The Kettlebell Swing: Timing is Key

I often see sloppy kettlebell swings at the gym and I restrain myself because I don't want to be that dickwad who gives advice to those who don't ask for it.  Without further adieu, the most common mistake I see with the kettlebell swing is the timing.

Before I go further, lets review the phases of the kettlebell swing from the starting point where the kettlebell is grounded and the person is in an American football center position (about to hike the ball).

1. The bell is 'hiked' towards the rear until there is sufficient contact between the arms against the body, and tension through both arms.  The posterior hips are loaded.
2. The hips are extended and driven forward, pushing the kettlebell forward and up, and initiating the swing.
3. The bell floats to the desired height while the swinger assumes an erect position, establishing all the tenets of good posture.
4. HERE'S THE PART WHERE PEOPLE MESS UP:  one maintains an erect position while the kettlebell descends and ONLY BEGINS TO FLEX THE HIPS WHEN THE UPPER ARMS MAKE CONTACT WITH THE RIBS.  With such timing, the kettlebell swings back into a position close to the crotch as the swinger returns to the initial hiking position.  Unlike conventional exercises where "I go down while the weight goes down," the kettlebell involves a timing where "I stand tall while the weight goes down."  I can't emphasize this enough because flexing forward prematurely increases the load on your spine, particularly the lower back.  And with improper timing, the exercise becomes a kettlebell 'LIFT' and not a 'SWING'.

I didn't mention anything about posture because the tenets of good posture GO WITHOUT SAYING:

• Neck in neutral while assuming a long spine
• Shoulder blades back and down
• Lower back in neutral, not too arched or flat

If you want more kettlebell swing details, click on the following link to access a pretty good tutorial:

http://kettlebellsworkouts.com/teaching-points-for-the-kettlebell-swing/

Happy Training,

DAVE

What Most Fitness Enthusiasts Don't Know About Core Strengthening

Quite often, my lower-back pain patients come to me with the prescription of 'Core Strengthening' to fix their issues.  It blows my mind when these folks mention how they can't believe their physician put such a prescription; "I train abs every day at the gym...my core is solid!"
Bodybuilding and functional fitness are similar in that they both involve strength, endurance, flexibility, and body composition.  BUT, the prime focus of bodybuilding is to develop muscles.....period.  Crunches, leg raises, and trunk twists are staple bodybuilding movements that do a great job at developing the rectus abdominus (the six-pack) and oblique muscles but the flexion and excessive rotation involved in these movements place an undue amount of stress and wear on the joints in the lower back.  Therefore crunches, leg raises, and trunk twists sacrifice the lower back joints for the purpose of developing the muscle.  Crazy eh?

Before I go further, I think it's important to know what the core muscles were meant to do.  The functional activities performed most often by normal human beings are sitting, standing, and squatting and all of them involve a stable spine (not moving).  Incidentally, a recent study demonstrated that the 5 exercises that get the greatest amount of 'core' activation are exercises that are done without movement in the lower spine.  These 5 exercises are referred to as the FAB FIVE and are listed as the following:

1. Prone Plank: the standard plank that most people are familiar with
2. Side Plank: self explanatory but you don't see machines for this or people doing this at the gym
3. Quadruped 'Bird Dogs': flexing one shoulder and extending the opposite hip while on all fours
4. Plank With Rotation: Despite the dynamic nature of the movement, the lower back remains still
5. McGill Sit-Up: Somewhat like a crunch but with one hand held under the lower back to maintain its natural curve.  Once again, the movement (if any) is in the upper back and hips while the lower back remains still.

So the bottom line is that the 'core strength' that health care practitioners are referring to is the ability to keep the lower back STILL while everything else moves around it.  The aforementioned concept is TRUE spinal stabilization (no movement).  Planks are STATIC exercises where the spine is subjected to gravity while one resists its pull.  I'll save the Fabulous Five exercises for another post.

Re-examine your 'core' workout  regimen and ask yourself, "am I training a joint by moving it when it was meant to be held still?"

Happy training and stay tuned for more 'core' advice.

DAVE

3 Ways Your Burpees Are Hurting You

The original burpee a.k.a. squat thrust, was developed in the early part of the 20th century.  It consisted of squatting and placing one's hands on the floor, kicking to the rear into a plank position, tucking back into a squat position, and then rising to a standing position.  Click on the following link to see more info on the history of the burpee:

BURPEE HISTORY INFO

There are numerous variations of this exercise that may include a push up, a vertical jump, or even loaded with dumbbells or other forms of weights.  Despite the simplicity of the exercise, many fitness pros and exercise enthusiasts overlook certain details that can potentially harm them or their clients.  I'm going to mention 3 of the biggest burpee mistakes I see in the gym, internet, and clinic.

• BENT BACK BURPEES:  A study by Callagan and McGill that was published in a 2001 issue of the Journal of Clinical Biomechanics describes how repetative flexion and extension (bending and arching) of a young pig's spine eventually led to disc herniation after over 84,000 reps.  That may seem like a large number but if you take into account all the times you may have bent forward and rounded your back, you'll find that it's not really that many from 'lifetime' perspective.  If you've ever taken a biomechanics class, you'll know that flexion (rounding your back) puts a significant amount of stress on our discs.  From a physical therapist's perspective, the combination of flexion and the slightest amount of rotation is formula for instant disc herniation and such a movement often occurs with burpees because one hip is usually tighter than the other.  The point is simply to prevent the lower back from moving (stabilizing it) for the sake of longevity and injury prevention.
• SOULUTION:  Make sure you keep your spine in the neutral position and stabilize it throughout the movement.  IN ENGLISH: put your back in a position where it's not too arched and not too rounded and treat it as one solid piece that doesn't bend, twist, or arch.  That's what stabilization is,...minimizing or preventing any movement at the joint.  If you DON'T have the mobility in your hips, spread your feet apart during the ENTIRE movement OR place your hands on an elevated surface.  Some just don't have the hip mobility to do this movement without the suggested variations.

Since we're talking about Dr. McGill,...

• FAULTY KNEE MECHANICS- Knees buckle in or go past the plane of the toe: The SCREW HOME MECHANISM (SHM) describes how the knee complex is supposed to move optimally during a squat (single or double leg).  Allowing the knees to turn or buckle in (internally rotate and/or adduct) goes against the tenets of the SHM and promotes contact and compressive forces in the joint that aren't supposed to happen.  It promotes premature joint wear that most people don't feel until it's too late.  Such faulty mechanics progress into meniscus or patellofemoral irritations.  Allowing the knee to pass the plane of the toe increases the compressive forces between the kneecap and tibio-femoral joint, thereby increasing the likelihood of premature joint wear.
• SOLUTION:  Make the conscious effort not to allow the knees to adduct.  One could wear a resistance loop around the knees and focus on maintaining tension in the loop while performing the exercise.  One can also  follow the suggestions of spreading the feet wide apart AND/OR placing the hands on an elevated surface to shift one's center of mass to the rear and to keep the knee from going past the plane of the great toe.  These adjustments will allow for sound knee mechanics.

• POOR SPINAL ALIGNMENT-  I tell my patients and clients that their posture is the foundation of all their movement; if their posture sucks, their movement sucks.  AND I also tell them that every repetition is an opportunity to learn or reinforce a particular movement pattern; exercises done with poor posture PROMOTE poor posture.  I mentioned lumbar stabilization earlier and will put more emphasis on the thoracic and cervical spine.  The neck should  be held in neutral to minimize stress at the C5-T1 joints, where most people have some form of hypermobility (loosey goosey joints) after the third decade of life (their 30's).  The thoracic spine or upper back should have some curve to it but not excessive.  If the thoracic curvature looks like the start of an abdominal crunch, it's excessive.
• SOLUTION:  Make the conscious effort lengthen the spine into neutral position and stabilize it.  There isn't really any reason to look up during the down or push-up position phase (unless you're doing burpees in the middle of the street and have to watch out for oncoming traffic).

Aye Yay Yay!!  Rounded lower back, excessive flexion curvature (kyphosis) in the upper back, and too much extension at the base of the neck.  A manifestation of tight hips...they're soo tight that I assume this nasty position despite spreading my feet apart.  No good!!  At least my knees aren't buckling in or passing the plane of the great toe.

The crate is gives me the ability to assume neutral spine in the tucked position.  Notice the natural (lordotic) curve in the lower back.  So before I start doing burpees off the floor, I need to achieve the appropriate mobility in my hips.  And no, I will not pick up the crate and jump with it....that's a stupid move,...but I'll save that explanation for a later post.

This is the phase of the movement where most people have excessive curves at the base of their necks and upper back.  Make a conscious effort to assume the tenets of good posture.

Obviously, there are other ways to screw yourself up with this exercise.  Fatigued burpees whether done for time or done until failure are not recommended because form suffers under fatigue.  I'll save the discussion on form and fatigue for a later post.

Happy training,

DAVE

Ketogenic Entry 1: Mistake #1: Eating too much protein.

Day 2: Just getting started

I got my ketone strips to measure the presence of ketosis

Breakfast on day 2: Father's Day barbacoa with salsa and cilantro.

I got my keto strips so I'm ready.  Yesterday was day 1, I kept my carb intake as low as possible.  One thing I may have done incorrectly is to eat a high amount of protein; I definitely consumed more than 3-4 ounces of protein per meal.  Will definitely eat less protein tomorrow.  Once again, the goal is to consume high fat, moderate protein, and very little carbohydrate in order to shift the body into a ketogenic state.  Stay tuned for more.

Dave

My 4 reasons for going Ketogenic

My wife recently underwent some serious steroid therapy to keep her body from rejecting her newly transplanted kidney.  A side-effect of such therapy is the onset of diabetes; her blood sugar spiked to the mid-200's the other day.  Anyway, I wanted to find a way to decrease her carb consumption and blood sugar and found the ketogenic diet.  It's a diet that body builders and athletes have used for decades to promote the processing of bodyfat for energy.  From what I've seen so far, it's a diet significantly  low in carbs and likely unsustainable for me.  I'll go as far as to say that it's somewhat extreme.  BUT my goal is to adopt such a regimen to encourage my wife to do something similar but less drastic.
Before you guys start asking me if I'm going to go 'Paleo', the answer is NO.  If one does their homework, the author of the Paleo Diet book (published 2002) does not allow for dairy.   If I have butter on my asparagus, it's not Paleo.  The ketogenic diet has been around since the middle of the 20th century and has been used as effective means of controlling epilepsy.  It puts more weight on the macronutrient component than the popular Paleo diet that puts a heavy emphasis on the food source and quality.  One interesting fact is that the 'Paleo' diet was released in 2002, many years AFTER the SIMILAR Atkins diet (1972).  It's hilarious to see how the proponents of both Atkins and Paleo argue about how different their protocols are and whose is better.  I might also mention that the Atkins diet is NOT specifically ketogenic as its primary focus is carbohydrate restriction and not so much the establishment of a ketogenic metabolic state.  I'm just going to count my macros, drop my net carbs, and keep the foods that I do eat as whole and organic as possible.

The remaining reasons why I'm going ketogenic  include the following:

• I need to shed some fat to look sexy for the summer
• I need to shed some weight to increase my strength to weight ratio and improve athletic performance
• Reap the benefits of a gluten and HFCS free diet (as mentioned in Pearlmutter's Brain Maker book)

So WHAT IS a ketogenic diet?  It's a high fat, moderate protein, and very low carb diet that shifts the body into a state of ketosis; fat is metabolized as a primary source of energy in such a carbohydrate depleted state.  One typically consumes between 20 and 80 grams of carbohydrate per day. 

For a lifetime sugar burner like myself, this diet won't be easy so I might as well entertain the masses while I get my ass kicked!

Dave

Dave's Keto Dish: Mexican Style Beef, Squash, and Broccoli

Here's a recipe from Dave's Ketogenic Diet adventure

My Mexican beef, squash, and broccoli recipe consists of grilled tri tip marinated with Chef Merito beef seasoning, grapeseed oil, broccoli, and squash.  It's low-carb eating at its easiest and tastiest....I came up with this all on my own!!

Ingredients:

• Tri-tip steak approximately 1/2 pound
• Chef Merito Res Seasoning
• 1 head of Broccoli
• 1 Zucchini Squash
• 1 Crookneck Squash
• 2-3 tablespoons Grapeseed cooking oil

Slice the tri tip into thin bite-sized slices and season liberally with Chef Merito Seasoning; the excess seasoning will add flavor to the vegetables.  The thinner the slices, the faster they cook.
Cut the squash and broccoli into bite sized pieces and set aside.
Pour the oil into a wok and heat on 'high' until the oil begins to smoke.
Once the oil smokes, place the vegetables into the wok and lay the seasoned meat on top of the veggies.
The meat should NOT be in contact with either the oil or bottom of the wok.  Cover immediately.
Once you start to see steam shoot out from under the cover, remove it and mix the meat and vegetables together thoroughly, making sure that the seasoning gets onto the veggies.
Cover the wok and keep flame setting on 'High' for at least 90 seconds, turn off the flame, and allow to wok to sit for at least another minute to allow the meat to cook in the residual heat.
Serve while steaming hot.
Makes at least two servings.


Bon appetit,

DAVE

My Adventures with Kale Quinoa Salad

The following picture is of a tasty tidbit from the UCLA medical center salad bar.  As you can see, a minute longer and there wouldn't be any food left to photograph.  I only started eating Quinoa about 5 years ago, knew it had some health benefits, but never really took the time to research them...until now.

 An online article written by Megan Ware, a registered dietician and nutritionist, lists some beneficial components of Quinoa as the following:  (click on quote to go to online article)

Quinoa is naturally gluten-free and contains iron, B-vitamins, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, vitamin E and fiber. It is one of only a few plant foods that are considered a complete protein and comprised of all pernine essential amino acids

I performed a scholarly article search on the downside to Quinoa and only found a few articles regarding certain individuals having allergic reactions to Quinoa.  Once case mentions someone in France going anaphylactic...scary.  So I guess you probably don't want to eat this stuff if you're allergic to it and you won't really know unless you try it or have a history of grain allergies.

This salad had edamame, kale, corn, and some sort of salad oil.  I checked to see what recipes were available on the web and the one closest to the photo can be found by clicking on the following link:

http://www.jugglingwithjulia.com/2014/10/01/quinoa-kale-salad-edamame/.

Since I'm all about doing things on my own and putting my own twist to things, stay tuned for Dave's Costco Mixed Vegetables, Kale, and Quinoa Salad.

Happy eating,

DAVE

Back from ignorance....

I've been out for the count the past 7 weeks thinking I had some serious immune deficiency only to find out that I have developed serious allergies at the ripe age of 41.  I'm back to training and dieting now that I know it's nothing serious; I can't believe I stressed out for weeks thinking it was leukemia or some other serious issue.  Should have read the following article sooner:

http://www.everydayhealth.com/allergies/understanding-adult-onset-allergies.aspx

  It has been a very long while since I fried only 1 egg (we're talking at least 15 years)....I usually do a least 2!!!  This morning's breakfast: 1 egg, a medium tomato from my organic garden, and approximately 1.5 oz. Chicken.

#fromshittofit#weightloss #caloriegames #gettinglean #gettingripped #rippedbyseptember