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CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR 2016 OLYMPIANS
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Allyson Felix
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Congratulations to Allyson Felix for a stunning performance in Rio. In her 4th Olympics she adds two gold and 1 silver medal to her Olympic hardware collection. With 9 Olympic trinkets, she has now surpassed the great Jackie Joyner Kersee to become the most decorated female Olympian in US history. She has also preserved the legacy of her coach, Bobby Kersee, who has had at least one gold medalist in each of the last 9 Olympic Games.
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HELEN MAROULIS
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Helen Marloulis defeated the 3 X Olympic Gold Medalist from Japan to become the first US woman to win gold in Wrestling. Helen dropped a weight class and endured an arduous journey to accomplish the seemingly impossible dream. This victory validates the PHASE IV paradigm for performance training in wrestling and was a bucket list achievement for me personally. In this truly amateur sport, her sacrifices and discipline make her a role model for every girl with an Olympic size dream!
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KIM RHODE
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With Kim Rode's bronze performance in skeet shooting in Rio she becomes the only Summer Olympian, male or female, to medal in 6 consecutive Olympic Games. Rhode's Olympic history has been nothing short of dominant. She won gold in the 1996 Games in double trap at the age of 17, then followed up with bronze in Sydney, gold in Athens, silver in Beijing, and then gold in London. Some don't consider these events athletic but when you consider that she shoots between 500 to 1,000 shot gun blasts per training session the need for fitness training and injury prevention become paramount. Most of us can't even lift a 12 gauge shot gun to our shoulder that many times and not get injured.
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Lasting Impressions
From Rio
By Robert Forster, PT CEO
No Frills Olympics
These were definitely the barebones, "no frills" Olympics. While it all looked good on TV, behind the scenes it was obvious these games where produced on a limited budget. When Rio was awarded the Olympic Games this nation was flush with oil money and if news reports are true; the International Olympic Committee members were undoubtedly given suit cases of it, along with lavish gifts, to assure their victory. Since then oil prices have dropped to less than half, and the surplus funds have all been siphoned off to corruption. The country is fighting economic collapse, and their president is the target of an impeachment scandal.
Empty Venues
The biggest disappointment for our Olympians was that most venues, for most events, were half full. The Olympic Stadium for track was less than half full except the nights that Usain Bolt competed. It only held 40k people, where as the London venue sat 100k fans. It was anticlimactic for first time Olympians.
Logistics
Every Olympic host city presents unique challenges to our mission of assuring our athletes have everything they need. Traffic was the biggest obstacle. Driving with Allyson Felix to her 400m final took over 2 hours in stop and go traffic, and we had the pass to drive in the Olympic "fast" lane! No elite athlete benefits from sitting in a car for two hours before competing, not to mention watching the minutes tick away on the clock and wondering if we would even get there on time.
Coach Bobby Kersee reminded me of an Olympic day in the Summer of 1984 when after treating Jackie Joyner at our hotel we hit a traffic jam getting her back to the Los Angeles Coliseum for one of her events in the heptathlon. With time slipping away we jumped out of the car and paid a local kid $100 for his bike. We then put Jackie on the handlebars, and I pedaled her to the event, arriving just in time!
Trendy Treatments
Favorite Quote: "You can't kinesio-tape a bad training plan."
Every four years in the Olympic cycle, new and recycled "treatment" procedures and recovery strategies with questionable scientific basis become trendy. The last few Olympics it was kinesio-tape and copper bracelets. This year it was "cupping" that left telltale round bruises all over the bodies of the US swim team. Rarely, do they become a mainstay of sports medicine; if they are so miraculous why then do the fade out of favor so quickly?
My problem with this is two fold:
First, with a proper training-to-recovery ratio, and with the right recovery strategies, athletes should not be arriving at the games with unresolved overuse injuries. Barring accidents and traumatic injuries, athletes and their medical support team should resolve these chronic problems before the games. It is paramount to deliver these gifted athletes to major competitions injury free, and let their genetic talents carry them through. Allyson's coach, Bobby Kersee, is a genius in this regard. He doles out plenty of hard workouts, but allows for lots of recovery time. When injuries do occur he finds the best in sports medicine for treatment, and creates cross training workouts that allow his athletes to heal and stay fit at the same time.
Secondly, recovery strategies should make the athlete an active participant, not a passive recipient of care. In my 35 years in the results driven arena of elite athletics I have found no passive modality that alleviates pain and returns joints to full function like simple stretching and strengthening exercises. The need to reduce pain is eliminated when the injuries are resolved. I have seen more world class athletes waste time laying passively on a table while some new "magic black box" promises to resolve their pain and injury.
Stunning Beauty
The geography in and around Rio is stunning. With the dramatic peaks on land and in the water; there are also many beautiful beaches and a very active outdoor population enjoying it all.
The People
Brazilians are very warm, thoughtful, and tolerant of foreigners. We stayed toward the city center about a 15 minute taxi ride from Copacabana beach. Although there is no mistaking that this is a second world city, the citizens are educated and sophisticated.
Great Weather
In the last month of the Rio winter the weather was mostly wonderful. Temperatures were in the '70s and 80's with little humidity. We had some rain and it was often very windy by the shore, but only a few hot days. We only saw mosquitoes the last few days when the weather warmed up. We ran like heck when we did.
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ROAD TO RIO JOURNEY
FROM CRUTCHES TO GOLD MEDAL
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Everyone is asking,
"How did Allyson Felix beat her ankle injury, to run the fastest 400m in the World this year?"
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Answer: Team Forster, Felix, Kersee
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This video is an in depth look at Allyson's Injury and Her courageous #RoadtoRio
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WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT METABOLIC FITNESS?
Free Health and Fitness Consultation
Free Scientific Health and Fitness Consultation at
PHASE IV 1544 20th Street, Santa Monica
310-582-8212
Our Physical Therapists and Exercise Physiologists understand the special set of needs and goals you bring to the table. What will emerge from a health and fitness consultation will be an educated you, empowered by the knowledge and understanding of how your body performs best for life, sport, and recreation.
See our Exercise Laboratory in Action!
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DO YOU HAVE A NAGGING INJURY?
Free Injury Evaluation
FORSTER PHYSICAL THERAPY
427 Wilshire Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90401
310-656-8600
Voted "Best Place to go for a Sports Injury" and "Best Place for a Massage"
-Competitor Magazine and
"Best Physical Therapy in L.A."
-Los Angeles Magazine
A critical component of PHASE IV's comprehensive solution is injury rehabilitation. PHASE IV and FORSTER PHYSICAL THERAPY are the exclusive therapy providers of the Skecher's Los Angeles Marathon, and have been treating patients' injuries for over thirty-five years.
Our highly educated and trained staff of Licensed Physical Therapists, Certified Massage Therapists, and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialists are experienced in solving difficult injuries. Please call us to schedule a free injury assessment.
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In this video you will learn:
* The safest and most effective stretches for each part of your body
* How to incorporate a safe and effective stretching routine into your active lifestyle
* The importance of stretching in developing healthy joints and muscles for life
* How stretching aids in the recovery process and helps to prevent injury
* The performance benefits of a proper stretching routine in sport and training
* How stretching improves your range of motion, improving athletic performance
* Forster's progressive resistant strengthening exercises designed to support the larger muscle groups
* How to develop strength that positively impacts your power to weight ratio, speed, and performance
* How to build resistance to training injuries
* Why Forster's joint stability and full range of motion strength exercises are essential for recovery
PLUS BONUS FEATURES:
FORSTER'S ROLLING PROGRAM
FLEXIBILITY SELF ASSESSMENT
HOME HEART RATE FIELD TEST FOR METABOLIC FITNESS AND SO MUCH MORE!
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NEED THE RUNNER'S BIBLE NOW?
You're not alone! See why our Olympic Gold Medalists endorse Bob's book on Healthy Running!
Healthy Running, Step by Step
By Robert Forster, PT and Roy Wallack
Forster's new book is quickly becoming the standard in science based training and rehabilitation for runners; providing a comprehensive, easy to follow approach to training, nutrition, recovery, injury prevention and the techniques Robert perfected over 35 years treating the world's best athletes.
"This book presents a good, honest, common-sense plan gained from years of experience and results at the highest levels of the sport. If you're ready to end the running injury yo-yo for good, you'll be smarter and safer the second you open this book."
- Rod Dixon, Three-Time Olympian and New York City Marathon Champion
Healthy Running Step by Step
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