Learn How To Move And Free Yourself From Injury

One of the critical pillars of physical wellness is proper movement. And by that I mean that you move and use your body in a way that supports the strength inherent to an aligned and balanced body structure. Back and body pain, for example, are usually caused by unconscious movement patterns. Often the most obvious and last “cause” happens the moment of injury. The patterns of ones habitual movement over years or over a lifetime create strong and weak points in the body and after which the injury is just waiting to happen.
This is really, really powerful because what I am saying here is that we are basically all unaware to some extent of how we are moving and using our bodies and many times, most of the time, this is directly affecting how we feel as well as affecting our body structure itself.
You know you’ve heard the saying “form equals function” right? Well, in the human body there is some truth to that saying because form does dictate function. But form is also dictated by function. This is a reciprocal relationship with a feedback loop. The body will accommodate to the way you are using it. And, over time, it will change its structure to better accommodate patterns of use (and stop accomodating patterns of non use). This is why when you try to do something at a level that you once did it as a youth, you are not able to and often get injured. Its not that your body isn’t capable, it is that the body has changed from the new patterns that you have put into it since you were a youth! So your body is no longer set up neurologically or muscularly, for this type now foreign movement and the thing that you were trying to do as a weekend warrior and got injured doing, simply applied stress to an already weakened spot.

Many, many times clients will come to me with say, symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome- the burning, penetrating concentrated pain in their wrists, heels of their hands, fore arms, etc. They are swollen up, all inflamed, and because of this they have become weak and unable to perform even the most basic tasks with their hands and arms because of the swelling and the pain. Another, more subtle, version of this is the folks who have started to have tingling sensations in their hands (or sciatica and tingling in the feet for that matter).

What has happened is that for years (usually) these people have typed away at a computer or some repetitive task, moving their fingers rapidly, while holding the rest of their body in place without movement. This creates a movement pattern in the body and after awhile it becomes unconscious- that is they do it without thinking, without being aware. This pattern of use leads them to the problem (carpal tunnel, sciatica, back pain, ankle sprains, etc.) Yet when they arrive at the pain, they are unaware that their whole structure has changed over the years to accommodate the specialized non integrated movement of typing ( or whatever movement). So, in essence, the movement pattern is now reinforcing the problem, because, you see, even when they are not typing, their holding pattern persists, the forward rolled shoulders, the collapsed support in the lumbar spine, etc.
This pattern is actually causing their symptoms to become worse and the conventional treatment is treating only the symptom but ignores the root cause which is the unconscious movement and holding pattern! (in carpal tunnel this involves wrist surgery, sciatica may use disc surgery, etc.) So the moral of the story is to become aware of your movement and how it is directly affecting your body. Become aware of your own holding patterns. And the way to do this is to train yourself to really feel in your body…to really feel the holding patterns and the movement patterns. There are many ways to do this. You can meditate and then move, or study something like yoga or tai chi or Alexander technique, or film your self and analyze the movement, but the best way is to hire a teacher to help you discover and develop, in bite sized chunks, the skill of body awareness, of kinesthetic awareness. This is critical to really gaining full control and mastering your body and physical health

Time Is Running Out

Time Is Running Out! Get Your Answers In To Win $100 Before Tomorrows 5pm Deadline!

The response has been fabulous but believe it or not there is still one prize to be claimed. Those of you who haven't gotten around to deciphering the mystery location are leaving prize money on the table...SO, here is the link again. My goal is to give away ALL of the prize money so I don't have to find a place in my already cluttered attic to store it =)

As my friend Sukie Baxter says, find the whys behind the whats. Earlier this week, I asked you to explore about what deep seated feelings are holding you back as the possible underlayment of your physical manifestation of pain or weight issues. These are feelings that are rooted in a lifetime of behavoir patterns and the inevitable reinforcement cycle that follows the behavoir.

Whether the feelings are rooted in patterns from childhood, trauma, or later in life, they will cause us to literally sabatoge our own success until they are acknowledged, addressed, and put behind us. This brings up the point that emotional patterns have a very tangible link to the condition of the physical body and are often best accessed through the physical body.

What this means is that, in some way, these feelings are actually stored in the tissues of your body and can therefore have the potential to be accessed and released by releasing the patterns of movement and strain in the physical body. This is not an immediate, cathartic type of release, rather what I am suggesting is that a gradual, sustained, momentum of change is the fastest and most effective way to undertake this type of transformation.

That said, I have a couple of spots opening up in my schedule in the next week. If this resonates with you, apply for a complimentary strategy session that is designed to move you toward identifying and resolving the blocks that are holding you back.

Win $100!

Alrighty then! For the first 3 people who decipher this mystery greeting location no later than 5pm on sept 25th, 2009 (and contact me with the correct answer), I will award a credit (gift certificate, prize, whatever you want to call it) of no less than (and no more than..for that matter) 100 smackeroos (dollar value, bucks, doucats, dolores, etc..) to be used to purchase any of my service packages (must be used no later than 9/29/09)...OK. Now its time to bring it on. Good luck! OH, and by the way, you can reach me at support@therolfworkshop.com, on facebook (http://www.facebook.com/mannyaragon, my fan page: http://www.facebook.com/mannyaragon...SO, there it is. Go have fun with it!

Performance Enhancing Technology

You want to run faster, jump higher, find greater agility and you are already training hard. You've done it all, expert trainers, proper nutrition, the best equipment, what more can you do. A lot. You've tried all of the conventional, well known, methods. Now its time to get "unconventional". Form equals function right? Well, since that is the case, lets get started on changing the form. Essentially, by aligning the body segments in relation to one another, releasing the muscular adhesions that make us less efficient, and getting the segments to work together as a unit rather than as a collection of discrete collection of parts (other wise known as integrating the function of the parts of the body), one becomes more efficient, more flexible, less prone to injury, able to heal more quickly, and best of all, faster.

Think about it. If you had an old Italian sports car, it was fun to drive, noisy, spunky and all but when tuned, the car runs more smoothly with less drama. That about captures the essence of it. Change the pliability, resilience, and improve the efficiency of an integrated living system and you have yourself a brand new superperforming body.

Made For Running

I've been learning to run lately and came across this article on the evolutionary components in our bodies that link humans with other species known to run over long distances. Now there are no excuses for further delay, we were made to run.

*NEWSFLASH* Stress is bad for your health

No, really, and this is why. Everyday stressors cause us to constantly secrete stress hormones which are really meant for acute events like a car crash, a lion chasing us down, getting mugged, etc... The release of these hormones suppresses our higher functions and over time the chronic release of these hormones can wreak havoc on our systems like digestion (any one got an ulcer), reproduction (corporate ladies having trouble getting pregnant), liver function (cholesterol), immune function (autoimmune diseases, allergies, cancer, etc, etc, etc). When in fight or flight mode these functions are not necessary. When we live our lives in fight or flight mode there are dramatic tradeoffs. To hear more about this phenomenon have a look at Robert Sapalskys' website.

Julie and Julia

A week ago friday I was lucky enough to be able to catch a movie alone with my wife. We had just dropped off my son and daughter in Glendale (with their aunties) and decided to go to the Americana (its fab alright) to catch a bite and a movie so we would miss the traffic. Luckily enough, we were both on the same wavelength (rare when it comes to movies..) and decided to see Julie and Julia, a movie about the life of famous chef Julia Childs going through the self discovery of learning the art of french cooking while living in Paris..

What struck both of us about this movie was the enthusiasm and joy of living that this woman expressed. She really epitomized the passion that those of us feel when we are "living the dream" so to speak. And THAT got both of us thinking. How could WE harness her inspirational enthusiasm in our own lives? How could we live the dream more than we already are? And this is a question so fundamental that I am posing it directly to you, fair readers..

For those of you who are already living your dream and creating your future, destiny, legacy, joy, enthusiasm, etc., How could you be doing that more effectively? How could you be actively growing your passion while smack in the middle of it? And for those of you who are longing to live your dreams but have not made the commitment to yourself yet. I highly encourage you to see this movie for an example of someone who is literally ON FIRE with her passion. Obstacles are trivial in this scenario. They are there to be surmounted, to learn and grow from, but never to dampen our enthusiasm. Rather their presence only makes us more deeply resolved than ever to continue unleashing our dreams on the world..

So, you may ask, how is this related to my health and wellness? And my answer is to note that despite a lifetime of cooking rich, gourmet, french meals, slathered in butter and cream (things that we try to avoid these days...another topic for later..but I digress..) Julia Childs lived into her nineties! Happiness is clearly a powerful force affecting our overall health and we would do well to work on that part first. I, say, follow your passion, follow your dream, until you live your dream. Never stop spreading the abundance of your dream and you shall live a long, healthy, prosperous life.

Weatherize Your Body

Last Monday (Labor Day) I spent a beautiful day at the beach with my family. Paolo ran from the waves, Allie played in the sand, and Mom and Dad took turns taking them to the tide pools, on walks and to the nearby natural sea "bathtub". The day was warm and there was a nice cool breeze at the beach as usual. That is until around 5:30 pm when I noticed the slight chill in the air that signals the end of the hot summer weather and the onset of the seasonal change from summer to autumn.

That little chill also reminded me that it is time to start carrying around a sweater again, to close the windows at night, to make sure that I don't stress my body too much and that I get the proper nutrition as well. Because the seasons are changing AND this is the time to (if you haven't already begun) weatherize your body for winter. See, this is critical, because, more people tend to get sick when the weather is in transition than when the weather is simply cold. The transitional weather (hot/cold/hot/cold/etc..) stresses our immune system allowing the pathogens a clear pathway into our bodies.

So, my advice to you, unless you are looking forward to sick days as a means to watch TV instead of going to work, is to make the transition in your mind. Realize and plan for this transitional weather, suprise cold, rain, wind, etc. and start transitioning your diet to heartier foods as well. This will keep you well and able to appreciate and enjoy the beauty of autumn more fully.

Mystery Greeting