Al's Fitness Connection

02/17/2025

Dislocated Shoulder?

Reach a little too far back when catching a fly ball and your shoulder gets strained. Go for a dunk shot and jam the shoulder causing injury. The arm is much bigger than the ball and socket meant go hold it, thus going beyond its max range of motion will cause tissue damage or worse. And, as the body ages, a natural kind of bone and muscle degeneration occurs naturally, especially after the age of 35.

Shoulder dislocations occur when the humorous ball is pulled out of the shoulder joint socket. A dislocation results in pain, and torn or stretched ligaments and muscles all around the shoulder. Dislocation is one common shoulder injury which occurs in most sports for professionals, amateurs, and enthusiasts. And, can occur in downward, forward, and backwards positions by extending beyond the range of motion as in reaching or by hard hits. Milder forms are when the ball of the humerus is partially pulled out of the socket, called a subluxation and still there is plenty of pain and damage. Putting the ball back into the glenoid socket is called a reduction.

From meta-data of 1329 reported dislocations; 53% occurred in college sports, 47% occurred in high school sports, and the vast majority were incurred by men 87% than women 13%. Further breaking it down; 24% occurred in basketball, 21% in football, 7% across soccer and baseball, and 3.3% in weightlifting.

Shoulder separations can be very serious and put an athlete out of competition for weeks to months based on the severity of the injury. Getting a doctor’s diagnosis is a key starting place. The physical trainer recommendations include keeping the arm immobile for a few days, apply ice 3 to 4 times per day to reduce swelling, and consider NSAIDs for the pain and inflammation. When the swelling has cleared, rehabilitation should be utilized to restore range of motion and strengthen against repeated injury. This would include training to avoid extreme extensions that can cause injury and defensive play to avoid serious collisions on the field.

Serious young athletes that want to excel in their sports should be working with a personal trainer. Conditioning should be tailored for the sport, techniques are developed, strength and stamina established, and power is increased. If you are serious about your sport, look into hiring a personal trainer to support your development, learn all you can about the skills necessary to perform well, and practice, practice, practice with proper form to avoid injuries.

01/30/2025

Fast Twitch Muscle Fibers and YOU!

We love those camera ready six packs, gunned arms, and shapely muscular legs, mostly all members of the fast twitch muscle fiber family. Slightly longer and thicker filaments than the slow-t, Fast-t also appears reddish under a microscope having more blood vessels and less mitochondria.

There are more differences, for example; fast-t holds more glucose energy stores for faster ATP production so the fibers can make quick movements over short periods of time; like a set of bent over rows or deadlifts, and bursts off a starting line. An anabolic glycolysis power activity can last only from a few seconds to a few minutes then more slow-t fibers begin to click in and draw energy from fat stores. Whereas slow-t takes longer because it generates its energy from triglycerides that have to be converted into ATPs, but this process is better for endurance, cardio-vascular and aerobic activities.

These fibers are known as the power fibers, when speed and strength is needed, they are the first line of action. However, this action also creates lactic acid within the muscle fibers and that has the effect of causing pain or extreme discomfort and hinders the quick response being played out. In addition to this, these fibers use all their glycolic stores very quickly and fatigue so it’s important to build up their resistance and strength.

Fast-t fibers are mainly inherited/genetic but they can also be built up by training. A few examples of exercise would include timed sprints, plyometric box jumps, and weight lifting preferably with compound movements, all in bursts of about 30 to 44 seconds per set. Leave time for reasonable recovery before moving from set to set.

Aging is not for the weak hearted because there are so many physical changes to cope with like various forms of arthritis, cancers, and so on. These seem to come up out of nowhere but are less likely if you stay in good condition. Over the ages of 35 we begin to lose muscle mass (called sarcopenia), and the majority of that are fast-t fibers and the ones you don’t lose turn into slow-t. This loss of muscle mass by the time you get to mid-70s, is realized in a very real loss of power and strength. The concerns of aging also include losing balance which can cause serious injury.

It’s important to stay in shape and you are never to young or old to start, as long as you are breathing you can start a fitness program. We design programs based on your physical condition and need.

01/16/2025

Slow Twitch Muscle Fiber has Advantages

This element of muscle is a key factor in strength, especially if you want endurance and cardiovascular power. This filament of muscle is longer and thinner than fast twitch fiber, yet it has a higher density of mitochondria which improves triglyceride fat oxidation, creation of ATPs, and use of energy. Mitochondria itself is amazing in its creation of ATPs of which over 90% are used in body cell energy especially in the brain and heart. Cardio-Respiratory-Endurance exercise increases the body’s numbers of mitochondria, which supports efficient energy use in fast twitch fibers.

Like the name says, slow twitch fiber reacts to contractions slowly but provides more sustainability over a long run. It’s powered with more mitochondria and has a more stable energy reservoir. This sustainability also improves a body’s use of oxygen in strength generation over a period of time, better known as VO2 Max – used to describe levels of fitness. In fact there is a direct correlation between the numbers of slow twitch fibers and VO2 Max.

So, right after doing a set of chest presses, or deadlifts measure your heart rates and you will find a training effect on your physiological processes. True that fast twitch fibers are quick acting and their power sources are glycogens, however these stores are easily used up and that’s when resources are switched to oxidation of fats. That one lift at max is one thing, but repeated reps and sets are another to increase your max is another.

Fast twitch fibers also go through a catabolic process as they are used causing an increase of blood lactate and cortisol levels. And, as we age, all of us deal with a loss of muscle mass in both kinds of fibers. When it comes to slow twitch fibers the body’s ability to absorb blood sugars by increasing insulin is impaired. The reduction of slow twitch results in a decrease of insulin receptors in muscle fibers inhibiting blood sugar absorption for energy use.

Can fast twitch fibers be generated and improved, of course, there are many different training strategies that can be utilized. It is important to have well developed slow twitch fibers, obviously the answer is yes and cardio-respiratory-endurance should be a part of your fitness routine.

12/13/2024

02/18/2024

6 Move Workout

In a Washington Post article on muscle and aging, the author Gretchen Reynolds presents that lifting on 6 different resistance machines will maintain and perhaps increase our full-body strength. This was the result reached by meta-analysis of data collected on 15,000 men and women between the ages of 18 and 80. During the 7 year period this was done, participants stuck to 6 basic exercise machines; chest press, /Lat pull-down, leg press, abdominal flexion, back extension, and hip/abduction-adduction. It only takes one pass with each machine.
The ex*****on of the contraction and the extension phases takes ten seconds each, so 20 seconds total for each rep. And, the amount of resistance is such that you cannot make more than 6 repetitions to complete failure. You will find that lifting that slowly pulls into aspect every fiber of the muscles worked, and throw in that neurocognitive connection aches and pains. So, perhaps you have overestimated the amount of weight you can press in this manner, and instead of reaching 6 it may just be 3 or 4.
I like the simplicity and the amount of time I have to spend on it. If the gym is empty, and machines are available, one can finish this course of exercises in about 30 to 45 minutes, including parking and locker storage.
So, it looked good to this 76 year old cancer patient, I can squeeze out a hour for a YMCA visit. I’ve been on this workout for three weeks and have some observations. The machines are available except for the abdominal flexion, so I decided to use the power tower leg lifts and I could only do two at 20 seconds each. The workout went like this for the 3rd week; hip/abduction – 6 at 90 lb. and adduction – 5 at 70 lb. The Lat/pull-down – 4 at 92 lbs., chest press 3 at 80 lbs. I saw I was too soft on myself on the leg press doing 9 at 70 lbs. as well as the back extension 8 at 100 lbs. much too easy and I’ll have to turn these up a few notches. This coming week, on the same day and time, I’ll complete my 4th workout, take and compare notes them move forward with any changes. This is important to seeing gains.

This 15-minute weight training routine uses common gym equipment and will build strength at any age.

02/15/2024

Importance of Tendons and Ligaments

Tendons and ligaments are similar because they are both the strongest connective tissues on the body. Tendons connect muscle to bone and can be quite thick as your achilles tendon, or as thin as your skull cover under the epidermis layer. These connective tissues are associated with knee and arm strength or weakness by the ability to withstand stress. And the problem is, we don’t notice them enough for the jobs they do until something happens like: becoming inflamed, or starting to tear, or snapping away from the bone resulting in surgery. Much of the time, over use results in a bout of bursitis or tendinitis which is painful and will slow your game. But thank goodness, tendons and ligaments can be strengthened enabling them to handle greater resistance. Tendons (but not ligaments) maintain a limited blood supply but enough to increase metabolism and gain some thickness under stress.
Tendons and ligaments are both collagen fibers that occur in strong tough bundles and have a certain amount of flexibility or tensile strength under stress. Both connectors are literally interwoven into their respective locations; tendons connecting muscle to bone, and ligaments connecting bone to bone. Tendons and ligaments also contain sensory nerve organs that give your brain important information on your body position, movement and balance which is very important to maintaining your balance, strength and stamina when performing sports actions. Muscle tissue shortens in contraction phase and lengthens in extension or eccentric phase, but the tendon is stretched or released only by the muscle and doesn’t shorten or lengthen on its own.
Tendons and ligaments don’t do well with overuse and stress fractures can occur in the bones, or/and inflammation of muscle and tendons. The biggest problem with tendons and ligaments is continued abuse that can cause fibers to fray and ‘unwind’ like a worn rope, even detach from the bone and need surgical repair. This will slow your workouts as you have to figure out a way around without causing more stress and damage, the best remedy in the short term is R.I.C.E., rest, ice, compression and elevation. That damage could be a sprain, stretching or tearing of the ligament which holds bone to bone etc. or, a strain, stretching or tearing of a tendon to either bone or muscle. There are three degrees of damage; first – stretched out; second – partial tear; and third – complete tear.
Proper training can increase the tensile strength of tendons and ligaments. Strength can be increased several different ways; endurance training, high-intensity training, and in some particular sports high-speed ballistic movements. Ballistic and high speed movement will increase blood supply to the tendon, and the resulting metabolism will add a touch of hypertrophy and strength. There is caution to overuse as we stated earlier.
I am selective in my clientele in order to make it a good fit. I take very few clients because of the work involved with assessment, health information, analysis of the data, summary report, and development of a fitness plan, then adjust as needed. An effective program takes time to build. I would plan on 45 minutes twice a week for three weeks of one-on-one training. My information is available on my home pages.

02/07/2024

The Importance of Posture, Form and Strength Assessments

Aging, it’s a bitch. The transition from your teens to 20s is a piece of cake, and into the 30s also pretty seamless since maximum strength is attained during these ages. Then the 40s kicks in and there are more aches and pains, lowering your motivation for working out. Muscular strength starts declining and 20% of strength is lost by the age of 65 for both men and women. Biology dictates you shed muscle, balance, and endurance as you age, especially after your 60s muscle mass suffers a 35 to 46% decrease. And, welcome to a world of cancer and medication issues. I’m in the mid-70s, and this biology thing only gets worse. It takes effort to maintain physical health and wellness but once gained is easy to maintain. Resistance and aerobic exercise slow this decent into weakness, and the better the plan and its ex*****on the longer this loss is put off.
And that’s not all. Form for all manor resistance exercises, form and function of protagonist and antagonist muscles, and endurance to begin and complete a set is a major factor in risk of injury. Poor form has messed up backs, overweighed squats has caused knee injury and foot problems. When the body is not in alignment stress is added to joints and on muscles causing strains and inflammation again increasing risk of injury. So…
Collecting data should take a few hours meeting over a two or three day period. The key is collecting the right information. Then it takes a few days to decipher because you have to study the data collected. A personal trainer will collect not only data on current physical abilities and skills, but look at the health history of clients. Information from doctors and/or physical therapists (depending on physical condition) also has an important part in data collection. It’s also important to know what your performance goals are? Do you want to be fit for a marathon, to play in league sports, or just improve ease of movement and strength?
You need to know where you are starting out, and this is best done with assessments of muscle imbalance/or inhibition, endurance, form and function. Once the strengths and weakness are known, we can begin to fix what really isn’t broken, but just not readily available. We can begin to build strength, balance and flexibility

01/30/2024

What can cause knee and hip problems?

In my education as a personal trainer, I discovered that more often than not; the problems with knee and hip pain lie not just with the hamstrings being tight but weak and/or inhibited gluteus muscles and hip abductors will cause a stiffness that shortens IT and TFL muscles causing pain and soreness down the outside of your legs. This can stretch all the way down to the knees and farther.
The weakness in these muscle tissues places high pressure on the IT and TFL, possibly causing injurious syndrome. The glutes are part of the trunk and key to allowing the legs to remain in proper alignment during physical activity. Strong glutes prevent this damaging stress on your IT and TFL muscles which, if they are weak, falling dominos result in hip and knee pain.
This is the relationship between proximal stability, a strong trunk that remains stable during performance supporting the effective use of the extremities (distal mobility) like legs and feet during competition, exercise or doing chores. The same concept also applies to the upper trunk area and low performance and health problems with arm extension, and abduction associated with weakness in the shoulder girdle, and associated back muscles. Quality in the spinal column with alignment, strength, and flexibility also has an effect on performance in the three planes of the arms and legs.
We can also add, the nervous system can cause instability in a region by tensing the muscle to the point that it is shortened in order to protect it, an unstable pelvis also reacts by stiffening a particular hamstring. So, stretching alone doesn’t always work, its best to activate the underachieving or inhibited muscles for the stability that is needed, thus is the crux of the following.
Overstressing the body on the road to fitness and an active lifestyle only creates setbacks. A heavy mix of strength and cardio to the point of strain and ignoring those signs puts you at risk for injury.
Most workout sessions focuses on abduction movements in the sagittal plane. There is a lot of running and jumping forward as opposed to lateral movement as part of the routines, not much was dedicated to the abduction of the hips, nor to the strengthening of the all three glute muscles, especially the gluteus minimus which puts a lot of tension on the femur.
When the gluteus minimus and medius are weak, overload is placed on the tensor fasciae late, and the Iliotibial band, making it difficult to maintain the pelvis and femur in proper position. If the pelvis is pointed in a forward position there is an effect on the legs and feet. Weak glutes initiates the eventual downward movement of the pelvis, twisting of the femur inward and torqueing of the knee. Weak glutes cause the TFL, and the IT become very tense and tight, pulling on the weaker muscles causing compensatory movements, strains on the ACL, and MCL (joint capsule ligament materials containing synovial fluid) resulting in knee valgus, knee pain and strain. In addition, the feet compensate by over pronation and loss of the arch affecting the posterior tibialis.
Should you have pain in the IT and TFL, it is a good idea to identify what is making that happen, and then decide on a plan of action to solve it. This is done by taking appropriate assessments such as an active straight leg raise or ASLR. While lying supine, we position the hip at a 90 angle and extend the knee up as far as it can go without causing pain. We look for any compensation while doing this like the trunk twisting, or the butt coming off the floor. Once that maximum angle is reached, we take a measurement with a goniometer. Based on the amount of angle, we can determine where there are problems. We can look for twist in the torso and hip placement.
Our objective will be to strengthen the glutes; medius and minimus to provide the support and strength needed to save the IT and TFL from overworking, shortening, and stiffening. We will also be working on aligning the pelvis so it aligns under the ribcage as it’s supposed to be, and will restore the lost mobility because of the overall problems. We will also include properly aligning the feet to prevent loss of arch in the feet and pronation which is an affect from the valgus knees and out of aligned pelvis.