The Human Condition

Massage can do wonders. It has been documented for thousands of years. I believe in it, and my clients believe in it. But we occasionally fall prey to the imagination and the never-ending quest for perfection. 'When will we get rid of this?' or 'Will there ever come a day when I feel no pain?' are some questions I cannot answer, not without smirking anyway. 'The day you feel nothing is what you should fear,' I might say to my more realistic clients.

And they know what I mean, but I agree, we'd all like to get through life without any pain. That would be perfect, wouldn't it? But attaining perfection and striving for it are two different things. I believe in the pursuit of happiness, but I don't expect it constantly. In fact, I think that constantly dreaming of perfection can make our reality seem woefully inadequate. I'd rather be striving for perfection, rather than distraught over not attaining it.

Twenty years ago, massage stopped my migraines. But if I don't continue massage and postural maintenance, I'm pretty sure the migraines would return. Not a perfect cure, but if you've ever had migraines, you'll take what you can get. So I urge those of you who aren't happy to get a massage, and think of it as a dose of happiness. It's all about the pursuit.

DirecTV Doubles Referral Cash

Body of Knowledge has been offering an hour of free massage for those who use referral code 21402243 when signing up for DirecTV service. But now that DirecTV has doubled the cash ($100 instead of $50), Body of Knowledge will now match the new offer with 2 free hours of massage.

How's that for a stimulus?

Special Thanks

Here we go - another road cycling season is upon us. For whatever activity you are planning this season, make sure you take care of your body. And think about those who've helped you along the way. I'd also like to thank my grateful clients!

Cold Fusion, Cold Case Warming Up

Being a physics phlunky, I've been watching the progress of Low Energy Nuclear Reaction research ever since the big announcement 20 years ago about the discovery of 'cold fusion.' A lot has happened, or not happened, since then. We all have a stake in finding better sources of energy, but it appears some believe they have more of a stake than others. All the usual arguments and turf wars have followed the first announcement, but a very disturbing event involving Eugene Mallove, a physicist and eloquent trumpeter of things to come through the publication Infinite Energy, occured in 2004. He was found beaten to death. It always smelled fishy, and now the case is taking on new life as the original two suspects could not be linked to the crime. A $50,000 reward is now being offered for information, and the case is being worked 'full time.' Now that smells like progress.

You can always add more power...

...if you don't mind the occasional broken bone or pulled muscle! It's true, there are athletes who treat their bodies like race cars, thinking they just need to increase power and reduce weight to get optimum results. While those are two factors to be concerned with, cycling (and many other sports) requires a certain amount of neuromuscular timing to get the job done. All this means is that all cylinders need to be firing at their respective optimums to produce peak output. (Did you catch that? For some reason I'm trying to appeal to the motorheads.) If you are using four muscles for a movement, but one is a bit tight, it will decrease the effectiveness of the others. Well toned muscles require less energy to move through their range of motion. For example, riding a bike with a rusty chain may get you where you want to go, but you're doing more work. Why not just oil the chain? With muscles and other soft tissues, this is done by increasing circulation. Massage and proper stretching facilitate increased circulation, as well as increased range of motion.

There are a few studies claiming that stretching decreases power. First of all they overuse a poor form of stretching (holding stretches for an excessive and arbitrary length of time, and secondly, they do it immediately before testing the muscle for power. There is no time allowed for reinnervation! Taking these errors into consideration, I would also guess most of the studies focus on classically overstretched tissue as opposed to lengthening the contracted tissue. But enough of that. Do your own study; let me show you how easing tension in the right spots can help your performance in whatever sport you choose.

I don't like blogs

So there.

Open Your Eyes

Whether or not you believe blind people make better massage therapists, it appears we have another fine example of over-protective legislation causing trouble when it becomes outdated.