| As a professional dancer for 10 years in New York | | | | sudden you've got a stress fracture in your fibula or |
| City, I've had plenty of injuries. It's a long list. As a | | | | tibia [or a bad strain of the posterior tibialis [which |
| retired chiropractic orthopedist, having practiced for | | | | feels almost exactly the same as a stress fracture]. |
| many years in New York City, I've treated lots of | | | | There is another side to this, and none of us wants |
| people with a very long list of exercise- and | | | | to baby ourselves. I mean, how many runners |
| sports-related injuries. | | | | haven't had lingering calf pain or a chronic stress |
| As a life-long athlete, I'm well aware that a person | | | | reaction? Most of us have had this at some point. |
| with an injury has many questions. | | | | What I want to emphasize here is to train SMART, |
| - When can I get back to my sport? is the most | | | | and to look out for the possibility of over-training. It's |
| common and most immediate question. This is | | | | always a temptation, and the result is never good. |
| relatively easy to answer. | | | | The short-term gratification is completely outweighed |
| - What can I do to prevent this from happening | | | | by the frustration and deconditioning resulting from |
| again? is another common question. Often, the | | | | injury-enforced down-time. |
| answer is relatively straightforward. But for some, | | | | What about focus and paying attention? I'll propose |
| injuries continue to happen. | | | | that many injuries happen during normal training |
| Which leads us to the key question - | | | | because your mind wandered off. People are paying |
| - Why did this happen to me? | | | | more attention to the TV screen or to the music on |
| This is the hardest to answer. Sometimes, stuff just | | | | their iPods than to their rep of the moment. What |
| happens. As a physician, you may need to look a | | | | happened to present time consciousness? This |
| person in the eye, shrug your shoulders, and say | | | | powerful Zen concept offers tremendous value for |
| exactly that - sometimes stuff just happens. But it's | | | | people who exercise. Focus provides immeasurable |
| very important to continue to attempt to discover | | | | value, forging powerful brain-muscle connections. And, |
| likely causes. | | | | focus - present time consciousness - causes you to |
| I believe there are three main sources of training | | | | be right in the moment and doing your exercise |
| injuries - | | | | properly. |
| - Under-preparation | | | | I'll make the bold statement that you're very unlikely |
| - Over-training | | | | to sustain an injury during normal training if you're |
| - Lack of focus OR not paying attention | | | | completely focused. I can look back on so many of |
| Under-preparation means doing things you're not | | | | my own injuries and point to wandering attention as |
| ready to do. In Manhattan, I often worked as an aide | | | | the immediate cause. Now, it's challenging to focus all |
| at the finish line of the New York City Marathon. | | | | the time, right? Yes, it is. Maintaining focus is part of |
| After a while, I was no longer shocked by the | | | | the discipline of training. It's a Zen thing, packed with |
| numbers of people who were absolutely falling apart | | | | powerful rewards for a person. |
| at the aide station. Once a person was able to speak | | | | But aren't there underlying issues that may |
| coherently, I'd ask them about their marathon training | | | | predispose a person to injury even if they're doing all |
| - how did they prepare? | | | | the right things? The easy answer is "yes". The hard |
| The ones who were in the worst shape were the | | | | part is to accurately assess and possibly diagnose |
| ones who prepared the least. Obviously. Well, obvious | | | | such issues. |
| to the docs, but not obvious to the person attached | | | | Underlying causes often involve complex |
| to the I.V. | | | | biomechanical imbalances. Most often, these are not |
| People who have never done aerobic exercise go out | | | | easy to correct. A person may spend vast amounts |
| and try to run five miles. People who have never | | | | of precious time and money in trying to find |
| done strength training go to the gym and try to use | | | | effective therapy. She may visit chiropractors, |
| heavy weights. People who have never taken a yoga | | | | physical therapists, orthopedic surgeons, massage |
| class go to one, like it, and then go every day for a | | | | therapists, and assorted "natural healers", and still not |
| week. | | | | achieve a permanent solution. |
| Oy.If you're 16, you can go crazy. Sometimes, even | | | | What to do? I believe knowledge is power. A |
| if you're 26. But if you're 36 or 46 or 56 - or 66, 76, | | | | magnificent book - really, the seminal work in the field |
| or 86 - you've got to train on a trajectory. Start | | | | of biomechanics - is The Thinking Body by Mabel |
| slow, start with the basics. Have rest days. Build up | | | | Ellsworth Todd. |
| your strength and stamina. Get used to the new | | | | The Thinking Body was written in the 1930s. It's a |
| form of physical activity, and build on your base. | | | | slow read, but will definitely reward you by helping |
| Doing too much will send you straight to your | | | | you get your head on straight [literally] about human |
| doctor's office - or to the hospital. | | | | biomechanics and physical performance. |
| Over-training means doing too much. Most of us are | | | | More to come about biomechanical imbalances, how |
| guilty of this. I know I am. Ego gets in the way, you | | | | to begin to restore efficient form, how to regain |
| think you're tough, invincible, and you exceed your | | | | performance levels, and how to prevent recurrence |
| physical limits of the moment. For example, you love | | | | of injuries. |
| to run, you build up your weekly mileage, and all of a | | | | |