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DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) and how to beat it

Recent research in the last few years[1] [2] suggests that a large component of DOMS is not from damage to the muscle fibres (as is commonly thought), but more from an over-activation of your central nervous system (CNS) when it is not used to so much activity. It basically gets upset at you for making…

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My fitness goals, and the improvement mindset

Having an improvement mindset means enjoying that idea that there is always more to improve. To illustrate this, I’ll talk mainly about my health goals. It has been said that “if you’ve got your health, you’ve got everything.” Plus what we know from research is that when people become more fit and healthy it tends…

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Can a massage help you do the splits?

There are many unanswered questions in the universe. How many decimal places are there in Pi? Is there a unified theory of physics? How does a shepherd count his flock without falling asleep? It’s possible we’ll never know. Some questions, however, can be answered. For example, if a therapeutic massage is meant to lengthen and…

Why you should never stretch your rhomboids (unless you’re in the army)

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKWraWYkr9o Reciprocal inhibition is a muscle reflex that sends an inhibitory motor nerve signal to the muscles opposite those contracting. So, if your chest muscles are short (as they are when your shoulders are rolled around to the front, which is guaranteed if you drive a desk every day), then your upper back muscles (rhomboids,…

Why is back pain so common?
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Why is back pain so common?

The facts of back pain: Back pain is especially common in the developed countries – and it seems that the more developed the country, the more back pain there is.[1][2][3] The World Health Organisation (WHO) reported 2021 that low back pain was the most physically disabling condition in the world, so if you have low back…

Why Coordination Is More Important Than Strength
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Why Coordination Is More Important Than Strength

I love working with bodies. They’re amazing. We are evolved to be as efficient as possible at all times, and strength, power and endurance are no different. That’s me, three days ago, on my fourth set of three 50 kg close-grip bench press. It was only on the fifth and final set that I struggled. Up until…