Justin G. Walls, Certified Personal Athletic Trainer

Putting the right foot forward Starting off on the wrong one can make you trip Ok, Enough with the puns. My favorite spring pastime, besides baseball, is observing the new runners out there. Yes, you have seen them too: You see, there are four really important parts to running: Posture - good spine control while running is important Cadence - how often and at what frequency you strike the ground Midfoot - too much heel is bad for your back, too much toe is prancing! Lean - proper placement of center of gravity Not everyone has the proper form for running, but believes it is an easy and economical way to lose weight. But it's not when done incorrectly. It can become a huge expense and burden on ones time to heal from running injuries. The number of injuries per 1000 people is pretty low, but the chronic injuries can reoccur  in a half to two thirds of runners reporting injuries. Runners World had a pretty comprehensive article on many of the injuries that can oc...

The Best Thing About Five Minute Workouts... ...Is That You Can Do As Many Rounds As You Want! Exercise #1 Body Saw You'll need a little bit of equipment for this, like  Glidders  or any furniture mover, or even just a towel if you are on hardwood. Start off in a solid plank position ( I discussed good form for planks in an earlier post ). Extend your forearms forward to slide backwards and tuck your hips under you so as not to squeeze your low back for balance. You abs and lats should start to become more active and you should bring your shoulder blades to the front of your body as you extend the arms to engage your lats even further. Pay particular attention to how his shoulder blades come forward to stabilize the body. Proceed through this exercise slowly for :30 seconds Exercise #2 Opposite Side Toe Touches From the plank position, raise up into a straight arm plank. Swing your left leg under your body as straight as possible until you can touch your l...

This week was the more official opening day of major league baseball, which used to not happen until April 1 for about a century. In honor of the historic opening day, I've put together a workout for those of you who play or would like to play baseball or softball. Power and Explosion instead of Endurance and Strength When thinking of baseball, the first thing that should come to mind is that everyone is just standing there and then need to jump into action! Here's a few exercises to put some spring in your step for baseball or softball Lateral Ladder Drills:  Working on lateral movements is really important because not everything in this game comes right at you. For this workout, if you have a ladder, then use it like you see in the video. If you don't have a ladder, you can still do this. Take ten lateral steps leading with your left (or until you finish the ladder) and then turn and straight sprint 15 yards. Repeat leading with your right, finishing wit...

Another Washington DC Snow Storm Have You At Home? Get in a fast leg workout before shoveling snow! You can try to do four rounds of the following: 5 Reverse Sliding Lunge on each Leg This video has them using a towel to slide the leg backwards, but you can order a set of Gliders for carpet or hardwood for about $15. 5 Pistol Squats on each Leg Starting from :45 is the tutorial on how to stand up on one leg from a chair, but feel free to go through as many p[progressions as you feel comfortable. 10 Box Squats or Squat to BOSU Dome  The box squat can be done on a bench, couch, or whatever you can find around the house. The Squat to BOSU Dome is an excellent progression that really works your abs and hip flexors more than the the box squat. You can learn more about the BOSU Balance Trainer here   Stay Warm and Stay Active! Spring Is Just around the Corner...

I usually take a "bottom-up" approach to assessment, which means that we look at the full kinetic chain from your foot's contact with the floor and then work up to the top. Today, we are just considering a painful spot that can develop on the outside of either leg near the knee. There is a tendon that runs along the outside of our legs, starting at the hip near the hip flexor muscles and runs down along the thigh right next to the knee and close to your hamstring muscle. This tendon is called Illiotobial band or IT Band for short. The IT Band is a tendon, not a muscle, so its job is to stabilize the knee either when extended or flexed, depending on trunk position. Basically understood, it keeps you stable while walking, jogging or running. theragrid.com A common source of discomfort related to inflammation of the IT Band is felt either at the hip or on the outside of the knee. One thing I have learned from professionals about IT Band rehabilitation is that there rea...

It's Not Just For Your Home Here's a few simple changes you can make starting tomorrow Thanks to the wonderful snowstorm today, I've had the opportunity to make over my blog to better serve you guys. So it got me thinking: what are a few things I could do better for you, and, more globally, what are things we could do better for ourselves as spring hopefully approaches (swiftly!) Firstly: I've added a page where you can go look at all of these products I mention on this blog. You can check it out here . This way, when I add a new workout for a BOSU or recommend a foam rolling position, you can just go look at one and then order it if you'd like. Secondly, I've simplified the layout so it's easier to find my older posts Finally, I've added an easy way to sign up via email. It was impossible to locate before. We will lose the sleek and dynamic layout in favor of functionality for now. And now- on to a few quick tips to get read...

What's Trending This Week In Fitness? Because another Polar Vortex is crushing the east coast again! Testosterone Warnings Becoming A Reality Public Advocacy Group Asks FDA For Warning About Heart Attacks here  and  here Other Hormonal Factors Could Contribute To Low Energy and Low Libido  here Concern's Raised About Testosterone Replacement Therapy  here Workout Motivations In Bad Weather Simple, At-Home Workouts In Bad Weather  here Music Is a Great Workout Buddy  here Fast Five Minute Workout!  here 15 Minute Arm Crushing Workout  here Some Winter Meal Suggestions, Get Ready For Spring 10 Winter Comfort Food Meals, Fast And Easy  here Simple Quinoa Recipes  here Mix It Up With Some Great Lentil Recipes (lots of Protein!) here