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Could Your Shoes Be The Cause of Foot Dysfunction and Decreased Performance?

May 2, 2018/in Cherry Hill sports performance, Fit and healthy, Fitness and Nutrition News in South Jersey area, Personal trainer tips, Sports performance, The scoop in all /by Training Aspects

Foot Health and Your Performance

Typically the feet are a forgotten body part when it comes to training but the health of your foot can be one of the most crucial aspects in how well you perform on the field or ice. Also the type of shoe you wear while training can play a huge role.

Types of Shoes

There are a ton of different types of shoes out there nowadays. You have running shoes, walking shoes, training shoes, basketball shoes, hiking boots, casual shoes, dress shoes and the list goes on. Why is there a different shoe for every little thing I do in life? For the most part the shoe companies are just trying to make money so they will “create” a shoe for every possible task in life. But aren’t our feet supposed to naturally do all of these tasks anyway? Yup…and BAREFOOT at that!

Foot Anatomy

Our feet are amazingly strong (or at least supposed to be) and they have one of the highest sensory outputs in the entire body! They contain 33 joints and over 100 muscles, tendons and ligaments per foot!! So why in the world would we drown them and cover them with big bulky shoes that weaken our feet and reduce their sense of touch?

How The Feet Function

The feet have so many functions that can affect performance. The big toe is vital in how well you push off your foot. During activities such as sprinting this can make or break your explosiveness. The mobility of the ankle joint has a huge effect on your performance as well. Efficient dorsiflexion can help improve your speed and explosiveness by allowing your foot to act like a spring. Every time you hit the ground, your foot will propel you forward instead of pounding straight into the ground. This will limit the pressure on your joints and increase your body’s energy efficiency.

How Your Shoe Can Hinder Foot Function

Many shoes now have a raised heel so you’re walking around on this thick platform reducing your feel of the ground. The front of the shoe which is called the toe box is typically very narrow leading to the toes getting squished together. These two popular designs in shoes cause huge problems for your foot health and ultimately your performance. As stated above big toe push off and ankle mobility are vital to optimal foot performance. The raised heel can change your posture, how you stand, walk and run. This can lead to a heel striking running pattern. Increasing your risk for hip, knee and foot pain as well as decreased performance. Squishing your toes into narrower toe boxes will lead to lack of mobility and dysfunction of your big toe reducing power and explosiveness.

The Culprits

These are many of the most popular shoes “designed” for running, training and hiking. But wait….aren’t my feet already designed to do all of these things? Why do I need a specially designed shoe with extra support to help? All that extra support is like a cast for your foot, although it’ll feel better in the short term limiting any pain you have from your feet or hips being weak. In the long term you are actually just making the problem worse by reducing the movement of the hundreds of joints, muscles, tendons and ligaments in your feet. This will atrophy the muscles and stiffen the joints leading to more pain, dysfunction and potential injury.

“Barefoot” Options

Some may say the barefoot options are silly looking or not fashionable. Walking around dysfunctionally (which is visibly noticeable) and knowingly creating weak and painful feet sounds a lot more silly and unfashionable to me 😉 These shoes can wake up the sensory processors of the feet leading to huge changes in posture, function, performance and pain relief!

The transition to barefoot shoes must be gradual! Proper ankle mobility, arch strength, and hip stability are all musts before adding in barefoot wear to your workouts and outdoor adventures! Stay tuned, next week we’ll break down the most common movement pattern issues and how to get yourself strong enough to start transitioning to your new “barefoot” lifestyle!

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Is Your Lower Leg Mobility Plan As Effective As It Could Be?

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Training Aspects’ personal trainers and sports performance coaches want you to accomplish your goals. You, as the personal training client, are a reflection of our personal training and group training methods! We are here to help you accomplish all of your personal training goals! Our main training focus are people looking to increase performance, lose weight , lose body fat and increase lean muscle. Whether you live in Cherry Hill, Haddonfield,Marlton, or any of the other surrounding areas we are here to help you Move, Look and feel as you’ve always desired…

Nutrient Combo for Health: Vitamin K and Fats

April 4, 2018/in Fit and healthy, Fitness and Nutrition News in South Jersey area, Personal trainer tips /by Training Aspects

Training Aspects is the source for personal training cherry hill, NJ trusts

Nutrient Combos for Health: Vitamin K and Fats

Vitamin K is a fat soluble vitamin, meaning that is needs fat to be readily available in order to be absorbed by the body. Vitamin K plays a role in bone formation and blood clotting. So it’s essential to ensure the body has an adequate supply that is ready for use.

Food Sources of Vitamin K:

Green leafy vegetables including: kale, collard greens, spinach, beet and turnip greens. Additionally broccoli, asparagus, cabbage and green beans are also high in vitamin K.

Food Sources of Healthy Fats:

Heart healthy fats include oils like: olive oil, canola oil, and sunflower oil, avocados, nuts such as: almonds, peanuts, walnuts, and cashews, and seeds like: sunflower, chia, and pumpkin seeds.

Perfect Meal Combos:

Spinach Salad in an oil based vinaigrette with sunflower seeds and sliced avocado, or sauteed kale in olive oil, slivered almonds and pumpkin seeds.

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Is Magnesium the Third Piece to Vitamin D and Calcium Absorption?

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Is Your Lower Leg Mobility Plan As Effective As It Could Be?

March 28, 2018/in Cherry Hill sports performance, Personal trainer tips, Sports performance, The scoop in all /by Training Aspects

There are many muscles in the lower leg (knee down) but we’re going to focus on two specific muscles in this article. The Gastrocnemius (upper calf muscle) and the soleus (lower calf muscle). The gastrocnemius is the calf muscle that everyone sees and aspires to have a defined shape. The soleus is a little less know muscle and isn’t as well seen or defined. So how do you know which one could be causing mobility issues? We have a couple quick tests that will reveal which one could be causing the problem and mobility protocols to ensure you’re getting the most out of your mobility routine.

Lower Leg Anatomy

Here is a picture to give you a better idea of where each muscle is.

Lower Leg Function

Both the gastroc and the soleus have similar functions. They both plantar flex the foot (when you go up on your toes) while walking, running and jumping. The main difference between the two is when they activate. The gastrocnemius activates when the leg is fully extended at the knee and the soleus primarily activates when the knee is bent.

Gastrocnemius activating

Soleus activating

How This Affects Your Mobility Plan

Since these muscles activate in different body positions you will also have to stretch and mobilize these muscles differently as well. The gastroc will best be stretched and mobilized with a straight knee position and the soleus will get the best stretch in a bent knee position. But how do you know which one to focus in on to improve mobility?

Test Your Lower Leg Mobility

There are two different tests you can do to decipher which part of the lower leg is the issue. The bent knee lower leg and the straight leg lower leg mobility tests can show you which part of the calf is more of an issue based off of the dorsiflexion range of motion at the ankle. Optimal range of motion is around 40 degrees.

Straight Leg Ankle Dorsiflexion Mobility test – The focus of this test is to see how much range of motion you can get from the back ankle while in the straight leg position . Keep the toes pointed forward, heel down and back leg straight.

Bent Knee Ankle Dorsiflexion Mobility Test – The goal here is to assess ankle mobility in the front ankle while bending at the knee. You want to keep the toes pointed forward, knee bent, and heel on the ground.

Protocol to Improve Ankle Mobility

After we have discovered which position has limited range of motion then we can asign the more appropriate ankle mobility and performance protocol.

Gastrocnemius (upper calf) Mobility Performance Protocol – If your range of motion is more limited in the straight leg position than we need to reduce tightness in the gastroc through active releases, stretches, and mobilizations. Then strengthen the soleus to bring balance back to the lower leg muscles.

Soleus (lower calf) Mobility Performance Protocol – If your range of motion was worse in the bent leg position then we need to reduce tightness in the soleus through active releases, stretches and mobilizations. Then get the gastroc activating to bring balance back to the lower leg muscles.

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Could Your Shoulder Also Be the Cause of Your Elbow Pain?

March 1, 2018/in Cherry Hill sports performance, Fit and healthy, Fitness and Nutrition News in South Jersey area, Personal trainer tips, Sports performance, The scoop in all /by Training Aspects

Could Your Shoulder Also Be Causing Your Elbow Pain?

As we learned in the previous article about the wrist and elbow pain, going right to the source of pain isn’t always going to be the fix. We have to think outside the box and examine what else could be causing the problem. The elbow joint is sandwiched between the wrist and the shoulder so if one of those two joints aren’t moving correctly the elbow will likely try to compensate and take on a workload it is not meant to handle. If this happens repeatedly over time pain is inevitable. So how could the shoulder actually affect the elbow?

Anatomy of the Shoulder

The anatomy of the shoulder is very complex and has so many muscles that attach to it, to keep this article simple we will only be referring to specific muscles that typically affect shoulder movement the most.

The Muscles Around The Shoulder

We usually think of the main muscles of the shoulder being the deltoids (the muscles that give our shoulders that round boulder look), which they are, but usually aren’t always the culprits when it comes to shoulder issues. It’s the muscles that are near the shoulder that can cause the biggest problem though. Muscles like the pec minor/major (chest muscles) and the biceps muscles attach to the bones that connect the shoulder joint. These muscles are very often overused and create tightness in the shoulder leading to a rounded shoulder look and movement dysfunction.

The Rotator Cuff and Shoulder Stability

The rotator cuff consists of 4 small muscles that are often overlooked and almost always undertrained. These 4 muscles (supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor, and subscapularis) are responsible for efficient movement of the scapula and stability of the shoulder joint. When these muscles underwork your shoulders will lack stability and look to other muscles to take over the workload, leading to muscle compensations and poor movement patterns.

How Does This Relate To My Elbow?

When the rotator cuff is weak/underworking the shoulder will lack stability. When a large joint like the shoulder lacks stability, the body will need to compensate and create stability somewhere else. The elbow is the lucky one next in line to take on the grunt work. The problem is the elbow is not designed to withstand that kind of work, especially over long periods of time. In combination with the chest/biceps muscles over working and creating poor movement patterns, there is a recipe for elbow pain and potential injury.

How to Restore Shoulder Function and Stability

We will be taking a similar approach as we did in the last article about increasing wrist mobility. We will start with myofascial release and static stretching of the tight muscles which include the pec minor (chest) and the biceps.

Chest Release

Bicep Release

Chest Stretch

Bicep Stretch

Now that we have created more range of motion we can start restoring proper movement back to the shoulders and scapula with mobility drills.

Then finally after we have restored proper movement and mobility we can effectively use strengthening exercises for the rotator cuff and surrounding muscles to increase stability and function of the scapula and shoulder joint.

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Is Your Elbow Pain Actually An Elbow Problem?

February 22, 2018/in Cherry Hill sports performance, Fit and healthy, Personal trainer tips, Sports performance, The scoop in all /by Alex Garashchenko

Is Your Elbow Pain Actually An Elbow Problem?

Whenever someone has a pain somewhere they typically like to go right to the source of the pain and start trying to fix it. Depending on the situation it could work, but more times than not the pain is just a symptom of a problem somewhere else in the body. So what could possibly be causing pain in my elbow if the elbow isn’t the problem? Let’s explore a few possibilities.

Elbow Anatomy

As you can see the anatomy can be very complex around the elbow, but if you notice many of the muscles that attach to the elbow also attach to the wrist. Therefore the muscles that move the wrist will also have some affect on the elbow as well. So what does that actually mean?

How the Wrist Affects the Elbow

So now that we know many of the muscles that move the wrist also affect the elbow we can break down how these muscles influence the elbow. The wrist has two main functions, flexion and extension. Wrist extension is the position your hand would be in, in a pushup position. Flexion would be the movement your wrist makes when flicking your wrist after a throwing motion. If either of these wrist movements are limited, whether it be from the muscle being tight from overuse or a mobility/stability issue, it can cause havoc at the elbow. The tight muscles will pull on the tendons of the elbow potentially creating an overuse injury like tennis elbow (lateral elbow pain) or golfer/climbers elbow (medial elbow pain).

Below are pictures of wrist extension (left) and wrist flexion (right).

How To Increase Wrist Flexibility

In order to increase your wrist flexibility you need to decrease the tightness of the muscles that are holding back your range of motion. There are going to be two main groups of muscles you want to aim for. The wrist flexor group and the wrist extensor group. Typically if your pain if felt on the outside of your elbow then you will want to focus on the flexor group. For pain felt on the inside, target your focus on the extensor group of muscles. A healthy dose of both can never hurt though 😉

Wrist Flexibility Protocol

The first plan of attack would be to decrease the tightness in the forearm muscles. Trigger point releasing and stretching will be your most effective tools for decreasing tightness and increasing length of the muscle leading to more flexibility. Start with releases of the forearms for 30 sec – 2 mins followed by stretches for 30 sec – 1 min. After decreasing the tightness we can effectively start implementing mobilization drills for 10-15 reps in each direction. These drills will help gain more range of motion at the wrist joint so you can start using your wrists to their full potential!

*Always consult a doctor first and get a diagnosis of the pain. Only then can you know how to effectively treat the pain. If it’s an overuse injury and not something more serious these protocols could be effective for you.

Wrist Extensors Release

Wrist Flexors Release

Wrist Flexors Stretch

Wrist Extensors Stretch

Wrist Mobilizations.

Your wrist flexibility is only one piece to the elbow pain puzzle, how your shoulder moves is a huge factor as well! Stay tuned for how your shoulder could be affecting your elbow and causing pain.

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ACE-CPT, NSCA-CPT

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Training Aspects’ personal trainers and sports performance coaches want you to accomplish your goals. You, as the personal training client, are a reflection of our personal training and group training methods! We are here to help you accomplish all of your personal training goals! Our main training focus are people looking to increase performance, lose weight , lose body fat and increase lean muscle. Whether you live in Cherry Hill, Haddonfield,Marlton, or any of the other surrounding areas we are here to help you Move, Look and feel as you’ve always desired…

Is Magnesium the Third Piece to Vitamin D and Calcium Absorption?

January 30, 2018/in Cherry Hill sports performance, Fit and healthy, Fitness and Nutrition News in South Jersey area, Personal trainer tips, The scoop in all /by Training Aspects

Expanding on last weeks article about Vitamin D and Calcium absorption, Magnesium could be the third piece to the puzzle.

Magnesium has so many functions in the body and when it interacts with certain vitamins it can really increase their benefits. Vitamin D is one of them.

How Magnesium Helps:

Magnesium is essential for the metabolism of vitamin D.
Magnesium influences the body’s utilization of vitamin D by activating cellular enzyme activity.
Enzymes are protein molecules that stimulate every chemical reaction in the body. All the enzymes that metabolize vitamin D require magnesium.
Magnesium has a possible role in vitamin D’s effect on the immune system.

Magnesium Rich Foods:

Avocados, seeds, almonds, cashews, black beans, bananas, spinach, oats, and dark chocolate. These foods should always be consumed in moderation, well mostly the dark chocolate 😉 (keep it to 1 ounce to get the magnesium benefits)

Add in some of these magnesium dense foods in your meals or as snacks and improve your nutrient absorption!

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Are You Getting the Right Nutrient Combos? Calcium and Vitamin D

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Training Aspects’ personal trainers and sports performance coaches want you to accomplish your goals. You, as the personal training client, are a reflection of our personal training and group training methods! We are here to help you accomplish all of your personal training goals! Our main training focus are people looking to increase performance, lose weight , lose body fat and increase lean muscle. Whether you live in Cherry Hill, Haddonfield,Marlton, or any of the other surrounding areas we are here to help you Move, Look and feel as you’ve always desired…

Are You Getting the Right Nutrient Combos? Calcium and Vitamin D

January 23, 2018/in Fit and healthy, Fitness and Nutrition News in South Jersey area, Personal trainer tips, The scoop in all /by Training Aspects

Calcium and Vitamin D are another set of important nutrients that work more efficiently in combination. You always want to make sure you are not only getting the vitamins and minerals your body needs but also getting the most benefit out of them as well!

Calcium Food Sources:

Dairy products are well known for their high calcium. Most popular are low fat milk, yogurt and cheese. You want to keep these foods in moderation as they can be high in calories and saturated fats. Other ways to get calcium include: spinach, kale, okra, and white beans.

Vitamin D Food Sources:

The sun is one of the best Vitamin D sources, but it’s not always feasible to catch some rays. The time of year and weather play big factors in how much sun you can get. So here are some other great options. Salmon, Herring, Tuna, Mushrooms, egg yolks, and shrimp.

Perfect Meal Combos:

Make an omelette with mushrooms, spinach and low fat mozzarella cheese. Or grill up some salmon with a side of sautéed spinach.

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ACE-CPT, NSCA-CPT

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Training Aspects Personal Training and Sports Performance:

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Training Aspects’ personal trainers and sports performance coaches want you to accomplish your goals. You, as the personal training client, are a reflection of our personal training and group training methods! We are here to help you accomplish all of your personal training goals! Our main training focus are people looking to increase performance, lose weight , lose body fat and increase lean muscle. Whether you live in Cherry Hill, Haddonfield,Marlton, or any of the other surrounding areas we are here to help you Move, Look and feel as you’ve always desired…

5 Great Resistance Band Exercises for Elite Football Performance

January 16, 2018/in Cherry Hill sports performance, Fitness and Nutrition News in South Jersey area, Personal trainer tips, Sports performance, The scoop in all /by Training Aspects

Resisted High Speed Training is a great way to challenge the whole body, with high speed movements that allow for full power output. It allows for optimal body and mechanic control without impairing body movements. Here are 5 great drills you can implement into your training program and start seeing great results. (Video of each exercise at the bottom)

1. Resistance Band Sprint:

This exercise is great for developing overall power through the whole body, as well as, allow for isolated mechanics tweaking. The band is a great way to focus on your stride length. It forces you to sprint just as hard but not allowing you to generate the same amount of speed. Have someone tape your attempt (preferably a speed coach and in slow motion) and get a separate partner to hold the band. After each attempt, assess the encompassing technique. Whenever you complete resistance sprints, make sure to knock out some regular sprints, to reinforce the movement and increase your confidence to apply it to the game.

2. Resistance Band Back Pedal:

For most positions, back pedaling is huge! This exercise allows for you to create power while back pedaling and also working on your balance and core control. Follow these up with un-resisted back pedals to apply everything in real time.

3. Resistance Band Broad Jump:

The goal here is to develop a more powerful jump and create a controlled landing. It’s so important to focus on full extension through the hips. You will want to look like superman with your body completely extended out straight as you leave the ground. Landing must be light and controlled. Follow these up with some un-resisted broad jumps to apply your new technique and improve overall power.

4. Resistance Band Multi-Directional Sprint and Touch:

The ability to transition and accelerate, is essential! Add a cone touch in the mix to force multi level adjustments during the sprint. A great situational drill, make sure not to round as you touch the cone.

5. Resistance Band Multi- Directional Broad Jump

This one is more advanced than the regular broad jump because now your body is forced to react in different directions. Once you come back from jumping to the left now you need to adjust and create power going to the right. This requires a great amount of core and body control.

Here is each exercise in real time!

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ACE-CPT, NSCA-CPT

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Training Aspects’ personal trainers and sports performance coaches want you to accomplish your goals. You, as the personal training client, are a reflection of our personal training and group training methods! We are here to help you accomplish all of your personal training goals! Our main training focus are people looking to increase performance, lose weight , lose body fat and increase lean muscle. Whether you live in Cherry Hill, Haddonfield,Marlton, or any of the other surrounding areas we are here to help you Move, Look and feel as you’ve always desired…

Are You Getting The Right Nutrient Combos? Iron and Vitamin C

January 12, 2018/in Fit and healthy, Fitness and Nutrition News in South Jersey area, Personal trainer tips, The scoop in all /by Training Aspects

Are You Getting The Right Nutrient Combos? Iron and Vitamin C

Iron and Vitamin C are 2 of the most important nutrients you can provide to your body. Did you know that they absorb better in combination with one another? It’s great to get as many vitamins and minerals in as possible but you also want to make sure you are actually getting the benefits from them as well.

Food Sources of Vitamin C:

Oranges, grapefruit, bell peppers, broccoli, strawberries, cantaloupe, brussel sprouts, and pineapple.

Food Sources of Iron:

Meats like chicken, turkey, steak. Also Eggs, beans, legumes, chickpeas, lentils, quinoa, spinach and swiss chard.

Bonus tip:

Calcium can actually reduce the amount of iron that is absorbed so save your milk, cheese or yogurt for other meals!

How to Make the Perfect Meal 🙂

Next meal grill up some chicken with bell peppers and broccoli. Or try a strawberry and spinach salad!

Written By:

ACE-CPT, NSCA-CPT

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