Pre-Workout Corrective Exercise #1 - Foam Roll Hip Flexors and Quads

In the theme of last week’s message I will be sending different stretches, self massage techniques, and activation exercises (all pre-workout warm-ups and corrective exercises).

Each movement is designed to help you move better, train better and be more muscle/joint pain free for your workout.   I will list the rationale and explanation for each exercise so you can make a better decision on whether the particular movement is right for you.   At the very least, understanding the ‘why’ might motivate you to practice it!

Alignment Issue:  Over anteriorly (forward) tilted pelvis / Over arched lower back

Muscle Imbalance:   Tight Hip Flexors (they pull the pelvis forward)

Pain Symptoms:  Lower back soreness and tightness.  Knee pain.

Common Cause:  Sitting down for long periods.   

Corrective (pre-workout) Exercise: Foam Roll Hip Flexors and Quadriceps:

Roll Each Area for 1-2 minutes.

How this works:  Self massage, using the foam roller, helps to ‘break up’ any myofascial adhesions within the hip flexors and quadriceps.  Ultimately helping to restore and rejuvenate the muscles to their ideal length. 

  

Hip Flexors

technique:

·         Place the roller perpendicular to the front of your body and lie over it at hip level.  It should be on the muscles of the upper thigh. 

·         Find a sore spot on the front, and slight side of the upper thighs and hold your bodyweight on it for 10-15 seconds.  Then roll on that area for 30 seconds. 

·         Search for any other spots in the upper thigh. 

·         Keep your abdominals engaged so that you support your lower back. 

Quadriceps

technique:

·         Place the roller perpendicular to the front of your body and lie over it at mid quadriceps (anterior thigh). 

·         Find a sore spot and hold your bodyweight on it for 10-15 seconds.  Then roll on that area for 30 seconds. 

·         Search for any other spots in the mid to lower quadriceps.   

·         Keep your abdominals engaged so that you support your lower back. 

Super Calorie Burning Workout for Super Bowl!

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New Year's Tune Up : With FOX 5 San Diego

New Year's Tune Up!  (As appeared on San Diego's FOX 5 morning show)

So it is that time of the year again and many of you have been out of sync in terms of regular exercise, but you are anxious and roaring to get back on track.   Be careful though, as your body can get out of alignment even with the shortest of layoffs.   For those of you who have been out of fitness for quite some time you definitely need to tune things first.   Working out and pushing your body is analogous to putting your trusty old sports car back on the road.  Yet if that sports car has been under cover and hanging out in the garage for a while you would certainly give it a tune up first to achieve high performance and ultimately a safe ride.  Here are three corrective (tune up) exercises that we recommend you perform daily for at least a week before you get into a full speed exercise regimen: 

Kneeling Hip Flexor/Quadriceps Stretch:

Why:  Seated postures and time away from exercise can lead to tight or shortened hip flexors.  Shortened hip flexors can lead to joint imbalances that can result in knee, hip or back pain if left uncorrected.
How:  Put a towel or mat under one knee as you kneel to avoid too much knee pressure.  Lightly lunge forward while squeezing your glute (butt) of your back leg.   Lift the arm on the same side as your back leg and bend away to add more of a stretch.
Hold for 45 seconds for each leg.
Perform 2 to 3 times/day for at least 1 week. 


Floor Butt Lifts:

Why:  Seated postures and time away from exercise can lead to weak glute (butt) muscles.  Proper glute activation and strength is essential for balance, stability and walking and running movement patterns - all things you need if you really want to get in shape.   
How:  Lying on your back with your knees bent and feet about hip width slowly lift your butt up and off the floor.  As you lift, actively squeeze your glutes and pull your tummy in.  Hold at  the top position for 2 seconds and then lower back down.  
Repeat for 10 to 15 reps .
Perform ideally 2x/day for at least 1 week.


Standing Cobra Posture Squeeze:

 Why:  Computer use, seated postures and time away from exercise can lead to tight chest and neck muscles along with weak upper back muscles.   Spinal, shoulder, neck and head alignment is essential for efficient movement and injury free exercise.     
How:  You can perform this sitting or standing, but standing is preferred.  Stand with your feet hip width and pointing straight forward.  Squeeze glutes and pull your tummy in.   With your arms out to your side lift your chest and squeeze your shoulder blades together.  Keep your chin down and tucked in.   You should feel postural and open.  This is an isometric exercise.
Hold this position and prescribed contractions for 30 seconds. (Repeat one more time)
Perform ideally 3x/day for at least 1 week. 

The Amazing Egg, and some great recipes...

The Amazing Egg

Boy I love eggs. For those of you who know me well you know I eat up to one dozen a day. Yep, that’s pretty easy for me to do. Of course only two of those eggs get to keep their yolk – the rest are egg whites. I most typically scramble them at a 1 whole egg: 5 egg white ratio. That is only 145 calories for my ½ dozen serving and 28 grams of uber quality protein. Why do I eat so many eggs? They are versatile cooking-wise, all natural, low calorie, packed with vitamins and minerals and have the highest protein efficiency ratio (PER) of any food on the planet. And even better they cost an average of just 16 cents an egg. I am also a big advocate of a mixed diet for most people. That means the diet should be 1/3 lean proteins, 1/3 healthy fats, and 1/3 unrefined grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables (carbohydrates). Eggs are one of my easiest and best staples for the protein portion of that diet type. They also have a strong filling capacity – i.e. an egg with a few whites will go a long way for making you full compared to equal calories worth of carbohydrate foods or fats – This is essential for fat loss and staying lean. Let’s review more benefits of eggs, crack the cholesterol myth and show you some of my favorite easy-to-make egg recipes.

Packed with Nutrients

Here are some other points from the Incredible Egg Website (www.incredibleegg.org)

The nutrient package of eggs aids in the following:

• Weight management: The high-quality protein in eggs helps you to feel fuller longer and stay energized, which contributes to maintaining a healthy weight.¹
• Muscle strength and muscle-loss prevention: Research indicates that high-quality protein may help active adults build muscle strength and help prevent muscle loss in middle-aged and aging adults.²
• Healthy pregnancy: Egg yolks are an excellent source of choline, an essential nutrient that contributes to fetal brain development and helps prevent birth defects. Two eggs provide about 250 milligrams of choline, or roughly half of the recommended daily intake for pregnant and breastfeeding women.³
• Brain function: Choline also aids the brain function of adults by maintaining the structure of brain cell membranes, and is a key component of the neuro-transmitter that helps relay messages from the brain through nerves to the muscles.⁴
• Eye health: Lutein and zeaxanthin, two antioxidants found in egg yolks, help prevent macular degeneration, a leading cause of age-related blindness. Though eggs contain a small amount of these two nutrients, research shows that the lutein from eggs may be more bioavailable than lutein from other food sources.⁵

The Cholesterol Myth

One of the big concerns with eggs is their cholesterol content. Although most current research links increased cholesterol and the potential for heart disease to dietary saturated fat when compared to dietary cholesterol – it is still important to be aware of. Like I said earlier I recommend doing scrambles with 1 whole egg : 3 or more egg whites (which have no cholesterol). You can go with a single egg too, but you will be only getting 7 grams of protein. Mixing the whole egg with more whites increases the protein while maintaining the rich flavor that eggs offer.

The American Heart Association says that it is absolutely safe for all individuals to consume 1 egg a day. 1 whole large egg supplies 185 mg of dietary cholesterol. Here are some more recent studies on cholesterol and egg consumption:

A 2008 study from Surrey University published in the European Journal of Nutrition provides evidence that increasing dietary cholesterol intake by eating two eggs a day does not increase total plasma cholesterol when accompanied by moderate weight loss. The study authors concluded that cholesterol-rich foods should not be excluded from dietary advice for weight loss.¹

In 2006, Nutrition Bulletin published a review of scientific studies from the past 30 years showing that eating eggs daily does not have a significant impact on blood cholesterol or heart disease risk. The authors noted several benefits of egg consumption – including the high-quality protein eggs provide – and argued that consumption of one to two eggs a day should be actively encouraged as part of a calorie-restricted weight-loss plan.⁴

A review of more than 25 studies that appeared in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition in 2000 showed that eating an egg a day isn’t associated with increased risk of heart disease in healthy men and women, even after taking into account other aspects of their diet that may increase the risk for heart disease.⁶

A 1999 Harvard University study that collected data from more than 100,000 men and women found no significant difference in heart disease risk between healthy adults who ate less than one egg a week and those who ate more than one egg a day, and that eating up to one egg a day is unlikely to have a significant overall impact on the risk of heart disease or stroke.⁷

My Three Favorite Egg Recipes

One thing that is perplexing to me is why eggs culturally are considered a breakfast food in America. I have traveled to Japan and found that it was a part of many lunch and dinner options. And I have been told that in Australia it is a major addition to many things as well. Since I am such a radical, I often have eggs for breakfast, lunch and dinner. My following three favorite recipes are quick and easy to make, low in calories and sugar and packed with protein and fiber.

Spinach Scramble on Sesame Toast

• 1 whole egg : 3 egg whites scrambled
• 1 cup of baby spinach leaves added to scramble
• 2 slices of toasted Ezekiel Sesame bread
• 2 tsp of light butter with canola oil for toast
• Favorite spices and salt as needed

Cook/Prep Time: 5 min Calories: 320 Protein: 26 grams Carbs: 36grams Fats: 9 grams Sugars: 0 grams Fiber: 7 grams

Black Bean Scramble on Corn Tortillas

• 1 whole egg : 3 egg whites scrambled
• 1/3 cup of Trader Joes organic black beans added to scramble (at the very end)
• 3 small corn tortillas (heat on skillet, not the microwave, to keep them moist and flexible)
• 1/3 of avocado
• 3 tsp of salsa
• Favorite spices and salt as needed

Cook/Prep Time: 5 to 8 min Calories: 444 Protein: 28 grams Carbs: 54grams Fats: 14 grams Sugars: 3 grams Fiber: 13 grams

Quick Fried Rice (to be used as a good recipe for leftover brown rice)

• ½ cup of organic frozen peas and carrots
• 1 tsp of olive oil or canola oil
• 1 cup brown rice
• 1 whole egg : 3 egg whites scrambled
• Favorite spices and salt as needed

Add olive oil and peas and carrots first (1 min), add leftover brown rice second (2 min), finally add egg mix.

Cook/Prep Time: 5 to 8 min Calories: 412 Protein: 24 grams Carbs: 53 grams Fats: 11 grams Sugars: 4 grams Fiber: 6 grams

2011 © DEREK HEINTZ EDGE FITNESS CONSULTING www.yourfitnessedge.com 619-920-5452

Bodybuilding.com - Quadriceps-SMR - Male

Stiff back after sitting at your computer or a long commute?
Here is a good basic foam roller video for releasing tension in your hip flexors and quads - which indirectly does a great job at releasing tension and stiffness in the lower back.

Bodybuilding.com - Quadriceps-SMR - Male

Bodybuilding.com - One-Legged Cable Kickback - Male

I am going to start a series of exercise video links from a good website www.bodybuilding.com. Don't be intimidated by the name of the site or the many products they sell. Overall this website has a good database of effective exercises.
Glutes, glutes, glutes.... some of my clients are tired of me talking about our wonderful 'backside' muscles, but they are just so important. Not to mention the nice asthetic benefit of strong, toned glutes. Even 30 minutes of desk work shuts down our glutes. When this happens, not only does the muscle look saggy, it is not able to do its job well: Support the lower back and work as a major driver in hip extension (walking, running, squatting, lunging, to name a few activities). If your glutes are shut down from a day of sitting then typical exercises like I just mentioned end up requiring help from the hamstrings and lower back muscles. This can lead to chronic pain in the hamstrings and lower back. There are many exercises that can 'fire up' and activate the glutes before your workout so that you are able to recruit them correctly. The Cable Kickback is one of my favorites. Do this corrective exercise before you move on to your cardio or other traditional leg and glutes exercises - you will feel the difference when you do, and you will see better results in training the glutes.

Bodybuilding.com - One-Legged Cable Kickback - Male

Breakfast 101, by EDGE trainer Justin Allen

This is a great topic on my partnering trainer's blog regarding breakfast.

Justin's E.D.G.E Fitness Blog: Breakfast 101: "What's For Breakfast? Over the last couple weeks one of the questions I have gotten is 'So, what do you eat for breakfast?' Breakfas..."