Wow what a day!! It started off with a *BANG* then kind of a pop and a fizzle after my first real workout with my Trainer Scott Samuels at PushDT at Extreme Martial arts and fitness in Campbell CA this morning!! I have to say the place is named appropriately cause I had EXTREME anxiety getting back in there and hitting it hard, especially since this is my first major workout since 10 months ago! However, there is always a BUT… I may have been nervous BUT I did it, and now I’m basking in post workout glory snuggled up in my pajamas with my baby Madelynn on my lap while typing this blog. There is truly nothing better than knowing that I went out there and gave it my all, even if my “all” included a bunch of fumbling and bumbling and even one fall down… ( and yes, that fall down was caught on film) so I will be sharing it with all of you once my YouTube channel is all set up, we are working on it now. As anxiety ridden as I was, I can’t wait to get back there and do it again next week. Thank you Scott and Cameron, you guys are truly amazing and I love our team of workout people that follow you like a religion!

Now I took my Picture’s today for picture progress Sunday, and I have to say I don’t notice much of a difference, BUT ( there’s that BUT again) I weighed in at 189.0 this morning. WOOO HOOO!! That is almost a 6lb. loss from last week, and 16lbs down from when I started at the beginning of January!  I don’t think I have ever been so excited to be in the 180’s in my life! Without any further ado, I present to you my Sunday photographs…. I really DON’T like this part, but here you go…..

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Well, now that I posted the most embarrassing part of my Sunday blog, let’s talk about the benefits of massage therapy and stretching. First (and my personal favorite) MASSAGE. Massage is not a luxury some of us can afford, after all we are not all big time professional athletes with unlimited funds to help keep our bodies running at an optimal level. I have been very blessed to be able to have a clientele that gets massaged on a very regular basis. I have quite a few professional athletes on my “massage roster” and for these folks, massage is not a luxury at all, it is an absolute necessity. Massage will reduce pain and inflammation, increase circulation, and help drain and recycle lymph. Massage reduces stress both mentally and physically and helps relieve numerous other ailments. Massage leaves the body with an overall sense of health and well being, and besides all of these wonderful things, IT FEELS GOOD! However for those of you that can’t seem to get a massage from a professional CMT on a weekly basis, there are things you can do at home to help work out those pesky knots and kinks. I took a few photographs of the tools you can purchase and use at home to assist in working out your problem areas.

This is a photograph of the tools I have at home. There is a foam roller, a massage stick called “The stick,” a Spri workout band, a massage stick with ball attachments, meant to squeeze muscles, and a lacrosse ball to roll out hard to reach upset muscles.

First is the foam roller, used to roll out tight muscles and trigger points that cause acute or referred pain to different muscles in our bodies. It can be used to roll out almost every part of the body, you can lay on it and roll it from the base of your neck down to your lower back. It can be used on your hips, I.T. bands, quadriceps and hamstrings. Here is a pic of me using a foam roller before my workout this morning.

Next, The Stick. It can be used to roll over your legs, both upper and lower, front and back. Again here is a photograph of me using the stick this morning before my workout.

Then the massage stick with the ball attachment, and the lacrosse ball. I do not have photo examples of these. The grey stick can be used the grasp and pinch tight muscles all over the body. My favorite use of it is to grab the top of my trapezius (traps) and to really give it a squeeze. It can also be used on the legs, both upper and lower. I prefer to squeeze my gastrocnemius (calf muscles) and squeeze and pinch away until I feel I have relieved muscle tension. The lacrosse ball is used to target hard to reach areas, sometimes located in the back or glutes. You can lean against a wall with the ball in between you and the wall. You can move slowly up and down, and side to side to relieve little knots and active trigger points. You can also use the same wall technique and go lower in to the upper part of the glutes. If you wish you can also sit, one glute at a time on the ball and roll around until you find a really achy area. Wait for the pain to diminish and move on to the next spot until you get some relief.

Next, I will talk about the benefits of stretching. Stretching helps to prevent injury especially while engaging in any kind of physical activity. Weather you take a Yoga class, or just simply stretch at home, stretching has numerous health benefits. Stretching increases circulation, helping to reduce muscle soreness after working out. So the less sore your muscles are the more comfortable it will be to work out those muscles again! Stretching plays a role in stress reduction as well, when our bodies are stressed out our muscles tense up. Stretching our bodies helps to release those tense, stressed muscles, allowing our bodies to relax. The more obvious, but I feel most beneficial is that stretching increases our flexibility and range of motion. This helps to keep our bodies in better alignment and allows us to do proper and ergonomically correct motions while working out. The red band pictured above is a tool I use to keep my muscles stretched out before and after workouts. Below are some photographs of me using a stretch band before my workout this morning.

Massage and stretching are KEY to having a happy, healthy, pain free, body during workouts. Again, if you can get to a professional massage therapist or take a stretching or yoga class that would be ideal. However I hope some of these home devices and techniques will be of some help. If you call do it all, Flexibility and relaxation is the key to longevity. I hope you enjoyed today’s blog post, go out there and be the best YOU you can be! I pray today finds you in optimal health and mindset, if not, there is always tomorrow. I look forward to checking in and hearing from you all tomorrow, have a beautiful night!

Health and Love

Lisa