July 2019

Dynamic Warmup for Surfers Research is clear that a dynamic warm-up (vs. static stretching) is best to prepare for sport ️ and to prevent injuries. A sport-specific warm-up is specially designed to move the body through the necessary range of motion and activate the neuromuscular system in ways that simulate the sport. ‍Surfing is a high demand sport with significant injury risk. Up to ⅓ of surfers sustain an injury each year requiring medical attention, missed work, or time off from surfing,  and 91% of surfers have sustained an injury surfing in their lifetime. We see lots of injured surfers at Elevate. Most often we hear that they don’t warm-up at all,🤭 and don’t have an exercise regimen to get their bodies strong for the great demands of surfing. A surf-specific dynamic warm-up will go a long way to help mitigate the risks and prevent injury (especially when combined with our surf-specific strength exercises coming next week). We know the waves are like a Siron song calling you the minute you feel the sand in your toes, but put earplugs in for just 5 minutes and prepare your body for the awesome intensity of surfing!   What a surf-specific dynamic warm-up can do for YOU: Increase core temperature Increase blood flow to muscles Increase stimulation to mechanoreceptors in joints Increase stimulation to the central nervous system Increase musculoskeletal control Increase confidence for performance Increase movement through the range of motion demands for the upcoming activities Improve exercise / sport performance Reduce risk for injury Scap Strength for Surfers Surfers, swimmers, water polo players and other water sport athletes who present with shoulder pain often have weakness in / poor control of posterior chain shoulder girdle musculature including the infraspinatus of the rotator cuff and the trapezius scapular muscles.  . Elevate Founder Dr. Meredith Soelberg PT, DPT, MBA demonstrates a few simple  exercises to address the common deficits. All you need is a Theraband to help get these specific muscles doing their job better for top SPORT PERFORMANCE and to PREVENT INJURY.  Shoulder external rotation with Theraband – this is a TWO STEP exercise, to emphasize the scapula stabilizers and the infraspinatus cuff muscle. Squeeze shoulder blades together and down to stabilize. 2. With elbows at 90 degrees and at your sides, AND shoulder blades squeezed together and down, PULL the band apart.  Hold 3 seconds. Slowly release. Repeat 10x. 3 sets… Cheerleader Series’ Ts and diagonals with Theraband – stand tall, shoulders away from ears. T – will emphasize the middle trapezius fibers.  Elbows straight, shoulders at 90 degrees, pull band apart to make a T shape.  Give a squeeze to your shoulder blades at opening of the T. Then slowly release back to start position. Alternating Diagonals – will emphasize numerous important scapular muscles reciprocally.  Start in the same start position as the T exercise. Pull band apart with one arm pulling up, the other pulling down. Palms face forward, the band is in a diagonal, elbows straight. Give a squeeze to your shoulder blades  Meet back in the start position. Then do the opposite diagonal. . . What’s great about the diagonals is the reciprocal movement pattern it trains – very functional for the movement in these sports!. 1 T + 1 diagonal each direction = 1 rep.  Repeat 10x. 3 sets. ❗️KEEP ELBOWS STRAIGHT. ❗️ . If you’re having shoulder pain, come in and our Doctors of Physical Therapy can evaluate it, get you out of pain, and started on an injury and sport specific program. Need a Theraband?  We’ve got all colors!   Strengthen your Serratus Anterior for Surfing The Serratus Anterior does so much for the surfer! It wears a lot of hats as a protractor / abductor, posterior tilter, upward rotator and stabilizer of the shoulder blade!  It’s particularly important in the intricate biomechanics of reaching overhead in the paddle, and for a strong pop-up. … Lack of control, strength, or activation of this important muscle is believed to be associated with painful shoulder conditions found in surfers and other water sport and “overhead” athletes.  Here’s a progression of “scapula pushups” with a Theraband for added resistance to isolate that serratus anterior, and at the same time, work your core muscles that are also critical for surfers and water sport athletes!  Try 3 sets of 15 of level 1.  When that gets easy, try the next level!.

When we experience pain or are going through a period of rehabilitation often this is accompanied by an increase in psychological stress. This stress may be due to financial burden, inability to exercise or perform usual activities, and being in physical pain. Stress can cause physiological changes such as elevated cortisol levels, increased heart rate, increased blood pressure and a dysregulated immune system.  Meditation has been shown to decrease blood pressure,  regulate the immune system, improve respiratory rate and sleep (van der Zwan 2015) As we work to improve our physical health it is also important to take care of our mental health. Meditation is a great way to enhance the overall effects of the rehabilitation process.   Here is Part 2: of our meditation series: “The HOW”- Intro to basic meditation and ways to incorporate it into daily life.   Meditation Tips and Techniques: Timing: Meditating at first can be a challenging and frustrating task, therefore timing is very important. It is crucial that you choose a time of day where you are not too tired or overwhelmed by the things happening around you. I have the most success meditating in the morning before anyone else in the house is up and the world around me is quiet.   Position: Seated or lying in a comfortable position. Make sure that you have everything you need in place so that you do not fidget or become focused on your discomfort as you will be in this position for at least 10 minutes. Feeling uncomfortable is a really easy way to lose focus.   Surroundings: What room or space gives you the most joy or feelings of relaxation? Living room? Kitchen? Office space? Bedroom? Favorite chair under a window? If any of these things I listed sparked immediate anxiety then this is NOT the place you want to glide into that peaceful state of mindfulness and relaxation.   Breath and Sequence: Sitting in one place for 10 minutes is the “easy” part. Calming and quieting your mind for 10 minutes without judgement is a completely different beast. By using your breath and a body scan sequence we can help to calm our mind and sink deeper into that meditative state. Start at your feet and take note without judgement of each segment of your body while sending a breath of love, appreciation and gratitude to that area.    10 day challenge:  We challenges you to meditate for 10 minutes a day, over the course of 10 days! The best way to create new habits is consistency and practice! Just like we exercise and strengthen muscles skeletal muscles we must also strengthen our mindfulness muscle! See how you feel after the 10 days and maybe reflect on ways that you were successful and not as successful. What worked best and what was challenging?  Tell us how you did!   Meditation Part 3: What tech can help you meditate?  Top apps and gadgets to help guide us in our journey of mindfulness. Insight Timer  Pros: This app allows you the freedom to pick and choose depending on how long you have to practice, what style you’d like (e.g. body scan, loving kindness, anxiety/stress reducing, etc.), or just set a timer and sit without guidance,” Cost: Free! .   YogaGlo Pros: There area large variety of guided meditations to choose from with such well-respected teachers. Plus, you can customize your workout by choosing the length, teacher, and/or level you want, as well as a variety of topics and focal points that can help you zero in on specific meditation goals Cost: Free 7-day trial/ $22.99 per month after trial.   Headspace Pros: One of the best known meditation apps. They offer hundreds of guided meditations, mini-meditations, sleep sounds, SOS meditations for emergencies, meditations for kids and animations to help you better understand meditation Cost: $7.99 to $12.99 per month after trial.   Ensō  Pros: For those well-versed in meditation, I love the Ensō app which has a simple timer that you can set with bells at different intervals to keep you alert and set a soothing endpoint to your practice. Cost: Free, in app purchase.   Calm Pros: Contains topics ranging from calming anxiety to gratitude to mindfulness at work—as well as sleep sounds, nature sounds, and breathing exercises—you can really choose your focus. “There are new meditations every day, progress trackers, and seven-day and 21-day programs for beginners Cost: Free, in app purchase. 10% Happier: Meditation For Fidgety Skeptics. 10 Percent Happier For Fidgety Skeptics. Pros: This app has meditations aimed to help users with anxiety and sleep, and there is new content each week. More than 500 videos and additional content added each week. Cost: Free and premium version.    

  Probiotics are  “good” bacteria that are beneficial to the body. Probiotics exist naturally in some foods (such as some types of yoghurt and fermented vegetables such as pickles and sauerkraut), but can also be taken in dietary supplement form, via products such as Yakult. While our digestive system ordinarily contains trillions of microbes, including both “good” and “bad” bacteria, sometimes the balance between these can get out of whack. Diseases, poor lifestyle behaviours (such as not eating enough fruit and vegetables, heavy drinking, smoking, and physical inactivity) and ageing can all disrupt this balance.   Benefits Microbes in the lower intestinal tract help us digest food, fight harmful bacteria, and regulate the immune system. But sometimes an imbalance of microbes occurs, leading to diarrhea and other health problems. When the gut becomes unbalanced with unhealthy levels of certain bacteria, probiotics can help restore the balance. They’ve been shown to secrete protective substances, which may turn on the immune system and prevent pathogens from taking hold and creating major disease.  Some studies that suggest if you take a probiotic while taking antibiotics, you’re less likely to get diarrhea caused by the antibiotic. Probiotics taken as a supplement may also reduce the number of colds you’ll have in a year. Probiotics are commonly used to reduce gastrointestinal symptoms that are not due to acute illness, such as gas, bloating, and constipation. However, there isn’t  a lot of evidence to document that this works, particularly in older people. Risks There are many types of probiotics on the market. Some have been well studied, and some haven’t. One potential risk is if someone has an immune system weakened by illness or medication, that person could get sick from taking probiotics. Another concern about probiotics is that they’re considered dietary supplements, not drugs. As a result, the FDA doesn’t monitor the manufacture of probiotics. It’s hard to know if probiotics that can be bought at pharmacies and health food stores are high-quality products. It’s even possible that some lower-quality products may not even contain the probiotic bacteria that are listed on the label. Recommendations Don’t start taking probiotics without talking to your doctor or pharmacist about whether probiotics might help you. People who have immune deficiency or are being treated for cancer should not use probiotics without a doctor’s okay. The most common species of bacteria used in probiotics (among a potential 3,000 or so) are species of Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium. The bacteria are usually freeze-dried (but remain alive); when you take the supplement, they warm up in your digestive system and become fully active. You can find probiotic supplements in most drugstores and supermarkets. They come as capsules or tablets to swallow and as loose powder to sprinkle on food. You’ll want a product that explicitly states a “sell-by” date. Dosages vary by product, so no general dosing recommendation can be made. However, common dosages for adults range from five billion to 10 billion colony-forming units per day. Take just one dose of probiotics per day. Some people may experience diarrhea in the first few days of taking probiotics, but this goes away. probiotics at the end of a meal may help to reduce the symptoms.