AnamBliss

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Being in Pain and Self-Care

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“My SI joint is inflamed. Do you have any suggestions for me?”

This was said to me recently by a woman after finishing teaching a fitness class with squats, lunges, and other movements. My internal voice wanted to yell, “Why did you come? This was not the class for you! When you are in pain, you need self-care.” But of course, I couldn’t do that.

I am not a physical therapist or doctor, so I can only give limited advice and a referral to another professional who can diagnose the cause and problem. As a fitness professional with extensive knowledge on movement, I tend to get a lot of questions, along the idea of “This hurts. What can I do?” By asking questions back, I may be able to use my toolbox of self-care to reduce the pain or refer someone to the right professional.

Instead I nicely asked if there were any movements that seemed to irritate it more? Not really. Did it feel more muscular or joint? Muscular.

My suggestion: Take a few days to rest and see what happens. Get a massage. Maybe take some ibuprofen or arnica to reduce inflammation. And if it continues, I'd suggest seeing a physical therapist.

Her reaction: I can’t take time off. (Said as if I asked her for her first born.)

My inner voice: Why the f$ck not?! You are in pain! Stop doing sh$t to irritate it!

My response: If your SI is inflamed, it means that something is going on. Giving yourself a few days of rest can help reduce the risk that what is happening won’t put you out for several weeks due to a greater injury. You can do light exercise, such as walking, but I’d say to stay away from classes for a few days to let yourself heal.

Her: Nodding. That makes sense.

Later: Just noticed that she was in an intense movement class the next day.

Me: Banging head on wall.

When we are in pain, especially if it’s not a big one, why do we ignore it?

We only have this one body. Taking care of it by acknowledging when we are doing to much, giving it rest when needed, and seeking appropriate help, can vastly improve our lives. We can replace knees, shoulders, and hips, but prevention takes up less time.

If something comes up in a class or you aren’t feeling great that day when you walk in, speak up. Don’t push yourself to do an exercise that doesn’t feel right. Take a break instead. A quality instructor can give you alternatives, tell you when to take a break, and recognize when you need a referral to someone with more credentials. 

Pain should not be endured.

Kate Hamm combines her 15+ years of experience in the fitness industry and high-end resort program development into sought after wellness adventures at AnamBliss. Visit www.anambliss.com for future retreat dates and locations.

Interstitium – The New Organ

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Have you heard about interstitium, the new organ? My fellow anatomy and movement geeks have all been discussing what this means for us. We've been taking about fascia for a long time, especially with the therapy ball use to keep the fascial layers fluid. As the news has been a bit sensationalized, I thought I’d share more. But, first...

Interstitium is not New

Kathy Dooley, a chiropractor, anatomy professor, and so much more, said it best.

 

Interstitium has always existed. Like the casing of a sausage, it has always been there and just been overlooked as a significant structure. In fact, it has been closely studied by a number of experts, which you would never know by looking at the references. Conveniently forgotten are the many studies by the fascial experts who have published over the years.

Something that Dr. Jean-Claude Guimberteau, a hand surgeon, called out in his response: "Writing that it is "unrecognized" can actually make me smile and it will quickly be demonstrated by dozens of articles written in French and English, by 7 produced films as well as books which have already highlighted this multifibrillar interior architecture in a very clear way thanks to microendoscopy in living human patients."

Dr. Guimberteau began to pay attention to the vascularization of the hand tendons in his surgeries to improve his technique and the success of his surgeries. It was then that he used high magnified microendoscopy to document the movement and potential shock absorbing qualities of the interstitium, which he called Multimicrovacuolar Collagen Dynamic Absorption System (MCDAS).

You can watch his video below to see this in action. (Note, that I skipped part of the lecture and that it may not be for the faint of heart.)

 

A number of experts have coined different names for the interstitial. Gil Hedley, PhD and anatomy expert who specialized in cadaver dissection, has called it the fuzz and peri-fascia. Jill Miller, of Yoga Tune Up® used the term loose fascia in her book The Roll Model to describe the transition area between the superficial and deep fascial layers that are important for the "slide & glide all over your body."

What is Interstitium?

Interstitium is a connective tissue that is found throughout the entire body from under our skin, within our visceral organs, and around every muscle, vein, and artery. It's probably easier to name body parts that don't have fascia and interstitium than don't, which is why it's being called the largest organ. The way the interstitium weaves through the body connecting everything, has been suggested as why acupuncture works and cancer may spread. What we do know right now, is that the interstitium allows movement from one organ to not affect an other dramatically. If we shake a Magic 8 ball everything inside shuffles around, but the interstitium helps to hold us together. (Proving that hysteria, never could happen.)

Newer technology has allowed us to look at the interstitium in a different way making it's unique structure very clear. The fact that the fibers hold fluid was a significant part of the scientists suggestion to reclassify the tissue as it's own organ.

 

The Future of Interstitium

Now that interstitium has been proposed as a new organ, there will be a lot more research into this tissue that will hopefully give us a much broader idea of how it functions beyond what we currently know. While the presenters and topics have been set for this year's The International Fascia Research Congress in Berlin, the topic of interstitium as an organ will certainly be a massive conversation and debate. It may also bring more scientists to attend the Congress, which began in 2009 as a way for researchers and health care professionals to come together to discuss the matrix of the soft connective tissue.

Whether interstitium officially becomes an organ or not, will be seen, but the research will certainly change anatomy books.

Kate Hamm combines her 15+ years of experience in the fitness industry and high-end resort program development into sought after wellness adventures at AnamBliss. She is a licensed Yoga Tune Up® instructor and a Roll Model® Method Practitioner. Visit www.anambliss.com for future retreat dates and locations.

A Bonus Video by Gil Hedley. Again, this may not be for those who are uncomfortable in looking at the dissected human form.

 

Recovery Training Is No Longer an Option. It is a Necessity.

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As an athlete we've all had days when nothing felt right. Our body felt off. Our performance was ehhh to put it mildly. But when when those days begin to happen more frequently?

For me, it came to a head when I was training for a half marathon. I was in Florida on vacation and thrilled to not be running on the snow lined roads of Massachusetts. I had an eight mile run planned and I checked out a route in advance.

It started off okay. I completed my warm ups in advance. But about 2 miles in, my calves just wouldn't release. They had been feeling insanely tight and all the rolling for self-myofascial release that I was doing just wasn't helping. After 4 miles, I decided to walk for a bit. When I started running again, my legs felt worse. I ended up alternating between running and walking the rest of the way with the amount of time walking being greater than that of running. Every step in the run had my calves and body feel like I was torturing myself.

Why was the problem getting worse and not better? After all, I know the body. I know which muscles do what and how to release and strengthen them. But my body was failing me.

The one thing that I did notice was that my breathing seemed forced. Hmmmm

I got home and met with a trainer that I was working with. He did a few muscle tests and discovered that my hamstrings weren't working the way they should. That was partly why my calves were overworking.

Because my breathing seemed so labored and short, I started adding in breathing exercises that I learned from Jill Miller in her Breath & Bliss Immersion.

I also gave myself some time off. (Something that is hard when you are on a training schedule.)

After a week I hit the road for a short run. I felt amazing! My calves were happy and working, but pain free. My breathing felt controlled and deeper. Each run felt better and better even as I added on the distance.

My best time for the actual race wasn't my fastest, but I had a solid, pain-free, efficient race. Isn't that what is more important?

I am not the only one who has discovered the benefits of recovery and breath work.

Joe DeFranco of DeFranco's Gym regularly trains professional athletes including NFL players and WWE Fighters. He was at the same immersion as me and had his best night's sleep after the first day. He became a convert to down-regulating and I'm sure many of his athletes are also benefiting.

When we become better at recovery, we become better athletes, no matter what your sport. Our workout sessions can have more focus and fine tuning. Our mental state and level of concentration increases. Your sport doesn't matter.

Recovery training is no longer an option, but a necessity.

Experience it for yourself in a class, workshop, or private session. Do we not have a course happening near you? You can purchase Yoga Tune Up® balls and videos here.

Kate Hamm combines her 15+ years of experience in the fitness industry and high-end resort program development into sought after wellness adventures at AnamBliss. She is a licensed Yoga Tune Up® instructor and a Roll Model® Method Practitioner. Visit www.anambliss.com for class and workshop schedules, future retreat dates and locations.

What do Diane Lane, Kelly Osbourne, and I have in common?

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We may seem like a very odd collection of people. Diane Lane is an award winning actress. Kelly Osbourne is a reality tv star. And I am a wellness and fitness expert. But all three of us have something in common. Yes, I used to live in LA, but that isn't it. The three of us all love our Yoga Tune Up® therapy balls. That isn't what you were expecting at all is it.

Self-care is important for everyone and you don't have to be a celebrity to enjoy the same benefits.

What is Yoga Tune Up®?

Yoga Tune Up® is a fitness therapy format built around the three P's – Pain, Posture and Performance. It helps eradicate pain, improve posture and enhance performance through a unique blend of yoga, Corrective Exercise, Self-Massage, and Breath Strategies.

The therapy balls are part of the self-care equation using self-massage to affect the myofascial layers. Helping you to identify and target your "body blind spots"; areas that are most overused, underused, or misused, YTU heals damaged muscle, increases strength and establishes healthy movement patterns.

The combination of releasing and strengthening muscles leads to greater success. If we just look at part of the equation without the other, our bodies will never truly change.

Results are enhanced by the natural down-regulating tendencies in the self-massage and breath work. Taking you from a stressed-out fight and flight response, to a more receptive relaxed state that will carry over into your daily life. Your sleep can even improve dramatically.

But do Diane Lane and Kelly Osbourne really use the Yoga Tune Up® therapy balls?

They do!

In a clip for Vogue Magazine, Diane Lane had a pair of therapy balls stashed in her purse. Sorry for the spoiler! (Skip to the 1:35 mark if you are impatient.)

Kelly Osbourne has been talking about how Yoga Tune Up® has improved her posture, helped her release stress, and assisted in a dramatic weight loss for years. She has been quoted in Redbook and was mentioned in a People Magazine article.

Need some more celebrity proof?

How about Katy Perry? Her dog enjoys them as much as she does.

 

What about a Pro-NFL Football player? Kayvon Webster uses them to help with recovery.


Former NFL Player Terrll Owens has been known to utilize Yoga Tune Up® Therapy Balls.

Experience Yoga Tune Up® for Yourself!

Experiencing Yoga Tune Up® is really best. You don't always realize how tight your body is until it's released. Then the therapy balls become these little rubber drugs that you are addicted to.

Fortunately, Kate teaches several classes and workshops in Massachusetts that you can attend. Not local? No problem. You can purchase Yoga Tune Up® balls and videos here.

Not sure if Yoga Tune Up® is right for you?

We created a quiz to help you decide whether it is worth trying for yourself.

Kate Hamm combines her 15+ years of experience in the fitness industry and high-end resort program development into sought after wellness adventures at AnamBliss. She is a licensed Yoga Tune Up® instructor and a Roll Model® Method Practitioner. Visit www.anambliss.com for future retreat dates and locations.

Deepen Your Restoration with Constructive Rest

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Constructive Rest is a position that comes from the Alexander Technique. With the amount of time that we spend sitting at a computer, it is perfect to undo our current lifestyles. The passive position allows gravity to undo the forward head posture and rounded shoulders. While the bent knees help reduce pressure on the lower back by placing the psoas in a shorten state.

Personally, I think Constructive Rest is a great position to be for a meditation. When I'm in a lotus pose, I end up focusing my attention on my tight hips or staying upright. By being supported by the ground, it becomes easier to tap into a meditative state. Plus, I am working on my posture getting more benefits for my time. Win!

Constructive Rest is very similar to a supported Savasana that you can find in yoga, particularly in Restorative Yoga. Jillian Pransky is one of the most well known Restorative Yoga instructors who has has long touted the benefits holding supported poses for 20 minutes or more. Holding a pose for a long time can be a challenge, as we struggle with stillness. Ideally, it shouldn't be physically uncomfortable, by using props to reinforce the shape of the body. Then there is the mental portion of being stationary. Breathing techniques and meditation can help. Ultimately, the rewards are massive for our mental and physical self.

Usually when we think of stretching and lengthening muscles, we think of an active stretch where you can feel your muscle. This actives the mechanoreceptors in the tendons and muscle belly to resist the stretch. With a passive stretch that is found in Constructive Rest, the muscles shouldn't feel a stretch. This teaches the muscles that they don't always have to be contracted. They learn that they don't always have to contract, which can create a great change in the body.

Learn how to do get into Constructive Rest in just a few minutes. You'll notice that my voice changes as I get into the position.

Read about other ways to reduce stress.

Kate Hamm combines her 15+ years of experience in the fitness industry and high-end resort program development into sought after wellness adventures at AnamBliss. Visit www.anambliss.com for future retreat dates and locations.

MISSION
Finding bliss in life through movement, freeing muscles, nourishing the body, enjoying nature and exploring the world.