In this episode, I interview Paritosh Joshi and Julia Pappageorge who are the co-authors of the paper “Reimagining Disability: A Call to Action” published in the Developmental Disabilities Network Journal. In the article, they compare the two main models of disability, the medical and social models. The medical model believes that people are not “normal” if they have a disability and blames them for not fitting in. The social model believes society hurts people with disabilities and wants to create better environments for them. 

Paritosh Joshi is a Master of Arts student in Clinical Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University. His research interests focus on examining the social determinants of mental health disparities and promoting mental health equity.

Julia Pappageorge is an interdisciplinary educator and researcher based in Chicago. She investigates how cultural, political, and economic factors shape urban education and perpetuate social inequalities. 

Link to “Reimagining Disability: A Call to Action”:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/377061105_Reimagining_Disability_A_Call_To_Action

Find Paritosh:

Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/paritosh-joshi-4023b0124/

TEDx talk - https://www.ted.com/talks/paritosh_joshi_social_media_mental_health

Find Julia:

Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-pappageorge-245058168/ 

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/jpappaj/ 

Find Charlie:

Instagram - charlie.graffius

Facebook - Charlie Graffius

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlie-graffius/

Email - [email protected]

I am excited to share that I will be participating in the FiveBoro bike tour in New York City this May. This 40 mile bike ride through all five boroughs is to raise money for Cerebral Palsy (CP) research. This is my first (of many) events like this to raise money for CP. I have not been on a bike in months, but I will be posting updates on my Instagram page if you’d like to see the training progression to get ready for this race. 

My goal is to raise a minimum of $1,000 for The Cerebral Palsy Alliance Research Foundation (CPARF). Your donation will contribute to grants given out to private funding for top researchers in the world that are working on promising science for CP. CPARF supports researchers for clinical trials as well as for those with promising interventions (e.g. accessible gaming, braces, pharmacological interventions) that need increased exposure to become more mainstream. Thank you for your consideration.

To donate for CP Research:

https://give.cparf.org/fundraisers/charliegraffius/charlie-graffius-fiveboro-bike-tour

Find Charlie:

Instagram - charlie.graffius

Facebook - Charlie Graffius

Email - [email protected]

Shea Hammond is a player for the US Soccer Para 7-a-side Men’s National Team and for Clemson Paralympic Soccer. He was the youngest member of the men’s national team at age 16, and recently helped the team earn a bronze medal at the Para Pan American games while scoring four goals in the U.S.’s six matches. Shea helped to found the nonprofit organization called CPSoccer, a free soccer training program for ambulatory kids with cerebral palsy, stroke, or traumatic brain injury. Watch his Ted Talk on Youtube called “Paralyzed to Paralympic”. 

Find Shea:

Instagram - shea_hammond

Tik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@sheahammond?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc

CP Soccer - https://www.cpsoccer.us/

Ted Talk: Paralyzed to Paralympic- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nXWyBVR-b4

Find Charlie:

Instagram - charlie.graffius

Facebook - Charlie Graffius
Email - [email protected]

My guest today is Sam Sahl, the Head Strength and Conditioning Coach at The Hun School of Princeton. Sam explains what he refers to as “adding value” as a coach, where he emphasizes that an athlete’s progress is contingent on the connection they have with you. He also describes how when people build strength, they can change the way they interact with their environment - this growth empowers people to add something to the world regardless of their physical condition.

Find Sam:

Instagram: sam.sahl

Find Charlie:

Instagram - charlie.graffius

Facebook - Charlie Graffius

Email - [email protected]

In today’s episode, I had the privilege to interview Jake Arens. Jake was born with Spastic Diplegic Cerebral Palsy (CP), he never allowed limitations to be put on him. Out of all of his incredible physical and mental accomplishments, he most recently hiked the Appalachian Trail (AT). This is no easy task for anyone, let alone for someone with a neurological condition such as CP. The AT is a hiking trail along the east coast of the U.S. which stretches 2,200 miles - starting at Springer Mountain in Georgia, ending at Mount Katahdin in Maine. 

Find Jake:

Instagram - sidetrackhiker

Facebook - Jake Arens

Email - [email protected]

Fundraising:

TEAR it up for CP - CP Alliance Research Foundation

https://give.cparf.org/fundraisers/jakearens/tear-it-up-for-cp

Find Charlie:

Instagram - charlie.graffius

Facebook - Charlie Graffius

Email - [email protected]

Episode 18 of the Movement Fluidity Podcast is here! This is a solo podcast where I talk about some new perspectives on Cerebral Palsy (CP) after my first month of graduate school. I am in my first semester in a Masters of Arts program in Motor Learning and Motor Control. One of my goals is to combine the knowledge from this course to improve my own physical capabilities to prove that anything is possible for those with CP. Even though injuries to the Central Nervous System cannot fully regenerate in humans (for now), there is a lot we can do to remap the brain to allow for improved physical function.

Today I explain some of the mechanisms on brain injuries/CP that I’ve learned from classes and lab time here. Then I touch on why and how this could be important for helping other people with CP- (many more episodes on this coming on this topic in the future). I also talk about life in NYC and my physical training updates- including Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) and running.

Stay tuned for future episodes coming out on the 1st of every month!

Find Charlie:

Instagram: charlie.graffius

Email: [email protected]

Linkedin: Charlie Graffius

Back at it with another episode with Dylan Tanguay! Today we tell a story about our trip making it to top of Maine- the summit of Mount Katahdin in Baxter State Park.

We took the Saddle trail from Roaring Brook which is a 10.4 mile out and back trail with an elevation of 5,268 feet. Luckily Dylan is an experienced hiker and climber, because my legs essentially stopped working after reaching the summit. This was due to symptoms related to Cerebral Palsy such as: localized muscular fatigue, central nervous system fatigue, muscle spasticity, as well as lack of coordination and balance.

Dylan and I ended up making it up and down safely in just over 15 hours. You won't want to miss all the ins and outs of this story!

Find Charlie: Instagram- charlie.graffius | [email protected]

Find Dylan: Instagram- dylan.tanguay

Today my guest is Dylan Tanguay. Dylan is a personal trainer, gymnast, rock climber, a super smart guy, and a great friend. 

We talk about strength and conditioning in terms of concepts as well as from a coaching perspective. We also dive into the importance of reading randomized control trials to avoid getting caught up in the trendy nonsense in the fitness world. The interview even takes a turn to explain our toothpaste preferences and our thoughts on fluoride. 

I hope you all enjoy and learn something from this wide ranging conversation.

Find Dylan:

Instagram- dylan.tanguay

Find Charlie:

Instagram-charlie.graffius

On Episode 15 of the Movement Fluidity Podcast we bring on Ian Markow from Markow Training Systems.

Ian is an awesome guy who has a very extensive knowledge of all things human movement. I found out about Ian through his social media presence and online video video library called the Elite Video Membership. These classes combine Functional Range Conditioning (FRC), Postural Restoration (PRI), Gary Ward’s foot work, and more to build long lasting strength/mobility and restore efficient human movement.

The more I learn about human movement, the more important I am finding these concepts to be. Fancy techniques to improve movement fluidity can be beneficial, but mastering the basics of pelvic/rib cage alignment and muscular “co-contractability” need to be at the forefront of all programming. Ian and David Grey have been incredible to learn from, I hope you all can experience a bit of the same!

Find Ian-

Instagram

Youtube

Website

Elite video membership (with free 1 week trial)

Find Charlie-

Instagram