PROSPER Performance & Physical Therapy

 HOW IMPORTANT ARE GOOD ORTHOTICS?  "I could close my eyes and tell by THE WAY MY FOOT FELT where the pitch was going to go" - Orel Hershiser, MLB pitching legend I wanted to jump up and hug him! Not because he was the pitcher I grew up admiring the most and had just flown across the country to meet. But, because of what he said. I had been stressing the importance of foot sensation to my pitching clients for years. Often to be looked at as if I had 4 heads. "But, what about my ARM? What about my CORE? What about my HIPS?" Many athletes can't get past the idea of strength, range of motion & mechanics. They struggle to conceive the idea that what you sense from the ground is what affects the hips, core and arm. It all starts there. In fact, it was so important to Orel that he adapted his cleats (with or without permission from his trainer & coach 🤷‍♀️) in order to feel the rubber in a precise spot in his foot. It's not just in pitching, folks. ...

HOW TO KNOW A SHOE IS RIGHT FOR YOU  How do you pick your new shoes? 👟 They look cute 👟 They are in the "category" I was told I need 👟 They are on sale 👟 They are the ones I've always had The absolutely most important thing your shoes should do for you is help you to sense the ground at the places most crucial to securing balance & triggering weight shift. 1) Heel (PS look up, not at the ground to get more of this) 2) Arch (yep, rolling into your arch is GOOD... it just shouldn't be excessive and the arch of the shoe should fill the space) 3) Big Toe (At the ball and the pad. This is absolutely necessary for proper push-odd. Many people/shoes create push off at the outer toes instead) For Extra Credit... How well can you squat? With ribs back, tail tucked, heels down & knees forward? This is another solid indicator that you are sensing the ground well & not "locked up" by your feet. Yes I do these tests in the running stor...

 HOW MUCH WATER SHOULD I DRINK?  There are some subtle and less known signs that your body is underhydrated... check them out! Considering our bodies are 60% + water, the recommended intake is about 50% of your body weight (lbs) in ounces. So, for a 120lb person... goal is 60oz daily. A 200 lbs person ... goal in 100oz daily. It's more than just preventing DEhydration and more about OPTIMIZING your body's health. Don't wait until you're thirsty... treat your water intake like a supplement. Drink it purposefully and on a routine. Live Abundantly. 💗, Kristen

  ARE YOUR LUNGS VULNERABLE? There are 3 areas of the lungs that tend to be the most vulnerable to congestion and stagnation. You may have clues to where your restrictions are! UPPER LOBES - Most people don’t realize how high up our lungs actually go. They come clear up behind the collarbone and peak just above it. The advice to “not breathe into your chest” & the fact that they narrow to a “point” up there makes it a rare place to fill. LOWER, BACK RIBS - Most of us don’t realize we even have lung tissue that expands toward the back. The constant pressure of chairs, the advice to belly breathe & keep our backs flat, and the fact that those areas require a maximum inhale to reach makes them quite neglected & stagnant. It is important to note that this is where some studies have found the most incidence of Covid Pneumonia. Likely bc this is where an abundance of ACE-2 receptors are located… RIGHT LOBES - We are really good at exhaling with the right diaphragm… and n...

HOW ARE AIRWAY & POSTURE RELATED? When we think of "airway, we think of life-and-death situations and sleep apnea.  But, there is so much more to our ability to pull air into our lungs freely and evenly and to expel carbon dioxide.  Our alignment and muscle tone play a pivotal role in our ability to maintain a symmetrical, un-restricted airflow.  You see, the respiratory system is a bo dy-wide, interconnected and closed system. There are often clues our body is giving us that there is a restriction somewhere to free, full airflow. Often times, the restrictions are located quite a distance from our nose and mouth! Key Points First of all, it is not common knowledge, but we actually have 4 diaphragms (some even say 5) that all influence each other.  They act as one closed, pressurized system.  If there is an issue with the function of one of the diaphragms, it will influence the others. Another key concept is that our main diaphra...