Lower Body Warm-Up – Using The Stick

In his article “Lower Body Warm-Up – 10 Minutes to Better Performance!“, Nick Tumminello gives loads of information on how to warm-up.

In fact, his article is jam packed with information, I could not keep it to myself.  Not only does he use The Stick, but he also gives a specific routine to perform.

Nick goes into deep detail on his 3 Key Points to an Effective Warm-up:

3 Key Points to an Effective Warm-up:

• Key Point #1 – Use Unilateral Movements
• Key Point #2 – Do stuff you wouldn’t normally do!
• Key Point #3 – Use your warm-up as an assessment!

The article has loads of great information and videos as well.

It looks like the Original Body Stick is being used by a fairly big guy.  I am impressed with this article and it is must read.  Please click on the link above.

How Speed Skaters Might Use “The Stick”

During the Edmonton Marathon, I met two high end speed skaters!  The first was a young up and comer who has been training at the Olympic Oval in Calgary, Alberta.  Her family has been involved in speed skating for quite a number of years.  Her dad happens to be a coach as well.  They ended up picking up a Sprinter Stick.

This made sense to me because speed skaters have large, dense muscles.  The Sprinter Stick was the perfect stick for her because it is stiff and short enough to fit it into her training bag.

The other speed skater I met was Crystal Phillips.  If her name sounds familiar it is because she is competing against the very best in the world.  Crystal is a Canadian speed skater who is not only training for Canada, but she also has Multiple Sclerosis (MS).  I did not know that she was dealing with MS until I met her for coffee.  She is a remarkable young women.  Here is a little exert from an article written about her efforts with the MS Bike Tour a couple of years ago:

“After successfully organizing a team for the MS Bike Tour for the first time last year, Crystal Phillips is looking forward to making this year’s team an even bigger success. Diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis herself only a little over a year ago, the 21-year-old speed skater is determined to not let the disease get her down and hopes this Bike Tour, which is a two-day 180-km trip from Airdrie to Olds and back, will help build more awareness of MS and will help raise as much money as possible for MS research.”

To read the most up to date information on Crystal click the title - Canadian speed skaters support upcoming MS Bike Tour

Crystal is still team captain for her team called ‘Team Tazza’  for the MS Bike Tour. 

Interestingly enough, she stopped by my booth and said she uses The Stick all the time.  She told me she mainly uses it for warm-up.  Being that she is an amazing athlete, I assumed she would be using the Sprinter Stick as well.  I was wrong.

Crystal showed up the next day to compete in her race and she again stopped by my booth and showed her Travel Stick.  I was shocked to hear that she only uses the Travel Stick.  I though for sure she would be using a stiffer stick like the Sprinter Stick, Body Stick or even the Stiff Stick.  She explained to me that she and other speed skaters love to use the stick to warm-up and stimulate their muscles before they trained or raced.  So, the Travel Stick was perfect for the job.  She was not looking to do any deep soft tissue release because she would see a therapist for that. 

I think this makes a lot of sense for a person in her position.  She has access to physiotherapists and massage therapists, so she uses The Stick as a warm-up tool.  I suggested she she also use it as a cool-down tool and a tool for soft tissue work in between visits to her therapists.

Crystal is a great example of how speed skaters or other athletes can use The Stick! 

 Go Crystal Go.

 

I should also mention that Crystal is part of Clean Air Champions where their mission is to improve air quality by working with respected athletes to motivate and educate Canadians to adopt practices and lifestyles that enhance both environmental and personal health.

 

 

Dancers and Figure Skaters Love The Stick!

I have had numerous people tell me that they were watching So You Think You Can Dance Canada they other night and saw Emanuel Sandhu using The Stick!  I of course was very excited to hear this because I am a fan of the show and The Stick.  You can become a fan of the The Stick too!

Thanks to one of our members at Zealous Vitality – Sharon (who just purchased a Marathon Stick), she found the video!!  Please see the video below.  The part about The Stick happens just after the 5:30 mark of the video.  Thank you so much Sharon!!!

 

Looks like he is using The Original Body Stick!

Original Body Stick

Tips For Recovery From An Event Like An Ironman

The Ironman is for sure an amazing accomplishment for any athlete.  There are those athletes out there that compete  in Ironmans around the world.  Some do them back to back with very little recovery time.  

How do they recover?

There are many ways to recover after strenuous activity.  I would like to bring your attention to the following suggestions:

IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE RACE :

• Replenish -  Carbs, Proteins and fluids – lots of them!
• Movement – Keep walking and moving around
• Massage – A light flushing massage is best!
• Take a cool bath – immerse body
• Elevate your feet – for a short while and rest
• Walk more – in the early evening
• Sleep – get to be early

THE DAY AFTER…

• Replenish – All food is fine!
• Movement – light activity for no more than 20min.
• Love your legs – compress them, elevate them, gently massage them

These suggestions should help you feel better the next couple of days following an extreme event such as an Ironman.  Truthfully, the above suggestions would help anyone recover after any strenuous activity.  The above information can be expanded on by going to the source where I found the information.  It is called xtri.com.  The article was written by Chuckie V for an athlete that he coached who competed in 2 Ironmans 35days apart.  Chuckie goes into great detail and also discusses what to do the over the following 2 weeks after an Ironman.  The article is called Post Ironman Recovery.

What caught my eye was the advice given about not eating fats after the race, using compression and gentle massage.  Not eating fats can be easily done.  Finding compression shorts and other clothing is easy as well.  Compression clothing is in a lot of the literature out right now.  There are compression suites, socks, shorts etc.  The gentle massage can be achieved by going to somebody, having a friend massage you or massaging yourself.

This is where The Stick comes in.  When you use The Stick as a massage tool, you control the intensity 100%.  As you roll over your muscles, you are able to go as light or as heavy as you like.  The other beautiful thing is, you don’t need to leave your house, hotel or anywhere you are staying.  You do not need any special equipment, like a mat or gloves or electricity.  You can simply just sit, stand, lie or kneel and roll out your muscles!

Original Body Stick

Where to keep The Stick?

 

To be totaly honest, I was skeptical when I first purchased a Marathon Stick two years ago.  Now my body craves The Stick!

Here are some helpful Stick tips.  In order to make the most of a good thing, we (my wife,kids and I) have Sticks on every level of our house!  We have a Trigger Wheel in the kitchen and a Body Stick on the main floor.  Upstairs, we have a Marathon Stick.  We also keep a Travel Stick in our developed basement.

What am I getting at?  It is easy to explain.  If you do not have your Stick handy, you probably will not use it as much as if it was at arms length.  Many of our good friends tell us that they keep their Sticks on their coffee tables!  They often joke with us when we visit them by showing that they do use their Stick by pointing out that it is not stashed away in a closet somewhere.

On another note, when I am working at a fitness fair or expo, I get countless people who slow down or stop by and tell me that they already have a Stick!  My response is always the same….. “Great!  Are you using it everyday?”  I get all sorts of answers.  Some people explain that they only use their Stick when their muscles hurt.  Others say that they use it everyday.  I also have some people who say that they need to use it more.  I love it when these “Stick Users” come by and share their stories with me.  The bottom line is you should be using your Stick everyday to maximize the full potential of The Stick!

I have come up with a plan to help ”Stick Users” stay up to date and motivated.  On my website: Zealous Vitality.ca, I have created a section where you can register with me and receive updates via email.  You can see the area on the left side menu titled “Please register to receive the latest updates!”  Your information will not be shared with anyone.  I already have many people on my mailing list who receive emails from Zealous Vitality who are already enjoying my updates.

Bye for now and keep on roll’n.