knee problems

Will Eccentric Exercise Cure You?

 

Will eccentric exercise cure your patellar tendinosis?

 

-- Even using the ideal protocol for eccentric exercises, one may or not be completely cured. However, there are success stories in some medical journal articles where people who have had many years of patellar tendinosis have outstanding success after a program of eccentric exercises.

 

-- These exercises put a lot of force on the patellar tendon, so they must be done very carefully over many months. If done improperly, they can lead to a worsening of symptoms. These exercises should be used only for chronic cases, should not be used for inflammatory tendinitis, and should be done only under the recommendation of an appropriate physician.

 

-- Even if you are not completely cured, however, your pain might be reduced substantially and you may be much happier. Your pain may be reduced to such a low extent that it does not bother you much. And, there may be more times of the day when you have no pain, or much less pain. In my case, the exercises have helped me to reduce pain a substantial amount. I feel much more normal, with more of the day without any pain. The times I do have some pain, it is much more tolerable -- and I am much, much happier.

 

-- The exercises may help you to have no pain or substantially less pain while you do certain activities, such as walking down stairs; driving a car; walking for long distances; bicycling, etc...

 

-- Even if you find you are not completely cured, eccentric exercise may still be a substantially better alternative than most other kinds of treatment, including surgery, other kinds of physical therapy, certain chiropractic techniques, extracorporeal shock wave therapy, prolotherapy, sclerosing treatments, etc...

 

-- In my opinion after reviewing the medical literature and trying a number of different kinds of treatments myself, I believe eccentric exercise is far better than other alternatives. The success rate is generally much better. Furthermore, other kinds of treatments, such as surgery, may lead to irreversible adverse effects.

Creaky Knee Syndrome

Actually there is not such a problem, but it sounds kind of cool..  After playing a lot of soccer my knees started making creaky sounds when I was going up the stairs.  I'm in good alignment, wear orthotics, etc.  so I wanted to know if I had any knee damage (specifically -wearing down the cartilage between the leg bones).  An x-ray revealed normal joint spacing.  Yeah!  The moral of this story is that joint noises aren't an indicator of joint damage.  I don't know if long term noises are associated with more damage, but I suspect this to be true.  I don't want to find out so it's time to take my glucosamine regularly and do my eccentric knee exercises.

First Steps

1. Reduce the amount of sitting at one time and in total during the day. Do this by getting a pedometer and shoot for 10,000 steps per day. The more you sit, the worse it is for your spine. If you must sit, use an inflatable beach ball (with just a small bit of air in it) behind your lower back. This will give your spine support and help reduce the forces on the back side of the spine. Sit less and walk more.
2. Every two hours, lie down on the floor and place your lower legs on a Swiss Ball. You may need to place your trunk on a couple of pillows. In this position, slowly roll your legs back and forth a very small amount (as soon as you feel your buttock come off the floor, stop the motion and go the other way). The excursion is usually only a couple of inches. It should be relaxing and easy to do and not painful. Do this for 10 minutes.
3. Learn how to "Lock and Load" and use it everyday. Lock and Load is a phrase we use to describe the process of engaging the spinal stabilizer muscles. Some people call this "drawing in" or "hollowing out" the abdomen but it's not either of those things. To learn how to get your abdominals and spine muscles to work, lie on your back again with your feet on the Swiss Ball. Place your hand on your lower abdomen. Now, imagine a burning candle a few feet in front of you. Purse your lips and try to blow out the candle. You'll feel tension in your abdomen. This is the kind of tension you need in your abdomen all day long, every day, for the rest of your life. You must learn how to produce it and vary it according to the task. If you're sitting in your chair, you need a very light amount of tension. If you're going to lift a heavy box, you need a lot of tension. This is a key step. Without mastering this, all other exercises become very difficult to do.

This is good advice wether you have just injured yourself or are having chronic pain. We always want slick and immediate solutions to our health problems;  most of the time it's the slow and steady  changes that we make that ultimately get us better,

David Bowie once said..."CHH CHH CHH CHANGES"

Five Myths About Change and Getting More Out of Your Life

Digg

Here are five myths about change and getting more out of your life:

Myth: Crisis is a powerful reason for change.

Reality: In a recent study, ninety percent of patients who’ve had quadruple heart bypass surgery continued to live a lifestyle that would worsen their condition and threaten their lives.

If you won’t change despite a life and death decision, then what?

Solution: Most people use “will power” and “persistence” to make the changes they want or need thinking that they are doing the best they can. After all that’s what we were taught.

Although it’s a gallant effort, we now know that permanent change takes reconditioning the brain to a new way of thinking and behaving. According to scientists, it takes approximately 30 days of daily reconditioning to create the new “neural networks” that are needed for long-term permanent changes in a person, before you can expect your business or life to get better, and stay that way.

It took time to create your beliefs and habits and it takes time to get rid of the ones that don’t serve you.

Myth: Change is motivated by fear or loss.

Reality: Absolutely not true! People almost always go into automatic denial of the bad things that might happen to their business or themselves no matter what the potential severity of their decisions and consistent actions are. It’s as natural as breathing for us to wait till the absolute last minute to change.

Solution: Creating compelling, positive visions of the future with a viable plan or solution is one of the best ways to inspire long term and permanent change. You must get emotionally involved with why you must change and then follow your plan. If you have a big enough reason to change, you may be more serious than if it’s just convenient. Having a buddy to help you is also a great way to ensure you follow through. In addition, create an environment around you to help support any new changes you seriously want to make and keep.

Myth: Facts are what we need to help us makes changes in our lives.

Reality: Our thinking is guided by our internal stories, narratives and habits of thought, not facts. When a new fact doesn’t fit our current internal map of reality—which we use to make sense of the world—we automatically reject it. Change is best achieved when emotions are involved and invoked quickly, not facts.

Solution: If you seriously want to make significant gains in any area of your life or business, you must get emotionally charged regardless of the doubt, fear, obstacle or size of your goal. Emotions are the brains fuel for making your goals a reality and as mentioned above, get support to help you along the way.

Myth: Gradual and small changes are the best way to go to achieve your desired goals or outcomes.

Reality: Radical, fast, and severe changes are often easier to sustain because of the quick results one derives. We thrive on fast gains and will do a lot to sustain them. When we see that our efforts have paid of fast, we are 100% more likely to continue vs slower to see results.

Solution: Make a specific decision on what you want to achieve and go full out executing a well thought out plan. Make sure you get the support you need to sustain the changes during and beyond the 30-day mark. And remember the change MUST happen on the inside first or it will be very short-lived.

Myth: We can’t change because are genetically predisposed to certain thoughts and have become “hardwired” early in life and have to many bad habits to change.

Reality: The latest findings suggest that only 50% of our “hard wiring” is genetically based and that our brains have extraordinary “plasticity” that can be molded and plied in new ways throughout our lives. We have the ability to grow complex new “neural networks” very fast that can help us create a new reality for our business and life no matter how young or old we are.

Solution: We can rewire our brains by creating new beliefs of what is possible for us to achieve. You can create new beliefs using affirmations, visualization techniques and meditation. You must then act upon our desired goals as if your life depended on getting great results regardless of the doubts or fears that we feel due to your old conditioning or past results.

Rules for Living

Thirteen New Rules for Living 

By Frederic M. Hudson, Ph.D. and Pamela McLean, Ph.D. 

1. 

No one owes you anything - not the government, your employer, your family, 

or your spouse. Although the world around you is less and less definite and 

predictable, it is no less valuable and mysterious. To rejoice in living you must 

invent your own future, entrepreneur your life, and expect surprises. 

2. 

Global change is the major force in your life, and in the lives of everyone on 

earth. We are all in training for a new era for all humanity. Don’t whine about 

it. Take advantage of the expanding possibilities now available to you in our 

world of constant flow. 

3. 

You have no ultimate safety, security or guarantees, so don’t expect any. 

What you have are endless opportunities to rearrange your priorities for 

work, play, and life. Choose wisely, and expect more choices to follow. 

4. 

Your life is an adventure, a journey through time. There are no lasting arrival 

points and no lasting endings. Learn how to say “hello” and “goodbye” with 

grace and style. Everything is flow—you just keep moving. Prepare now for 

the long haul of ninety years or more. But live in the present, day by day. 

5. 

Know how to recycle yourself. Live each chapter of your life fully, then invest 

in a transition and begin the next chapter. Weave, unravel, and reweave your 

life, over and over. No matter what your age or situation, design your future 

as your manifest destiny. 

6. 

You are your career, a portfolio of ever-changing talents, skills and 

preferences. Design your own work, over and over again, connected to the 

futures you prefer. 

7. 

Refuse to be defined and consumed by your career work. It’s an important 

part of the whole journey, but it’s not the journey itself. Your deepest agenda 

is your soul’s work, your holistic callings to create success and caring in all 

the parts of your life. 

8. 

There are two prerequisites for taking this journey through life: Continuous 

care for your body and your finances. You don’t have to be perfectly fit or 

wealthy to have a great life, but you need a body that supports your dreams, 

and funding to make your dreams happen. Master nutrition, exercise, and 

financial planning. 

Navigating Life’s Changes 



Thirteen New Rules (continued) 

9. 

The best way to guide your life through infinite change is to follow your own 

values and vision. Like a rudder, your values will keep you on a course your 

integrity prefers. Like a sail, your vision will pull you ahead into legitimate 

expectations. 

10. 

Your best future happens when you have the courage to be: reach, learn, 

risk, dare, leap. Embrace the unknown ahead. Live on the outer edge of your 

possibilities, not on the inner edge of your security. Be active, not passive. 

11. 

Here is how to conduct your journey: Have a long-term purpose with short-

term goals. Be definite and flexible. Trust the ocean but stay in charge of 

your boat. Ride the waves. 

12. Everyone on earth is linked to the same destiny. We share the same air, 

water, food, and capacities for total destruction. We are in each other’s 

hands, one for all and all for one. 

13. Learn how to grow older and better. Achieve mastery as a human being— 

model wholeness, wisdom, and caring. Be grateful. Leave a legacy that 

makes a difference. 

As you find better rules, and you will, replace these rules with them. 

350 S. Hope Ave. Suite A210 

Santa Barbara, CA 93105 

Tel: 805 682 3883 

800 582 4401 

Fax: 805 569 0025 

www.hudsoninstitute.com 

info@hudsoninstitute.com 

Navigating Life’s Changes 

Bill Maher - Anti-Pharma Rant

A good Rant!