Oregon Exercise Therapy Blog | Egoscue Blog - Oregon Exercise Therapy

Ecise of the Month: Cats & Dogs

10/31/2018

Cats and Dogs is a wonderful ecise that I highly recommend everyone do daily. Cats and Dogs reminds our pelvis and spine to flex and extend and it unlocks our body from the constant flexion many of us spend our days in. Cats and Dogs also restores symmetry and balance to our bodies by reminding both hips, shoulders, and sides of our back to do the same thing. Many of us are one-side dominate which creates rotation and/or elevation of our hips or shoulders, and cats and dogs can help restore balance. I recommend doing at least 10 cats and dogs every morning and evening, but feel free to do them anytime you want.

Start on your hands and knees with your fingers pointed straight ahead.
Be sure your hips are directly above your knees and that your shoulders are directly above your hands.
For the Cat position: Pull your hips under, push your upper back toward the ceiling, and pull your chin toward your chest as you breathe out.

For the Dog position: Roll your hips forward to put an arch in your lower back, collapse your shoulder blades together, and look up as you breathe in.
Move slowly back and forth between the Cat and Dog positions 10 times.

Related articles/videos:
Swimmer's posture
How posture affects lung capacity
Neck curvature and car accidents
Cats and Dogs

Why Runners Need to Strengthen the Upper Back

10/30/2018

I was interviewed for an article about upper back strength by mapmyrun and provided three simple exercises to improve posture and upper back strength and function which will allow you to run more efficiently and help prevent injury.

Check out the entire article and try the exercises today and notice how it impacts your running.

Related articles/videos:
How shoulder posture affects running performance
Running strengthens intervertebral discs
Running warm-up and cool-down
Does running help or hurt your knees?

Correct Toes and Barefoot Style Shoes

6/22/2018

Have you ever dealt with pain from bunions, hammer toes, plantar fasciitis, or Achilles tendonitis?

Do your feet get tired or sore by the end of the day?

Are you dealing with corns, calluses, blisters, or ingrown toenails?

Do you have balance issues, feel unstable, or frequently sprain your ankles?

These are all very common side effects that come from losing good foot posture and function which can be caused by not-ideal footwear and the loss of foot/toe strength and mobility.

E-cise of the Month: Wall Drop

2/26/2018

The Wall Drop is an Egoscue e-cise that uses a Slant Board to create bilaterally symmetrical ankle dorsiflexion which creates a chain reaction throughout the body to improve postural alignment.

How does the Wall Drop affect posture?
The Wall Drop takes advantage of gravity and uses the position your feet are in and the wall to cause reactions and postural changes throughout your body. When you position your feet hip width apart and straight you are creating symmetry and balance in your foot position and this will create a chain reaction up your legs, into your pelvis, up your spine, and affect every joint and muscle in your body.

The Key to Flexibility

1/11/2018

We all want to be flexible. Flexibility is beautiful. Flexibility helps with injury prevention. Flexibility improves performance. People who have flexibility are graceful, fluid, and effortless in their movements.

But what creates flexibility? How can we gain flexibility and maintain flexibility?

Happy New Year!

1/1/2018

Related articles/videos:
How to make this year your best year yet
How to keep and achieve your New Year's Resolutions
New Year's Functional Egoscue Workout
Your mindset and becoming pain free

E-cise of the Month: Bear Crawl

12/28/2017

This month I am going to highlight the Bear Crawl. The Bear Crawl is an amazing e-cise that almost everyone can do, but many people do it incorrectly.

When done correctly, the Bear Crawl has many benefits and can improve movement, posture, and performance. When done incorrectly, the Bear Crawl can reinforce bad movement patterns, poor posture, and cause pain and injury.

Immobilization, braces, and body casts

12/7/2017

With 206 bones, over 300 joints, and over 600 muscles, the human body is designed to move. Movement is what keeps our bones, joints, and muscles healthy. When a joint stops moving things start to break down and get weaker. Bones lose density. Muscles lose strength and size. Cartilage thins. Bad things happen.

Yes, there are times when immobilization is helpful and a good idea. If you break your arm it's a good idea to get a cast to protect your arm as it heals. If you severely sprain your ankle it can be helpful to wear an ankle brace for a week or two. But most immobilization we experience is not that type, but rather body casts that we don't even think about. Anything that limits joint movement is a body cast and will have negative effects on the body.

Here are examples of things that cast or hold the body in a certain position or limit movement:

Importance of the 10 Baby Physical Developmental Phases

11/30/2017

You have a newborn baby and want more than anything that he/she grows up to be a healthy and happy child and then adult. In this blog I am going to explain the important phases of gross physical development that are the essential to developing a strong and capable body. Missing or skipping these developmental stages can mean less efficient movement patterns, being more injury prone, and being more likely to develop physical pain throughout life.

To fully develop their physical strength and function needed for life, your baby should go through and master each of theses phases: wiggle & kick; superman & swimming; rock & roll; army crawl; crawling; sitting up; squatting & standing; cruising; walking; running; and jumping.

E-cise of the Month: Supine Foot Circles and Point Flexes

11/20/2017

Our feet are our connection to the earth and when they are not functioning well it has a negative impact throughout our body. I am going to explain how Supine Foot Circles and Point Flexes helps to restore normal foot function and links that together with normal knee and hip function.

WHAT OUR CLIENTS HAVE TO SAY

I really just wanted to express my gratitude for what you do and your great help. And, great help it was!! When one is in constant great pain for as long as I was and so desperate for help...words cannot express what I want to say....how can I thank you enough? You helped change my life.
– Carrie

I feel soooo limber and free in my hip movements and relaxed in my low back. Outstanding and I'm very impressed with the pdf's and the videos, great support to the client. Wonderful job, keep up the great job. – Mike

It is amazing! I've been in pain for 5 years and worked with other therapists and no one has been able to help me. Working with you I am 95% pain free! It feels so good to not have any pain and be able to walk and do things I haven't been able to do for years. Thank you so much! - Joni

Photos used under Creative Commons from mynameisharsha, Jon Grado