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News Archive 07

Good News - Bad

Repetitive strain injury can be a problem, an example of this is discussed in this weeks article - Groin Strain - however with the use of a comprehensive yoga exercise as explained in our 'spinal yoga exercises' this problem can be alleviated

Client Archive

I recently purchased the Bodydoctor training regime after reading about the amazing results obtained by one of your testers in the Style section. I regularly take 8 to 10 hours exercise per week in the gym using the machines, but have not been totally satisfied with the results, mainly as a result of a lack of suppleness.

I am now in the second week of using Bodydocotor and am quite amazing with the results after only four sessions.

It's certainly much harder than my former regime, despite the fact that I have to use lighter weights. I have noticed already a loosening up my body, which was not there before. When I have completed the six-week suggested trial session I will advise on the results. Thank you for bringing this excellent training system to my notice.

Yours Faithfully, John H Rhodes

G is for Groin Pain

Any pain in the groin should be thoroughly checked by a doctor, as there are several possible causes. A possibility for the cause of pain in the groin is excessive running on hard surfaces with poorly cushioned shoes - a likely cause of stress fracture in one of the pubic bones. Repetitive stress in running or cycling can also cause inflammation of the front of the pubis (osteitis pubis), which occurs more commonly in male athletes aged thirty to forty. (click here to rest of article) Unless you have very weak bones from osteoporosis, however, it is unlikely that you would get a groin strain from exercise walking. An inguinal hernia is one other possibility with groin pain, but this would also be accompanied by a bulge in the lower abdomen.

Inflammation of the Pubic Bone (Osteitis Pubis)
Repetitive stress from running and cycling can cause pain at the junction of the two pubic bones in your groin. When the pelvis rotates and shifts in a seesaw motion from running or pedalling, the joint is slightly separated and the cartilage can become inflamed and roughened. Football players are at risk for osteitis pubis because of the accumulated stresses of kicking the football. Sometimes the joint is damaged in a sudden fall with the legs stretched wide apart at the same time pressure is applied - as in a tackle.

Pain from osteitis pubis may come on gradually, starting as an ache. Race walkers are particularly prone to this injury because of the repetitive leg movements. Runners who over stride may also pull this joint. A severe case of over-training usually happens only with high-calibre athletes with a long history of running and racing. Osteitis pubis may sideline them from competition from one to two years. With a severe trauma, such as falling off a motorcycle, the pain can be quite severe. Sit-ups would aggravate this condition, as would any abdominal strain or violent hip movement. The pain tends to radiate out into the hip, and there may be some swelling. To treat osteitis pubis, begin with ice or heat to relieve pain, whatever feels better. See your doctor as soon as possible to begin treatment. Have x-rays to rule out arthritis, rheumatism or gout. Don't take part in activities if they cause you pain. For pain, bruising and swelling, take one of the homeopathic remedies below in doses of two to four pills (6x - 30c) every four hours for twenty-four hours.

Arnica if there is a sore, bruised achy feeling; a cold pack may help numb the pain; Bellis if a heating pad feels better than a cold pack; Sulphuric acid if Arnica doesn't work within six hours; Bryonia if you cannot bear to have the pubis touched, but pressure makes it feel better; Ledum if pubic area feels cool at he touch and feels better with a cold pack; injured area may also feel warm; Lymphomyosot if very swollen. Take ten drops twice a day.

During recovery take one of the following remedies in potencies of 6,12, 30 or 200c once a day for three to four days: Rhus Tox - if you are very stiff and sore first thing in the morning or after sitting or lying down; if you feel better with continued movement or better with light massage; if your pain is worse with a cold pack, and better with warmth; if you feel restless, continually moving around to get comfortable. Take Ruta Grav - if you feel better with rest; if you feel stiff, sore, bruised and achy; if your groin feels better with heat; if you feel moody and fretful about the injury; if you are weak, tired and cranky after lots of activity or movement; if there are torn ligaments. You may also benefit from hydrotherapy and contrast baths. Mild yoga stretching exercises will be very helpful after healing has been established for a couple of weeks. Swimming and stationary cycling may be all right to help maintain aerobic fitness. Avoid running or walking fast.

Groin Strain
A groin strain is different than osteitis pubis because the damage involves muscles, ligaments and tendons, instead of cartilage. The gro0in can be strained from a severe over-stretching in a single sudden injury, or from an accumulation of stress. You may have been running on wet and slippery ground or slipped on a patch of ice and forcibly contracted you groin muscles to stop yourself from falling. Athletes who play football or who compete in track and field events can pull a groin muscle. Sprinters, as well as marathon runners are also at risk from groin strain.

A groin strain injury causes large or small tears to the fibres of the muscles or tendons, as well as stress to the bony tissue of the pelvic ring and pubis. The pain may be sharp or dull, localized or diffuse. It may radiate into the hip and back.

For immediate relief of the pain of groin strain, apply ice packs or heating pads, whichever feels better. Stop activities, which cause pain and see your doctor to rule out stress fracture or arthritis. For the shock of injury take Arnica - two to four pills for up to six hours. For pain, bruising and swelling, take the same homeopathic remedies listed above for osteitis pubis. For stiffness, take Rhus Tox or Ruta Grav; refer to osteitis pubis for details on these remedies.

Use ice whirlpool together with electro-galvanic stimulation or Ultrasound therapy for physical therapy. Anti-inflammatory medicines should be used sparingly, and should not be used to mask pain in order to continue painful activities. Start exercising only on the advise of your doctor.

Science of exercise

Osteopaths are preoccupied with biomechanics. Movement is analysed via a close examination of joint contours, muscle leverages and force calculations. One of the models used is that of a rod that is bent in specific directions. Imagine a flexible rod that is bent to the side (side-bending) and also bent to the front (flexion). Combining side bending with flexion produces a rotational force, i.e. a helical twist, at the intersection of the two bends.

I call this tendency to twist the helical contractile field. The word helix is chosen over the word spiral, as spirals are two-dimensional whilst helixes are three-dimensional. Until recently dissective studies have, I think, wrongly emphases the separation of the left and right body wall musculature. All the external muscles are bilaterally symmetrical. As red muscle tissue does not cross the mid-line (apart from the circular lip and anal muscles) anatomists have been slow to fully appreciate the extent of the integration of the left and right sides into a cohesive whole.

Whilst red muscle tissue does not cross the midline, called the linea alba on the abdomen, the white tendinous extensions of red fibre, the tendons, do. On a microscopic level tendons interdigitate across the midline. Forces that bear down obliquely on the mid-line project that force across the mid-line to hook up with muscles on the other side to form helical arrangements of muscle. For example the external oblique on the right side of the body has the red muscular fibres orientated upwards and outwards. Imagine you are standing in a superman pose with your arms skywards and 90 degrees apart.

The external oblique runs from your belly up towards your arms. Also the external intercostals, the outermost of the 3 layers of the rib muscles follow this direction. (In fact, embryologically, this is the same muscle as the external oblique of the abdomen, but separated by the in growth of the ribs from the spine.) Then, on the other side of the body the internal oblique and the internal intercostals are orientated in the same oblique fibre direction. Our body wall is enwrapped in a dual helix of muscle.

Phillip Beach D.O. D.Ac

Wormwood - A tried and true friend for over 4,000 years

The Greeks knew it as a classic medicine, and the Romans prescribed it. And Paracelsus (to mention one medieval celebrity) testified to its efficacy. The seventeenth century physicians of France used it as a stomach remedy in cases of appetite loss, debilitation of gastro-intestinal functions, and as a stimulant of the liver and gallbladder secretions because of the bitter compound contained in its etheric oils.

Every so often, wormwood comes under attack from government bodies because of its apparent content of thujon, a substance said to cause hallucinations. You may rest assured that thujon presents absolutely no problem with fresh pressed cellular juices or with herbal teas. Thujon is alcohol-soluble only and needs to be taken in enormously large quantities to cause any adverse reaction.

The benefits of wormwood stem from its high concentration of bitters. Empirical evidence has established wormwood as a valuable medicinal herb that has been used for centuries.

It has also long been established that the taste of fresh wormwood juice is much superior to that of tea. The juice generally promotes gastric function, especially in cases of hyper- and hypo-acidity, heartburn, lack of appetite, stomach upsets, flatulence and gastric-intestinal mucus inflammation.

Bad breath, headache, dysentery and formation of gas will also be beneficially influenced.

Wormwood juice combined with silverweed juice acts favourably on inflammatory-catarrhal complaints of the gastro-intestinal tract. In cases of colic or lazy colon, alternate wormwood juice with dandelion and black radish juice.

Life&style
Week three..tight Lycra, taut thighs

Evening Standard 28th September 1999

I think I might become a bit of a bore. You see, I think I'm beginning to enjoy working out. Well, perhaps not enjoy it exactly, but I'm certainly showing off. I've even started to snigger at Mr. Motivator's morning pansy workouts on the telly and the fat phone-ins on Vanessa. Not only do I now know the names of all the muscles in my body; I have developed an interest in Lycra. But, perhaps most worrying of all, for those who once called themselves my friends, is the fact that I'm starting to wear the most extraordinary clothes. Basking in the glory of David Marshall's results (four inches off my waist, two off each thigh, and an unfortunately looser bra) I can fit into my old wardrobe again, including short skirts and a red pinched-waist number I have not been able to squeeze into for five years. Even the skin-tight rubber trousers I split up the bum (rapidly repaired) have had an outing. It's all very encouraging. But if I'm being honest, it wasn't until I got back from Glasgow with a hangover that I understood the true joy of the Stairmaster. Walking into the Bodydoctor's studio, I started to climb. Fifty-two floors, 250 sit-ups, 50 leg lifts, 25 arm hammers, a row to Putney Bridge and a quick walk and I was feeling so much better. I even contemplated a vodka.

Pounds lost: seven (wow!)
Cheats: weekend in Glasgow (I emptied the mini-bar).
Marshall's Internet site is www.bodydoctorfitness.com, or phone 0171 625 6222. Sessions cost £60.

Imogen Edwards-Jones

Life&style
Week four: I've lost nine pounds

Evening Standard 5th October 1999

My god this working out thing is going well. I very nearly contemplated a thong. With my brand-new buttocks of steel. I suddenly found myself walking straight past the up-to-the-navel-with-support-gut pants section in M&S lingerie department to the thong area. But somehow I managed to resist. I've now graduated from the Stairmaster to a cross-aerobic devise that's like doing high hurdles on your back. It' terribly complicated but apparently gives you a behind like Claudia Schiffer. "No gym" according to the Bodydoctor, David Marshall, "is complete without one". Actually David's using his motivational maxims a bit less. I haven't heard, "Do it for the children you don't yet have," for at least a week. Maybe it's because I have become one of those vile gym addicts who smugly pump away in the corner, watching the new boy sweat and suffer. The best thing, however, about losing four inches from around your waist and two off each of your thighs is that your friends start to notice. One male friend said I looked like Pamela Anderson, but I'm sure that was the nicest blonde he could think of at such short notice. Another acquaintance announced I was "much fatter last year". With so much encouragement it would have been churlish not to carry on David's good work while I spent a week away in Russia. This, though, was easier said than done. No gym, no swimming pool, no machines of any kind. These is surely no sorrier sight than a rather drunk female attempting sit-ups on her bedroom floor at three in the morning.

Pounds lost: nine
Cheats: More Georgian champagne than necessary. Lots of Vodka chasers, and crisps. For exercise and diet sheet, contact the Bodydoctor, 0171 625 6222.

Imogen Edwards-Jones

Life&style
Six weeks later and a whole stone lighter

Evening Standard 19 October 1999

IMOGEN'S LOSS
Pounds lost: 14
Body Fat lost: 8% (38% to 30%)
Inches lost: 5 (waist) 3 (thigh) 1 (upper arm)
Dress size: 12 (from 14)
Total cost: £1,440(£60 a session four times a week for six weeks)

Four days a week, for the last six weeks, I've been sweating like a go-go dancer. I've run my way round Hampstead Heath, rowed the equivalent of the Oxford and Cambridge boat race, and walked to Hackney and back (from Notting Hill) without the aid of a Zimmer frame. And the big question? Has all this working out with the Bodydoctor, David Marshall, personal trainer to the stars, been worth it? No, say my friends (the few I still have left): exercise junkie equals exercise bore. Me: "I can now do 350 sit-ups in one go and David Beckham crunches." Them: "what's she going to talk about when it's all over?" and "She was a lot more interesting when she was fatter...." I may not be interesting but I'm certainly smug. There is nothing more satisfying than the thrill of trouser legs that move (twist even!) because you've lost just over three inches off each thigh. Not only do my old clothes fit - some with room to spare - but because I've also lost five inches off my waist and nearly an inch off my arms, suddenly the idea of going shopping has become so much more appealing. Relegated to the plumper person's floor of the department store, retail therapy previously had the effect of Chinese torture - slowly eating away at my self-esteem to the point that I only ever bought shoes (feet don't get fat) or went to Harvey Nicks to browse in the food hall. But now I'm a size 12 again, I can actually fit into Dolce and Gabbana. Losing a stone in six weeks is not exactly a breeze. I've cried - hated going/hated not going - and turned up exuding all the charm and sophistication of a moody hormonal adolescent at the Bodydoctor's. I've nodded with a fixed half-smile, while David bangs on and on about how much he wants to sort out the West Ham football team. In fact I've listened to him - "working with your body not against it", "drink lots of water", "you must look after your neck", "work both sides the same" - endlessly. I know all about heart rates, fat (what it is and why we are), how one muscle works with another, how much he likes Cheesy Wotsits, and about not straining the parts you didn't know you had. I did have one appalling injury, but I have to admit it was self-inflicted (fell off my heels, um, drunk). But the most irritating thing about David Marshall is not his chat; it's the fact that he's so damn motivated. Just when things are getting really bad and you've sworn more than is socially acceptable even in a traffic jam, he suddenly comes out with: "Do it with a good heart, or not at all." And all I want to do is perform some Gallagher Brothers semaphore and leave the building. But I haven't, and won't, because the awful thing is - and I haven't told my friends yet - I'm staying with his programme until Christmas. Who knows what I'll look like by then.

Imogen Edwards-Jones