3 Steps to Recover from an Ankle Sprain
Robin Gerber MS, ATC
Michael Volkmar, MS, CSCS, PES, CPT
One of the most common ‘weekend warrior’ injuries seen by medical doctors is the ankle sprain. Most frequently the ankle is injured during running or jumping activities in which the foot rolls or twists after stepping on an uneven surface. Continue reading
These mobility exercises are best done as a warm up to your lower body workouts. They will prime the body for better performance by jump starting the correct muscles. These exercise will also keep you injury free and allow you to train longer and harder. Continue reading
Sign Up for Your First Obstacle Race!
by Mike Volkmar, MS, CSCS, PES and Matt Carroll, USAW LVL 1, AFAA CPT
The rise in popularity of obstacle races is undeniable. The obstacle course race (OCR) community is growing every day with a plethora of different types of races becoming available. There are races for those in the best shape of their lives and there are also races designed to get people from couch to race day. Continue reading
5 Best Exercises for Knee Health by Mike Volkmar, MS, CSCS, PES, CPT
Knee pain be the most frustrating injury to have. It affects your daily activities. It can take months to go away. Of course it is best to add special exercises to prevent knee pain but sadly what do you do if you are already experiencing pain? Your knee pain could be the result of two factors, muscle imbalances and overuse. Continue reading
3 Best Exercises for Shoulder Health by Mike Volkmar, MS, CSCS, PES, CPT
The shoulder is a very common joint to have pain. The majority of exercisers experience pain in the front or on top of the shoulder joint. This can be for a few reasons. The two major culprits are muscle imbalances and overuse injuries. Continue reading
We all want to train hard, but do you put equal effort into your recovery? Most people do not and that is why injuries are on the rise. Doing a simple Google search for overuse injuries will give you an idea of how this is affecting younger athletes specifically. Continue reading
Healthy Baseline: Get a Baseline and Get Moving by William Smith, MS, NSCA, CSCS, MEPD
Often clients will ask how much physical activity is recommended to maintain and improve health? My response is essentially the same. There are two key questions that need to be answered first: Continue reading
Recently I came across an article titled ‘Graying of America’ in the New York Times. The article indicates that, “by 2050, 83.7 million Americans will be 65 or older, compared with 43.1 million in 2012, the report said. Continue reading
Self-Assessment in the New Year by William Smith, MS, NSCA, CSCS, MEPD
This past week I was bending over to pick up my 1 year old son and as I was doing this my back tightened up. Nothing unusual about this by any stretch, yet the fact it began tightening up throughout the day struck me as odd. This ‘pulling’ sensation got me thinking “why would this happen now?” Okay, to be honest, I haven’t been exercising regularly so that plays into, but my back? Hasn’t been an issue in 10 years! Continue reading
Light Weight Shoulder Workout by Stew Smith
The shoulder is our most versatile joint. There is no other joint that can lift up, down, forward, backward, rotate left and right, or throw. The only joint in our body built similarly is the hip. But with the shoulder’s versatility comes its weakness. It is commonly injured due to tendonitis, ligament pulls, bursitis, dislocations, separations, and rotator cuff injuries. If you have had any of these injuries in the past or you want to help prevent shoulder injuries in the future, try the Light Weight Shoulder Workout below.
This workout is actually one used by many physical therapists and requires ONLY light weights – in fact no heavier than FIVE pound dumbbells is recommended. Start by using no weights at all and only lift “the air”. You will find that the air gets heavy on these small muscles of the shoulder. But these are the muscles that no one exercises. Most people will lift too heavy amounts of weight over their head and cause an injury mainly due to lack of stabilization of the shoulder joint. By exercise all of the muscles in the shoulder as with the Light Weight Shoulder Workout, you will build the balance needed in the shoulder to help prevent injuries and build nice, tone shoulders and arms. Try it below and see for yourself:
The Light Weight Shoulder Workout (with dumbbells)
Do the following sequence of exercises non-stop for ten reps each:
Lateral Raises – 10 (palms down)
Lateral Raises – 10 (thumbs up)
Lateral Raises – 10 (thumbs down)
Front Raises – 10 (thumbs up)
Cross overs – 10 (palms facing away from you)
Military press – 10
LATERAL RAISE A safe and effective shoulder exercise with light weights. Over 5 pound dumbbells is not recommended for this exercise. Keep your knees slightly bent, shoulder back, and your chest high. Lift weights parallel to ground in a smooth controlled motion, keep your palms facing the ground. Follow the next 5 exercises without stopping.
THUMBS UP After performing 10 regular lateral raises, do 10 lateral raises with your thumbs up, touching your hips with your palms facing away from you and raising your arms no higher than shoulder height.
THUMBS DOWN Continue with side lateral raises. As you lift your arms upward, keep your thumbs down. Repeat for 10 times, always leading in the up and down direction with your thumbs.
FRONT RAISE (THUMBS UP) Now, for 10 more repetitions, time to work your front deltoids. Lift the dumbbells from your waist to shoulder height keeping your thumbs up.
CROSS OVERS With your palms facing away from you and arms relaxed in front of your hips, bring your arms up and over your head as if you were doing a jumping jack (without jumping). Cross your arms IN FRONT of your head and bring them back to your hips for 10 repetitions.
MILITARY PRESS Place one foot ahead of the other as shown and knees slightly bent to reduce strain on your lower back. Exhale as you push the weights over your head for 10 final repetitions in the mega-shoulder pump workout.. Slowly lower them to shoulder height and repeat. Muscles used are shoulders and triceps (back of arm).
Do this routine during any upper-body day workout.
STUART FISCHER, M.D., a graduate of Yale University, completed his residency at Maimonides Hospital in Brooklyn, and served as an Attending Physician at Cabrini Medical Center in New York City. He also worked with the late Dr. Robert Atkins as the Associate Medical Director of the Atkins Center. His expertise in alternative medicine, nutrition, and weight loss, is complemented by his strong traditional, hospital-based education. He is the author of The Little Book of Big Medical Emergencies and The Park Avenue Diet.