How to build a better athlete – starting in kindergarten

This Saturday, while drinking my morning tea and perusing the health and fitness sections of various online newspapers as I often do before a starting work, I came across a headline that caught my attention.

Yup, it’s the same one you read above.

Pretty catchy, isn’t it?

You can read the full article from the Globe and Mail here: Build A Better Athlete – Starting in Kindergarten.

The article starts with a vivid recollection of a knee injury suffered by a young man, Eric Sung, while attempting a skateboarding move, described as a bunny hop, in his driveway at home. The journalist then postulates on a potential reason for all the ligaments of his knee tearing with what was described as an odd-angle landing:

“He was 24 at the time, but Mr. Sung’s childhood phys ed teachers could be to blame. According to a growing body of research, the torn knees, twisted ankles and sore backs that plague so many active adults have their origins in the school gymnasium.”

While the fault for Mr. Sung’s knee injury on his childhood teachers is highly debatable and virtually impossible to prove (it was more likely the “odd angle” at which he landed), the idea that the movement patterns we learn as children may serve us in our adulthood is definitely an important one and an area that needs to be further explored.

With many changes in education curricula shifting focus towards pure academic subjects and increased technology use by children and youth (iPads/smartphones/online gaming), there’s been a substantial shift away from physical activity and transitioning towards increased screen time and sedentary behaviours.

Even with (dwindling) mandated physical education classes in school, many children and youth are still missing out on enough appropriate exposure to fundamental movement skills (also called physical literacy – the ability to complete basic movement patterns safely and effectively) required to create a solid movement foundation for later in life.

“Comprehensive Canadian data presented in Montreal this month shows we’re doing no better: Researchers looked at Grade 4 and 5 students in Manitoba, and whether they had acquired 18 basic movement skills – such as running, kicking and hopping – all of which are laid out in the physical education curriculum. The results were dismal. No more than 10 per cent of the kids showed proficiency in any one of the movements. (As in Australia, girls fared the worst.)”

Is that it?

As our youth age, will they be at greater risk for various aches, pains, and traumas? Do we become a nation of adults prone to injury because we didn’t learn to move well as children?

Is there anything that can save us?

Is there any way to reverse this negative trend and create a nation of agile, nimble, injury-proof* citizens?

In the article, Dr Dean Kriellaars, an associate professor in the department of physical therapy at the University of Manitoba “says that as little as two or three hours a week on basic movement skills can boost kids’ proficiency dramatically and nearly eliminate performance differences between boys and girls.”

And this doesn’t have to be accomplished with traditional competitive sports.

In fact, many of the movement training strategies suggested by Dr. Kriellars would simply be playing games where the foundational physical skills and patterns are an integral part of the game but aren’t the main focus. Think back to the days of playing hopscotch or frozen tag in the playground – those simple games helped improve certain physical skills, but those skills weren’t the focus of those games.

The main focus should be on making movement fun, for life.

And that may be the secret on how to build a better athlete.

Here at Primal Human Performance, we couldn’t agree more.

This includes making movement fun for children and youth who aren’t “athletic” in the traditional sense, who aren’t interested in organized, competitive sports.

In our youth programs and working with youth, we believe that every child, with the right guidance and coaching, has the potential to be athletic in their life. They have the potential to master the fundamental movement skills that will allow them to participate in physical activity of their choosing, to the extent that they wish. They can learn to love to move and use their bodies to their full potential.

To that end, our programs are tailored to the individual and designed on building a solid physical literacy foundation for life, minimizing injury risk, and optimizing performance potential, for every type of child.

For some of our clients, that means systematically progressing to higher performance athletic development as they mature and progress, with an end goal of successfully entering collegiate or professional athletics. This may encompass progression to sports specific training, a greater focus on strength and conditioning, or power drills to enhance explosiveness.

For others, it may simply mean learning how to use their bodies efficiently so that they can stay healthy, active and happy as they grow up. Learning to improve their body awareness, basic balance and general coordination. Often, it’s a stepping stone to get a more sedentary child to feel comfortable in their own skin, outside of a potentially daunting competitive gym class where they feel judged and compared to their more athletic peers.

In the end, we really want everyone to move more. And revel in the enjoyment of that movement.

In essence, we want you to play.

*While the term “injury-proof” was used, I’m not aware of any method to completely eliminate the risk of injury from physical activity or even life. What we aim to do is minimize the risk of injury by trying to control for the factors that we can control.

Congratulate yourself, you’ve earned it!

"Strive for progress, not perfection" - Unknown

 

When it comes to physical therapy, injury rehabilitation, general health, or sports performance, we often take the route of focusing on the end-result rather than the process that’s required to get there. We often overlook the hard-earned intermediate steps we’ve accomplished that have enabled us to move forward, the little victories.

How many people do you know who’ve lost a few inches with their new healthy habits in just a few short weeks but haven’t dropped to their “ideal” target weight just yet and are frustrated with the results?

Or people who have started a health or fitness program after a completely sedentary lifestyle but are discouraged by what they believe to be agonizingly “slow” progress?

Or people who have made significant postural corrections, range of motion improvements and substantial increases in strength during their post-surgical recovery but haven’t quite achieved their pre-injury level of function in the “standard” 12 week time-frame?

How many of the above have celebrated their little victories? Oftentimes, too few.

How many of these people have been so focused on the end result that they’ve let their acknowledgement of their progress pass them by? Oftentimes, too many.

And it’s time to change that!

If we’re always looking for the “perfect” end-results: the perfect body, the perfect fitness level, the perfect recovery, we’ll miss out on all the progress we’ve made…

So take a moment and appreciate all that you’ve already accomplished. You’ve earned it.

Team Primal

One Man. Two Ratchet Sets. And lots of metal.

Beyond Survival. Learn to Thrive.

7 Simple Steps to Perform at Your Best

If you’re looking to perform at your highest level, there are a few things you should consider to ensure that your systems are firing on all cylinders and that you’re actually achieving your full potential.

Stay Hydrated: Many studies have shown that even a small drop in hydration levels can negatively impact performance. The ideal beverage is, of course, water. Being calorie free, it can be an important component of not only helping your physiological systems do what they are designed to do, but also helping you shed those unwanted pounds.

Fix Your Fuel: As any of the top race car drivers could tell you, their finely tuned machines wouldn’t be able to push the limits of performance without a solid supply of the best fuel out there for their engines to burn. Think of your body the same way. Eating the right foods, at the right time, will ensure that your body has the energy source it needs to keep you going. And going.

Pre-hab: The easiest injury to treat is the one you don’t have! Pre-habilitation means doing the right things to make sure your body is able to tolerate your sports and activities before you get hurt. This is prevention at its finest. Adding a pre-hab component could be as simple as putting a joint mobility/stability program in place (e.g. mobile hips and stable spine for low back pain avoidance), or it could mean working on some of your weak points (e.g. increasing core strength).

Rehab: While pre-hab is a great and can help reduce the risk of many injuries, unfortunately, it’s not 100% guaranteed. In sport, as with life, injuries can, and do, still happen. What’s important here, though, is that they are dealt with immediately before any secondary or compensatory issues occur. This is where enlisting the help of a sports-injury focused physiotherapist or chiropractor can really make a difference. The sooner you address the problem and resolve any lingering issues, the sooner you can get back to what you love!

General Fitness and Athleticism: Who couldn’t use more strength and flexibility? Or more cardiovascular endurance? Or more anaerobic power? While you may not be paid millions of dollars to play a sport, you are still an athlete! And these are just a few of the physiological components that you can significantly improve with a well-constructed, progressive and consistent training plan. As a bonus side effect, you’ll burn off a bunch of unwanted fat and have to buy yourself a new wardrobe to compliment your new chiseled, athletic physique.

Sleep: Tired. Fatigued. Fighting to keep your heavy eyes open, and your mouth closed from perpetual yawning. Sound familiar? If you’re like most people, you’re probably not getting enough of it. Or, if you’re one of the lucky few who gets enough hours down,  you’re might not be getting the quality of sleep your body needs. To help with this, develop good sleep hygiene habits. Set up a pre-bedtime routine that allows you to free your mind of the day’s stress and negativity. Disconnect from all your tech gadgets and gizmos (that means leaving your cell phone out of your bedroom!) and make sure your room is as dark as you can get it.

Rest and Recover: This goes beyond sleep. If you’re always on the go, there’s a good chance that you’re not getting enough rest and recovery. While not all stress is bad (it can be a really good thing, under the right circumstances), fighting it day in and day out without the opportunity to reset will leave your endocrine and nervous system fried. Carve out a small chunk of time where you can decompress, de-stress, and just let yourself unwind. Take a walk, read a book, or hop in the tub for a stress-busting soak. Your mind, and your body will thank you.

Yours in Optimal Health,

Team Primal

How can a physiotherapist in Woodbridge improve your health?

There’s Health and Then There’s Optimal Health.

Health is the ability to survive. Optimal Health is the ability to thrive.

Optimal Health is about taking, or regaining, control of your life, from managing stress to dealing with nagging aches and pains. It means doing everything you can to recover from injury, illness, or surgeries; it means being an active participant in your own care.

It’s about taking the right steps to improve your most valuable asset: your health.

Optimal Health is about living with an abundance of energy so you can readily take on daily challenges. It encompasses your nutritional status and your general fitness. It’s more than just doing the bare minimum to get by. It’s about reaching your true, untapped potential. It’s your opportunity to show the world who you really are. It’s your opportunity to shine.

The choice is yours…

You can choose plain, regular health. And just float through life in a haze, scraping by.

Or you can choose Optimal Health and experience the endless possibilities.

At Primal Human Performance, we’re here to help you find solutions to your problems.

Contact us today to start living your life, on your terms!