How do you physically prepare for retirement? Part 1 (Your Neck and Head)

What do I mean by this?  I feel that the best way to physically prepare for retirement is to actively participate in how your body is aging.

I like to say that the solutions to most problems are simple. Simple does not always mean easy. It takes effort. The simple part should be preforming the exercises. The hard part is developing the focus to preform them correctly every day. (Or at least 5 to 6 times per week.) The good news is once you can do them correctly, it takes a lot less effort to maintain the ability than it did to obtain it.  

Having worked with clients up to 95 years of age, I have made sure to observe what changes have occurred to their physical condition.

Today’s topic is the first post of the area that can change the most, our posture. (Part 1 Head and Neck) What changes in our posture during the decades from reaching adulthood until retirement? 

Just because it is normal doesn't mean it has to happen to you.

I believe that all training should begin by improving a client’s posture before working on more complex things like mobility and strength. Bad posture with a lack of mobility and stability can lead to injury. 

Improving your posture will also lead to less chance of losing your balance and falling. The farther your head is in front of your shoulders, the more likely you are to fall forward.

When I mention posture do you think of your body being held in a rigid and static position? After reading my blog posts about this, I hope your picture of posture will change. While it is important to be able to put your body into a certain position, posture can be thought of as more dynamic than that.  

 

What causes changes in posture? Whatever position(s) we spend the most time in has a huge effect on posture. An example is sitting down watching TV or working on a computer or tablet. My mentor Vern Gambetta likes to say "gravity never rest." Gravity is always trying to pull you down.

 

I like to say that posture begins at the top of your head. In order to improve posture, work on exercises that counter the forward head posture. WHEN WORKING ON ANY EXERCISE INVOLVING YOUR SPINE, NEVER FORCE YOUR BODY INTO A POSITION. The focus should always be on how you are controlling the muscles and joints and the movements they are controlling. The pace of each movement should be slow. Perform from 5 to 10 reps of each. The goal is to get the muscles turned on as opposed to tiring them out. If you feel fatigue in the muscle when you are done, you have done too many. What exercises you perform is important. How you perform them is more important. 

Before attempting any of the following exercises be sure to get the approval of your Physician. Especially if you have ever had neck pain or a neck injury. If you aren’t sure how to perform any of these exercises, have someone who knows how to teach them show you how to do them.

After evaluating that a new client should and can work on their neck mobility, I begin teaching each client the following:

Neck Mobility (Since it is easier to focus on what I want them to learn, I usually begin with my client in a seated position and move to a standing position as soon as I feel they are ready. The standing position takes more balance and control of the torso.

 

    * Flexion/Extension - Tuck your chin into your chest, and then lift your chin upward as far as possible. Keep your torso as still as possible.

    * Lateral Flexion - lower your left ear toward your left shoulder and then your right ear to your right shoulder. Focus on keeping your shoulders down.

 

    * Rotation - Turn your chin laterally toward your left shoulder and then rotate it toward your right shoulder. Keep your torso as still as possible.

 

    * Chin Tucking – With chin slightly down, put a couple of fingers on chin. Slowly push chin straight back. Hold for a count of 10 to 20.

These exercises are simple yet hardly anyone works on them. Including them in you daily routine will help keep your posture from becoming old. I really do believe it is that simple.

Next weeks topic (Part 2) will be Your Shoulders and Thoracic Vertebrae

Why I feel you should consider seeing how you move on video

I am always looking for ways to become a better Personal Trainer. Some trainers call it adding tools to our training tool boxes. I think this is because I come from a family of analytical thinkers. My Dad was a systems analyst and both of my brothers are engineers. Math is a strength in my family.

One of the best ways to learn how you move is to see yourself on video.


Entrepreneur magazine just ran article Do You Have the Body Language of a Champion?

The part of this article that stood out to me was this: "then we would watch the film so the team could see for themselves. The insights were priceless and really enabled my players to understand that their actions and demeanor speak volumes." 

One of the best ways to see yourself the way the world does is to watch yourself on video.


How does this article relate to my training clients?

A couple of years ago I found a link on Vern Gambetta's blog Functional Path Training for a Ipad App called Kinesio Capture (since renamed Spark Motion. I went into my research mode to find out as much as I could about this app. The more I found, the more I had to have it. Up until this time I had never considered the need for an Ipad. I wanted this app so much that I to purchased an Ipad so that I could begin using Kineso Capture with my clients.

Many Strength and Conditioning coaches in the Pros and Colleges use Kinesio Capture when working with their athletes. Some more examples of professionals that use it are: Golf Pros, Physical Therapist, Athletic Trainers, Swim Coaches, Tennis Coaches, Soccer Coaches, just to name a few.
If this many pros are using it, I knew it had to be a great tool.

Even though I feel one of my biggest strengths as a trainer is analyzing client movements, I knew this would take my analytical skills to a whole new level. One of the biggest benefits of this is its portability. There have been video movement analysis programs in the past, but they weren't nearly as portable.
 
In order to use them the athletes/clients had to go where the camera was. Since I go to clients homes, I needed something portable if I was going to record some of their movements.

I now had a way to video clients movements, and instantly show it to them. I can also analyze them later and e-mail the results or show them to the client at a later time. Each client has their own file. This also allows me to show them changes in the way they are moving over time.

A screen shot of the video analysis tools with the Grid and Bullseye being used.

 
Kinesio Capture has many video analysis tools. My favorite is slow motion analysis. The app allows the Ipad to record video in 30 frames per second. I can speed up or slow down the video by one one hundredths of a second in forwards or reverse direction.


Some of my favorite features to use are:

     -Freezing the video, which allows me to:
     -Take a snap shot and then analyze the snap shot.
     
 

 -When analyzing the snap shot I can figure out joint angles. Example: The angle of your torso and shins should be close to the same when squatting. Her torso could be a little more vertical. 7degrees difference is ok.
 - It has a ruler function so I can measure spacing of body parts.
 - A grid that covers the entire screen which allows me to see how various joint move.
 - Bullseye which also me to focus better on what I want to video. 
- Zooming feature to focus on one part of the body. (example below is the knee)
  

With my specializing in training older adults you might be thinking they don't need this kind of feedback. Even if my clients never see any of the videos, going back and analyzing what I have recorded helps me figure out any changes I will have them work on in the near future. I.E. it makes me a better trainer.

Have you ever considered having some of your exercises recorded and analyzed. It just might help you figure on why that knee, hip, back or shoulder are hurting.

What's Your 'Activation' Level? How Involved clients improve the results they receive from my teaching/coaching

I recently saw a post from the Wall Street Journal called:  

How Doctors Rate Patients

What's Your 'Activation' Level? How Involved Patients Are in Their Own Care. 

 The chart from the Wall Street Journal

 

This motivated me to write about my experiences in the Fitness and Health Fields since 1989 and as a Personal Trainer since 1996. 

What about the four levels of taking care of your health and fitness levels? You might be at different levels for different parts of your life. You might even move between or change levels depending on where you are in regards to a health issue. We are not static in the sense that we are constantly moving around the different levels when it comes to specific parts of our life.

IMO, the most successful trainers and coaches know how to move their clients from level 2 to 3 and know how to teach them to stay away from the Con's of level 4. 

In order to be the best trainer I can be, I strive to continue to learn more about human motivation and the behaviors that come from them.

My Pro’s and Con’s for each level with examples are below.

This is how someone at Level 1 pictures the coach (lion tamer) and themselves (the Kitty)

Level 1

Predisposed to be passive. (Externally motivated) (I have never had a client hire me that is at this level.) It isn’t a good idea for them to hire me because it would be a waste of our time and their money. They feel like the only reason they start doing something to improve their health is because they have to. 

An example would be the person who is going to have a heart attack or maybe cancer. They haven’t perceived a reason to take better care of themselves. They think it will never happen to them. 

Pro’s:

They don’t stress over missing a work out because you don’t work out.

They never get injured or over trained due to exercise.

They save money on not having to replace clothing or equipment used for exercising.

They don’t wear their replacement joints sooner than expected.

Con’s:

Eventually their health pays for the lack of maintenance of their body. Sooner or later something does happen to them.

Cardiovascular problems such as: Heart attacks or Stroke.

Muscular stiffness and weakness which can lead to orthopedic problems such as: Stiff and weak joints.

I saw many patients at Barnes – West Hospital at this level. Fortunately they were the minority. Doctor, just make the pain go away. They tend to have trouble being motivated to keep doing their exercises. Since it is a great idea to continue doing these exercises for the rest of their lives, they might develop other issues when it comes to mobility and strength levels.   

Level 2

Level 2 ) Building Knowledge and Confidence. (Moving from external motivation towards internal motivation) They understand what common knowledge to use to improve their health and might know how to get there.

The majority of my clients start at this level. My goal is to educate and motivate them to move towards level 3. 

Pro’s:

They know they need take care of themselves. Sometimes they educate themselves and sometimes they know they need help and are willing to seek it.

Their health is good enough to avoid a lot of problems.

They won’t over- train limiting the chance of overuse injuries. They might find a comfort zone and stay in it. This zone might be what they need.

Con’s:

They might wait too long to make the changes needed.

They might not progress like they can because they stay in their comfort zone.

Their results are only as good as their own knowledge or the person helping them. Some examples of people training like this: Frequent walkers/runners/cyclist/gym goers. Another example would be the person that has had their wake-up call such as a heart‘s attack (my dad’s main motivation to begin working out) or cancer. (Our motivation for my wife Barb's getting stronger and both of us eating a healthier diet.)

Level 3

Level 3 Taking Action: In many respects these are my ideal clients.

(They are and excellent blend of being internally and externally motivated) They will listen to others when they feel it is necessary. (or another way to put this is they are highly coach-able) They are eager to learn because they are internally motivated to change. They want to instead of have to. 

Pro's

Being highly coach-able they make great progress and are willing to adapt if convinced it will benefit them.

Con's

They can be lead in the wrong direction if their trainer/coach/mentor isn't as well trained as they should be for their particular needs. 

It can take time for them to understand why things should be done a certain way. They will get there when they are ready. (I consider this a potential pro or con) 

If this applies, you are probably at level 4

Level 4  Maintain behaviors, pushing further 

They rely on their internal motivation.  I know many endurance athletes like this. I have been one myself. It can be very hard to coach someone like this.They feel like they must do things a certain way. They think they know best. Sometimes they do. Sometimes they don't.

Pro’s

They are always willing to do what it takes to improve their health. They make the most out of their talents and potential.

Con’s

They are the poster child for over-training. They think if a little training is good, a lot of training is better. This can only be maintained for so long before the body breaks down. It might take years to get there, but they will if they don’t change their approach to training.

They can be very resistant to change or can be highly Un-coachable. If they still have a trainer/coach or mentor, they might think they know better than the professional that is helping them. Sometimes they will, but sometimes they won’t. 

They are so close to the situation that they have trouble stepping away to take a better look at how they are doing/what changes they might need to make in their lifestyle or training.
 

What did you learn from this post today?

"I believe that life itself is an athletic event. Therefore, I believe that most older adults should train like athletes."

I don't like it when I see everyone sitting down as they try to build their strength. There are companies that market their machines specifically to the senior market.

Are older adults being taught how to train functionally? (and why I believe they should be)


It bothers me every time I see older adults being put on strength training machines when being taught how to exercise.  One of our local Senior organizations is constantly promoting their new machines. Both they and their teachers/trainers/coaches are selling themselves short.  I feel the main reason machines are used is it is easier to teach how to train that way. It is an example of taking the easier way out, or following the path of least resistance. IMO, easier is usually the opposite of better.

During my first job in the fitness field (at Wetterau Incorporated Employee Fitness Center) from 1989 until 1993, I taught members who to use the Universal machines we had in the weight room. We had some free weights in the room, but about the only thing they were used for bench pressing and arm curls. This was actually a good thing since I had no idea how to teach anyone how to squat, lunge, hip hinge or deadlift. It wasn't until 1996 when I began studying for my NSCA Personal Trainer Certification that I began to learn how these movements should be taught.  

The clients I have worked with Parkinson's Disease train while standing on their feet. What is your excuse?

Can you imagine older adults doing this for strength. I can. They just have to be able to tailor the exercises to their current abilities.

If you want to get better balance, you should learn to train on your feet. The older we get, the more important training your balance becomes. Therefore; the older we get, the more important it becomes to train while on our feet.

This will help improve balance.

I realize not everyone is going to be able to do all their training while standing. Machines can have their place in training. (It is common knowledge that you can get stronger and/or bigger muscles training on them. All you have to do is look at body builders. A lot of them tend to rely on machines to perform their strength training)  The question is how functional this increase in strength is. How much work do all the supporting muscles get when you don't have to rely on them while seated? How much control of movements do you learn when a machine is in control of the path that your body is moving in? How different muscle groups learn to coordinate their movements is very important to strength and balance training. Keep in mind the phrase: USE IT, OR LOSE IT. This applies to the coordination I am writing about.

How did I develop this attitude when it comes to how I train my clients? One name sticks out.

Vern Gambetta

This quote is mine: "I believe that life itself is an athletic event. Therefore I believe most people should train like athletes."

Once exposed to Vern Gambetta's training ideas I decided when he talks, I better listen.
One of my favorite sayings is: "Pick your mentors wisely." I feel that I did a great job making Vern my favorite mentor. I learned more about how athletes should train from Vern than anyone else.

In addition to being a great coach, he is very good at expressing his thoughts.

His post on the simplicity in coaching sums up my training philosophy nicely. Even though his post share his ideas on training athletes they still apply to older adults. I use these points when training  every one of my clients.

From his blog post:

"The following are some systematic athletic development concepts on which I base my training. They are very simple and straightforward and they can be made as complex as necessary.

Dynamic postural alignment and dynamic balance are the foundation for all training

Train movements not muscles

Train fundamental movement skills before sport specific skills

Train postural strength before extremity strength

Train body weight before external resistance

Train joint integrity before joint mobility

Train strength before strength endurance and power before power endurance

Train speed before speed endurance

Train to build work capacity appropriate for your sport or event

Train sport appropriate - You are what you train to be"

Thank you Vern for being such a great mentor to me.

Smartwatches: Eat your heart out, Dick Tracy!

Maybe he doesn't value his brain as much as he should. More likely just suffering from "it can't happen to me syndrome".

Our TV in the kitchen was on CBS when I turned it on this morning. (March Madness last night) Their Sunday Morning program was covering Smart Watches.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/smartwatches-eat-your-heart-out-dick-tracy/

They are showing a man who is on the cutting edge for his use of technology. "Bob Troia is part of what's called the Quantified Self movement -- using gadgets to monitor your own health, stress, sleep and fitness....." "Over the last five years or so, I've spent probably in the range of $25,000 on devices related to tracking and monitoring and optimizing all aspects of my life," he said.

They then show him bicycling WITHOUT a helmet.

Risky-business-helmet-free-cycling.html

Not Bob, just another John without his helmet on.

How smart can someone be to spend so much on "High-Tech Devices" and not spend a lot less on a "Low-Tech" one called a helmet? Having worked in a Head Injury Unit of a hospital I have seen first hand the terrible effects Head Injuries can cause.

If you are going to be "High-Tech Smart" please try to make sure you are also "Low-Tech Smart"