Our bones are significant organs within our body responsible for the infrastructure and framework that keeps us upright and allows us to move in multiple planes of motion. Similar to how rebar, cement, and two-by-fours hold buildings together, our bones supply an internal stabilizing factor to support our body. Our skeleton offers us a magnificent …
Category: Exercise and Sleep
Aug 21
Sciatica Struggles
“You don’t know what you got ‘till it’s gone.” It couldn’t have been said any better than when I listened to the 80’s hair band playing this song out of the Alpine speakers in my stepdads car on the way to school many moons ago. When I have a headache, upset stomach, or a bad …
Aug 16
Upper Body Strength and Quality of LIfe
After a long week of work, chores, and the demands of being a human in today’s society, the weekends gifts us with a few extra hours to sit back and relax. Kicking your feet up and tuning into a ball game is just one of the many bonuses the slower-paced Saturdays and Sundays allows. There …
Aug 13
Back Pain and Everyday Life
The trials and tribulations of life present themselves in various ways where we can expect to prepare for them or randomly when we least expect it. Our society consistently manages the scales of financial status, human relations, and psychological health. A few top contributors requiring a substantial amount of time include paying the bills, maintaining …
Jul 02
Exercising and Hangovers
“Why is it called a hangover,” said Ares, the god of war. Hercules retorted, “Because when you drink too much booze, you’re going to hang your head over that rail and…” I’ll allow the readers to use their imagination to envision the subsequent chain of events that occurred. This interaction between these two mythical characters …
Jun 22
The Basics: Protein, Carbohydrates, and Fats
Calories present themselves in many scenarios in our lives. On the back of any container or package of food at the grocery store, you’ll find the nutrition facts displaying how many calories are in a serving size of the container’s contents. After consulting with a doctor about our BMI, our doctor might ask us what …
Jun 08
Hiking is Medicine
“Wait, stop. Can you hear that?” Standing at the end of the quarter-mile hike up to the peak of Westwood Hills in Napa, my friend instructed me to halt my steps and listen. A wide-eyed look of bewilderment formed on my face, “Hear what?” I replied. She looked at me with a smile of satisfaction, …
May 04
Decreasing the Risk of Falling
Balance is a unique aspect of our physical activity affecting many interactions in our everyday lives. For example, the ability to get up from a seated position, get out of bed in the morning after a six to eight-hour slumber, or disembark from our car seats require an impressive combination of movements occurring simultaneously to …
Apr 30
Success in the Pull Up World
A success story occurred recently for one our Napa personal training clients. After many trials and hard work, this exercise participant was able to perform one complete pull up. Let’s call this exercise participant who works out at our fitness facility Arnold for confidentiality purposes. While making our way through a weekly training session, Arnold …
Apr 12
Want to play catch?
The sun is out in full force. The vivid blue sky and toasty weather gracing Napa Valley have finally appeared following a frosty and damp winter. As the birds begin their concert of raucous cackling and chirping, the cacophony of small children can be heard around our local schools and neighborhood parks. Grimy baseball mitts, …