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.

Free Resources:

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.  

Free Resources:

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

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.

Free Resources:

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:

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 

Free Resources:

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

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:

Free Resources:

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

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.

Free Resources:

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:

Have you ever managed chronic pain? And, maybe you wake up wondering what's going to hurt next, maybe it's your knee or your hip and then it's your shoulder. If you've ever dealt with pain and have spent endless hours searching for resolutions, this episode is for you. 

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

Thank you to Strength & Mobility Dojo member, Dr. Shaun Puro for sharing your personal and professional journey in managing pain. To work with Shaun, check out his practice:

AlternaHealth Solutions, located in Roswell,Ga.
Website: https://www.alternahealthsolutions.com/ 
Facebook: AlternaHealth Solutions
Office Number: 770-641-9797

Free Resources:

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

How often do you think about breathing? Breathing is something we do all day, every day, 24/7, and yet many of us have some form of dysfunctional breathing. Today, I talk with my podcast producer, Tony, about how I learned that breathing dysfunction is often linked to pain and other seemingly unrelated problems, and that fixing your breathing is one of my go to solutions for difficult to solve issues with my clients. I talk about mouth breathing and upper chest breathing vs nasal breathing and how breathing patterns can be linked to anxiety, stress, pain, lack of energy, and more. I also discuss different breathing techniques and strategies from mouth tape to air hunger squats, how to assess your breathing and whether different breathing techniques are working for you, and how to train your breathing for better results in fitness but also in everyday life.

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

Free Resources:

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:

Have you ever wondered how a young athlete becomes a trainer, coach, and educator? Or just how someone might get into brain-based fitness in general? Today, I’m going to talk with my podcast producer, Tony, about how I got started from a young age in fitness, and how my training and understanding evolved into the neuro-muscular approach that I use today. I go over my first experiences in strength training, wrestling and physical education, my own struggles with chronic pain and injuries, my introduction to the Burdenko Method, my discovery of Z-Health and diving deep into applied neuroscience, and how I finally was able to solve problems with chronic pain for not only myself, but for my clients as well. I also share some of my current challenges as I continue to learn and grow as coach and educator. It's been quite a journey and I'm excited to share my story with you.

Free Resources:

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:

Is your workout routine leaving you tired, sore, and stressed all the time? Or, on the other hand, do you feel like you never seem to make much progress despite sticking to a program you like? Is there something that you know you’re “supposed to do” in your routine but that you always skip? Today, I’m going to talk about balance in training, what it looks like and why it is so important to keep in mind over the long run. I’m also going to talk about how you can assess whether your own training is balanced and healthy, or if you are missing the mark and setting yourself up for trouble down the line. If you are someone that wants to stay active and injury free for as long as possible, so you can keep doing the things that you love, then this episode is for you.

Free Resources:

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: