Cary Raffle Certified Personal Trainer

Mini-Assessment

Almost everyone has muscle imbalances, addressing them can improve your athletic performance and reduce the risk of injury and help with rehabilitation. A few simple observations and movement tests tell us which muscles are tight or overactive and need stretching and which are extended or underactive and need stretching (these are included in your fitness assessment). Below are a few of the more common observations and indicated stretches and strengthening recommendations to give you an example.

Observation/Issue	Shortened Muscles to Stretch	Extended Muscles to Strengthen
Feet turn out, shin splints, pain on bottom of foot (plantar fascitis), Achilles tendinitis*	Calves, Quadriceps, IT Band/TFL	Anterior Tibialis (shin), Gluteals, Medial Hamstrings
Shoulders round, soreness in mid/upper back, forward head	Chest, front of Shoulder, Lats, Neck, Upper Traps	Middle and Lower Traps and Rhomboids
Excessive forward lean at hip	Hip flexors and Quadriceps	Gluteals, Hamstrings, Abdominal Core
Knees Move Inward	Adductors, IT Band, Piriformis	Gluteals, especially Gluteus Medius (Abductor).

*Achilles tendinitis and plantar fascitis are medical conditions, consult a doctor for diagnosis and possible treatment.

Once you understand which muscles are shortened and which are extended, be sure to personalize your program accordingly, here are some examples:

ROUNDED SHOULDERS
Likely Injury: Rotator Cuff, Impingement, Biceps Tendinitis
Add to program: Chest stretch, reverse fly, scaption, close grip row, external rotation/rotator cuff strengthening
Avoid: Overhead shoulder exercise, incline chest press, front row, behind neck exercises

KNOCK KNEES (MOVE INWARD)
Likely Injury: ACL/MCL Tear, possibly knee or hip pain, frequent ankle sprains
Add to program: Side Lying Leg Lift, Single Leg Press/Squat, Hip stretch, IT Band Stretch
Avoid: ADductor, ABductor machine (also works piriformis)

EXTERNALLY (TURNED OUT) ROTATED FEET
Likely Injury: Plantar Fascitis, Achilles Tendinitis, calf cramps, frequent ankle sprains
Add to program: Foam Roll and stretch calves, toe raises, side lying leg lift, single leg press/squat
Avoid: Calf raises

ARCHED BACK
Likely Injury: Low Back Pain, Disk injuries
Add to program: Planks, lower body and back stretching, unstable exercises
Avoid: Excessive hip flexion and abdominal flexion (sitting, leg raises, crunches)

POOR BALANCE
Likely Injury: Slips and Falls, Hip Fracture
Add to program: Single leg exercises, core strengthening
Avoid: Extended periods of sitting

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Weight Loss Tip: The only way to lose weight is to have a calorie deficit.

Change your diet to take in less calories than your burn. increase exercise and lean muscle mass to burn more calories than you take in. Or, try a combination of these techniques.

Many supplements that claim to "raise your metabolism" are simply stimulants that raise your heart rate --- you may as well drink 6 cups of coffee, which you probably would not be willing to do. And supplements are not FDA approved. Guarana, for example, contains very high concentrations of caffeine and has not been evaluated by the FDA for safety, effectiveness, or purity.

Nutrition Recommendations for Athletes

"Protein recommendations for [male] endurance athletes are 1.2 g/kg body weight per day, whereas those for [male] resistance and strength trained athletes may be as high as 1.6 to 1.7 g/kg body weight per day...Little information is available regarding requirements of endurance athletes who are women [and] data on female strength athletes are not available. These recommended protein intakes can generally be met through diet alone, without the use of protein or amino acid supplements, if energy intake is adequate to maintain body weight." *"Data are not presently available...to suggest that athletes need a diet significantly different from that recommended in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans...(55% to 58% of energy from carbohydrates, 12 to 15% of energy from protein and 25 to 30% of energy from fat)." * "Before exercise, a meal or snack should provide sufficient fluid to maintain hydration, be relatively low in fat and fiber...be relatively high in carbohydrate...be moderate in protein and be composed of foods familiar and well tolerated..." * "...Athletes should consume a mixed meal providing carbohydrates, protein and fat soon after a strenuous competition or training session." Source: Nutrition and Athletic Performance, Joint Position Statement by American College of Sports Medicine, American Dietetic Association, Dietitians of Canada

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- Cary

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Cary Raffle Certified Personal Trainer - NYC

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