1. Thirteen year old breaks world weightlifting records and she loves bacon... which can be a healthy part of a Paleo diet.

2. Physical Therapists: I Like to Move It or Cruel to be Kind?

Bill Ervolino writes a wonderfully humorous piece on his experience in physical therapy while rehabbing his shoulder. He starts his article:

You know the old doctor joke: Man goes to a doctor's office, lifts his arm and says, "It hurts when I do this." Doc nods and says, "Then don't do that."

Which brings us to the wonderful world of physical therapy.

ME: "It hurts when I do this."

THERAPIST: "Good! Keep doing it!"

The healthcare field is full of professionals that live to make you feel better. Physical therapists do that, too. But, sometimes they gotta make you feel bad to help you feel good. It's painful to get injured joints and muscles moving again. But a physical therapist - overflowing with vim, vigor, enthusiasm and encouragment - will help you "enjoy the pain" and get you back to better than you used to be.

In short, they're some of the nicest, most pleasant and cheerful masochists you'll ever want to meet!

So, I began to wonder, If there were a theme song for physical therapists, what would it be?

Well, you decide. Vote by adding your comments below.

And thanks, physical therapists - it Hurts So Good!

     vs.     

3. Athletic Trainers Against The World

Was a tad surprised to see where an athletic trainer was instrumental in getting a high school football coach investigated, and more than a tad surprised to see what he said about the offending coach:

"The most deplorable, disrespectful and disgraceful behavior from a head coach in any sport I have ever seen."

Um, tell us how you really feel....

Coaches and athletic trainers don't always see eye to eye. The trainer can be under significant pressure to release an athlete to play before they are fully ready. But, sometimes it's hard to appreciate just how much pressure an athletic trainer faces until you consider all the influences that combine against them.

Athletic Greed is Good

Sports is big business. We see it in the pros and we see it in college. Now, we're seeing it in high school athletics, as well. A high school in north Texas is building a $60 million football stadium. You better believe there's gonna be some serious pressure on that coach (from administrators and the community) to fill that stadium by putting a winning team on the field. That pressure will be passed right long when an athletic trainer has to make a ready-to-play decision on a star athlete.    

Meet the Parents

Most top athletes have aspirations to play at the next level. Quite often those aspirations are backed up by a firm resolve, a do-whatever-it-takes-to-achieve-my-goals mentality. And, quite often those aspiring athletes will have equally aspiring parents. By the time little Johnny has reached high school graduation, those same parents have shelled out a small fortune in year-round sports play, summer camps, training specialists, recruiting videos, etc.

An injury threatens all of that. There's a lot at stake - both financially and aspirationally - and an injury is an obstacle that must be overcome. You can bet the athletic trainer, who provides some much-needed perspective, will be under pressure to help the family get around that obstacle.  

Unnecessary Toughness

Finally, the athletic trainer has years of tradition working against them. The essence of sports is blood, sweat, and tears. So, if an athlete gets their "bell rung", it's simply one more way to prove their mettle. Coaches expect an athlete's full commitment. Teammates may not expect quite as much, but they most definitely want their friend beside them in the game - whether they're hurting or not. In short, you've got an athlete who, despite the pain, wants to be in the game - and the rest of society expects them to be out there, as well.

Sometimes an athletic trainer has to stand in the way of all that.

4. Wes Welker's Mini Romance

Even with the frenzy leading up to this Sunday's Super Bowl, New England Patriot's Wes Welker still found the time to get engaged to model Anna Burns.

(And, yes, that little gray thing you see in the bottom right hand corner of the picture is a crutch. But, don't worry Pats fans, this particular photo was taken two years ago when Welker was rehabbing his knee - and launching a new relationship with the lovely Miss Burns.)

The media reports that when Welker suffered his MCL/ACL tear back in 2009:

 "Anna was by her beau's side for his surgery and rehab, and the two have been living together ever since." 

Which leads us to our little story.... 

We have it - on innuendo and inference - that Welker used one of our machines to rehab his knee. We can't prove it, but we think the circumstantial evidence is overwhelming.  

Well, here, you decide....

1. Sometimes I can't fathom the time, the patience, the talent, the beauty....

2. Here it is, the single greatest thing you can do for your health.

3. A recent study looked at the effects of neuromuscular training on the gait patterns of ACL-deficient men and women. Basically, they wanted to see the effect of perturbation training on ACL-injured athletes. Interesting study... so, I thought I'd share how you can incorporate perturbation training using the Shuttle Balance.

(Kenji Carp PT, OCS, ATC is a certified vestibular therapist and does extensive work using the Shuttle Balance. He is the founder of Cooperative Performance and Rehabilitation in Eugene, Oregon.)

4. Two supplements that every endurance athlete should know about.

Photo by: Christian Jansky

5. If you don't know Alex McKechnie, you probably ought to get to know him. He's the athletic trainer who rebuilt Shaquille O'Neal's body (using the Shuttle MVP, we might add). Mr. McKechnie is now the Director of Sports Science for the NBA's Toronto Raptors. He's a man to watch - and to learn from....

6. The Baylor Bears men’s basketball team is undefeated and currently ranked sixth in the nation. Charlie Melton is their Director of Athletic Performance. Here, Charlie demonstrates how he uses the Shuttle MVP as a part of his De Bench Warm-up series.

7. Bill Foran is the Miami Heat's Strength & Conditioning coach. Eric Foran was an SEC medalist and member of the two-time national championship University of Florida track team.  As father and son, they founded Foran Strength & Conditioning. Here, they demonstrate how to field test for athletic power.

1. This should start the season off right....

2. Nice, entertaining look at the ACL injury and how to rehab it. (Jaco Rehab in Hawaii made this cool video - their website is even more awesome. But I don't show where they own one of our machines yet. Wonder if they would consider kicking their clinic up a notch by sportin' a Shuttle....) 

3. One of the highlights of my recent trip to Kenya was a visit to the Maasai tribe. I even had time to talk shop about increasing their vertical jump....

4. Seems like a simple and easy physical therapy treatment for a fairly common ailment. Nice.

Photo by: Marcella

5. I don't know... maybe it's the flute that adds that indefinable quality to this new product launch.

6. Speaking of product launches.... With toning shoes and shake weights, it was only a matter of time before somebody came out with underwear that can help you lose weight. A japanese company has developed underwear with a rigid resin which provides resistance. As you struggle to wear this stuff, you're burning calories!

7. Urban Meyer comes out of retirement to coach at Ohio State University. Rumors are he'll bring in his favorite Strength and Conditioning coach, Mickey Marotti, from Florida. It will be interesting to see the kind of culture they create at OSU.

8. Mike Reinold, in a recent blog post, talked about how an athlete could increase their vertical jump by 2 inches in just minutes by switching to dynamic stretching. That gives us the perfect excuse to haul out our magnum opus on vertical jumpus. 

Photo by: Sukanto Debnath

9. I thought this was both cool and smart. Whaddya think? 

I recently returned...

from a two week humanitarian mission to Kenya. Our group of fifteen were doing construction work on several orphanages located in Nairobi. Our last two days were spent delivering basic food supplies and bedding to the Maasai tribe out in the African bush.

This would be the highlight of our experience. I was particularly excited about visiting the Maasai, knowing that their warriors were famous for their ritual jumping.

Apparently, this jumping dance is part of a "coming of age" ceremony for Maasai warriors. It's basically a competition to see who can jump the highest. (It's also something that impresses the Maasai ladies.) The warriors gather in a half circle and chant/sing while two warriors go to the middle and jump. As you can tell by the video, these warriors assume a natural posture and jump, never letting their heels touch the ground. All the power comes from their legs.

Upon further inquiry, I found out that the warriors practice their jumping while away from their village tending their herds of cattle. I also learned that because of the great energy demands placed on the body to practice jumping, the warriors are only able to sustain practicing in short bursts.

I was also told that the warriors were able to extend their practice capacity when they chewed on or drank the juices from something called Olamuriaki - sort of a performance-enhancing plant, if you will. This allowed the warriors to extend their practice jumping to a full five minutes as well as consume greater amounts of food to improve their strength.

Seemed like a lot of time and hassle to me when they could just as easily swing by Larry Kaplan’s Varsity Fitness in Philadelphia and jump on the Shuttle MVP. Larry will guarantee a 3-6 inch increase in vertical jump (and have them dunking if they so desire) in just ten sessions - or their money back!

Apparently, there is no Maasai word for "dunk" and they made some excuse about not being able to get away anytime soon.

Well, at least I thought it was a good idea....

1. In honor of Veteran's Day. Lest we forget.... 

2. This week the world also celebrated something that only comes around once every 100 years: 11/11/11. The following seemed appropriate.

3. The rehab process for an injured player is a "symphony of hard work and expertise drawing upon doctors, trainers, physical therapists and strength coaches." From injury, thru recovery, to back in the game... as told by the Stanford Cardinal.

4. When it comes to exercise, you gotta believe.... 

5. Mark McKown, Assistant Coach of Player Development for the Utah Jazz, teaches his "Twenty Series" workout using the Shuttle MVP.  

(The Utah Jazz have had a Shuttle MVP Classic since 1999. They just added a Shuttle Balance Professional this year. During a servicing visit, Mark McKown was kind enough to show me how they use the MVP for a total body workout he calls the Twenty Series. The above video covers the upper body portion of that workout. We'll share the lower body video in the coming weeks - and look forward to seeing what Mark comes up with on the Balance. Thanks again Mark!)

6. A study finds that runners get to enjoy some holiday feasting. Apparently, variation in their diets don't affect them as much as it does more sedentary folk... like myself. Happy Holidays!

7. Physical Therapists can teach us how to do a lot of things right. Two weeks ago we showed you a video on "How to Vacuum like a Physical Therapist". This week we have a PT teaching us how to wash dishes correctly.  

8. We've showed you how to "Shoot the Duck" on the Shuttle Balance. Now, this man is going to show you how to juggle medicine balls.... 

(This video was shot by the good people at ProCare3 of Omaha, Nebraska. Apparently, they're giving the Shuttle Balance a try in their clinic. Shhhh, be very, very quiet. ProCare3 hasn't purchased yet, so everyone please cross your fingers and don't do anything to disturb the cosmic sales balance. We're hoping ProCare3 becomes the newest member of the Shuttle family.)

9. Love it when nutritionists recommend things that actually taste good!

1. What you're about to see is called a murmuration. Nature is awesome... is it not? 

2. Movember is the month when men all over the world grow moustaches to raise money and awareness for men's health. Our very own Marketing Media guy, Kris Aguero, is in hot pursuit of the ultimate stache. You can join his team! 

3. Happy Seven Billionth Birthday to the world... my, how you've changed!

4. If you can't join 'em, beat 'em! That'll give you some respect. Here are nine female athletes who competed against men.

5. This is the "magnum opus" of the ACL injury. It's not the most professionally done, but it does show you some actual ACL injuries starting around the 2:00 mark. It also provides plenty of motivation for those going through ACL rehab. Plus, it shows our very own Shuttle MiniPress at the the 6:02 mark... sweeeet!

6. Dr. Robert Donatelli helped PGA player Fred Funk increase his hitting power. Interestingly enough, he did it using the Shuttle Balance to improve Funk's proprioception and dynamic visual acuity.  

7. The folks at San Jose State University provide a nice, expansive explanation of what the study of kinesiology entails. 

8. A runner's guide to the best protein consumption practices. Eating protein right will definitely put a spring in your step.

9. Coaching anything at the professional level is hard. You don't have the luxury of pointing fingers. Others do... and sometimes those fingers will point to you as the scapegoat. Just ask Dave Page, former Strength and Conditioning coach for the Boston Red Sox. 

1. For the next week or two, we're going to talk about the game of basketball. And to tip things off, we thought we'd share the greatest basketball story ever told....

2. Look at this babe's perfect squat technique:

3. The divided brain explained... and with a lovely British accent. 

4. Only a short distance from the brain is your neck and spine. And if you have a patient that has experienced a neck/cervical injury, you can recreate the circumstances surrounding that injury using the Shuttle Balance. This will help your patient's body to reestablish and develop neuromuscular responses to recover and prevent injury again.

(Kenji Carp, owner of Cooperative Performance & Rehabilitation, is a great therapist. A vestibular therapy specialist, Kenji teaches various continuing education courses all over the country. And, when he's not traveling or helping his patients get back to perfect health, he actually finds time to play around on our machines. We've captured him on video teaching about our Shuttle Balance, Shuttle Recovery, and Shuttle MiniPress. Thank you Kenji!)

5. The Tyranny of the Fathers: How we become sports fans....

Photo by: shawnzrossi

6. Are you an awkward runner? We certainly hope not. But if you suffer from any of the maladies demonstrated in the video below - please - see a physical therapist for a gait analysis IMMEDIATELY!

7. Bob Medina, strength and conditioning coach for the Portland Trailblazers, takes guard Steve Blake through some basic pre-game warm-ups on the Shuttle Balance.

(Our Shuttle MVP has been with the Portland Trailblazers since 1998. Our Shuttle Balance has been there since 2007. Steve Blake was traded in 2010. We appreciate the Trailblazers loyalty.)

8. Since we're in the final days of celebrating National Physical Therapy Month, we couldn't resist sharing this: How to Vacuum Like a Physical Therapist. 

(Of course, if you really want to prevent injury during vacuuming, just have your kids do it....) 

Despite all the talk...

about NBA negotiations, bargaining sessions and mediation. Despite all the money... the multi-million dollar contracts and the billionaire owners. Despite all the press about a possible delayed pro season - perhaps even a cancelled one.

There are still those of us that love the game of basketball.

We love to watch it. We love to play it. And, of course, there are plenty of us who make our living supporting in one way or another the sport of basketball. Whether that's a physical therapist helping a weekend warrior get over an ankle sprain, an athletic trainer rehabbing a star point guard, or a strength and conditioning coach improving a team's overall explosiveness. All of us are impacted by the game of basketball. 

Shuttle Systems also has a vested interest in the game. Our Shuttle MVP, Shuttle 2000-1, and Shuttle Balance all play a role at the high school, collegiate,and professional level.

So, over the next couple weeks, we're going to talk about basketball - everything from rehabbing ACL’s to increasing your vertical jump. We invite you to share any thoughts, insights, protocols, and practices that guide your work with basketball. And you're welcome to join the basketball conversation in the comments below, on our Facebook page, or follow the conversation on Twitter.

And to tip things off, we thought we'd share with you a basketball love story....

As we mentioned before, a lot of us love the game of basketball. Unfortunately, some would love to play the game but never get their chance. This is a story about a boy who had a passion for the game.

But, he was autistic.

This boy never got his chance to play... until the final game of the season. That's when a miracle occurred....  

1. "You know, a lot of those scratches will buff right out...."

2. Which college has the healthiest student body? See if your alma mater is in tip top shape....

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Photo by: Laffy4k

3. Occupy Wall Street has inspired us to have a little protest of our own. We’re Anti-Gravity!

4. The Head Athletic Trainer for the Jacksonville Jaguars tells why mud runs are the best way to build fitness. 

5. This video will teach you why Chad Ochocinco provides a bigger target than an elephant, and why Jerry Rice doesn't have "soft hands" - he's got great fingers! 

6. With all the fervor surrounding concussions, this article got my attention. Everybody was in place, all responded promptly and professionally... but they were still too late.

Photo by: Schlusselbein2007

7. Star quarterback goes down with a knee injury. Fights his way back in rehab - doctors, coaches, trainers supporting him all the way. He finally gets back in the game, scores his first touchdown, walks off the field and gives his orthopedist a big hug. Now there's a man who has it priorities straight!

Photo by: JustinBoyd1

8. Research says to avoid ankle re-injury, you gotta strengthen the hips and knees. Here's how you can do that using the Shuttle 2000-1 and a wobble board. 

9. In honor of Physical Therapy Month, some PT Assistants got together a flash mob... doing a little Myotome and Dermatome dance.

Our OccupyGlacier event was a dud....

Even though some of Glacier, Washington’s two hundred and eleven people might consider themselves radical, we ain't got no banks and we ain't got no billionaires. What we do have is some pretty wet and cold weather. So, nobody's into loitering for any length of time.

But watching TV, you see all these people sitting around painting cool signs like we used to do in kindergarten. Then, they walk around yelling a bunch like we never got to do in kindergarten!

These guys are really speaking out against things. We understand they're anti-rich, anti-establishment, anti-capitalism.

Well...  in our company we're not exactly against capitalism (cuz we practice it all the time, and one of these days we're gonna get it right....). We kind of like the establishment cause they buy our machines and use them to help our wounded warriors recover from their injuries. And, while nobody in our company claims to want to be a billionaire, nobody seems to be dead-set against getting rich either.

We still want to be in on the fun though. We want to take a stand against something....

The Case Against Gravity

Lately, we've been noticing all these cool products that have something against gravity. There's the awesome Alter-G treadmill. It's like running with half your body inside a balloon. And, just yesterday I saw this really funky anti-gravity body suit that was developed by cosmonauts. It's helping cerebral palsy patients make rapid improvements in their physical therapy.

The interesting thing about each of these products is they have a space background. Well, Shuttle Systems also has a background in space. Our 2000-1, MVP, and Recovery all had their genesis in the famed "space race" of the 1960's (a time also noted for its marching people and homemade signs).

Back in the Sixties, Gary Graham, the founder of Shuttle Systems, was a rocket scientist who developed a way for astronauts to maintain their heart and muscle strength during the weightlessness of space. That way, when the astronauts re-entered the earth's atmosphere, they came back looking like humans - not some helpless blob of... well... you can imagine....

It was years later that Gary resurrected his space prototype and that became our Shuttle machine. Our machines allow an injured person to lie down, taking away the effects of gravity, and rehab their injury with less-than-bodyweight. 

So, we've got a thing against gravity!

But Our Rebellion Doesn't End There

You can do all that anti-gravity stuff with our machines. You can rehab the injured. Your humongous athletes can do plyos while preserving their joints. But, just like the marching people with the signs, we've also got a beef with the status quo.

Yeah, we like it when an injured person recovers and gets back to normal... but who's ever content with normal? It's the next level that everyone's searching for!

So, our machines also use elasticord resistance. That enables you to take somebody from less-than-bodyweight, all the way up to multiple times bodyweight. Think of it as meta-gravity (sorry, just made that up). We think it makes for a very versatile machine.

Here, let me demonstrate the versatility in a true-to-life example.... 

Gators and the MVP

The University of Florida football team has three Shuttle MVP Elites in their Griffin-Oakley Strength & Conditioning complex. A few years back, we were visiting with Mickey Marotti, Director of Strength and Conditioning, and we asked him how he uses the Shuttle MVP. He said that while his players may emerge from a game uninjured, their bodies have taken quite a beating. So, what can a coach do to provide his players with a workout in between games. Is he gonna make them do squats?

No!

Marotti gets them on the MVP. That way they can get a workout without killing themselves. Again, it's that whole anti-gravity, less-than-bodyweight, easy-on-the-joints thing.

And, when we asked Marotti if he needed anything, he responded that he could use some heavier resistance cords. He told us that in the off-season their quarterback, Tim Tebow, was loading up all the bands on the MVP - and jumping. He was doing a plyometrics workout using 387 pounds of resistance.

That takes a freeking stud! Tim Tebow is a freeking stud!!

We sent Florida some bigger elasticords....

Photo by: Rubendn

True story! 

So. there you have it. We don't like gravity and we don't like the status quo... and we build our machines to overcome both!

Now, where's my magic marker and some cardboard....