michael reid

"If you can dream it, you can do it."

-Walt Disney, Animator, Film Producer

This is such an important statement.  Whether it is dreaming of lifting some really heavy weight or playing in the NBA, it all starts with a dream.  Just be careful of what you dream for; dream for things that you want to happen.

Be Well,

Mike Reid

Rehab Tip - Do the Opposite

Here is a little rehabilitation tip.

When a movement causes pain, doing the opposite will usually relieve the pain and correct the problem.

E.g. 

• My shoulders hurt when bench pressing ... do more rowing (pulling) exercises like chin ups or supine pull ups.

• My low back hurts when I bend forward to tie my shoes ... do press ups.

• When I sit for long periods I get pain in the back, neck and shoulders ... stand more and do the Brugger Relief Position.  Hold the below position for 5-15s and do 3-5 repetitions.

image: www.sportsandspine.org/pain_headache.asp

Be Well,
Mike Reid

Youth Summer Strength Program - warm up exercises

Here are the videos for the warm up exercises for the summer physical training program I put together for the basketball club I work for in Sweden, this is also very suitable for other sports like Water Polo, Ice Hockey, and football.  Please keep in mind that this is a program for youth aged players who are just starting to work with strength training.

You can download a hard copy of the program from this link:  Download 2008_summer_program.pdf

If you have any questions please send me an email.

Be Well,
Mike Reid

Youth Summer Strength Program - strength exercises

Here are the videos for the strength exercises for the summer physical training program I put together for the basketball club I work for in Sweden, this is also very suitable for other sports like Water Polo, Ice Hockey, and football.  Please keep in mind that this is a program for youth aged players who are just starting to work with strength training.

You can download a hard copy of the program from this link:  Download 2008_summer_program.pdf

If you have any questions please send me an email.

Be Well,
Mike Reid

Killer at Large

Why as a society are we getting fatter?

My initial thoughts:

• Overconsumption of the "white devils" (sugar and processed grains)
• not moving enough

Be Well,
Mike Reid

Excessive Mobile Phone Use Affects Sleep In Teens

"Teenagers who excessively use their cell phone are more prone to disrupted sleep, restlessness, stress and fatigue, according to a research abstract that will be presented on June 9 at SLEEP 2008, the 22nd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (APSS)." (reference)

"Addiction to cell phone is becoming common. Youngsters feel a group pressure to remain inter-connected and reachable round the clock. Children start to use mobile phones at an early stage of their life. There seem to be a connection between intensive use of cell phones and health compromising behaviour such as smoking, snuffing and use of alcohol," said Dr. Badre.  (reference)

See this link for more information on the importance of sleep. 

Some examples of the importance of sleep: 

• lack of sleep is associated with emotional and behavioral problems
• the less you sleep the fatter you get
• not enough sleep is associated with developing diabetes (or becoming intolerant to carbohydrates)
• extra sleep improves an athletes performance

Have problems sleeping?  Want to improve it?  Dr. Mercola has a nice list of suggestions to aid in sleep.  Below are the two key points I think that most people should focus on for better sleep (directly copied from Dr. Mercola's article: "33 secrets to a good night's sleep" ).  If you are doing these two thing and still have trouble sleeping then try some of the other 31 tips.

•  Sleep in complete darkness or as close as possible. If there is even the tiniest bit of light in the room it can disrupt your circadian rhythm and your pineal gland's production of melatonin and seratonin. There also should be as little light in the bathroom as possible if you get up in the middle of the night. Please whatever you do, keep the light off when you go to the bathroom at night. As soon as you turn on that light you will for that night immediately cease all production of the important sleep aid melatonin.

• No TV right before bed. Even better, get the TV out of the bedroom or even out of the house, completely. It is too stimulating to the brain and it will take longer to fall asleep. Also disruptive of pineal gland function for the same reason as above.  (this includes computer and video games as well, MR)

Be Well,
Mike Reid

Rocky!

Very cool story. 
Mike Reid

Water Polo Science: part VI - martial arts

I have no science for you on this post but here is a very interesting application of martial arts and Water Polo. 

I have used and coached moves similar to these but not this detailed.  These could be great drills to spend 5-10 minutes practicing on deck before your pool session.  One of my former coaches in Canada, Wing Wong who played on China's national team, was introducing some of these concepts to us but again not in this kind of detail.

One of the simple moves I would coach is simply do an explosive spin plus a kick to break the lock of someone grabbing your suit or arm. 

Any of the Water Polo coaches out there teach any of these techniques? 

Mike Reid

"Success is doing ordinary things extraordinarily well. "

-- Jim Rohn, Motivational Speaker

High Performance Training a la Paul Chek

If you have never seen or listened to Paul Chek, then you are in for a treat.  Some of you may find this to be some pretty heavy s**t! 

This is the first part of an 11 part video series that you can watch on Paul Chek's youtube channel.

Be Well,
Mike Reid