CrossFit Wrist Mobility with Ben Smith

                     

Wristy Business...Is wrist pain interfering with your CrossFit training, yoga practice or general workout or Life?

Wrist Pain: Our hands, by design, were not intended for weight bearing, so it's no wonder that many of us experience pain or discomfort when assuming those Pilates or yoga positions that require us to do just that -bear body weight on our hands. Discomfort may simply be a result of mild limitations in wrist range of motion, improper alignment of shoulders, arms and hands or reduced core and arm strength. Gentle and gradual stretching and strengthening exercises, along with proper body alignment and weight distribution may reduce your wrist discomfort in weight bearing positions. However, for some of us, even with good strength and proper form wrist pain persists. A close look at the anatomy of the hand reveals why.

Hand Anatomy: The hand is designed more for mobility than stability. It is composed of 27 small bones, muscles and ligaments that allow for a large amount of movement and dexterity, enabling us to perform a multitude of daily activities requiring fine precision and coordination. The two bones of the lower arm, the radius and ulna, meet at the carpal bones of the hand to form the wrist. Unlike the foot the hand does not have a large bone cushioned with a fat pad for bearing weight, but has small bones surrounded by soft tissue, including the nerve and blood supply. The median nerve crosses the wrist through the carpal tunnel. These soft tissues of the wrist, including the ligaments and tendons, are subject to strain when we are weight bearing on a fully extended wrist such as in a push-up position.

The Culprits: As a simplification, the common causes of wrist pain are grouped into 4 categories:

Overuse: too much repetitive movement or joint impact

Injury: wrist fractures, strains & sprains

Lack of conditioning: weak muscles, poor range of motion, improper form

Aging or Disease: arthritic changes in the joints, inflammation, diabetes etc.

Which category does your wrist pain originate from?

Overuse: One common cause of wrist pain is Overuse, clinically known as RSI - Repetitive Stress (or Strain) Injury. Long periods performing the same movements, such as typing on a computer, playing a musical instrument or doing sun salutations, can lead to RSI. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) a leading cause of wrist pain is grouped in the RSI category.

What do you do about RSI?

An important first step in treating an overuse injury is to rest - stop doing what is causing you pain to allow healing time. The reality, however, is that many of our repetitive movements are related to our livelihood such as data input, graphic design, dental hygiene, massage therapist or fitness instructor, so to stop completely might result in a few bounced checks. If complete rest isn't an option, two ways to decrease repetitive joint stress are through task and schedule modification.

Suggestion One: Modify Your Activity

Once you've identified the specific task(s) that's aggravating your wrists (or other joints) look at how frequently or for what duration you're performing this task.

Modify your Schedule: The objective of modifying your schedule is to reduce how often and how long you spend doing the pain inducing task. Urgent deadlines, productivity ratings or financial stress are real factors that contribute to overuse injuries. Many smart industries have implemented job rotation and other programs to reduce RSI in the workplace, thus saving money on workman's compensation claims and lost productivity. Practical examples for modifying your schedule may include:

1) Part Time Work: a schedule of Monday, Wednesday and Friday will allow a day of rest in between.

2) Plan Ahead: instead of spending 6 hours banging out a report on the computer spread it out over 4 days for 1 ½ hour each day.

3) Set Time Limits: Break up the problem task into shorter time segments with rest and stretch breaks built into your day.

4) Job Sharing / Rotation: Can you recruit a co-worker to assist you or swap tasks with? Look at all options for creative scheduling.

Modify the Task: The objective here is to use an alternate method to accomplish the task, which may require a different set of muscles or reduce muscle tension and joint stress.

1) Change the Method: If you're a fitness instructor with a wrist injury, give verbal directions instead of demonstrations. If you spend your day on the computer consciously reduce keyboard time by limiting your email correspondence - pick up the phone and make a quick call instead.

2) Change or Modify the Tool: Examples include using a track ball instead of a mouse, substitute an electric tool for a hand tool and increasing the diameter of the tool to open the grasp of the fingers and thumb.

3) Modify your Body Position: Use an ergonomic keyboard, set up your 'work station' optimally for your body and alternate standing with sitting.

4) Use your non-dominant hand: If your wrist pain is primarily in your dominant hand try to develop the skill to accomplish the task with your non-dominant hand. Start with something simple like stirring while cooking or dialing the phone then work towards using your computer mouse with your opposing hand. This may be challenging but is very useful and good for your coordination.

Suggestion Two: Incorporate frequent stretch breaks into your day.

Whether it's an occupation or leisure pursuit that's resulting in RSI, do strengthening and stretches that move your body, limbs and joints in the opposite direction of the repetitive motions you're engaged in. Computer use is a big culprit of wrist pain, since many people now spend hours of their day at a keyboard and monitor. The typical computer posture takes its toll on your back, neck, arms and hands -possibly resulting in Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Break up long hours at the computer by scheduling intermittent breaks to stand up, move around and stretch. Do these simple stretches several times a day in standing or from the comfort of your chair.

Hold each stretch for 3 to 5 deep breaths:

1) Stretch shoulder and arms: Reach back from the shoulder rotating the spine, straighten your elbow and rotate your palm up, extend the wrist slightly or keep neutral then straighten and spread the fingers apart. Deepen the stretch by rotating the neck so your face is turned away from your stretched arm. Repeat with the other arm.

2) Rotate both wrists several times clockwise then counter clockwise.

3) Stretch finger flexors: Extend fingers and place them together in a prayer position. Press fingers firmly together and spread them apart keeping fingers straight. To increase the stretch, gently pull the wrists apart 1 or 2 inches while keeping fingers together.

4) Stretch wrist in extension: Continue in prayer position with fingers and wrists pressed together. Start with your finger tips at your chin, and then slowly slide hands down towards your waist keeping the wrists pressed together. Go as far as you can comfortably & hold stretch for several breaths. If you feel discomfort in your thumbs simply cross them on top each other instead of pressing together.

5) Stretch wrist in flexion: Flip your hands over so the backs of your hands and fingers are touching and pointing down. Start with your hands at your waist and move slowly up to chest height keeping the backs of the hands pressed together. Fingers dangle loosely while the top of the wrist joints are stretched.

6) Gently shake shoulders, arms, wrists and fingers.

This series of stretches, each held for 5 deep breaths, only take a total of 3 minutes to do! A simple and healthy way to incorporate this routine into your day is to drink lots of water. Every time you get up for a bathroom break, do your stretches before resuming work.

Recap

Is wrist pain interfering with your fitness pursuits, work or life? If so, what's the culprit? Too much keyboarding, weight bearing on your hands or other repetitive activity may be an underlying cause of your wrist pain. If you have an overuse injury - first try to rest! Next modify the activity through creative scheduling and use of alternative methods, tools or props. It's also important to develop a stretching & strengthening program to counteract the negative effects of repetitive movements on muscles and joints. Our bodies were designed to move in a multitude of directions, so mix it up and bring some balance and variety into your weekly routine. You know what they say...Variety is the Spice of Life!

Disclaimer: If you have significant wrist pain resulting from a more serious issue such as joint inflammation, arthritis, carpel tunnel syndrome, previous fractures or surgeries of the wrist, it is essential that you consult your health care practitioner prior to beginning a wrist exercise program, Pilates or yoga practice.

Paula Wilbert, Occupational Therapist and Joint Protection Products founder, developed Wrist Assured Gloves (WAGs) to solve a personal wrist injury. The wrist pain she experienced after landing on both hands while playing soccer with her 6 year old son, interfered with her Pilates and yoga practice, so she instinctively tapped 25 years as an occupational therapist to create WAGs.

Paula knew that if she could find a way to keep her wrists from fully extending she would be able to move easily into yoga and Pilates poses, such as chatturanga and side plank, without experiencing intense wrist pain. The contoured, wedged gel pad she invented does just that. Firm, yet comfortable, the gel pads sewn into sporty machine washable gloves and are a practical solution to a common problem. US and Foreign Patents are pending. WAGs are available at http://www.getwags.com

From 1983 to 2008 Paula has helped people with disabilities and those recovering from injury adapt to the demands of daily living and achieve maximum potential. As an occupational therapist she has worked with children and adults at numerous facilities with a multitude of injuries and diagnoses.

Paula received a B.S. in Occupational Therapy from the University of Kansas in 1982. She resides in Cape Cod Massachusetts with her husband, three children and dog Chico.

Joint Protection Products provides innovative products that promote an active and pain-free lifestyle, enhancing ones overall well being while keeping in alignment with socially conscious and eco-friendly principles.

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Strong Man V CrossFit: Part 2

                  

Some of the old timers, the men who did this before the invention of modern training equipment, machines, steroids, etc., did some truly amazing feats. I mean freakishly amazing! Things that haven't been duplicated in 100 years or so for some of them. I think, in a conversation with a close friend the other night, I may have hit on one of the key components of their training that allowed them to perform so powerfully.

My key upper-body exercise and one that you hear me talk about a great deal is the one-armed press. This was also a staple of most of the old time lifters. I don't think it's so much magic of that particular lift, but it is two factors that that lift allows you to train that's the secret here. They are total body unification (especially total body unification behind a single limb), and maximum power, abdominal work (especially as it pertains to a unified body and the sides of the abdominals).

I talk a great deal about efficiency in my training. One thing I've been doing lately to increase efficiency is to add a windmill every time I do a one arm press. Why? Well because I've already got the weight pressed up and locked out overhead. I can add in the windmill at that point without extra time being spent. Plus the windmill simultaneously allows me to work my abdominals heavy, while focusing on the sides and in a total body movement. I have noticed that by doing this I feel stronger in other exercises, squats and pulls, and even the transfer of core strength over to pressing. These are the types of movements that the old time strongmen concentrated on. It allows you to build the muscles of the arms, shoulder and back, while simultaneously building strength and flexibility in the legs, hips, abdominals and back.

So how does this transfer over to their amazing performances? Well first it eliminates a weak link in the chain of strength of the human body. We all know that our back, legs, etc., can only put out as much pressure as our abdominals can match. So most of us do some kind of ab training, even though most of don't really do it heavy enough. You see the legs and back can put out a tremendous amount of pressure and if you don't train the abs with the same weight you'll never be able to truly realize the potential of your legs and back. Also most of us focusing on training the front of the abdomen if we do heavy abdominal training and don't train the sides of the body with the same type of max weight and effort. I've come to believe that many of us, even though our heavy squats and deadlifts are going up, are still weak in the abdomen. Because I think that we're not just missing lifts from pure abdominal failure, but the fact that our obliques and front abdominals are not just as strong as our legs and back, is falsely limiting to the strength that our legs and back will put out. I think this is why you almost uniformly hear that when a lifter adds heavy abdominal work to his routine, his squat and deadlift go up. Also why many of the modern powerlifting systems focus so heavily on trunk strength. The front and sides of your trunk need just as much if not more maximal strength training than the back, and your shoulder girdle, hips and thighs. A pipe that has weak side walls isn't very strong.

I think this type of exercise also added to their performance by teaching the body how to totally focus its power into a movement behind one limb. By doing that you make a movement such as the one arm press carry the strength of not just the pressing muscles, but you involve the whole body into this lift. By constantly training this you teach the body to demonstrate a strength in which the unified whole is greater than the sum of the individual parts. You are in essence teaching the body efficient strength, because you are teaching it how to literally unify all of its members and how to work together. Think of how this applies to the martial artist and how much more powerful his strikes or throws could be if his whole body can unify and transfer its power through one arm. Think of the football player or the athlete of any sort. I think these two factors account for why they were able to do feats that seem almost miraculous and is definitely a missing factor in most modern training.

Bud Jeffries has much more to teach on building super human strength and conditioning. Visit http://www.strongerman.com were you can sign-up and receive additional tips now.

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Strong Man vs CrossFit Man

                   

You probably already know that serious strongmen need all of the following to be successful:

Raw power

Supreme lower body strength

Super stamina and endurance

You may also know that strongman workouts should be:

Fast and efficient

Goal oriented

A way to get an edge on your competition

And that's why I'm recommending that every strongman who wants to be the best add the following workout to their training.

When I look at Strongman competitions, I see the need for a unique combination of strength, speed, power, stamina and (maybe most importantly) mental toughness.

Your training should reflect these needs. You shouldn't be told to waste your time on stuff that doesn't work. You shouldn't be told about the latest shiny, chrome-covered machine, or to use long, boring (and useless) cardio, or just about anything else coming out of those mirrored, carpeted social clubs that dare to call themselves gyms.

No, what you need is something "old school." An exercise that is simple yet effective. One that can address all of the needs listed above and bring you to a higher level in your training.

Because of all of this, I strongly suggest you add hill sprints to your training. Here's why:

First of all, hill sprints are a great way to develop power. They are a perfect blend of strength training and sprinting. And, as you know, training strength and speed together are the best way to develop the power necessary for competition.

Running hill sprints can train your muscles to fire fast and strong - to increase both the speed and the strength of contraction. This training will help you develop the power necessary for many of the traditional strongman events. Your performance in loading, Atlas stones, truck pulling, the stone lift, the log throw, and the weight throw can take off like a rocket from the speed/strength of hill sprints.

Secondly, hill sprints build strength in muscle groups essential to strongman training. Most importantly, the hips, glutes, quads and calves. Muscles needed for pushing, pulling and lifting involved in events such as the log or stone press, the stone lift, car rolling and tire flipping.

Even though you train these muscles already for these events, hill sprints add different stresses and demands on those muscles. Hills are a great way to "confuse" your muscles and force them to adapt. These sprints will ask your muscles, not only to be strong, but to be strong and explosive at the same time. An excellent way to break through a plateau in your workouts.

The third reason to hill sprint is that it's an excellent way to develop stamina and endurance needed for long training sessions and (even more demanding) competitions.

It's a training method that pushes your heart and lung capacity to new limits, increasing their volume and allowing you to move more oxygen in and out of your body (and to pump more blood to your muscles when they need it most). Training your heart and lungs in this way can also help you recover faster between trys or events.

And all without doing what you may think of as "cardio." It used to be thought that you could only improve your endurance by training like a marathoner with long, slow distance. Who wants to look like a marathoner? All that training does is shrink your muscles and make you look like a skeleton. Good thing is that science is now proving that higher intensity training like hill sprinting can give you even better results than plodding along doing "roadwork."

Think of how much better your farmer's walk, car walk, crucifix, or Hercules hold can be when you can stay stronger... for longer.

These are only 3 of the benefits you can get by hill sprinting. In Part II, we'll look at how hill sprints can help you fit all of your training into your busy schedule, give you an edge on your competitors and develop your mental toughness to a point where any goal is possible. See you then.

Tim Alan Kauppinen, or Coach K, has over 20 years experience as an athlete and coach. He has worked with athletes of all ages and abilities in track and field, basketball, speed training and strength and conditioning after graduating from the University of Wisconsin - Madison with a coaching emphasis. This has given him the privilege and the opportunity to coach athletes who have become conference champions, state champions and Division I college players. Coach K is the author of the Uphill Fitness Training, Ultimate Insider Speed Training Secrets and Iron Shins programs. He also publishes a FREE daily training email newsletter. Tim can be contacted through his website at http://www.makesyoufast.com/power_hill_sprint.html

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