Trigger point - your near perfect massage

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I have been a user of the Trigger Point equipment for a few years now and decided to convey some of the benefits of this range of products.

The great thing about this range is that most of the items are small, lightweight and highly portable and this is a huge advantage for travel as well as pre and post competition.

When you massage aim to work from proximal to distal so that you shift the toxins away from the heart. I personally find that a session with the Grid to stimulate the fibres, then the trigger ball where required and finishing with the grid for tissue density is a good program.

The Trigger Point pack is a great start for self myofascial release -SMR- or self massage. If you know what you are doing you can really boost recovery from training with a 10 minute session post workout  Possibly the most important device is the foot roller. I personally used this on both feet for a solid hour - 30 minutes per foot. This was based on reading a stretching text advocating massaging the feet on a daily basis compared to the infrequency of other body parts. I realised this was something that I had never done and so made up for it! The text used a great analogy of the fascia on the body being like a duvet. If you pull one corner the entire duvet moves. For this same reason tight feet can cause cranial nerve headaches due to this tightness in the fascia. I did used to suffer from quite a lot of headaches and have to admit that since doing this treatment and topping it up now and then I have never had a headache like I used to. They are also extremely good for your feet after a weightlifting session, or training session using weightlifting shoes. Just 30 seconds per foot is all it takes and you really do notice a difference.

The block allows you to get deep into the soleus group by raising the leg and then placing it on the ball, or foot roller as required. It also comes with a DVD covering the major body regions.

The Grid is one of the best foam rollers on the market and mine has served me well for a good few years. Unlike many traditional foam rollers it maintains its shape and density and does not collapse over time so it is a one-off investment for less than the price of a good massage. The Grid also has several different surface textures so that stubborn muscles can be massaged in different was that may require different techniques from a therapist  The Grid is also just wide enough to hit the entire length of the posterior muscles that support the spine without you falling off and also allows you to slightly rotate the torso in order to increase the tension on one side when required. The Grid is full body and can comfortably and effectively be used for the following muscle groups with no problem at all -

Calves/Soleus
Quads/Hamstrings
Adductor complex
Glutes/Hip Flexors
Erector Spinae
Latissmis dorsi
Lower Trapezius
Most of the smaller upper back muscles

The Quadballer is also massage on the next level. If your sport regularly sends your legs into a coma then this will resurrect them. It is a lot more intense than the Grid and only a few minutes is required for the anterior and lateral quads to get them back online. The hamstrings can also be done with the Quadballer and it is great for the calves and surrounding regions. Many people complain of a tight iliotibial -IT- band. While this would often seem the perfect product for surfing along on this region I have often found that the Glute med and Tensor Fascia Lata are better regions to help relieve pressure here as the IT bands forks into both of these muscles at the hip region.

The ball is really the main "trigger" release from the Trigger Point family as it is the lazer of the gang. For stubborn knots a short blast with this will have you gurning for England and pain free in 20-30 seconds. Where the roller distributes the pressure over a large surface area, the ball focusses on a tiny area with a lot of pressure so you can view this as progress from the Grid if you really need to take it to another level for stubborn muscles. The ball should also only be used by people that know what they are doing and what their body can handle and requires as excessive pressure on a region that has never been through this kind of treatment could leave you feeling worse than when you started. 

While The Grid can access a lot of the smaller upper back muscles, the ball can get right in to the trouble spots. The trick is to progressively use the leverage of the body to adjust the pressure as required. Lying straight on the ball with the full weight of your torso will be a shock for most people used to a "gentle" massage. The ball is really the medic of the team and can access the real knots and tension areas specifically and often at the right angle to alleviate them with some cunning!

Verdict 9/10 - if you train hard then you will really appreciate how much these tools can do for recovery!

Scotland Part 2 – Nutrition with Alex Ferentinos

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The day after the kettlebell championships we flew out of Glasgow (flew with car) as the snow started to come down sideways. Within minutes green fields were white and the alarm bell was close by for this being a problem. The trustee Prius that did nearly 1000 miles on the trip got us through safe and sound and eventually we got to the fantastic training facility that is CSE.

The talk with Alex Ferentinos went down a storm and you truly get to understand someone’s mastery of the subject when they can produce almost 2 different lectures from the same notes – at least 30% of this one was different in some way with new ideas and ways of explaining things coming out. The questions from the group were very thought out and targeted and a real pleasure to be a part of as a lot of people now have a huge amount of material that can be implemented immediately.

When we say implemented immediately that is because the workshop is not designed to kill you with theory and charts and leave you with more questions than answers. It purposefully has direct and applicable information that can be used the very next day. An example of this being our good friend John Chapman who is one half of The LeanMachines. John was already in great shape and a very competent personal trainer with a great knowledge base, quality experience and a lifestyle and physique that reflected that. He was kind enough to send us this image below –

What you need to consider here is that John did this in just 3 weeks from attending our London seminar at Foundry:east in Jan and already has an extensive knowledge base of nutrition, sport science and exercise prescription. He did not have personal training or coaching, he did not pay for a private consultation, he did not even get any direction apart from the workshop content. What he did was take the knowledge of the Omega 6:3 balance and the PRAL value of the foods he was eating in relation to his macronutrients and calorie intake. As I am sure you can agree – if a fitness professional already in great shape can get better in 3 weeks from a few changes, what can the public achieve when the content is 4 hours and loaded with real world information that works?

After the workshop Alex decided to have a workout with Emma who can be followed here – @ESGfitness and https://www.facebook.com/EsgFitness

Massive thanks to Emma for helping with the event organisation and also for walking me past a platform and Eleiko bar as my shoes were in the car and I just had to have an active recovery OL session after the comp! Lovely gym to train at and very enjoyable day all round.

The next step was to finally get to the hotel. Satnavs can be very strange things. Especially when you arrive at a place that is not there and cannot find it. What we did realise eventually is that we had driven into a private a security monitored industrial estate that we could not get out of – I see the irony there too... We eventually found the hotel and decided that the Jacuzzi and steam room along with a swim were much needed.

That evening we hit the town and hooked up with Hilary Susan and Tom Robertson to see what Edinburgh has to offer. We started in Tonic and then ended up in Tiger Lily which I have to say is one of the nicest places I have been to in a long time – great  people, great conversation and a very enjoyable evening. 

When we finally managed to wake up after 3 late nights with little sleep and lots of training, talking and business we headed off to Edinburgh Castle. It has to be said the Edinburgh is an outstanding place and I was hit by how clean the streets were on the walk to the castle, the clean air and the amazing architecture around me. We did not have time for the tour as there were additional plans for the day so a few pictures from outside and taking in the view would have to do until next time.

Definitely worth a visit - Edinburgh Castle

On the way out we also met William Wallace who certainly was a character and was raising money for Leukaemia – worthy cause indeed. Very jolly personality and someone that in his world was very much in the moment and doing it.

Lovely chap!

The next stop was to meet up with Cliff and Marta of Wilde Performance. 2 very educated and competent trainers that really do work to fix people from multiple angles and change their lifestyle. It made me realise how important it is to meet with like-minded people on a regular basis to remind you that sometimes the zombies are the minority. We are looking forward to seeing them again and will be announcing some joint ventures in the near future.

Insert random Indian Chief here

Finally got back to my house at about 2am and got to switch off after a very successful, educational and entertaining weekend. It is amazing what you can draw out of life if you are just willing to let action stay one step ahead of thinking.

The other good news is that Alex has now been singed up as an expert speaker at Bodypower2013 and will have a big impact based on his chosen material - well done! Follow them here - @bodypowerexpo

We also went to size up UEA in Norwich for the April event

The outline of the workshops can be seen below and is a lot more than this!

• Human evolution and the evolutionary diet
• Observations regarding the negative effects of "primitive" cultures taking on a typical western diet and what can be learned from this
• Lies put out for commercial gain by the food and pharmaceutical corporations; corrupting studies and government info whilst brainwashing the masses with misleading advertising.
• The truth about sugar - it has no healthy properties at all
• Dietary fats - why they are wrongly demonised and often healthy
• The surprising healthy facts about saturated fats and their essential roles within the body
• Balancing fatty acid levels to counter inflammation and disease in the body by regulating Ω3 & Ω6 fatty acid intake
• Other healthy fats to include in your diet and fats to remove and actively avoid
• Pitfalls of common fitness and health foods
• The best sources of protein, carbohydrates and fats
• Balancing acid forming foods with alkalising foods
• How to structure a good nutrition plan

...all of this as well as Q&A for the audience to help them implement what was learned into their own lives.

All additional nutrition workshops can be found on the link below and new ones will be added when confirmed so check back as there are currently 5 more being organised.

Just click on the logo to be whisked off to all current events -

Scotland part 1 – kettlebell competition

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Although I have been using kettlebells for many, many years – one of the first in the UK back in 2000/2001 - I have never really trained much for the competition side of it – Girevoy Sport. I put this right at the weekend and decided to compete in the Scottish championships in Glasgow.

Fantastic turnout and event!

The weekend had multiple agendas and was a combination of kettlebells and nutrition workshops that will be discussed in part 2. The reason I have never really taken to GS in the past is on multiple levels. I always enjoyed training for strength and endurance as separate events and never really combined these. I have also been competing in weightlifting for the last few years and the different energy system work really adds a lot of training time to the gym routine. However, I gave it a go and put myself on the line to get a decent baseline figure to check progress.

Now and then you find world champions at these events!

I decided to compete with the 16kg for the very simple reason that I have had a minor disc injury for 20 years and the double rack is the only position in any of my training that aggravates it. A pretty good reason to avoid GS until now! The other reason is that not being able to get both elbows to iliac crest means that the platform for rest is not present and the weights slowly fatigue the posterior section of the shoulder girdle in around 2-3 minutes. Having little expectation I racked the 16s and did my first 10. It did not feel too bad, but after a minute or so I knew that putting them down early was a very wise option and so at 30 reps they went back on the floor. Trying not to be hard on myself I would regard this performance as awful at best and I was not happy. My only option was to make some impact with the snatch and get some good number as it is my best event.

Off they go and Anna Plumridge of BoxBellFit.com got a Gold!

After the generous gap between events I got on the platform and started on my left hand as the timer began. I got the full 5 minutes left hand and with 85 reps switched sides. I did manage the full 10 minutes for possibly the first time and got 100 on my right. There were a few extra, but these were no counts as the fatigue made fixation quite tough at about 9:30 and so a few dropped short of the mark. 185 snatches was a PB for me and I was very happy with that. What made it event better is that it was enough to pull my score up for a bronze medal in my group and really made the day worth it.

Me with my bronze and some strange fingers that I hid away.

It taught me a lot about myself and also really encouraged me to take it further as most of the lifters I spoke to mention the jerk is much easier than snatch – same as Olympic lifting I guess – and with a jerk at rank 4 (16k 55) and snatch nearly CMS (32k 60) it is safe to say the foundations are there to make this an enjoyable journey.

Me, Russell Pearcy of KB3training.com. Steve Gordon of Tunovakettlebells.com and Anna.

Alexander Khvostov - world champion and elite lifter with the best coach in the world - Sergey Rudnev.

There is a shedload of trigger point, stretching and fascia release on the cards in order to get the elbows to rack eventually and also using the heavier weights will help pull the arms down lower on the torso. Like many things in life, you really understand what it is all about when you go out there and actively rise to the challenge. It was fun, it was educational and it will be repeated very soon. Now the real training begins as the analysis is complete and the program will take me forwards for future goals.