What if an old scar is causing your brain to erroneously map where your body is in space? In Part 3 of a series on the neural hierarchy, I speak with my podcast producer, Tony, all about the proprioceptive system and how our sense of where our body is in space lives not in the body, but rather in the brain. I discuss why the proprioceptive system is closely related to performance and pain, and how this system ties in with the rest of the neural hierarchy to make decisions about movement, balance, mobility and threat.  By understanding how the proprioceptive mental map is made, I show how seemingly unrelated exercises that "clarify the map" can help decrease pain, increase performance, and even lessen things like anxiety and stress.

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Thank you to my podcast idea man and coach, Tony Fowler (Instagram: @tone_reverie) for helping me put together this episode!

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What if your tight calves are actually caused by a deficiency in how your brain perceives balance? In Part 2 of a series on the neural hierarchy, I speak with my podcast producer, Tony, all about the often overlooked vestibular system and how it is integrally related to balance, posture, respiration, blood pressure, and potentially, pain and performance.  I discuss some clues that might make me suspect someone has a vestibular deficiency, how I can test the vestibular system, what kinds of drills and exercises you can use to train the vestibular system, and more.  I also tell some powerful stories of clients that had lifelong vestibular deficits that they weren't aware of, and that when identified and targeted, led to huge improvements in quality of life and performance.  

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Thank you to my podcast idea man and coach, Tony Fowler (Instagram: @tone_reverie) for helping me put together this episode!

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The neural hierarchy is a powerful explanatory framework for how our brain relies on sensory information when we are active, but what if the vast majority of the movement and fitness industry only focuses on the least important sensory system?  Today, I speak with my podcast producer, Tony, about the neural hierarchy.  I outline what the three sensory systems in the neural hierarchy are and focus on the visual system which accounts for 70% of the sensory information that our brain receives.  I discuss my own challenges with visual impairment as a young athlete, how the visual system interacts with movement and athletic performance, and why a visual deficit can potentially lead to pain and injury.  I also discuss how training and activating the visual system can have surprising benefits in pain management, threat reduction, and strength and coordination.  

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Thank you to my podcast idea man and coach, Tony Fowler (Instagram: @tone_reverie) for helping me put together this episode!

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Have you ever managed chronic pain? Or, maybe you've struggled to come back from an injury. Maybe you've had issues with your menstrual cycle as an athlete and need some tips on how to better care for your body. All of this and more is the reality of professional athlete, Lila Lapanja. If you're interested in learning how a Professional Alpine Ski Racer has walked through this journey and is coming out the other side with better health and performance than ever, you'll love this episode. 

In this episode, I interview one of our very own Strength & Mobility Dojo members, Lila Lapanja. Lila and I talk about:

Thank you to Strength & Mobility Dojo member, Lila Lapanja for sharing your personal journey as a professional athlete learning to listen to your body so you can improve not just your performance but your overall health.

You can follow along with Lila's athletic journey here:

Website: https://www.lilalapanja.com/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lapanjalila/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lilalapanja/ 

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The immediate feedback self-assessment process is a powerful tool, but what do you do if you're getting negative or confusing results?  Today, I speak with my podcast producer, Tony, about common problems that can occur during the self-assessment process and how to know when you need to make some changes.  I discuss the importance of body awareness, how changing the speed or the load of an exercise can change how your body responds, why negative results are just as important as positive ones, and why self-assessment results might change over time.  I also discuss the importance of fuel capacity and the minimum effective dose, and what actually happens in your body when a drill or exercise yields an immediate effect on your movement or pain.

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Thank you to my podcast idea man and coach, Tony Fowler (Instagram: @tone_reverie) for helping me put together this episode!

Whenever you're ready here's how we can help you:

Understanding how pain works and where it comes from is one of the most important pieces of the puzzle when it comes to solving your own pain issues. Pain can be very frightening for people because they generally associate pain with damage, but this is not necessarily true. Today, my goal is to introduce you to pain science to help you learn about what pain is, where it comes from, and why it exists in the first place. 

We cover these 4 main concepts:

Pain is a signal. It is a protective output. The goal of the pain is to get you to change your behavior in some way. So you have to ask yourself, 'what is the protective reason for my pain?' 

I discuss a variety of factors that may contribute to your pain experience, a study on low back imaging of people with bulging discs or disc degeneration yet they had no pain, a story of a young gymnast with chronic back pain years after her original injury, and a review of The Threat Bucket as an educational tool to help you identify areas of your life that may be contributing to your pain experience.  

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When you have pain or mobility issues, many will offer advice on what you should do, whether it's stretching, foam rolling, certain exercises or even surgery.  Today, I speak with my podcast producer, Tony, about how I think about applying interventions to relieve pain and get your body moving properly.  I discuss what happens when you apply a stimulus to the body from a neurological perspective as well as how to then assess whether it's helping or not.  I also discuss different types of stimuli, why it's possible to run any modality through a neurological framework to assess its effectiveness, and several different higher order systems in the body that let me hone in on my approach to interventions for pain relief and mobility.  I also address the potential for the placebo effect to occur and share a story of how some of my students in the Neuro Dojo were able to eliminate my knee pain without even being in the same room as me.

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Thank you to my podcast idea man and coach, Tony Fowler (Instagram: @tone_reverie) for helping me put together this episode!

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Have you ever managed an autoimmune disorder or do you know someone who does? Engaging in fitness while managing something like Multiple Sclerosis (MS) has it's ups and downs. The goal for this episode is to share some insight into how to navigate your symptoms so you can continue to live an active, healthy lifestyle. 

In this episode, I interview one of our very own Strength & Mobility Dojo members, Alissa Frazier. Alissa and I talk about:

Thank you to Strength & Mobility Dojo member, Alissa Frazier for sharing your personal and professional journey in managing MS. To work with Alissa, check out her practice:

Instagram: Liss.MS
Email: [email protected] 
Website: www.liss-ms.com 

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Have you ever wondered - what exactly is a minimalist shoe? Or, maybe you haven't heard of them but you need some strategies for improving your foot health. Today, I share my first introduction to minimalist shoes, how to ease into barefoot-style shoes and why it's so important to get your feet a pair of "ninja booties." I discuss some of the key features to look for in a minimalist shoe, how to perform a shoe test to identify the flexibility and mobility of the shoe itself, how conventional footwear negatively alters the way you move and can actually compress your joints, interfering with reflexes that are designed to keep your muscles strong and engaged. I also discuss strategies for transitioning into minimalist footwear and how to apply the concept of "progressive overload" to adapt to wearing barefoot shoes. I also cover some common questions like whether minimalist shoes are okay for seniors, on pavement or while hiking and situations where it might be best to alternate between conventional and minimalist footwear. 

Here are two of our favorite minimalist shoe brands:

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The hardest people for me to help are the ones that aren't moving on a regular basis. Today, I speak with my podcast producer, Tony, about why inactivity leads to all sorts of other problems downstream and why it's so important to maintain a regular movement practice. I discuss some of the main causes of inactivity, from pain and injury to sedentary lifestyles, and dig into some core concepts like the movement box and the pain vortex, that can help us understand what happens when your movement has been compromised. I also discuss how to approach injuries, some common myths and misconceptions around healing from injury, the use of "crude touch" and other non-intuitive methods to help with pain and mobility, why motivation is less effective than habit, why I no longer use the functional movement screen, and more.

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Thank you to my podcast idea man and coach, Tony Fowler (Instagram: @tone_reverie) for helping me put together this episode!

Whenever you're ready here's how we can help you: