Back Pain?

Back Problems??
If you are like many Americans, back pain seems to be something we just tend to live with. Having said that most back pain comes from poor movement which transfers over to muscular imbalances and other issues which cause pain and discomfort. Now before I go any further with this discussion it is crucial that you see a Licensed Chiropractor or Doctor if you are feeling chronic pain. I lean towards the chiropractic route in many cases since modern medicine has rarely shown me a remedy that consistently shows results. If you need some good professionals feel free to ask me and I will give you some good names. So now on to the discussion.

As someone that has spent thousands of dollars on chiropractic care, massage therapy, surgical consults, and MRI's for back pain, I can now say that I have been nearly pain free for over a year and a half and have continued to strength train aggressively and consistently.
If you are under the care of a chiropractor or physical therapist and feel that you continually need to get fixed, then you must be doing something that is causing the issue to reoccur and it's not usually lifting heavy things that cause it. It can be as simple as how you are walking or standing that is the culprit. So what is the cure?? Well I don't claim to be a therapist, chiropractor, or a witch doctor, but I do know a few things about identifying certain issues with how the body moves and may be able to show you how to start on the path of correcting these issues. Many times it is about flexibility and other times not. I do know one thing, if your lower back hurts and you continually try to fix it by stretching your lower back........STOP IT!!! Many times back problems don't come from the lower back being tight so stretching your lower back may actually be furthering the problem. I have done postural assessment for years and have recently added numerous tools to screen movement issues. I use the Functional Movement Screen as a very strong tool in understanding how the body moves or in some cases how it is not moving.
If you, or someone you know are interested in finding out more about how to start on the path getting reconnected to your body then feel free to contact me for a free consultation. If you don't live in Tucson then I know many other qualified people around the country that I would be very happy to refer you to.

Evolution, Dreams, and The Alchemist.

Thank you Jackie for Volunteering your time for part of my first Evolution Fitness advertisement materials.It is because of the support from my friends and family that I can take this huge venture in my life. Its kind of funny how things all work out. Last week I had a job and within a week I am my own boss. I still don't know what the road looks like around the corner but I just keep putting one foot in front of the other. I have realized that I have definitely kept my fitness goals on track over the past year but lacked to do the things that allowed me to truly follow my dreams. IF you haven't read the Alchemist by Paulo Coehlo then I stronly recommend it, I have read it 3 times in my life and each time I read it I made the decision to pursue the next chapter of my life. It is all about life and boy following his journery to follow his dreams.

I know this blog is called the Path To Strength and not Danny's Philosophy babble, but to me Strength comes in many forms, Physical and Spiritual. Me following my dreams has definitely made a huge difference in all that I do. Thanks for listening and all of your support.

Talk about a burn

So today I decided to start doing some kettlebell snatches again. I decided to go with the 35 pound bell and just do some VO2 Max condtitioning. 15 seconds of snatches on the right:15 seconds of rest:15 seconds of Left:15 seconds of rest. The goal is to get 8 snatches for every 15 seconds. Well today lasted about 40 minutes. 640 snatches and over 22,000 pounds of kettlebell lifted I can honestly say Im worked. even 7 hours after the workout my entire body is on fire. Kenneth Jay Master RKC developed this protocol. Ace Fitness did a research study on this protocol, without giving credit to Kenneth Jay of course. I want to say that most of what Ace has to say I usually avoid since they are still promoting cable curls and seated leg extension exercises but this study did turn my head. Of course if you read the rest of the article it is complete trash. They do the entire article on the snatch but proceed to show their in house exercise physiologist put together an exercise routine with bells that show improper swing technique and using the kettlebell like a cheapened dumbbell. I know I digress but kettelbells should NOT be taught by people that dabble in them or watch a video on them and think they know what they are doing. OK got it off my chest.... The study showed the following:

“We estimated oxygen consumption and how many calories
they were burning aerobically, and it was 13.6 calories per minute.
But we also measured the blood lactate, so anaerobically they were
burning another 6.6 calories per minute,” explains Porcari. “So
they were burning at least 20.2 calories per minute, which is off
the charts. That’s equivalent to running a 6-minute mile pace. The
only other thing I could find that burns that many calories is cross-
country skiing up hill at a fast pace.”

Pretty intense stuff! I don't know about you but I don't know if I will ever run 6 minute mile nor do I want to. The impact alone of running in the knees and joints is terrible. Especially because most people like myself really don't have good running technique which is another topic in and of itself. So based on hitting my numbers of 8 snatches per 15 seconds I was probably burning 20+ calories per minute. So a 40 minute workout today helped me burn over 800 calories.
SO if you think that Kettlebells just like dumbbells I ask you if you have ever burned 800 calories with dumbbells? If you are seeking to learn how to use kettlebells definitely seek an RKC trainer in your area. Have fun with the snatch!! it sounds great doesn't it??

Taking the Leap

Well for years now I have dreamed of being my own boss. Countless affirmations by friends, colleagues, and associates that I have what it takes to start my own business, I continually balked. Fear of just about everything took over every time I wanted to start something up. I have heard it called paralysis of analysis. I could stare at numbers and create some pretty inventive spreadsheets. The problem was in the fact that with a touch of a few keys on they keyboard I was either profiting $15,000 per month or closing my doors after 3 months. The facts were that the worst case scenario was always pretty far fetched. The problem was that my brain always held on to the fact of the worst case. I guess this is just the case of not being ready until I was ready.

Recently I was faced with a decision? Have Job or Live my dream? Let me tell you just having a job and going to work sucks! There I was standing at the top of the cliff for hours looking down in to pool of water below. All the others jumping in with impunity as I stared from the top in fear and jealous of their ability to jump carefree. Well as I stood there with my decision, I felt the rocks crumbling below my feet so it was either jump or fall into the rocks. Well I think I did a back-flip off the cliff. It was time. No spreadsheets to argue with. The details will come as the process begins.

As of today Evolution Fitness is a reality. Over the next few months the dream will be coming together. 3 clients on board with more to come. I am currently independently contracting out of Select Fitness and God willing I will have my own spot in a few months. The freedom of future is Awesome. I wish everyone the feeling I have right now. Dreams do come true.