“When you’re tense you hold your breath. When you’re excited you hold your breath.”

If you associate with this statement then you need some help.

 

Breath holding is a survival mechanism and should NOT be accessed in other circumstances.  Hold your breath long enough and you will have nothing else to worry about.

 

People sometimes ask me why I teach breathing.  Isn’t it supposed to be natural?  Or how come some teachers say just allow the breath to occur without trying to control it?  Well the answer is yes, but many people have lost their natural breathing.  That is why I must help them to refind their pattern.  It’s not about training the respiratory muscles or forcing the breath to be deeper.  Reprogramming the breath is just like reprogramming movement.  It is about patterns and function not about muscle strength alone.  Regain the patterns and the muscles will follow.  But try it the other way and all you are left with are potentially strong but uncoordinated muscles.  In other words not much use. We are not a collection of parts.  We are not Frankenstein monsters.

 

So if the following is true for you

 

“When you’re tense you hold your breath. When you’re excited you hold your breath.”

 

then perhaps you should come along to the Breath workshop I am running this weekend.  It may be the best health or fitness decision you make.

Go barefoot to reconnect

More than just physical reasons to go barefoot.  It could be good for your health too.

Read on here.

“In healing, one must grasp the root of the disharmony”

So when you have a knee injury which is not caused by trauma and the physio only treats the knee, that is why the problem does NOT resolve.  Or when a shoulder injury occurs and all that you do is rotator cuff exercises and nothing really happens.  Because you are not grasping the root.  Treating the symptom is a bandaid approach used by the misinformed.  It is rarely ever simply a strength or length issue.  If it were (which it may be in a small number of cases) then you will notice improvements straight away.  You may still be getting ‘treatment’ a long time after the injury with not much change in the condition.  Worse, the pattern is often a bit of relief after treatment but then it doesn’t last and you go in for more relief. This is repeated again and again and it costs you a lot of money and you are reassured that it is working but you can feel that nothing is changing. 

 

That is because the root is inefficient movement patterns (coordination of many muscles and joints) rather than strength/length issues in individual muscles.  However, this is convenient and easy to understand.  But it shows a lack of comprehension.

 

So how is it that inefficient movement patterns can cause problems?  By putting your joints in inefficient patterns you are overstressing the joints and structures in ways that they were not originally designed for.  These structures get compressed and ground until inflammation occurs and pain sensations are felt.  So even if you strengthen and lengthen the muscles whilst still running inefficient software then you are still damaging the structures. 

 

But then what to do?

The root of the problem when it comes to knee and ankle issues is in the hip, and the same in the upper body.  Shoulder injuries are often a result of poor mechanics, and upper back and even lower back issues due to problems with alignment elsewhere in the chain.  Which is why I utilise integrative exercises that look deceptively simple because by doing an exercise/movement correctly then it is corrective exercise.  The magic is in correct execution, not just in the exercise itself.  It is also why when not performed correctly a lot of people report problems. 

 

So what can you do to realign and reconnect the body?  Simple exercises like the kettlebell and indian club swinging for those who are fitness oriented.  There are even simpler exercises that require no equipment but just a little bit of space but I’ll save them for another day. 

 

But back to the fitness exercises.

For example, the kettlebell swing teaches hip extension whilst maintaining a healthy and safe spine position.  This is obviously good for the back.  First put it in a good position and then learn to utilise other muscles to move whilst leaving the back muscles to stabilise as they are supposed to do.  So now the back is not being overworked and it can rest and heal.  But it is also good for the knees as it teaches the knees to transfer weight rather than bearing weight.  It teaches movement at the hips.

Another example are shoulder circles and indian club swings.  It teaches people to move the whole shoulder girdle without elevating the shoulder excessively.  Without collapsing the chest or rounding the shoulders.  It teaches you to allow rather than produce movement at the glenohumeral joint.

 

The ‘secret’ is in performing the movements properly.

Training then becomes rehab as well as strengthening. For once you use your body the way it was built then proper length and strength will return in the muscles.  Unnecessary tension begins to disappear.  The process is one of learning and takes time but it is a steady path you are now on as you gradually refine your movement patterns and gradually reduce your bodily symptoms.

 

So go to the root.

The resulting imbalances in strength and length are a result of this disharmony.  Address the source to resolve the problem.

 

Align. Breathe. Connect.

3 simple rules for better health and wellbeing

So I often get asked for dietary and exercise advice.

But if you’re going to ask for advice then:

1   perhaps you should listen and

2   try it and find out for yourself how your body likes it before you judge it.

 

If you’re still interested then read on.

 

1/ NO DAIRY, yes that’s both cheese and milk (humans are the only animals that drink the milk from another animal)

which often leads to “what do I put in my coffee?”

simple, 2/ NO COFFEE. Problem solved.

 

This goes hand in hand with

3/ WALK every day.  Minimum 30minutes.  Preferably outdoors.

Which leads to “I don’t have time” and/or “what about running/gym?”

Well, if you don’t have time then why did you ask what to do?  If you’re not going to do anything then don’t expect any changes.  And number 2, if you don’t have time to walk 30minutes a day then you don’t have time to go to the gym/run either, right?  You know that saying, “WALK BEFORE YOU RUN”.  “Health and Fitness.” Health comes before Fitness but that’s another story.

 

And remember, without application, there is no effect.  Zero. Zilch. None.

 

Body history map

The body reflects what we’ve done with it over the years, clues are left behind just like a treasure map.  Except there is no X and the clues are more subtle, almost like puzzles and riddles that require awareness and patience.  Too often people blame genetics, ageing and untreatable factors because they do not want to take responsibility for their own actions and they do not want to have to work to get out of the predicament they have gotten themselves into.  If you keep holding your head and neck a certain way then of course it will hurt no matter how strong the muscle.  They simply expect magic pills as it can’t be their fault.  Medical staff also do not wish to be seen as incompetent when in fact their answer should be “I don’t know”.  I think it all comes back to alignment and our movement habits.  Slight misalignments over time can add up and catch up to us just like water wearing through rock. 

 

Unfortunately not many people want to hear it or learn about it because it’s too subtle and ‘there is no research’ they cry.There is no research because no large company can sell you a product.  The true solution is education and awareness. 

It’s got me thinking and I think for most people it (shoulders/knees) can be helped when the body is aligned and moving properly with correct connection.  Just because the symptoms show up in the knee, GHJ or elbow does not mean the problem is there.

 

Knees, shoulders, back and necks are the symptoms but often not the cause.  Things like niggles, spasms, chronic tension do not have to be endured.  Even things like slipped discs are just a difference in degree of injury.  The causes are often the same. 

 

So learn to align yourself and that means first starting with the breath.  Alignment is internal even more so than it is external. 

Align Breathe Connect.

The next step up: 4kg clubs (pair)

The first batch of clubs and pillows have gone out so thanks for everyone who ordered one.

I would like to add another size/weight of clubs to my distribution list.  The 4kg clubs are the next step up from the 2kg but don’t be fooled by the 2kg difference.  Due to the weight distribution, these are twice as heavy but the difference is quite a bit more!  So the progression is not linear as some believe.  This is just the same with kettlebells, the martial arts and anything else decent in life.

I will now offer pairs of 4kg clubs for $90 alongside the 2kg pairs I listed before ($50 for a pair of 2kg).

The little one in the photo is the 2kg, the middle one 4kg and the big one is the 10kg.

So why 4kg?

4kg is a better weight for the average male as an all round club for both mobility and strength.  Featuring a better club size and handle size, it goes beyond the entry level 2kg.  The latter is better for the injured, beginner or less active user but with the 4kg we start to look towards more strength, coordination and performance with the greater weight asking for more refinement in movement.  The greater weight also helps open up the shoulder girdle a bit more as it acts like a weighted stretch in certain positions.  Lastly, as we all know, grip strength is correlated with overall strength so a thicker handle can bring greater benefits for those who are ready for the challenge.