Exerbotics Road Trip - Week 1

  

Well, it has been an adventurous week as we set out in our F-250 and 31' RV Exhibit Trailer.  As men, we love adventure, we are susceptible to a mishap here and there and we always welcome a MacGyver Moment!  Our tour launched from Rochester, MN and we saw our first repair shop before we did our first Demo!  As you can see, SOME of our drivers are being baptized by fire!  Learning to drive a Super Duty pick-up and a 31' 5th Wheel is a little different than a Corvette, right Harry?  

Fortunately this only took us out for a few hours and, although scuffed a little (we call this "broke in" in Oklahoma) we were back on the road.  The next incident wasn't quite as funny or exciting and, I'll admit, did get my blood pressure up a little.  Apparently you need to be careful about your turn radius when hauling a 5th wheel trailer without a long bed pick-up!

Now fully "broke in" (a little more than we would prefer), we were ready to start showing what Exerbotics is good at (Since we have already demonstrated that we aren't that good at driving...yet).  Our tour around OH was successful beyond our wildest expectations.  We met with some of the elite thinkers and doers in athletics, medical, fitness and wellness.  It goes without saying that they all saw the future this week and are ready to incorporate Exerbotics into their business model to give them a competitive advantage and the latest in training technology.  

After a couple more MacGyver episodes involving dead batteries, an electrical short in the tail lights and some other mis-adventures, we are headed to Florida to install three machines at Bodez by Tasso.  Tasso Kiriakes has a progressive vision and Exerbotics is excited to help drive his business to the future.  We look forward to following up with this story next month to report on his program and it's success in attracting new clients and retaining existing clients.  If you are in the Ormond Beach / Daytona Beach area, come by and see us.  Friday and Saturday would be great!

More tails from the road coming soon! If you would like a demo to come visit you,  check out our EVENTS CALENDAR or send us a note at sales@exerbotics.com.  Also, come visit us at Athletic Business in Orlando.  

1,625 Miles in and headed for more!  Clay driving somewhere in South Carolina on 10/19

Update on Thursday, October 20, 2011 at 9:40AM by Exerbotics, LLC

Bodez by Tasso staff is getting familiar with their new Exerbotics machines.  This is the FIRST Exerbotics facility in Florida.  Congratulations Tasso & staff.  Training in your facility will never be the same and the value you will provide to your clients in training efficiency and statistical data will be unmatched.  

  

Older Adults Have to Exercise More to Maintain Muscle Size, Study Finds

MONDAY, July 11 (HealthDay News) -- Older adults have to exercise more than younger adults in order to maintain muscle size, according to a new study.

Researchers examined how much exercise was needed to maintain or increase muscle mass, size and strength in adults ages 20 to 35 and ages 60 to 75.

In the 16-week first phase of the study, all the participants did three sets of resistance training exercises (leg press, knee extensions and squats) three times a week. In the 32-week second phase, participants were dividing into three groups: some were assigned to stop resistance training altogether, some were told to reduce training to one day a week, and others were asked to cut down training to one day and one set of resistance exercises (as opposed to three sets) a week.

In the younger adults, muscle size was maintained in both groups that reduced their training. This was not the case in the older adults, whose muscle size shrank even if they did one to three sets of the exercises one day a week.

However, one day of resistance training a week was enough for both younger and older adults to maintain their strength -- at least for an extended period of time.

"We are not advocating that people only train one day a week indefinitely, but we do believe such a program can be effective during temporary periods when it is difficult to maintain a consistent, intensive exercise regimen several days per week," study leader Marcas Bamman, of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, said in a news release from the American College of Sports Medicine.

The study appears this month in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.

"Our data are the first to suggest that older adults require greater weekly maintenance dosing than younger individuals to maintain resistance-training-induced increases in muscle mass," Bamman added.

Bamman said all adults "should include progressive resistance exercise in their weekly regimen, but there will always be times, such as extended travel or a family illness, when exercise is difficult to sustain." In such cases, the study suggested, resistance exercises once a week are certainly better than none.

Dodging a Bullet - How Exerbotics Helped Me Benchmark my State after a Perceived Injury

I typically strength train in the winter and gradually incorporate running in the spring through summer.  This summer, my strength programs have included the Exerbotics Leg Press, Chest Press / Row and various barbell exercises twice a week.  Running programs have been a combination of long runs (up to 5.5 miles), interval training and speed runs (usually one of each per week). 

Scenario: On July 23rd while on a 4 mile tempo run, my right hamstring was unusually sore.  I experienced some soreness and tightness for the next 24 hours. 

July 25th: (A beautiful day), I began a cautious run with plenty of warm-up.  During a moderate first mile, the right hamstring was still tight and sore.  At about 7 minutes into the run, I was loosening up and able to get into a better rhythm.  While gaining speed, I felt the dreaded hamstring "grab"; the same feeling you get when you are about to significantly pull a muscle.  The run was instantly over with significant pain and discomfort.  It obviously was not a sever pull but concerning none-the-less. 

Strong discomfort was present with the hamstring for several days. 

July 26th: No Training

July 27th: Moderate strength training day, primarily upper body and lower body range of motion with light free weight loads. 

July 28th: No Training

July 29th:  Soreness and tightness have significantly diminished.  Strength training day to test strength loss in the leg.  

Training Conditions:

Singe Leg Leg Press

6 Repetitions per Leg (First set displayed only)

Intensity: 85% of Max Effort

Results (Compared to Exerbotics strength training on July 14th):

Illustrated in the chart below, contrary to a muscle injury, all meaningful statistical categories showed an improvement from July 14th (pre-injury) to July 29th (4 days post-injury). 

Given the pain, soreness and stiffness, why were the strength results IMPROVED from a pre-injury training session? 

Hypothesis:

I questioned the likelihood of a hamstring pull during a moderate distance run and theorized that this might be a symptom of the true problem (nerve or back related?).  Having been a victim of sever hamstring pulls in the past, I knew that any muscle damage would result in some degree of strength loss. 

Although a post-injury Max test was not performed, I attribute the training improvements to a combination of the following:

• ·        Both legs improved in performance.  The Leg Press was performed as the first exercise on July 29th and, although not documented, the July 14th set was most likely completed in the middle of a strength training session.
• ·        The July 29th training session followed 4 days of lower body rest.  The July 14th training session followed a high intensity running day.
• ·        The muscle did not see any major fiber damage leading to the probable conclusion that the source of the problem is elsewhere. 

Conclusion:

Proceed training with caution.  Full release for strength training with monitored running while increasing volume and speed based on soreness.  

	Left Leg			Right Leg
Category	14-Jul	29-Jul	% Difference	14-Jul	29-Jul	% Difference
Total Work	10279	10456	2%	9585	9929	3%
Peak Concentric	332	349	5%	310	322	4%
Peak Eccentric	548	531	-3%	490	526	7%
Average Concentric	217	227	4%	200	207	3%
Average Eccentric	345	353	2%	323	344	6%

The Fun Theory

Create a FUN experience and people will engage.  When people engage, they change their behavior.  Enjoy!

RISK AVERSION IS REWARD CHALLENGED

"20 years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the things you did.  So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor.  Catch the trade winds in your sails.  Explore.  Dream.  Discover." - Mark Twain

Over the past 3 or 4 days I have been bombarded with messages of take risks, live life, dream big, take the hard road, don't play it safe, etc. etc. etc. I really enjoy these types of messages and find that I need them to shed the concerns and stresses of the ultimately insignificant day to day challenges. 99% of the time I am a big picture dreamer with a "conquer the world" attitude. Ironically though, the messages coming at me have come when I have not quite been myself - and through very different channels.

John A. Shedd wrote "A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are for." This is a great illustration of our purpose to meet challenges head on. So many people simply survive their life, never daring to put up their sail and brave the uncharted waters. The world is full of dream killers and doubters. Don't fall into that trap. The only way to guarantee that nothing will ever happen to you is to never try to make anything happen. Have you ever met anyone who is waiting for "their opportunity"? It's NOT COMING!!! Go get it! This applies to all aspects of your life.  This is experience with your family and kids, life goals, worldly accomplishments or business ADVENTURE.

I challenge you to go out and create an experience for you and for people around you. You are wired to shoot for goals that, to others, seem impossible. Take the risks because they are not risks, they are experiences. You will learn and advance regardless of the outcome. Failure is not an option and you will succeed. In the end, you will have many colorful stories to tell and that, my friends, is when you can say you did it right because it was hard and it was fun!

"Of all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these: It might have been." - John Greenleaf Whittier

- JP Stockton