Stress Threshold, Stress Awareness, and Migraines

Here are some thoughts about how we deal with stress daily, hourly, and even down to the second. Every little thing adds up so you have to be mindful of your personal "Stress Threshold" and what triggers set you off, so you can prevent critical events like Migraines or Painful Flare-ups elsewhere in the body. 

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What's the Difference Between Sports Massage and Deep Tissue Massage?

Yesterday I had a couples massage on a regular client. Afterward, when washing up, the other therapist said that I had done one of the best "Sports Massages" she had ever seen. That compliment was funny to me, because I was doing much more rehab/injury type work than sports work. The client had been working with a Chiropractor daily for a week to resolve some severe lumbar pain and spasm. I was thinking way more about that challenge, than preparing him to get back to training for the half marathon he has coming up. His sedentary desk job was exacerbating the issue just as much as running would have.

I mention this, because I feel like there's a lot of confusion about "Sports Massage" and what that label means. To me, it is applying Myofascial Release, Neuromuscular Therapy, Structural/Postural Alignment, Stretching and/or Flushing Swedish techniques to a specific soft tissue imbalance, in a person who is doing something athletic. I can use this very same definition for "Deep Tissue Massage" except that the client may not be using his body for specifically sports or athletic training. Sitting at a computer several hours a day isn't "Athletic," but it is using the body repetitively. Which is the unifying theme- Repetition.

There's not a list of secret "Sports" techniques that only apply to athletes. I'm going to do whatever kind of massage the client needs for the specific problem area that day. Problem areas usually come from some kind of repetition mixed with imbalance. When the body is not used to doing a movement and is then forced to repeat the movement, you create strain. After strain comes compensation,  creating more imbalance. I'm going to look at any client who comes to me from that perspective; to unravel the compensation, imbalance and overuse to restore the optimal movement in the body. If you want to call that "Sports Massage," I'm happy to take the compliment. If you want to call that "Deep Tissue Massage," we are starting to speak the same language.

Dr. Mark Hyman Nutrition Interview

Here is an INTERVIEW with Functional Medicine Doctor Mark Hyman. In it he talks about food, nutrition, how to optimize your health by balance between food and movement, and some exciting changes in the healthcare system. 

Some key quotes:

"You cannot exercise your way out of a bad diet." Meaning that to compensate for poor dietary choices, you have to spend an impossible amount of time exercising. He uses the example of having to run a marathon everyday if you eat a Supersize McDonald's meal everyday. 

"The microbiome...and gene expression changes with every single bite you put in your body." It does not take weeks or months to give yourself positive wellness progress. He goes on to speak about quality of food being the key to the long term plan. 

"Sugar is a recreational drug." Here he compares sugar to tequila. You would never pour a shot of tequila in your morning coffee, have a tequila filled candy bar in the mid afternoon and follow dinner every night with a bowl of tequila with chocolate sauce. The point is that sugar is way too prevalent and our bodies are functioning like we are walking around drunk all the time. 

"The higher fat vegan diet people lost more weight... and had better metabolic profiles..." We can't be afraid of fat, but the quality of fat is what has been throwing off our understanding of how it works in the body. Plant based fats, like nuts and seeds, avocados, and coconuts are extremely helpful to boosting health. Conversely, canola oil, which we generally buy when it is already rancid, is horrible for your health. 

What does the good doctor eat? "I eat mostly plant foods." His example goes from 75-90% veggie. He says his favorite fat is actually lamb fat. He indulges with dark chocolate covered almonds.

Dr. Hyman also mentions the Glycemic Index and how powerful it is to controlling hunger and hormonal reactions. 

 


The last big point of interest for me in this interview was how Dr. Hyman helped develop the Daniel Plan with Dr. Daniel Amen the "Brain Doctor." He asks what would we serve to Jesus Christ is he came to dinner. Would we serve God-made food or Man-made food? Good question.