Movement Logic: Strong Opinions, Loosely Held

Welcome to Episode 37 of the Movement Logic podcast! In this episode, Laurel and Sarah talk about the connection between plyometrics, impact training, and bone building.You will learn: The difference between plyometrics and impact training. What we need to consider if we are using plyometrics and/or impact training to increase bone density. What the stretch-shortening cycle is and why it is important for plyometric exercise. The phases of the stretch-shortening cycle, and why the amortization phase must be short for an exercise to be plyometric. The differences and similarities between ballistic exercises and plyometric exercises (according to scientific and non-scientific sources). The mechanical and neurophysiological components of the stretch-shortening cycle. Exercises that utilize the stretch-shortening cycle and whether or not they are conducive to bone-building. Exercises that are not plyometric, but still build bone density. How to modulate intensity in plyometric exercise. What the appropriate volume is for plyometric exercise for beginners.LIFTMOR StudyVideo of women doing LIFTMOR InterventionEssentials of Strength and ConditioningJames Lederach, MS, CSCS on InstagramJames Lederach’s gym Heavy AthleticsSign Up Here for the Movement Logic Newsletter and receive our free Barbell Equipment Guide!

Welcome to Episode 36 of the Movement Logic podcast! In this listener-requested episode, Sarah and Laurel discuss somatic dominance, a phrase coined by author Matthew Remski to describe the manner in which teachers of movement, and yoga specifically, can come to exert control over their students, and the potential for abuse of this control.Content Warning: This episode contains references to physical and sexual abuse.We discuss: The definition of somatic dominance How some teachers use somatic influence, purposefully or not Sarah’s experiences as a Jivamukti Yoga teacher and practitioner, including the famously aggressive physical adjustments, the culture of explaining away behaviors and pain as karma, and whether Jivamukti Yoga can be considered “cult-lite” How we can all monitor and adjust our teaching methodology to avoid unconsciously creating unwanted somatic influence over our studentsMatthew Remski book: Practice and All is ComingRemski article on Sharon Gannon’s Somatic DominanceConspirituality PodcastRemski article on Michael Roach, Christie McNally and Ian ThorsonNY Times article: Michael Roach and Christie McNallyNY Times article: Diamond Mountain University and death of Ian Thorson Sign up here for the Movement Logic Newsletter and receive a free Hips Mini Course!

Welcome to Episode 35 of the Movement Logic podcast! In this episode Laurel sits down to talk with an old friend and colleague Dr. Caitlin Casella, DPT. In their conversation, Caitlin shares about her journey from yoga teacher to movement teacher to physical therapist. Laurel and Caitlin get into a multi-faceted discussion around the goals of rehabilitation, and how unfortunately sometimes the rehab process can fall short in fully preparing people to get back to the activities of their life after injury.  Laurel & Caitlin discuss why this happens, and then ways that Caitlin works to help her patients better bridge the gap between rehab and getting back to the activities that give their lives meaning.You will also learn: What exercise intensity is and how, as a physical therapist, Caitlin gauges the appropriate intensity for her patients, which tends to be a lot higher than they expect! What the concept of graded exposure is and how it’s both similar and different from the concept of progressive overload. What it means to see the human body through an anti-fragile lens. How the beliefs people have about their joints like “I have bad knees” or “there will be wear and tear” has made people afraid of exercise and rehab modalities like strength training and impact loading. How Caitlin works with two types of people: those who get hurt because they did too much too soon, versus people who get hurt because they are deconditioned. That working with some level of pain is better than movement avoidance, a sedentary lifestyle, and the deconditioning that brings. How Caitlin motivates patients to get moving even with some amount of pain.Caitlin’s PT clinic in NYC Practice Human Physical TherapySign up here for the Movement Logic Newsletter and receive a free Hips Mini Course!

Welcome to Episode 34 of the Movement Logic podcast! In this third episode about cueing, Sarah and Laurel discuss a specific subset (that’s a circle within a circle) of cues: feedback. Namely, we focus on when and how your feedback cues to your yoga, movement, and strength training clients can be most effective, and how there’s a strong chance you’re not helping them with that all important goal: motor learning.We also discuss: The three stages of motor learning that all practitioners of movement are going through, whether they know it or not How the timing of your feedback may be the most important part (possibly even more than the content) In what ways your current feedback habits could be getting in the way of your students’ learning (it’s not your fault!) What three components you should pay attention to when you are giving feedback How to transform your “motor performers” back into “motor learners”Sarah’s Motor Learning PresentationGet the Movement Logic Hips Tutorial ON SALE NOW (save over 20%)

Welcome to Episode 33 of the Movement Logic podcast! Today, Sarah is flying solo - good thing she’s spent a lot of time working on her balance. We tend to think of balance as a precision activity to strive for, but in this episode, Sarah flips the script and shows you why balance is a non-falling event.You will learn: The 3 systems in the body that contribute to balance The difference between static and dynamic balance, and which is more important What types of exercise improve functional balance, and which don’t (you might be surprised) The real reason older clients are afraid of falling How to challenge the 3 balance systems for your clients and students in a fun and playful way Why Sarah is obstacle course obsessed!Balance System Challenge TableMovement Logic Hips Tutorial currently on sale - 25% off!Sarah’s Obstacle Course DemonstrationLong-term strength and balance training in prevention of decline in muscle strength and mobility in older adultsLower-extremity resistance training on unstable surfaces improves proxies of muscle strength, power and balance in healthy older adults: a randomised control trial

Welcome to Season 2 and Episode 32 of the Movement Logic podcast! In this episode, Laurel discusses a topic that is important but poorly understood—training volume. Too much too soon leads to pain, injury, and burnout. Too little too late leads to frustrating plateaus and boredom. It’s important to understand volume, as well as its relationship to load, progressive loading, and changing up our strength training routine with well-timed variety. In this episode, Laurel also discusses: The concept of load is not new to folks interested in strength training, but the concept of volume may be. Why understanding volume is important for beginners who end up doing too much too soon and more advanced lifters who plateau and don’t know why. How understanding load and volume can ensure we’ve allowed adequate time to recover. What intensity is and the difference between intensity of load and intensity of effort. What fatigue is and what it isn’t. What volume is and how it’s defined. What work capacity is—how it’s like a sink—and how it’s a bigger topic than strength. The role variety plays in keeping our body responsive to a strength stimulus so we can continue driving adaptations toward increased strength and work capacity.Episode 29: Pink Dumbbells and the Shrinking Female BodyA 1RM chart to determine intensity of loadThe Science of Autoregulation, on strongerbyscience.com all about measuring intensity of effort using RPE and reps in reserveHow to Increase Work Capacity and Bust Through Plateaus, by Greg Nuckols on strongerbyscience.comWhat is Training Volume? by Chris BeardsleyStrength Training Frequency, by Paul IngrahamEpisode 9: What Are the Best Exercises for Strength?Listeners can use code PODCAST20 for half off your first month of membership to Laurel’s Virtual Studio. More details here.Get the Movement Logic Hip & SI Joint Tutorial ON SALE NOW (save over 20%)Sign up here for the Movement Logic Newsletter and receive a free Hips Mini Course!

Welcome to Season 2 and Episode 31 of the Movement Logic podcast! In this episode, Laurel and Sarah discuss three types of cues movement teachers like yoga teachers and strength coaches use—verbal, visual, and tactile cues. Namely, we look at the differences between these three ways of cueing, and the plusses and minuses of all three types. We also discuss: What deeper understanding we need to have about our students as well as the movement we’re teaching before we cue at all What a verbal, versus a visual, versus tactile cue is. The timing of verbal cues and how it relates to motor learning. A debate in the yoga community about whether or not teaching using verbal cues (only or predominantly) is preferable to demoing while teaching. How Laurel & Sarah’s teaching has changed with respect to cueing. Different ways of stage and contextualize a demo. Why highlighting the difference between what a movement looks like versus what it feels like can be helpful. Whether to use first person or second person pronouns (or even to talk at all!) while demoing. 3 main ways you can give tactile cues, tips for teachers when giving tactile cues, and the benefits and drawbacks of each way of giving tactile cues. Why obtaining consent is crucial before touching students. The perils of “creepy hands”. How trying to teach too many things means not teaching much at all. The importance of using multiple types of cues—verbal, visual, and tactile—and aligning them toward a clear movement goal.Sarah’s Motor Learning PresentationGet the Movement Logic Hip & SI Joint Tutorial ON SALE NOW (save over 20%)Sign up here for the Movement Logic Newsletter and receive a free Hips Mini Course!

Mastering Physical Literacy with Dr. Chris Raynor, MDWelcome to Episode 30 of the Movement Logic podcast! In this episode, Sarah is joined by Dr. Chris Raynor, orthopedic surgeon, sports medicine specialist, and founder of Human 2.0, an integrated healthcare and fitness facility in Ottawa that holds a “Movement Is Medicine” philosophy.Sarah and Chris discuss how he managed to avoid surgeon stereotypes, why avoiding pain at all costs is not the answer, how to determine if surgery is the right approach, PLUS your Instagram questions answered! The difference between discomfort and pain, our tendencies to interpret all pain the same way, and the need to better interpret this “low level language” to make better movement choices Whether myofascial manual techniques are really making as much difference as we think they are How and when he steers patients away from surgery and towards strength and mobility work instead The frustrations he faces with non-musculoskeletal doctors who instill fear of movement in their patients through their own lack of knowledge How the conservative world of orthopedic surgeons is slowly changing with the newer generations to emphasize mobility and strength for themselves and their patientsHuman 2.0Dr. Raynor’s YouTube ChannelStableKneez (Dr. Raynor on Instagram)Get the Movement Logic Hips Tutorial ON SALE NOW (save over 20%)

Welcome to Season 2 and Episode 29 of the Movement Logic podcast! In this episode, Laurel and Sarah discuss the cues movement teachers like yoga teachers and strength coaches use, and then what research has to say about them. Namely, we look at the difference between internal and external cues, and what both types of cues are good for. We also discuss: What motor learning is and how it’s different from motor performance. What motor learning versus motor performance look like in the context of teaching and learning movement. What attentional focus is and how attentional focus affects motor learning. The difference between internal and external cues and what specifically defines them. Which type of cue is better for enhancing sport performance. What the mind muscle connection is and how it can enhance muscle growth. How internal cues can enhance the mind muscle connection. How the goals of yoga are different from the goals of athletics, or even the goal of improving skill within the asanas, and why that matters for the cues we use. Why internal cues have value both within the context of yoga and rehabilitation. Whether metaphor and analogy are internal or external cues. Tactile cues and what category they live in—internal or external cues. Constraints and what category they live in—internal or external cues. Lots of example cues in the context of yoga, strength, and kettlebells that illustrate the nuances between these different types of cues.Attentional Focus and Motor Learning study Enhancing the learning of sport skills through external-focus feedback studyStanding Long Jump Performance With an External Focus of Attention Is Improved as a Result of a More Effective Projection Angle studyThe Language of Coaching bookInternal Cues Don’t Affect Muscle Activation With Explosive Lifting article, by Greg NuckolsCan the Mind Muscle Connection Enhance Hypertrophy article, by Chris BeardsleyAmanda Tripp websiteSign up here for the Movement Logic Newsletter and receive a free Hips Mini Course!

Welcome to Season 2 and Episode 28 of the Movement Logic podcast! In this episode, Laurel and Sarah discuss how women have been hoodwinked into believing that strength training is not for them - when in fact it’s the most protective and valuable training for women to do, in particular for bone density for women post-menopause. The history of weightlifting and bodybuilding in the US, including the influence of Jack LaLanne and Arnold Schwarzenegger How the myths of “lifting weights make you bulky” and “you’ll injure yourself if you lift weights” are deeply detrimental to women’s health The importance of your training environment and how many gyms are off-putting to women and other people who have been subjected to somatic dominance How weight lifting has a PR problem That women’s muscle mass and bone density both benefit from heavy lifting What are the parameters for heavy lifting and why is there so much confusion around the termsJack LaLannePumping Ironwww.sarahcourtdpt.com for a free guide to squat/deadlift/chest press with weightSign up here for the Movement Logic Newsletter and receive a free Hips Mini Course!