Background:
I have been following Dr. Erson Religioso's blog,
The Manual Therapist, for quite some time now. I also recently subscribed to his OMPT Channel section where I have learned quite a few evaluation and treatment techniques to add to my arsenal. Dr. E has training in a plethora of different schools of thought and one of them is the Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy or MDT for short. Part of his MDT skill-set is a various amount of techniques that he refers to as "resets". He often uses them as part of his evaluation, treatment and home exercise programs. I hope I am saying all of this accurately, at least. Here is a couple videos of Dr. Erson Religioso III, DPT, FAAOMPT explaining the what, why and how related to these resets.
This is Dr. E's video highlighting the his favorite resets, and why they work.
An updated but longer video for Dr. E's favorite resets.
The Toe Pain:
I am currently pursuing a post-professional graduate degree so that means I am still a student (will be one for life) and that I still have finals. A couple Monday’s ago I was sitting around with a few of my classmates while waiting to take a final practical exam. One classmate mentioned that she had a very painful big toe on her right foot. She had been suffering this pain for a day or two since walking around Chicago the entire weekend while wearing ill-fitting footwear. She had only had the pain on one side without any direct MOI besides gradual onset related to the shoes and walking. She had pain with great toe extension when toeing-off in her gait cycle.
Dr. E’s videos had been on my mind and I was curious if his resets would really work because they were a foreign concept related to anything I had been taught. I had the idea of doing repeated-end range flexion of the great toe for about 20 repetitions and I asked her if she minded trying out the experiment. She obliged and we went to town with the repeated “resets”.
After I finished with the 20 or so repeats I asked her to stand up and walk around. Alas, she had no pain and no other complaints appeared. I told her that there was a chance that this would be a transient effect and that she may need to repeat this exercise about 10 times every hour. However, her pain never returned that day and hasn’t to date. I believe a week later when I inquired about her toe she mentioned that my “voodoo” had fixed the issue for good. While I don’t think I was doing any magic or voodoo I do think this highlights some merit to these resets on an n=1 level. Half of evidence-based practice is clinical experience and so far my “clinical” experience has been great; although I do wish I had some more extensive training or knowledge about MDT. I was impressed enough with these results that I tried using the repeated ankle plantar flexion reset for my girlfriend’s aunt who has had years of constant heel pain. This was just an offhand encounter at Mother’s Day brunch but it immediately took her symptoms from a wince-inducing 8/10 to a 4/10. I gave her instructions to continue these as a self-empowering home exercise and I hope she sticks to them. I really want to see how she progresses.
Conclusion:
My conclusion about these resets so far is that I like them but I don’t see them as a replacement to my current clinical skill set. I see them as being another tool and a great way to put responsibility into the hands of the patient. I understand the theory and concept as explained by Dr. Religioso. However, I definitely feel and want to learn more about this stuff before it starts to become a mainstay of my clinical practice.
Today I have the opportunity and pleasure of sharing a guest post by Jordan Anderson, MS, ATC. Jordan is or should I say was a classmate of mine at Illinois State University and is actually graduating this weekend with his Master's in Athletic Training! Congratulations! He is just as passionate about food, running and sports medicine as I am and it shows in his writing. You can find Jordan on Twitter or Google+. This was a great post and I can't wait to see and hear more from Jordan in the future.
Support Your Local Farms!
(and yourself)
As most of you know now because of the news and various other outlets, our food has become riddled with growth hormones, pesticides, preservatives, and other unnatural substances. Sure, this makes most produce look, feel, and sometimes even taste better. All of these things have been developed over many years by bioengineers and has become the norm. These additives are true of both meat and produce. Some recent literature is linking these additives to metabolic disease and the components of such. Not only do these things contribute to the problem, but also the food that animals are fed before they are processed for sale to us plays an even bigger role.
For instance, many beef cattle are fed a combination of grains, animal bi-product, and given growth hormones. This combination makes it inexpensive for large farms to feed their cattle but also produce HUGE amounts of food. The problem is inherent, cattle are not meant to consume these things. Cattle are grazers and survive off of local vegetation, mostly grass. This is where the term “grass fed” comes from when purchasing beef.
The same also applies to eggs and chicken. Chickens that are “cage free” are able to roam the land and search out their natural diet which includes things like insects, vegetation, and fruits. However, some companies will trick consumers into labeling a chicken or eggs with “all-natural” fed with an all grain diet. This is obviously NOT a chicken’s natural choice for food. This all-grain diet taints the chicken’s meat and their eggs.
Eggs are nature’s perfect food when the chickens that produce them eat their natural diet. Yolks are especially high in essential Omega-3 and low in Omega-6 fatty acids, and do not contain much LDL lipoproteins (bad cholesterol, except for the big fluffy molecules which can be protective) and also contains HDL (good cholesterol, it exists!), but when these chickens are fed all grain diets, these things are not as prevalent and higher proportions of LDL and omega-6 fatty acids are found. This gives eggs a bad name when in reality they are great foods.
So the ultimate question remains. What can we do about this, where can I find these non-modernized foods and go back to the way these plants and animals were meant to be eaten?? And where on earth can I find them for a reasonable price?
Today I wanted to showcase a mini-case study of an athlete
that I consulted with recently. This was a 22 year old female collegiate track
and field athlete. This patient was a mid-distance runner that specialized in
the 800m event.
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The athlete complained of chronic pain at the
musculotendinous junction of the Achilles tendon that had been recurrent at the
beginning of track season the previous two years. The athlete had a previous
history of turf-toe like symptoms in the ipsilateral great toe.
I often find myself having conversations about diet and nutrition with others on a semi-regular basis. Eventually, the conversation turns to questions about my own dietary habits and the inevitable question, "Well...what do you eat for breakfast?"
I like research, especially research related to sports medicine and running. I like to read it, discuss it and implement it. Beginning this fall, I will even do some research myself for my Master's Thesis.
However, I find myself a clinician at heart and do not wish to solely do research as my career develops. Even though I have inklings of desire to get a PhD someday. Despite this, I wish I was helping conduct this research study that this article highlights.
http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1112837371/how-minimalist-running-adapts-muscles-050313/
This study out of UVA sounds very fascinating and I can't wait to see what becomes of it.
Today I will be reviewing my newest pair of Luna Sandals, El Mono which is Spanish for...The Mono.
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El Mono is marketed as Luna's new jack-of-all trades sandal or as they label it, "...our do everything, go everywhere sandal. When your hiking, traveling, lounging, camping, running, spelunking, or anything else-ing, this is your go-to footwear"
Title:
Anatomy for Runners: Unlocking Your Athletic Potential for Health, Speed, and Injury Prevention
Author: Jay Dicharry, MPT, SCS
Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing; 1 edition (August 1, 2012)
Pages: 290
Price: $10.67 (Paperback) or $7.99 (Kindle)
ISBN: 1620871599
Well, I've never formally written a review before let alone published one for people to read on a blog. The only reviewing I have done is given my opinion to others that would listen (or pretend to). However, I decided that this book was a great place to start. The quality of information and the way it was delivered has given me the motivation to make an attempt at writing this review. So...where do I begin?
As a graduate student and an athletic trainer I spent a lot of time on the go and away from home. My hectic scheduling often interferes with studying, sleeping, girlfriend, and cooking food for myself. Thankfully I have come to love using my tiny single-serving crock-pot.
I remember growing up my mother would often cook roasts, turkey sandwich meat or Little Smokey's with this magical invention but I didn't have any gratitude for it back then. I didn't realize how easily a healthy and well-balanced meal could be prepared while gone at work all day long. A crock-pot has a huge benefit for anybody attempting to eat a whole-foods, paleoish, primal...whatever you want to call it diet with a crazy work schedule.
Here are three reasons why I love using this device to prepare supper.
I was perusing the internet today when I came across a couple of videos produced by Dr. Mark Cucuzzella. Dr. Cucuzzella is the director of the
Natural Running Center, Professor of Family Medicine at West Virginia University and the owner of
Two Rivers Treads in Shepherdstown, West Virginia. Dr. Cucuzzella is a running guru that has been at the front of the natural running movement for many years now. He also brought us this previously mentioned video that highlights the principles of natural running form.
Must see video for runners.
Disclaimer
Disclaimer: Please note that some of the links on this blog are affiliate links and I will earn a commission if you purchase through those links. I have used all of these products listed and recommend them because they are helpful and are products from companies that I trust, not because of the commissions that I may earn from you using these products.
Caution
All content on this blog is meant as instructional and educational. The author and guest authors of this blog are not responsible for any harm or injury that may result. Always consult a physician or another proper medical professional for medical advice.
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