by Dr. Tom Nelson | Oct 5, 2015 | In The News
Want better athletic performance? Want fewer injuries? Want to walk taller, feel stronger and move more easily in everything you do? You can have it in a breath. But it’s got to be the right kind of breath. Your body is a soda can Ever seen a skeleton stand up by itself? Outside of horror movies, it doesn’t happen. Your individual bones may be strong, but your skeleton as a whole is relatively weak – it will collapse in on itself if you let it. The skeleton needs something else to support it, to keep every bone in the place that it belongs so your body keeps a base of strength. Something has to keep the skeleton in place. That something is pressure. Here’s an analogy developed by the brilliant Dr. Mary Massery: Your body is like a can of soda. Aluminum cans have very thin walls; if the can is open and empty, it’s very easy to crush in your hand. But what makes the structure strong and keeps the can straight isn’t the thickness of the aluminum – it’s the pressure inside the can. If the pressure inside the can is about equal to the atmospheric pressure outside the can, the aluminum stays straight and the can stays strong. If you change the pressure – say, by opening and emptying the can – you weaken the whole structure. Your body is more complicated, but it works on the same principles. There are a couple key pressure cavities in your body: The thorasic cavity in your chest and the abdominal cavity above your legs. You have a...
by Dr. Tom Nelson | Sep 8, 2015 | In The News
Here’s an example of a day in the life of a high-school athlete. Some events are stressful – they activate the “fight or flight” part of your nervous system. Others are calming – they activate “rest and digest” part of your nervous system. Guess which one happens more? I’ve graphed the day’s events in terms of effects on the autonomic nervous system, or ANS. Events that activate the sympathetic wing of the ANS lead to upward movement. Events that activate the parasympathetic wing of the ANS lead to downward movement. For most of us, on most days, the ANS is stimulated a lot more in the “S” direction than in the “P” direction. Life is stressful! And spending all that time in “fight or flight” mode leaves your nervous system out of balance. Like wings on an airplane, the sympathetic and parasympathetic wings of the ANS should be contributing about equally to keep you in a healthy place. But most of us are flying more like the picture below. Favoring your SNS doesn’t just wreck your ability to focus and perform. Over time, it can lead to conditions like high blood pressure, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, chronic pain, and mood disorders. Fortunately, there are ways to activate the PNS and bring us back into balance. Yawning, meditation, and positive emotion and mindfulness exercises are a few. But my favorite is even simpler and more basic than that. It’s called diaphragmatic breathing, and it’s your automatic key to your autonomic nervous system. Meet your nervous system Your nervous system consists of two smaller systems: the central and peripheral nervous...
by Dr. Tom Nelson | Sep 4, 2015 | In The News
Douglas Heel, the man behind “Get-Activated” is interviewed in this article. Douglas Heel exudes a bouncy enthusiasm and an unshakable confidence. His confidence is never I’m right, and you are wrong. In matter of fact, Douglas is as carefree as he is confident. At his last Chicago seminar, Heel said, “Don’t worry about being right. As soon as you are right, you stop learning. I have techniques, not answers. My journey is just beginning.” Read The...
by Dr. Tom Nelson | Sep 1, 2015 | In The News
Activation is not just for Football Players. A recent article in the Illinois Track and Cross Country Coaches Association discusses the benefits. Once again Dr. Tom Nelson is featured and quoted. Read The...
by Dr. Tom Nelson | Aug 27, 2015 | In The News
Now that high school football is in high gear many parents and coaches are concerned with keeping their athletes injury free. This article from last year offers a comprehensive look at how Dr. Tom Nelson supported the Nazareth team and 3 reasons why activation is a game-changer. Read The...
by Dr. Tom Nelson | Aug 26, 2015 | In The News
A recent article in the Chicago Tribune featured Dr. Tom Nelson and the impact his activation technique has had on the student athletes of the Nazareth High School Football Team. The Nazareth’s football team decreased injuries by 45 percent last year! Read The Chicago Tribune...
