Who wants to attend a fun movement class?
I am teaching a series of six classes that focus on developmental movements like breathing, rolling, squatting, and crawling.
Read MoreWhat does chronic pain have to do with learning? Here's a quick post with links and quotes from three new papers that help explain the role of associative learning in chronic pain. Because many of the quotes contain a bunch of fancy language, here's a quick bit of background on the key concept - learning through pavlovian association
Read MoreThanks for reading the blog this year everyone! Here is a brief review of highlights from 2014, followed by a preview of coming events in 2015.
Read MoreWhat does the word placebo mean? Does the placebo effect involve actual health benefits or just imagined benefits? Is placebo “mind over body” or “all in your head”? Is it unethical to provide a client with placebo treatments? And what about nocebos? In this article I’ll answer these questions and discuss some fascinating research by Fabrizio Benedetti and colleagues.
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We can better understand the complexity of chronic pain, and its relationship to other multi-symptom disorders, by learning something about systems theory. The basic idea is that chronic pain is often driven by dysregulation of a “supersystem” that coordinates defensive responses to injury. The supersystem results from dynamic interaction between different subsystems, most notably the nervous system, immune system, and endocrine system.
Read MoreCould you break the word record for the marathon after just four years of serious training? Dennis Kimetto recently ran the marathon in 2:02:57, 26 seconds faster than anyone else in history. Here is some footage from his incredible run.
Read MoreI recently returned from a two-week trip to Spain with family and friends. Before I went, I was telling people about it, and they all said “Wow, Spain, awesome!!”
And then their expression would shift a little, and they would ask whether I was taking my two young kids
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The idea that posture causes pain has intuitive appeal, and is advocated by numerous experts. But is it supported by evidence? And should you spend time trying to analyze your own posture and correct deviations from what is considered optimal?
Read MoreDo you experience tension, discomfort, and a pervasive feeling of overall yuckiness while sitting in your chair staring at the computer hour after hour? Let's face it. You probably do.
Read MoreI have a favor to ask my readers.* I am working on a new set of posts that I think will really drive some traffic to the site. Market research shows people just love to read about certain subjects, and I have put together some great new blog post titles addressing those subjects. But I am having some real problems filling out the content.
Read MoreThis blog is focused on the central nervous system - how it affects the way we move and feel, and what we can do to change its function in that regard. But that doesn't imply that the structure of the body is unimportant, or that good movement is “all in your head.” The structure and health of the musculoskeletal system are essential for quality movement, just as a mechanically sound car is required for safe driving.
Read MoreI just listened to an excellent interview of physical therapist and back pain researcher Kieran O'Sullivan at the PhysioEdge blog. Kieran is part of the group at Pain.Ed, which also includes Peter O'Sullivan, who is, by the way, featured in a very cool video I discussed here.
Read MoreI am very, very, VERY excited to announce that my book is now done and available for purchase! It's called A Guide to Better Movement: The Science and Practice of Moving with More Skill and Less Pain.
Read MoreFor today's post I am very pleased to offer a guest submission from Jamie Hale, M.S. Jamie is an experimental researcher specializing in behavioral nutrition and cognitive science.
Read MoreA few months ago I came across a very informative video by Dom Mazetti, a distinguished professor of bro-science. In the video, Dom uses a flow chart and well-established principles of bro-logic to determine whether someone "even lifts." If you haven't already watched it, I highly recommend it.
Read MoreI just did an interview with Cinema, a physical therapist who writes a great blog at Cinema Says. I was honored to be asked to do the interview and the questions were great. We talked about my background as an attorney, what I think about evidence-based versus science-based practice, my upcoming book, how I practice, my favorite books, and lots of other subjects I don''t often talk about on this blog. It think it came out pretty well.
Read MoreGraded exposure is a key concept in understanding how to reduce pain caused by movement. It's a very common sense idea, and one that most people kind of know at some level, because there is profound truth to it. But it's also an idea that most people will probably fail to put into practice in a systematic way. Here’s a brief discussion of what it is, why it works and how to do it.
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