I have a degenerative disease in my spine, called Diffuse Idiopathic Skeletal Hyperostosis (DISH), which makes me somewhat of an anomaly since the typical patient is male and over the age of 50, while I am female and only 31. Besides the drawback of having a degenerative disease in the first place, the greatest challenge has to be the lack of knowledge and research pertaining to DISH. I have found that many, even experienced clinicians, do not understand what it is. The danger in that occurs when they try to associate it with other diseases such as ankylosing spondylitis and degenerative joint disease, since the diseases are found within the same category of degenerative diseases. That is where the similarities end though, in that the treatment of patients with DISH is unique because while the other degenerative diseases cause breakdown of the joints in some way or another, DISH only affects a ligament called the ALL on the front of the spine and has nothing to do with the joints themselves. Most likely, this is not due to the fault of the doctors trying to treat patients with DISH, but rather due to the lack of research, especially in the way of treatment courses and in the areas of diagnosis and potential causes. The need for research is so important for people in my situation because when DISH is lumped into other categories, the tendency is for doctors to recommend the opposite of what I need and want to make me feel better, which should be the focus. Staying as flexible as possible by staying active and stretching, which, based on my personal experience, is an excellent recommendation for the management of DISH. Additionally, I am curious as to how many people out there may have this disease and not even know it because no one has ever looked for it. Who knows, maybe I am not an anomaly but instead, an overlooked population waiting to be discovered. It was only by accident that it was even found because I did not need x-rays; I just thought they would be cool to look at. Therefore, I would strongly recommend keeping an open mind, and for doctors treating and patients with DISH to document their findings whenever possible.
The fitness industry has brought us millions of different “miracle” exercises, workout plans, machines, and yet as many fads have come and gone within the world of exercise; one movement has proven its worth as the ultimate functional tool, that movement being none other than the squat. This exercise proves to be the single best, and simplest tool for developing functional movement for many reasons and we will cover a few in this post. One of the most important of these is the fact that it is engrained within our neuromuscular system from the first time that we stand up as infants. If you take a look at the video below, you will see a perfect demonstration of an air squat performed by a toddler as he stands up for the first time.
As we develop into our adult form, our bodies adapt to the environment that we chronically place ourselves into. We currently live in an era in which sitting predominates our lifestyles and this causes an array of issues. We suffer the effects of poor posture and lack of movement through tight hips and a weak posterior chain within our bodies. When we lose the suppleness, strength, and elasticity of our bodies to perform complex posture-oriented movements such as the squat, we lose our ability to perform simple tasks like picking up objects without injury, standing up off of the floor, sitting down into a chair, etc. The bottom line is that training proper squat technique allows us better movement and function.
The importance of not only squatting; but, squatting deep is pivotal with what we are trying to accomplish through our exercise program. Squatting deep and often has been shown to increase posterior chain activation as opposed to squatting down to 90 degrees. Shallow, or half squatting has been shown to place stress and activation within the quadriceps. This is not necessarily a bad thing; but we at The Kidnetics Project prefer movements that give us greater “bang for our buck” and want to utilize the squat to not only strengthen the quadriceps; but, also gain access and strengthen the muscles of the posterior chain, which are essential to holding us upright, protecting our lower backs, stabilizing our pelvis, running, jumping, and keeping us stable during everyday movements.
For further research on this you may refer to a study performed by Caterisano et al 2002 which provides valuable insight into squat depth and muscle activation. In this study, the researchers found glute activation during full squats to be greater than twice that of partial squats (35.4% compared to 16.9%), hamstring and adductor complex activation to be similar, while quadriceps activation dominated during the partial squats only.
Squatting with an added load or weight in the front or back also provides an even greater activation of core stabilizers and overall muscle recruitment. This is a topic that will be addressed in future posts.
Bottom's Up Squatting:
Where To Start:
Stand with feet shoulder width
Toes pointed straight ahead
Reach down and grab toes or low barrier with hands
Keeping heels down and hands on feet, descend to bottom of squat
The Bottom of The Squat:
Hips should descend below the knees
Knees should be in line with 2nd and 3rd toes
Heels should be down
Standing back up:
Release hands from toes
Reach arms straight up
Pull torso upright and brace abdomen
Stand up driving heels down and knees slightly out
What’s that you say? You have chronic knee problems from past injuries? Have no fear, the squat can easily be modified to provide the same effect in a stable environment for those of us with knee trouble. This modified squatting exercise is called “The Box Squat” and reduces the sheering effect on the knees by preventing the knees from traveling forward.
The Box Squat:
Where to start:
Place a box behind you just like you would a chair
Set your feet outside of shoulders
Turn feet out slightly
Stand tall
The Descent:
Begin the squat by first kicking your butt back as if to close the car door with a handful of groceries
Continue this hip motion and begin to passively let your knees bend
Do NOT let your knees come forward
Instead, drive them out in line with your toes
Allow your torso to fold forward as you squat down to the box
Keep your core tight and back flat
Descend all the way down to the box
Standing back up:
After touch the box drive through your heels pulling your butt up first
As you do this pull your chest up simultaneously
Do NOT let your knees come forward
Stand completely upright locking your knees and squeezing your glutes
There it is! Two variations of the squat for you and we’re only one post into this madness. More to come on variations of loaded squats and how to incorporate the same concepts in other movements. Until then, squat low and squat often my friends!
The new shirts are in and they are AWESOME! Come and pick yours up if you ordered one and please let us know via email if you would like to order one and we will get one for you in the next order we place.
If you are drinking anything besides plain water and thinking you are doing a great job getting your daily requirements, think again. You need to be drinking half your body weight in ounces a day. This means if you are 120 lbs you need 60 ounces or 7.5 cups of water a day or more. But the question remains, why do we need water?
Let’s break it down:
Our bodies are made up of 50-80% water depending on age and is used in nearly every bodily function. The essential role of water is why we need to main a healthy ratio within our bodies. There is a significant amount of water in our blood, brain, lungs, and muscles. The water in our bodies help us regulate temperature and help with the transport of nutrients throughout the body. Drinking water also helps with cleansing and detoxifying, digestion and metabolism, replacing fluids after exercise, enhances fat loss, and hydrates skin. Overall, water is critical to our survival because of all the vital functions water has within our body.
Wait… so soda doesn’t count as water?
It is important for our bodies to receive water by itself because drinks such as soda and alcohol actually take water from the body and drinks such as coffee, milk, and juice require water to help with digestion.
What to do to increase your water intake?
It’s smart for both children and adults to carry around a water bottle with them to get in the habit of continuously drinking water. By using a water bottle you can easily see how much water you have been drinking throughout the day and can help create goals for yourself until you reach the correct amount of consumption. There are some people who get tired of plain water and for those people it is okay to add a little lemon for flavor (but note that drinking lemonade is not the same). If you are thirsty this is your body’s signal that you need water intake and that you are on your way to dehydration. Also, if your pee is dark yellow then this is usually a sign that you should drink more water.
Now that the school year is in full-swing it’s possible that as we get busier, whether as students or parents when it comes to packing lunches it’s easy to just throw together the most accessible thing in our pantry into our bag or the kids’ lunch boxes. Busy schedules somehow tend to take over and we forget that what we eat for lunch is important, especially at the midpoint of the day when our brains and bodies need a boost.
I was a middle school teacher for 2 years and it was always tough for me to see kids bring lunches that included nothing but white bread and sugary jelly, chips, high-sugar “juices” and fruit snacks. I even had a student who brought nothing but a Ziploc full of marshmallows for lunch one day! While it may be convenient to stuff a brown paper snack with a plethora of pre-packaged empty carbohydrates kids and adults alike are, in my opinion, better off not even eating lunch than eating empty calories with no actual nutrients. Coincidentally, many of my students that brought some of the aforementioned items were also those that demonstrated a noticeable slump in mental coherence and mood during afternoon classes. Studies show that children who eat diets rich in fiber and protein perform better in school than those who consume diets low in protein and high in sugar. Not only does protein and fiber take longer to digest than high sugar foods, but they also supply essential amino acids that combine to form proteins that are essential for managing the neurotransmitters in the brain. I’ve had parents ask me during parent-teacher conferences for suggestions with helping their child “focus” and I always told them that in my opinion the best place to start is with what you feed your body ( and therefore ,brain.)
Healthy school lunches, especially in the public school sector is a topic that is as broad as it is long so much so that professional chefs make TV shows about it (i.e. Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution) and state and federal legislature is continuously fighting battles over it. My only attempt here in this post is to point you towards some ideas of simple ways to incorporate brain-and-body-boosting foods into noontime meals. It doesn’t mean you can’t throw in a bag of Sun Chips or a pack of fruit snacks into your or your child’s lunch but the meal can’t rest on those things. Your body and especially those of children need protein, vegetables, fruit and healthy fats to get through the afternoon slump. It’s actually amazing how easy it can be to switch out “go-to” items that lack nutrients with much more fortifying options. Sometimes we just need some hints! So whether you are packing a lunch for yourself, your spouse or your children here are a few links with some clever tips on making lunch count! (Oh and use your Tupperware!) Happy eating!
- For those that need visual aids here are some pictures from a website called This Lunch Rox (www.thislunchrox.com) .
This lunch includes: peanut butter roll-up, cucumbers, almonds, strawberries and blueberries, chewy chocolate granola bar
This lunch includes: turkey/spinach/cheese wrap, strawberries, celery & p.b. (if peanut allergies are a concern you could use hummus instead),peanut butter-dark chocolate muffins, trail mix
This lunch includes: cheese & onion quesadillas on flax seed tortillas, salad with ranch dressing, strawberries/kiwi, flax seed taco chips,brownie
Our first Healthy Choices Seminar is almost here! We will be holding it on November 10th at Family Supportive Housing in San Jose. During the seminar, we will be teaching a variety of fun, exercise and nutritional lessons to a great group of kids. We are incredibly excited to have our first opportunity to have an impact on the community and will be preparing ourselves in the coming weeks to make the program as good as it can be.
We will be holding a meeting tomorrow (Wednesday) in room 119 at 4pm. To go over a few of the logistics for the event. We will also be holding a mandatory training for the exercise and nutritional portions of the program next week on a day that will be determined at tomorrow's meeting.
The 2011 Work Hard Play Hard Fundraiser is in the books! We had an incredible day enjoying challenging workouts, great food, and a whole lot of fun. The athletes who competed were inspiring, to say the least, and gave every ounce of effort they had. At the end of the day, CrossFit Amity (Team Ramrod) came out on top with CrossFit Santa Clara (The Deadliest Snatch) finishing with a close second and CrossFit Moxie (Team Bird Noise) coming in at third place.
We'd like to thank CrossFit Moxie for letting us throw the event at their place. They were very generous to open their doors to us and we are truly grateful to be able to team up with such a great group of guys. Also, thank you to all who volunteered with judging, setting up, cooking, and participating.
This is the first of many events The Kidnetics Project will be throwing. Our efforts through this event were not only to raise funds for our club; but, to bring people together for the sole purpose of enjoying the positivity that health, fitness, and team work can bring. We definitely achieved that and hope to continue holding similar events in the near future!
