A Friendly Nudge - Build Capacity Instead of Fear
...because we all could use a little encouragement!
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Not surprisingly, not everyone agrees with my approach to exercise and mobility. Any video where my knees look like they might potentially venture past my toes always elicits quite a few warnings about how dangerous that is and I even had someone suggest that I was endangering seniors. I didn’t know how to break it to them that I’m a card carrying AARP member myself.
I don’t want seniors or anyone for that matter to hurt themselves with exercise. It’s one of the reasons that I repeatedly recommend getting checked out by your physician if you’re new to exercise and why I refer people to their doctors or physical therapists when they start asking for recommendations about a particular illness or condition. I’m not a medical professional and I’m not qualified to give medical advice.
I am a fan of Ben Patrick’s Knees Over Toes work. Not because I think that moving your knees over your toes is going to magically bulletproof your knees but because the popularity and visibility of his message has led to a more spirited discussion about knee pain and how to safely build increased load tolerance and resiliency in the muscles and connective tissues that support the knee. Anyone who has ever walked down a flight of stairs or gotten out of a chair has had their knees go past their toes. It’s just part of how we move.
It’s critical that we help people, regardless of their age or current level of fitness, discover a safe way to start moving more and building greater strength and resiliency. If something’s painful, that’s a pretty good indicator that we need to take a different approach.
My physical therapist was the one that pointed out where my knees would be in relation to my toes walking down steps, moving into a deep squat, sprinting or doing something more sedate like getting out of a chair. His suggestion was if I wanted to guard against injury then the best way to do that is to gradually build strength and capacity across broad ranges of motion instead of just narrow ones.
Like I said earlier, I’m not a doc or therapist so I’m always going to suggest that you follow any guidelines or limits they yours suggests. And if something is painful or doesn’t feel safe or appropriate, please don’t do it.
I think it’s helpful if we approach appropriateness and safety on capacity. What is doable and challenging today will become too easy in the future if we continue to progressively challenge our body to get stronger.
Now let's expose our tastebuds and palates to some deliciousness that might be a new flavor territory–Kimchi and Collards.
If you’re not familiar with Chef Edward Lee, he’s a James Beard award winning author, restaurateur and Emmy nominated participant in David Chang’s Netflix series, Mind of a Chef.
I know not everyone is going to be down for this food experiment, but I’d encourage you to do yourself a favor and give it a chance. The kimchi adds a great pop of acidity and a little funk and personality.
Ingredients:
1 bunch Collards - stems removed & leaves chopped
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp bacon grease
2 shallots - sliced thin
6 oz prosciutto - sliced thin
2 tsp soy or tamari sauce
Chicken stock - enough to cover the bottom of the pot to about 1”
1 ½ cups Kimchi
1 ½ tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
Melt the butter and bacon fat in a large heavy bottomed pot and then add the sliced shallots, stir and avoid burning. Add the prosciutto, stir and cook for one minute.
Add the chopped collards and stir to combine. Then add the soy or tamari and enough chicken stock to have about an inch or so to the bottom of the pot, turn the heat down to medium, cover the pot and let it simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Check it for your level of desired doneness, I like the collards to still have a little chew and then add the apple cider vinegar and kimchi.
This is great as a side dish, but our first meal with this was to add some brown rice and leftover salmon for a delicious salmon bowl.
Enjoy!
I enjoy trying new flavor combinations to keep it interesting and I think the same thing applies to exercise. Let’s give our muscles something to do with some exercise snacks.