Exercise is a Miracle Drug.

The best preventative medicine is EXERCISE!!!!!

In the July 2018 Special Edition Time Magazine, we see in the very first article, the first lines that, "Exercise is A Miracle Drug."

The article continues to outline how 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week of moderate intensity exercise can stave off several types of cancer, diabetes, respiratory disease (heart disease and high blood pressure), as well as DEPRESSION!  

I've seen this first hand in my clients but also within my own life.  I've exercised for the last 20 years of my life.  I'm in this for the long haul.  

I've seen first hand through my clients transformations in attitudes, pain management, and overall joy in their lives.  It is the greatest medicine we have at our disposal and it is exercise!

The only problem is that in a culture of "NOW" and Immediacy we go through phases of fitness.  In January, everyone starts off the new year with motivation and desire to change, something.  But every year, I see people work extraordinarily hard, overtrain, and get de motivated (even injured in some cases) because their results weren't instantaneous like a montage in their favorite Rocky Movie. 

 It takes time.  

Be gentle with yourself.  And consider success over 3-6 or 12 months not tomorrow.

Long term thinking.

If you do a little bit, every day you will be surprised how far you can get!   But it requires you to be consistent.  

Take the stairs instead of an elevator to your floor.

Challenge yourself to ask questions about how to start an exercise program that's right for you.

You like Yoga?  Go to a class.

Pilates?  Speak to an instructor.

The goal of exercise to help you live your life more fully.  Having worked out for over 20 years I can tell you that there have been times I've had to get up super early, or not go out to that party to workout.  But the benefits to my health, to my confidence and to my life are inarguable.  

I feel good!   

I thrive in my activities:  

I play softball: I lead the team in batting average.  

I practice Kyokushin Karate:  I just fought a black belt candidate in his qualifying  10 man fight.  

Be consistent.  

Be motivated.

Move!

MO-Tate.  :)

My Journey as an older (ahem) Karateka!

Finding Karate, again.

For the second time in my life, I've been gifted with learning about a martial art.  When I was 7 or 8 years old, I went to Karate class in Hofstra University.  Unfortunately, I was more interested in Saturday Cartoons than in Karate.  

Now through some wonderful circumstances, I've been given a second opportunity to learn about Karate at the Victory Dojo in Burbank, CA.   

KYOKUSHIN literally means, "The Path to Truth."  I'm told that a Black Belt, (the highest levels of KYOKUSHIN) is simply a white belt (meaning no rank) who never quit.  I hope that's true.  

Here I am in December, doing my first wood break.

What I'm beginning to realize is that a master is someone who has mastered themselves through a particular craft.  My journey to master my self, my fitness through karate has begun.  Come join me on this journey as I will update you about how it's going.  

Currently, I'm a yellow striped Red belt.  In May I hope to qualify for my Blue Belt.  I'll keep you updated.  

Motivate to move!!!!

Pre / Post Natal Training Truth

Pregnancy Training.  Truth and some Guidelines


SO You're Expecting?   CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!  
Now what?

Ok.  A few things about expecting Mothers and Exercise programs: ( Assuming your doctor has signed off on exercise). 

Homeostasis is your number one concern. 

Homeo, what?  Yes.  Homeostasis.  That means that you keep a relatively balanced and safe environment for the fetus to grow inside.   So, if you've regularly been exercising, you can keep exercising.  You may have to scale back your work load and effort level, but there are stories of women who have been pregnant and run full marathons. 

However, if you're just starting out on a fitness program and are in your first trimester, well, there are a few considerations.

1.  ACOG ( ACOG's Website ) The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynacologists regularly list some guidelines on do's and don'ts.  If you're looking for a doctor in your area, this is a wonderful resource as well as a great guide to cutting edge information.

2.  Forget about losing weight.  The average mama gains somewhere between 12-18lbs (and sometimes more) during their pregnancy.  This is not a time to go on a diet.  However, you're not really eating for two, either.  As it turns out, your caloric needs only increase by about 10%.  That could be anywhere from 140- 200 calories. 

3.  Focus on the birthing.   This means that any "training" will be prepping for the actual delivery and there are a lot of wonderful exercises to help.    Things like:

Kegels (really great for strengthening the pelvic floor)
Supine Hip clocks / thrusts
Leg ups
Back extensions
Deadlifting

Center of Gravity Training : This is a fancy way to say, we're going to teach you to keep your balance, only better.   Right now your center of gravity is somewhere about an inch or two south of your belly button.  When your fetus starts to develop your center of gravity is going to move. 

Like many things in life, it's not what you do it's how you do it that matters.  The same is true here.  I once trained an expectant mother (she was a runner)... She deadlifted (her body weight, by the way) on a Thursday, she gave birth on a Saturday and she was back in the gym working out on Tuesday.

Now, she had been training with me for months before she was pregnant and had requisite conditioning.  She was also an avid runner and our conditioning program fed into her interests and abilities.  But with some prep, a swifter recovery is possible.  In fact, women who have a higher level of conditioning before getting pregnant are significantly more likely to have a healthier pregnancy and a swifter recovery after pregnancy. 

And in terms of setting an exercise program, after consulting a physician consult a trained professional who understand how to match a womans needs with appropriate exercise choice.   It's important to stay flexible in your thinking as day to day your pregnancy may demand more rest than movement. 

There's a lot more to consider with flexibility, strength and endurance. 

Congratulations, and if you have any questions you can always reach me here:



Paul's email


Motivate to move!

To learn to pick ourselves up....

Once a week, I'm fortunate enough to work with a brave young man and an incredible family.   In my training career, I've worked with a number of successful people: professional athletes, rehabilitating folk, and simply hard working people who achieve the small daily steps to overcome their challenges and achieve their goals.

This Young man is special because he is 15 years old and has cerebral palsy.   Because of his neurological problem, his muscles atrophy.   Yes, our neurological system keys and inspires our muscular system.   He is currently in physical therapy.  My goal as a trainer, is to instill a love of movement for a lifelong behavior that will nourish his life.

We usually play games, like the squat game.   Who can stand up first?   Me, or him?   It's a riot for both of us but he gets a healthy dose of exercise in a fun environment.  Today was particularly interesting.

Today, h---- came in and complained of being tired.   An interesting ploy to get out of doing his work.   His mother, who knows well how to manage him and has instructed me on the intricacies of his behavior allows me full reign during his workouts.   I'm the coach.   He's the client.

So, he put his head down.   I playfully started to talk with him but in all honesty, as a human being, I didn't want this particular challenge today.  I'm tired too, kid.

So, I tell him, let's just walk around the gym.   We do something different.   About 10 steps in, and I work at a large gym, I decide to play another patented game, only I didn't patent this one:   Hide and seek.   All of the sudden, this young man comes to life.  He's exuberant and excited.   But wait, I remind him, weren't you tired?  (Snicker). He ignores the comments.  


Along the way and after 2 rounds of hide and seek ( when I say that I simply mean he hid In a Designated area and I retrieved him with a sense of fun) we squat on the TRX rack.   He loves it.   We pick up a few balls and weights at the gym.   After 15 minutes, he's had a great workout without realizing.  We end the workout with a lap on the recumbent bike.   He sets an all time personal record for speed and we both leave the session rejuvenated and excited for the rest of the day.  

I'm grateful to work with someone like him because I'm genuinely moved by his progress, and inspired by his effort.  Because of the muscle atrophy, falling (especially  when we first started) was a genuine threat.   In the event he hits his head, that trauma could have significant and serious implications.   If you've ever worked with anyone who has palsy, then you know the trembling of the limbs because of the misfiring of the nervous system can be pretty severe.   H---- had moderate
trembling.   Naturally, during one of our sessions (before he underwent PT) he fell.   But before he started to dramatically overreact (which he had been prone to overreaction) I borrowed a movie line.

"Why do we fall down?"

He looked at me quizzically.  I asked again.

"Why do we fall down?"

He shrugs.

"To learn to pick ourselves up."  He stands up as though nothing happened.   Pick ourselves up, indeed.

Sadly, about three months ago  H----- misses about 2 months of our weekly sessions but joyfully because he was to begin physical therapy.    Haphazardly, as I'm walking to the gym for an appointment, I see H----'s mom.   And there he is, behind her in a wheelchair with a cast around his ankle.
"What happened?"
"His first day at PT, he was so excited he tripped and fell while twisting his ankle."

I look down at this young man, seated in the wheel chair.

" why do we fall down?"
And he retorted,
"...to learn to pick ourselves up."


Yeah.  You're god damn right.
His ankle has healed, he's back in PT and I get to work with him once a week.
May you learn how to pick yourselves up, every day.
-Coach Paul

Improvement

Just finished reading Chapter 3 of sports speed and was struck by one of the final sentences describing an older athletes’ beginning preparation for speed: 

                “A later start on this road to development decreases the number of neural pathways developed, reduces the number of acquired skills, and ensures that you will not reach maximum potential in your sport.” (Sports Speed, pg 66)

As was pointed out in the chapter earlier, often times an athlete never reaches their maximal potential because their talent combined with their current work ethic  have taken them as far as the competition has led them… In other words, the athlete has only been as good as they needed to be dictated by their competition.

WOW.  That’s an eye opening statement, I think.  But it’s also what many of us have learned how to do in our lives, not just in our workouts.  We struggle to find some sort of structure in our lives and we adapt to the structure that we choose (either consciously or sub consciously).  We adapt to it and subsequently work only as hard for it as we have to work to maintain that structure.  

Although the phrase, hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard, comes to mind.

 

In our workouts, we do what we like or movements that we proficiently execute.  In our lives, we settle for a life in which we do what is necessary, not imaginative. 

To complete the statement in “Sports Speed,” the next sentence is ,” …but don’t stop now just because you started a bit late- keep on going.” (Sports Speed, pg. 66)

The final thought is valuable not only in the gym, but in life as well.  Just because we start something later in our lives doesn’t mean the lost potential is the doom of our late life activity.   Quite the contrary, developing  a skill any time in life, making a life choice any time in life is about self-improvement.  

We can choose to learn to do something new anytime we please to make that choice. 

I recall an old phrase:
“The past is history.

The future is a mystery.

The present is a gift. “  (anonymous) 

How will you spend your gift? 

Keepin my head high

Ok.  So I had my first pitching start last night with the new team.  Firstly, they are a very nice bunch of guy s.  I don't mean that in the Leo Durocher sense of the phrase.  They're all nice guys, truly.

Now, I learned a really valuable  lesson from this start.

Gotta believe in yourself.
I pitched 2 1/3 innings.  Yep.  I didn't get rocked.  I made mistakes that they capitalized on, certainly.   My curveball hung, my mechanics were all off (my landing foot was way on the right side of the mound:  yep; I'm a righty...) and this was my first start, my first pitch this entire season.  I didn't feel awesome, but I'm not hurtin' today.  I feel pretty good, actually.  Despite giving up something like 6 runs in those innings (maybe 1 or 2 were earned)  I really had to dig deep.  I had to find a way through the crap.

I struck out 1 and hit 2, walked 2 and well, you get the idea.

This was not my finest moments on the mound (last years 16 2/3 consecutive innings, and I mean I pitched both games of a double header giving up 0 runs in 7 2/3 innings vs. the team that would go on to win the championship).  It was messy.  It was actually bloody ( my new cleats messed up my right middle toe).  And it was sloppy (my guess on the error total was somewhere around 12).  I also hit the opposing pitcher.  The nice thing was to help him.  I hit him just below the right knee (he's a lefty) on the insertion of the peronnal / gastroc area.  I helped him through it with a little massage on the calf which took off some of the pressure.  I don't envy the soreness he had today.  This is for fun.  Who wants' to watch a guy get hurt, much less be the guy who caused the pain?  I'm just sayin'

But through it all, I didn't pitch poorly.  I got key ground balls.  I made some pitches.  I had some fun when I wasn't terrified of the next possible problem.

I had to believe in myself.  When I started chattering back to the ump about strikes and balls, well, my manager took me out.  And that's when my character was really tested. 

I wanted to smash something.  I wanted to throw something.  But I couldn't.  These guys didn't need to see me outburst.  And I'm not 10 years old anymore.  So why would I let my temper get the best of me? 

I didn't.  I believed in myself.  I believed that I was better than acting like that.  When the fellas came off the field, I greeted each of them and bumped them.  My message:  Thanks for picking me up.  let's go get these guys.  I'm part of the team, despite not getting the results that I wanted. 

I believed in myself.

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow...

Anyone who knows me knows that I am an avid baseball fan.  Recently I've had the luck to spend my summer in Upstate NY:  Chautauqua Lake, NY.  We've been coming to this region for years and it always has the charm of solitude while being in the middle of some very interesting events.

SO, if I was to spend the summer in Chautauqua, NY, I had better find a baseball team to play ball.  And I did.  Now, I've loved and played on several teams in the last 7 years.  Some more successful than others.  As a high school student I was cut twice from my high school squad.  I didn't try out in college (which was a mistake) and I pretty much fell out of the game until about 7 years ago.

I shot this commercial for a healthcare company.  It was great.  I played an outfielder and I had a blast.  I realized how much I loved the game and I looked for a team to play some ball.  Lo and behold: I've found several over the years.

This most recent team, the Chautauqua "giants" are a great bunch of guys.  Although the team has played 4 games, I've only been to 1 due to schedule conflicts.  In that one game I played third base went 0-2 (we only play 7 innings, wood bat) and made the final out of the game throwing out a ground ball to first to finish a 6 to 3 victory.  What a great introduction to the team and to playing ball in Chautauqua!

Tomorrow will be my next game (weather permitting: which it should).  I'm hoping I get to pitch tomorrow because I know I can contribute to this team in a meaningful way with pitching.

I was recently in NYC and reunited with some very close friends on my favorite team to play for, the Island Wide Reds.  Here's a team of incredibly talented men.  Some had played college ball.  Some were like me and just picked up the game recently or in the last 10 years of their life.  In all cases, these men were my friends.   I had forgotten how much I missed these guys as we've recently moved to florida (last november) and I hadn't really connected to anyone like that.  Naturally it takes time. 

Tomorrow:  so we play ball.  I'm juiced because right now the "giants" record is 2-2.  From what I saw my only game, I think we could have a winning team.  I don't know about championship team, but winning, certainly. 

I hope I have a chance to contribute in a positive way for the team, but moreover, I hope that I forge the kind of friendships with some of these guys that I was fortunate enough to enjoy over the years with my Island Wide Reds.  I know I'll have some of those guys in my life for the rest of my life.
I'm excited, I'm apprehensive, I'm eager to go play some ball, and hopefully I get a chance to throw off the mound or to play at the hot corner.  We'll see.