Adjusting the exercise load to manage musculoskeletal pain syndrome

Adjusting the amount of exercise load involves seeking a balance between increasing or decreasing the load. Athletes and healthy individuals the bias is towards increasing the load to improve capacity and performance. For musculoskeletal injuries, post-orthopedic surgery, or musculoskeletal pain syndromes, the bias is towards decreasing the load to facilitate healing and recovery. Tactics to…

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Adjusting exercise load to optimize capacity performance

When it comes to adjusting exercise loads to optimize performance capacity it necessitates both art and science. “Load management” in athletics and sports is a popular strategy to control the training volume, intensity, and rest to optimize performance while minimizing the risk of injury. To improve performance or capacity, the exercise/load must exceed the individual’s…

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Hormone replacement therapy tendon repair post-menopause

The Dunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which individuals with limited competence in a particular domain overestimate their abilities. It is when we lack competence that we are most likely to be brimming with overconfidence. The following is a description of how it applies to me. I know everything Early in my career as…

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Mom’s words of wisdom make sense

Mother’s Day is a fun time to review some old wives’ tales that abound in the health and wellness arena. My mom used to say, “the difference between a man and a boy is that a man walks around a puddle and a boy plods right through them.” At the beginning of a walk or…

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Exercise prescription – Art & Science

Exercise while not a drug can behave like one. Exercise can help in the management of chronic diseases and offer pain relief for individuals suffering from musculoskeletal pain syndromes. Like prescribing drugs, the concept of dosage applies to exercise prescription. A dose-response to exercise is not unlike drugs however the minimum dose, dose-response, and maximum…

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Mountain Athlete: 2-Dimensional Video Slow-Motion Analysis

I have been asked to present a continuing education webinar to members of the National Strength and Conditioning Association. The theme of the program is Human Performance the “Mountain Athlete” What is a “Mountain Athlete”?  Athletic activities that occur in the mountains are skiing, climbing, Spartan racing, adventure racing, trekking, adventure racing, mountain biking, and…

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Potential Prevention Strategy for Exercise Associated Muscle Cramps

Exercise associated muscle cramp (EAMC) is a painful, spasmodic, and involuntary contraction of muscle that occurs during or immediately after exercise. The exact mechanism or cause of EAMC still remains unclear. There is a consensus the first aid treatment of EAMC is to stretch the affected muscle. However, Coppin and colleagues conclude that regular stretching…

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