The Performance Advocate

August 2010 ~ Winding down the summer

Thank-you for taking time to tune into the Performance Advocate this month. We have a special guest writer from San Diego this month. His name is Josh Rubin and he has a terrific blog site I want to direct you to: http://joshrubin.wordpress.com/ If any of you are interested in Holistic Health and Exercise, Josh is an expert in these areas. And as many of you know, the foundation of strength, power and athleticism is built on sound health. We, at Human Motion are big advocates of natural nutrition and alternative medicine practice.

We also have our Fall line-up of classes and group programs ready for registration. Scroll down to see the schedule or click here to go straight to our site to sign up. Space is limited, so act fast! Classes start the week of September 13th.

We also have a link to our Youtube channel on our home page at www.humanmotion.com and are busy uploading new exercises, joint mobility drills, stretches, examples of good form and workouts to try. If you are interested in watching my pregnancy training video, you can see it here, as I filmed weeks 5-20. I am now just over 22 weeks along and still feeling great and strong. I will be documenting the entire pregnancy and writing articles to dispell some of the blanket statements made in the health, fitness and medical fields regarding exercise while pregnant.

Yours in Strength & Health,

Carmen Bott, Editor in Chief

The Performance Advocate
www.humanmotion.com

The Four Pillars of Health

by Guest Holistic Health Pracitioner, Josh Rubin

www.easttowesthealing.com

Hormones act as the command and control system of the body and regulate energy
production, fat burning and mood. Hormonal imbalances are common among people
suffering from weight issues, fatigue and depression. Most cases of hormonal
imbalance are a secondary response to a primary stress, whether it is emotional
stress, physiological stress due to pain and inflammation, or dietary stress.
In general, if the stress can be addressed with diet changes, correction of
chronic inflammatory conditions and support for emotional health, the need for
continued hormonal support is eliminated.

Digestive System

The digestive tract is responsible for our vitality via the breakdown and
absorption of every nutrient that fuels our trillions of cells. Problems with
the digestive system are typically experienced as bloating, indigestion, gas,
constipation or diarrhea. Many people have experienced gastrointestinal
discomfort for so long that they have adjusted to it and think that their
system's poor function is normal. With healthy digestive function a person will
feel energized and revitalized after a meal for several hours and will not
experience any cravings for sweets. The foundation of good health lies in
proper digestive function.

Detoxification System

The detoxification system refers to the body's pathways for eliminating harmful
toxins such as mercury, various chemicals and the products that result from the
breakdown of alcohol or medications. Our modern world is creating a level of
chemical and heavy metal exposure that is taxing our detoxification system.

Your liver is at the center of your body's detoxification system. The liver is an
amazing organ, responsible for filtering toxins out of your blood. Our bodies
must handle and process toxins from many sources. One major source of toxic
exposure is through the digestive tract. High fat diets, alcohol, caffeine,
sugar, artificial sweetener consumption and the use of medications contribute
to the total burden placed on the liver. Hormones and antibiotics fed to
animals, preservatives and dyes used in foods you eat can all cause serious
symptoms and side effects. Heavy metal toxicity from dental fillings,
contaminated food and water, and other environmental exposure also add to the
total toxic load on the body. In addition, everything you apply to your skin or
expose yourself to in your environment must pass through your liver, where it
is must be neutralized and excreted.

An overworked liver can become clogged, causing toxins to back up and re-circulate
into the bloodstream. Inadequate detoxification leads to allergies, asthma,
joint pain, skin problems, headaches, inability to concentrate, and alcohol
intolerance. Inadequate detoxification leads to accelerated aging and promotes
the onset of degenerative diseases. Despite all the work it has to do every day,
the liver has an amazing ability to regenerate.

Immune System

Did you know that 95% of your immune system is
in your gut? As well, your immune system is in every single cell of your body?
Your first line of defense against foreign invaders is within the mucosal
lining of every orifice! From the foods we eat, medications we take and day to
day stressors within our lives we begin to compromise our immune system.

A healthy immune system is essential for optimal hormonal, gastrointestinal and detoxification within the body. As you can see these four pillars work interdependently with one another, if there is a problem with one there is a problem with all!

About the Author:

Joshua Rubin graduated from American International College with a B.S. in Occupational Therapy. He began his career in the health, healing and fitness industry working back on the East Coast. After working with the geriatric population for many years, he decided to take his career to the next level. By incorporating corrective exercise, nutrition and lifestyle coaching with his rehabilitation background, he began working with individuals of all ages within the personal training industry. This is where he found his love for holistic coaching and developing EastWest Healing & Performance in 2002. In addition, being San Diego's top Personal Trainer, Nutrition and Lifestyle Coach, and Rehabiltiation Specialist.

Josh has studied extensively under Guy Voyer D.O of Sutherland Academy.
Josh is currently pursuing his Doctor of Osteopathy (M.P.) from Canadian College of Osteopathy

Coach Bott's 10 Performance Training Tips

by Carmen Bott

1. Your attitude and character will determine everything. Be authentic, and have integrity. Do what you say you are going to do and do it with purpose and conviction. I have trained enough high profile athletes and CEO's to know they have those traits in common. Expect nothing less than excellence from yourself and enter each training session with a goal to achieve.

2. Your warm-up / movement prep for your strength sessions should take approximately 25 minutes if done thoroughly.

And your warm-up order should be as follows:

a. Raise core body temperature without stressing the joints (ie: 20 pike arches) = 3 min

b. Foam Roller for myofascial release = 6-8 min

c. Follow joint mobility drills for hips, groin and T-spine = 5 min

d. Include static stretched at this point if you have tight spots = 5 min

e. Follow dynamic warm-up with increasing velocity and muscle activation drills = 5 min

3. Always treat each rep as if it were an entity in itself - DO NOT be in a rhythm like a step-aerobics instructor. Instead - use "breath", "brace" and "drive" as your 3 keys to

explosive strength. Initiate reps with purpose and precision. Even if some lifts are grind lifts and some are more plyometric in nature. Always set the body to execute a perfect 'shot' like a basketball player would at the free throw line. Repping out sloppy lunges are for the weak.

4. Block out distraction and welcome a tranquil mind. Good lifters and those who can execute complex skills are beyond focused; they are also incredibly patient. Do not let your mind wander during a rep - be in the moment and pay attention to your body.

5. Do not train to failure, do plyometrics under fatigue or speed work for high reps. This is the North American flaw I see in S&C coaching. Strength is a skill and needs constant tinkering and refinement, not crappy reps with poor form and severe fatigue. Power and speed require split second deliverence of energy. We can only do this by resting long (10-15x the work length) between sets and doing very little volume - speed work is NOT conditioning work and vice versa and no, you cannot train the two together in their infinate forms.

6. Load and unload the body over 3 week mesocycles. This is basic human physiology and the science behind adaptation. The human organism can handle 3 weeks of abuse and then it needs a week to unload. (actively) The Russians have proven this time and time again that this is the best loading/unloading scheme in terms of timing. So, go up for three, down for one.

7. Let pain be your guide. Please do not succumb to the adage - "No pain, no gain' If it hurts, please do not do it. You are given only one body in this lifetime and we must treat it with respect.

8. Fuel yourself with nutrient-dense foods. Avoid white food - white rice, white flour, white sugar etc. All of this is garbage. And garbage in = garbage out. Aim for protein with every meal, vary your veggies, eat only whole grains (quinoa, spelt, oats, wild rice) and get your liquids from water and herbal teas.

9. Focus on the process. This means to focus on the execution of the task/exercise etc, versus the result of it. It has been proven time and time again that those who focus on the process get better results and achieve their goals more consistently than those who are focused on the outcome or result.

10. Use chalk. Your grip takes approx 8 times to recover from a lift as compared to the rest of your body. You can improve your grip very simply by using chalk to train with. Yes, it is messy and yes it will get on your clothes, but for an extra 20 lbs on that deadlift, or 2 more pull-ups on that set - it is well worth it!

Happy training!

www.carmenbott.com

No BSF Classes this Fall

We will not be running our BSF program this Fall as we are busy training a new crop of qualified instructors. Look for classes in 2011, but please do enquire if you have a group and would like to do group sessions as we can accomodate those requests.

Fall LIFT Camp Classes posted! NEW Curriculum!

LIFT Camp (starts the weeks of September 13^th and runs 8 weeks)

Go to www.humanmotion.com to register

Sec 001

Start Date: September 16

Thursdays: 7:30 am - 8:30 am

Instructor: Carmen Bott and Kevin Hirose

Sec 002

Start Date: September 16

Thursdays: 6:30pm - 7:30pm

Instructor: Weldon Cheung

Sec 003