual
2) Vestibular (inner ear function)
3) Proprioception
Therefore, for rapid change you must respect this hierarchy.
An example is myofascial winding. If your tissue is wound to the right, you see a standard massage therapist who does some myofascial work on you. You leave and feel better for awhile, but it never seems to get better long term. Why? You probably need to address the visual and vestibular systems!
In my personal case, my standard eye position was off to the left and my body compensated by winding my tissue the other way so that I could walk a straight line. Standard myofascial work would have not been effective since as soon as I was off the massage table and walking again, my vision was still off and my body would wind back again. Once I addressed the visual component with some Z Health I Phase drills, the results were amazing. I felt better, my movement was better and I added 20 lbs to my best deadlift even though the heaviest pull (deadlift) I did in training at that time was 140 lbs BELOW my PR (personal record). The point is that I was not training heavy, but by clearing the compensation my body did not have to fight against itself and could apply more force to the bar!
The I Phase training demonstrated tests for myofascial winding ,visual and vestibular. As far as I can find, NO ONE else is addressing these systems in the training (and most rehab) communities. Click here for more info.
Gotta run, any comments leave them below!
Rock on
Mike
Z Health Level II Update from AZ
Greetings from sunny AZ and Z Health I Phase (level 2) training. Just some quick rapid fire items I learned yesterday (ok, stuff I am still trying to wrap my head around).
Watch elite athletes if you want to get better! In Italy a few years back they discovered mirror neurons in the brain that will become active by just WATCHING someone perform. Part of your brain is processing their movements in the area of the brain associated with actual movement, even though you are NOT moving. It appears to be true, you can get better by just watching!
Related to the above note, your body must also have the "neurologic program" to execute the moves. By doing Z Health in a more integrated fashion (hence the title I Phase); you will know be better at the smaller movement pieces. Larger movements are made from smaller movement pieces (neural chunking). When you "add up" the smaller pieces, you can execution more complex movements with more precision.
You need to clear your body of any compensation. Think of it as "debugging" your body. Less bugs=greater performance. Look at the picture of Michael Jordan. AMAZING movement. I don't think he has many compensation. Note how relax he is also.
The Z Health system serves to join application AND theory.
Z will help you hit the "sweet spot" more often. The "sweet spot" is that slice in time when doing a sport/movement where everything seems to line up perfectly and it feel effortless. For myself, that would be hitting a perfect heavy deadlift, planning out on a windsurfer with both feet in the straps leaning back, kiteboarding across the water extended all the way out so my butt is almost touching the water, clearing "wake to wake" on my wakeboard, etc. I call these "whoooo ha" movements. My main goal in life is to accumulate as many "whooo ha" moments as I can.
Parts of your nervous system are hardwired as your body only cares about survival. Your body does not give a hairy rat's ass about performance.
Gotta run, but food for thought!
Rock on
Mike
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Z Health Info and a Brand New Study on Strength Training and Insulin
Greetings loyal readers! Two topics today, some Z Health and then a cool new study.
I am currently in sunny AZ to start Z Health I Phase (level II) training in a few hours for the next 4 days. It will be a blast and I can't wait. This is what happens when you start drinking the Z Health Kool-Aid. I Phase is more integrated and you start to combine different foot and upper body movements while doing joint mobility work. One example would be to lunge to the right, rotate your upper body to the right and do a thoracic mobility drill. The options are limitless and a good base of Z Health R Phase work is required.
I Phase also incorporates the visual and vestibular (inner ear) components. It makes sense when you think about how your body gets information for movement--you watch (eyes/visual), balance (inner ear canals) and proprioception information (your body's 3D map of itself--that is how you can touch your nose with your eyes closed and not poke out your eye). I am sure I will have much more to say in the next few days. Plus I get to hang out all 5 days and talk shop with a bunch of super talented and bright people. Give me a "Hell Yeah!" Click here for Z Health info
Brand New Study on Strength Training and Glucose Tolerance (2)
The other topic today is a brand new study just published a few days ago on insulin and exercise. In general, as we exercise our body becomes better at handling glucose. Glucose (sugar) is actually toxic in the bloodstream in high amounts, so the body secretes insulin to get it the heck out of the blood and into tissues where it is safely stored for later use (glycogen or converted to fat and stored there) or burned for fuel. With exercise, the body needs less insulin to get the same job done and this is a good thing.
Think of someone trying to enter a room. Glucose comes to the door but has no arms, so it gets its buddy insulin to knock on the tissue door to allow entry. In tissue that is working correctly (no pathologies), insulin knocks a few times and glucose moves on in--everyone is happy. In tissue that is now becoming less sensitive to insulin, glucose needs more and more insulin to create more and more knocks at the door since the tissue is going "deaf" to the knocks. If this goes on for a long period of time, the poor pancreas (the organ that has to crank out insulin) may burn out and lead to type 2 diabetes.
On to the study!
It has been shown the endurance training improves insulin sensitivity (1), but few studies have looked at resistance exercise (strength training).
Background
N=18 healthy recreationally trained active students (the typical college dude since they are easy to get into studies)
They were randomly split into and endurance training or resistance training group
Pre Training
OCTT (oral glucose tolerance test) was done
Endurance group--a max exercise test to exhaustion on a bike with a metabolic cart
Resistance group-10 RM (rep max) was done
Study design
Beverage with 1,000 kcal (200 g of maltodextrin and 50 g whey hydrolysate) was given within 1 hour post training--holy post training beverage batman!
An OGTT was done 6 hours after exercise
Results
No changes in glucose tolerance after endurance training
Acute resistance training can significantly lower blood glucose (area under the curve) as shown by an OGTT for up to 6 HOURS later, even after a crapload (technical term) of carbs and protein post training.
That is pretty cool that this effect stays around for that long and with that many grams of carbs and protein after training.
My Thoughts
Resistance training wins again!
I wish they would have monitored strength levels and body composition, especially with that many grams of carbs and protein post training. I know there are some other great studies on nutrient timing, but more data is good!
Although insulin levels are interesting, I am more personally interested in strength/body composition changes. You would expect that as the body becomes more sensitive to glucose you would drop body fat, but it is just not that simple all the time.
This is based off an ORAL Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT), and therefore absorption of that many carbs and protein in the gut may be an issue for some people in the study. Maybe they should have measured expired gases not just from the mouth! If you can't absorb it, you will have a different response vs. someone who can. Researchers will then get into a heated debate about the best way to measure insulin response, but of the other ways are more invasive (multiple sticks for an IV at times) and much more time intensive. Plus, if you want to compare it to the average gym rat, they will be using an oral drink so having an oral drink in the study is better for that comparison.
Take away (aka how the heck does this help me)
To modify glucose tolerance, resistance training appears to be better based on this study. So save those carbs for post training!
Rock on
Mike N
References
I am currently in sunny AZ to start Z Health I Phase (level II) training in a few hours for the next 4 days. It will be a blast and I can't wait. This is what happens when you start drinking the Z Health Kool-Aid. I Phase is more integrated and you start to combine different foot and upper body movements while doing joint mobility work. One example would be to lunge to the right, rotate your upper body to the right and do a thoracic mobility drill. The options are limitless and a good base of Z Health R Phase work is required.
I Phase also incorporates the visual and vestibular (inner ear) components. It makes sense when you think about how your body gets information for movement--you watch (eyes/visual), balance (inner ear canals) and proprioception information (your body's 3D map of itself--that is how you can touch your nose with your eyes closed and not poke out your eye). I am sure I will have much more to say in the next few days. Plus I get to hang out all 5 days and talk shop with a bunch of super talented and bright people. Give me a "Hell Yeah!" Click here for Z Health info
Brand New Study on Strength Training and Glucose Tolerance (2)
The other topic today is a brand new study just published a few days ago on insulin and exercise. In general, as we exercise our body becomes better at handling glucose. Glucose (sugar) is actually toxic in the bloodstream in high amounts, so the body secretes insulin to get it the heck out of the blood and into tissues where it is safely stored for later use (glycogen or converted to fat and stored there) or burned for fuel. With exercise, the body needs less insulin to get the same job done and this is a good thing.
Think of someone trying to enter a room. Glucose comes to the door but has no arms, so it gets its buddy insulin to knock on the tissue door to allow entry. In tissue that is working correctly (no pathologies), insulin knocks a few times and glucose moves on in--everyone is happy. In tissue that is now becoming less sensitive to insulin, glucose needs more and more insulin to create more and more knocks at the door since the tissue is going "deaf" to the knocks. If this goes on for a long period of time, the poor pancreas (the organ that has to crank out insulin) may burn out and lead to type 2 diabetes.
On to the study!
It has been shown the endurance training improves insulin sensitivity (1), but few studies have looked at resistance exercise (strength training).
Background
N=18 healthy recreationally trained active students (the typical college dude since they are easy to get into studies)
They were randomly split into and endurance training or resistance training group
Pre Training
OCTT (oral glucose tolerance test) was done
Endurance group--a max exercise test to exhaustion on a bike with a metabolic cart
Resistance group-10 RM (rep max) was done
Study design
Beverage with 1,000 kcal (200 g of maltodextrin and 50 g whey hydrolysate) was given within 1 hour post training--holy post training beverage batman!
An OGTT was done 6 hours after exercise
Results
No changes in glucose tolerance after endurance training
Acute resistance training can significantly lower blood glucose (area under the curve) as shown by an OGTT for up to 6 HOURS later, even after a crapload (technical term) of carbs and protein post training.
That is pretty cool that this effect stays around for that long and with that many grams of carbs and protein after training.
My Thoughts
Resistance training wins again!
I wish they would have monitored strength levels and body composition, especially with that many grams of carbs and protein post training. I know there are some other great studies on nutrient timing, but more data is good!
Although insulin levels are interesting, I am more personally interested in strength/body composition changes. You would expect that as the body becomes more sensitive to glucose you would drop body fat, but it is just not that simple all the time.
This is based off an ORAL Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT), and therefore absorption of that many carbs and protein in the gut may be an issue for some people in the study. Maybe they should have measured expired gases not just from the mouth! If you can't absorb it, you will have a different response vs. someone who can. Researchers will then get into a heated debate about the best way to measure insulin response, but of the other ways are more invasive (multiple sticks for an IV at times) and much more time intensive. Plus, if you want to compare it to the average gym rat, they will be using an oral drink so having an oral drink in the study is better for that comparison.
Take away (aka how the heck does this help me)
To modify glucose tolerance, resistance training appears to be better based on this study. So save those carbs for post training!
Rock on
Mike N
References
1. Ivy J. L., T. W. Zderic, D. L. Fogt. Prevention and treatment of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. Exerc Sport Sci Rev. 27:1-35, 1999.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Snowboard Training Question
Question of the week--Snowboarding performance.
I get questions from time to time, so I am going to answer a few here on occasion.
Question--I want to get better at snowboarding, what should I do?
Great question. Snowboarding is a blast and I love getting out to ride as much as I can myself. Give me a "whoooo ha" Hard to think about winter now in mid summer, but the items below will have you all set by the time the snow flies.
1) Define what you mean by "better"
What did you have in mind? Is your goal to carve up the hill and leave massive trenches or perhaps more freestyle/park orientated? Maybe you want to stick that first stalefish grab or spin a 1080. Define what it is that you want to do and how you will measure it (e.g. What does success look like?). I also recommend putting a deadline on it (i.e. by the end of this season). For example, my goal for this coming season is to spend more time on my carve board. My goal states "to carve 6 back to back turns on a moderate slope with my hand touching the snow (laid out over the board) on 3 of the 6 by the end of the 2008 Minnesota snow season."
2) Go snowboard!
There is no substitute for practice. You can go pick anyone who is at the top in their sport/discipline and I can guarantee they have put in tons of hours honing their craft. Some have even coined the term "The 10 Year Rule" citing various professionals and how long it took them to achieve a pro level. The SAID (Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demand) states that your body will ALWAYS adapt to EXACTLY what you do. Practice is not the best, but PERFECT practice is the best. Pick a short goal for each session and work on executing that goal. Small achievements add up over time.
3) Get your imbalances fixed!
No I am not talking about that huge imbalance in your checkbook that explains your couch surfing habit at Uncle Floyd's pace, I am talking about the imbalances/compensations in your body. The best way to do this is to have a gait analysis done (this is the basis of the Z Health evaluation for most people) Click here for info The great part about a gait assessment is that virtually ANY compensation you have will show up, especially when it is done in conjunction with a discuss of previous injuries. During the evaluation, a Z Health drill is tried and then a re-assessment is done to note the response. Without a re-assessment, you are really guessing at what you think the body needs. At the end of the session, you leave with a few custom Z Health drills that will result in massive changes in your body in an extremely short period of time.
4) Mobility work on your feet/ankles
This is related to number 3 above. In snowboarding, the primary contact with the ground is through your feet. By doing more PRECISE mobility work on your feet (precision is key here and you can just flop your feet around like a beached seal expect results) you start to fire up more mechanoreceptors. Mechanoreceptors are little elves that live in you feet. Ok, not really, but mechanoreceptors respond to changes in joint position. If you are not using the full mobility of your foot/ankle (and most people are not), you start to lose range of motion (ROM) and the mechanoreceptors get bored and go on strike. Precise joint mobility work (like Z Health-see a trend here) gets them fired up again like a new manager offering huge pay increases and puts them back to work. The end result is that you will be able to feel the ground under the board better and adjust to any slight change much faster with a precise output. I know it sounds insane, but after a good 6 months of Z Health with lots of precise ankle/foot work, I hopped on my board this past December and I was floored by the difference. Everything just "felt" better and I had more precise control, even though I missed out on that trip to New Zealand for summer training yet again. Drat.
Focus on the 4 things above and you will be styling on the hill this coming Winter! Leave the BOSU ball circus tricks to your competition.
Rock on
Mike N
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Z Health and Bad Hamstrings
That's right, I am back. I had a great time kiteboarding in the Outer Banx for 4 days with my girlfriend. Special thanks to Jeff and Tina for letting us crash at their place.
I apologize for the long delay and not giving the blog some love, but I have tons of great stuff coming up!
Today's topic is Z Health, which you will see featured a lot here since it works! click here for more info
Here is just one of the many Z Health case studies. A buddy was complaining of some inner knee issues and his hamstring was feeling really bad the other day, but it was ok today. I asked him how it happened and he said "Oh, I was running after some kids and I just took off from a dead stop and did not stretch before hand." So now little bells are going off in my head as I don't believe you need to static stretch before doing most events (another blog topic on its own).
I only had a few minutes, so I watched him walk barefoot and I did a standing hamstring muscle test on him. The test is done by standing on one leg while you hold on to a support and then actively pull your heal to your butt using your hamstring as I apply manual pressure to it. So I had him stand up and told him to pull his heal to his butt. Nothing. I repeated it again and he said "I am trying to move it!" It was not moving at all! Needless to say it was weak--yikes!. I tested the other one which was weak also, but at least it moved!
So I did a Z lateral ankle tilt, had him walk a bit and retested the same side hamstring and it was pretty good., but I could still push it down. So I also had him do some Z top elbow circles and retested the hamstrings---both were excellent and I could barely push them down--nice!. Total time was 10 minutes!
So, when are you all going to the Z Health R Phase training or see a Z Health trainer? Seriously, this system is amazing. Could most trainers, PTs, etc have spotted a hamstring that weak by watching him move? Sure, you would see it a mile away. Could most fix it in a few minutes? I don't know, but I have yet to find anything else that works as fast as Z Health and elicits permanent change (after a few weeks). If you know you of anything, please let me know (I am serious on that).
The point of this is not "how cool am I crap" or to pump sunshine up my own butt. It is to show you the power of the nervous system and how Z Health can have you getting amazing results with your clients in minutes!
The premise is that jammed joints cause muscular weakness. At its simplest level, if I injury my elbow is my body going to really want to do a heavy bicep curl? No, it is going to shut down the muscles around the joint as a protective mechanism. The bad part is that this neurological "shut down" on some level can persist for a long time after an injury. By doing some Z Health joint mobility work (normally only a few reps), the joint mobility is improved and the "neurological brakes" can be removed. Sweet!
Any questions, let me know! If you are in MN area and want to set up an appointment, click here for more info
Rock on
Mike N
I apologize for the long delay and not giving the blog some love, but I have tons of great stuff coming up!
Today's topic is Z Health, which you will see featured a lot here since it works! click here for more info
Here is just one of the many Z Health case studies. A buddy was complaining of some inner knee issues and his hamstring was feeling really bad the other day, but it was ok today. I asked him how it happened and he said "Oh, I was running after some kids and I just took off from a dead stop and did not stretch before hand." So now little bells are going off in my head as I don't believe you need to static stretch before doing most events (another blog topic on its own).
I only had a few minutes, so I watched him walk barefoot and I did a standing hamstring muscle test on him. The test is done by standing on one leg while you hold on to a support and then actively pull your heal to your butt using your hamstring as I apply manual pressure to it. So I had him stand up and told him to pull his heal to his butt. Nothing. I repeated it again and he said "I am trying to move it!" It was not moving at all! Needless to say it was weak--yikes!. I tested the other one which was weak also, but at least it moved!
So I did a Z lateral ankle tilt, had him walk a bit and retested the same side hamstring and it was pretty good., but I could still push it down. So I also had him do some Z top elbow circles and retested the hamstrings---both were excellent and I could barely push them down--nice!. Total time was 10 minutes!
So, when are you all going to the Z Health R Phase training or see a Z Health trainer? Seriously, this system is amazing. Could most trainers, PTs, etc have spotted a hamstring that weak by watching him move? Sure, you would see it a mile away. Could most fix it in a few minutes? I don't know, but I have yet to find anything else that works as fast as Z Health and elicits permanent change (after a few weeks). If you know you of anything, please let me know (I am serious on that).
The point of this is not "how cool am I crap" or to pump sunshine up my own butt. It is to show you the power of the nervous system and how Z Health can have you getting amazing results with your clients in minutes!
The premise is that jammed joints cause muscular weakness. At its simplest level, if I injury my elbow is my body going to really want to do a heavy bicep curl? No, it is going to shut down the muscles around the joint as a protective mechanism. The bad part is that this neurological "shut down" on some level can persist for a long time after an injury. By doing some Z Health joint mobility work (normally only a few reps), the joint mobility is improved and the "neurological brakes" can be removed. Sweet!
Any questions, let me know! If you are in MN area and want to set up an appointment, click here for more info
Rock on
Mike N
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