Another year has passed, wow.

They just keep truck’n on by.

It is always nice to stop and take a look at the year that is just about to pass.  Before I look at the year, I wanted to see how far this little blog has come.

Looking Back at ExercisesForInjuries.com

I started this Exercises For Injuries thing on February 26, 2009.  My first post was Keeping Up with the Bones .  It was a bad post.  I had no idea of what I was doing, but I just started writing.  Nearly 3 years later, I am well past my 400th post.  Things have improved drastically but there is still a lot more that I can do.

Rick and YouTube

One other way that I have been helping getting the word out when it comes to injuries and exercise has been my YouTube channel.  I started it on December 25, 2008.  Looking at the channel, I am getting very close to 250 videos.  Not sure what I was doing starting a YouTube channel on Christmas Day but I am happy how it has progressed over the last 3 years.

Facebook and Rick

I might as well finish off with the last place that I spend my time when it comes to getting the word out on exercises and injuries.  It is Facebook.  I started my fan page this year and I am still figuring it out.  Just like my blog and YouTube, I will:

1. Keep delivering the best content that I can
2. Help people in any way that I can
3. Stay consistent with what I do
4. Try to improve with every day

If you plan on doing this blog/YouTube/Facebook  thing, remember those four things as I think they are very important and have helped me out a lot.

Okay, lets get to the list.

Top 7 Posts for 2011

Read the rest of this entry »

I got a lot of great feedback on the exercises from last week so here are a bunch more.

Single Leg Squat with Foam Roller

Progressive Foam Roller Exercise Curl

Y’s Scapular Exercise with Foam Roller

Progressive Bridge with Foam Roller

A few weeks back I did a Saturday morning workshop on foam roller exercises .

Feedback from the session was very positive.

The feedback that I got during the workshop was that people liked the self massage stuff the best and I will do another workshop, just focusing on this, in the future.

Now, everything was not all positive from the workshop, I did get some criticism for the exercise that I selected for the flyer:

Oh well.  I probably should not have used a foam roller exercise image from 5 years ago.  I will talk about the purpose of the above exercise in another post.

Top 10 Equipment Trends

A few days after the workshop, I was reading a fitness trade journal and they were talking about the Top 10 Equipment Trends.  They had foam rollers as #3 behind balance equipment and suspension trainers.

I was kind of shocked to see foam rollers so high as I hardly see anyone use them in the gym.  Often times people will use them as head rests or to wedge the door open.

Hmm.

Now, I want to give you some foam roller exercises that I enjoy doing.

I know a lot of people use foam rollers for self-massage, self myofascial release (SMR), active recovery or whatever you want to call it but there is so much more that you can do with the foam roller.  I went through well over a 100 exercises that you can do with the foam roller in the two hour Saturday morning workshop.

Let me go through some of the foam roller exercises that I like doing:

Foam Roller Exercise for Thoracic Mobility

I enjoy doing this exercise in order to work on thoracic mobility in the sagittal plane.

It helps loosen things up after sitting for a while and get the body ready for upcoming exercises.

V-Sit Up Foam Roller Exercise

A lot of times people will do this to work the abdominals but I look at it as reverse hip hinge.

With a typical hip hinge exercise the movement is from neutral to hip flexion.  With this exercise you are moving from deep hip flexion towards neutral.

The foam roller provides a good fulcrum, it does work the abdominals, it helps work on upper body alignment and re-enforces hip hinging.

Press Up with Foam Roller

This is a another mobility exercise. We are hitting extension in the full spine (cervical, thoracic and lumbar).

I work hard on trying to have movement at all the curves in the spine and not let it be an exercise of how far back I can arch.

I work on trying to target the thoracic spine which is tight in myself and most people.

Knee Thrust with Foam Roller

Sorry for the shoe lace accident.  I guess the foam roller loosened it up.

I like this because we work on the scapular stabilizers being in a static push-up position, the core gets challenged being held in a neutral position and your work on hip flexion, especially over 90 degrees which is often weak in people.

I think I got a few more, I just got to find where I put the videos.

Let me know what your favorite foam roller exercise is.

Rick Kaselj, MS

P.S. – If you are looking for more foam roller exercise for the upper body, do check out Muscle Imbalances Revealed – Upper Body Edition –

P.P.S. – If you liked the post above, you might like these other posts on foam roller exercises:

• Foam Rolling for the Piriformis
• Foam Roller Exercises
• From Imbalances to Balance – M is for Mobility

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I have an upcoming workshop on foam roller exercises.

Foam Roller Essentials

Foam Roller Exercises to Improve Core Stability, Posture, Strength, Range of Motion, Flexibility, Trigger Points and Balance

Workshop Description:

Every facility has foam rollers but few fitness professionals use them.  The foam roller is a simple and easy fitness tool that can be used in a group or one-on-one setting.  It can be used for variety, to help modify an exercise, make an exercise more challenging or help with recovery from a workout.  Learn the essentials of using the foam roller as part of any client’s total body workout, plus new and exciting ways to challenge and improve strength, core stability, posture, range of motion, flexibility, trigger points and balance. After completing this active, hands-on two hour workshop you leave with a stack of exercises you can use with all of your clients.

What you will learn in this workshop:

• - An extensive list of exercises, reinforced with demonstrations and practice, that will improve your client’s strength, core stability, posture, range of motion, flexibility, trigger points and balance
• - Awareness of cueing and spotting techniques to ensure exercises are performed correctly
• - Guidelines for identifying which exercises can best benefit a specific client’s needs
• - An understanding of how to incorporate the exercises into a class or individual client program, and how to safely progress your clients
• - Knowledge of the correct technique for incorporating foam roller exercises into client and class programs, including proper execution, breathing and recommended repetitions

Registration:  If you want to get this 2 hour video presentation of this workshop CLICK HERE .

About the Presenter:

Rick Kaselj, MS, BSc, PK, CEP, CPT, CES

Rick Kaselj is a personal trainer who focuses on designing exercise programs for clients recovering from injuries.

One tool Rick constantly uses with his clients is the foam roller.

Rick has shared his tips, tricks and exercises with thousands of fitness professionals from around the world through his books, courses, presentation and active blog. Rick recently completed his Masters of Science degree focusing on corrective exercise and therapeutic exercise for the rotator cuff.

To learn more about Rick, visit his blog and receive your $299 fitness education gift – http://ExercisesForInjuries.com

Do you ever get negative email?

The kind of email that is so negative and biting.

It is amazing that someone could write something so mean.

I got one of those emails earlier this week. It kind of put me in a tail spin for a few days. You get wondering about what you are doing.

Thankfully, I have had a few kinds words that have been sent to me, that have rubbed out the mean words.

Let me share them with you.

This is an email Sharon sent me about the Shoulder Injury Guide that she signed up for:

Hi Rick,

Thank you so much for the gifts. It is amazing what you gave. I found the course I took with you really good and all your information very valuable. I appreciate the time you put in sharing your knowledge with us.

Thanks,

MS

Here is a nice email from a client that I trained on Sunday. I don’t usually do training on Sunday but I decided to give it a go and I was very happy that I was able to help her out. This is the email that she sent me:

It too was nice meeting you. For the first time in a very long time I had an almost pain free walk. I have noticed my low back pain has greatly decreased as well as my right hip pain. I am truly amazed.

Regards,

PD

A nice email about yesterdays blog post:

Two thumbs up for this article:)

GS

I also got a question about foam rolling and pregnancy. Let me share with you the answer that I sent her:

Just wondering if it is okay to continue foam rolling while pregnant? I am now 11 weeks.

S

If you have been active and are in good shape, you should be find doing lower body foam rolling. For example the legs and gluteus area.

You will have to see how you are when it comes to moving from standing to sitting. At 11 weeks, you should be fine. If you have any difficulties or dizziness when doing this, let your doctor know and discontinue the foam rolling.

I would not do any foam rolling in the lower back or abdominal area.

You will have to see how you are when doing mid back foam rolling. If you have good core strength it should be fine but as you get later in your pregnancy, you may have to cut that out.

One other thing, as your pregnancy continues on, your joints will be come more and more relaxed. You will have to be cautious or even cut out any of the foam rolling you are doing for mobility, for example in the thoracic or pelvic area.

I hope this helps out.

Just a reminder, I do read all of my email. I am not perfect and my ideas and theories are always evolving. Before you send the negative email, please do ask yourself if you are providing constructive feedback or just being mean.

If you do have kind words, please do send them along. It is very motivating to get these words and just leads to me wanting to give more.

Have a great day!

Rick Kaselj, MS

One of the presenters of Muscle Imbalances Revealed, Eric Beard, just finished up this great video:

Read the rest of this entry »

After I finished up presenting Exercise rehabilitation of the Hip at Douglas College where I go through Piriformis Syndrome.

A great question came up about foam rolling the piriformis so I wanted to share with you a quick tip on foam rolling the piriformis.

I know the video is short.  The batteries of the camera were almost dead and I wanted to share this tip with you before I forgot.

The foam roller is great for foam rolling the piriformis.

It is one of the things that I recommend for someone that has piriformis syndrome.

Foam rolling the piriformis helps self massage the piriformis and address any trigger points that are in the piriformis.

There are two ways to foam roll the piriformis.

One is less intense and maybe appropriate for someone who has high sensitivity in the piriformis.

The second is one way of hitting the piriformis right on.

Two Ways of Foam Rolling Your Piriformis Muscle

==>  CLICK HERE to watch the video on foam rolling your piriformis muscle

I didn’t do a video of the two piriformis exercises but I took a few photos.

In the first photo, I foam rolling my piriformis.  Explaining how to do the exercise.  You start by sitting on the foam roller with your  ischial tuberosity (sits bones) on the foam roller.  You bring the right foot on top of the left knee.  Then you shift your weight onto your right cheek.  Then you roll the foam roller from below your sits bone to above your sit bone.

Foam Rolling Piriformis

In the second photo is the set up of the foam roller.  I am not on the foam roller but I am showing you the position you are in and the position the foam roller is in.  If you look the foam roller is perpendicular to the right leg which if the side that is being foam rolled.

Foam Rolling Piriformis - Perpendicular

In the third photo I show you the angle that hits the piriformis right on.  If you look the foam roller is at a 45 degree angle to the right leg.

Foam Rolling Piriformis - 45 Degree Angle

I would recommend trying the foam rolling of the piriformis with your client but remember, you need to be selective.  Some clients maybe to sensitive for them to foam roll the piriformis and some will have difficulties getting in and out of the position.

If  you are looking for more foam rolling tips, I would recommend that you check out when the next time I am teaching Foam Roller Essentials – Stretching, Active Release and Balance course. It is a fun class and I go through all kinds of foam rolling exercises.

Rick Kaselj, MS

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