I was a tad sore from yesterday’s Qi Gong massage but wow! what a difference it made. My lower back is still stiff and my legs need more help but my knees are better and my shoulders are also happier. I will try to get back on Friday.
I am posting the second part to yesterday’s Qi Gong massage video by andrewn2healthplitt. I found these simple steps very relaxing and hope you do too.
I think that I am building up a bit more stamina for the cardio rounds with the punching bag. At least that is what I am telling myself. 😉
John had me go through a series of free weight exercise using the stability ball. Unfortunately for me, John believes that should I push myself so I found myself doing rows and curls with 30 lb weights. LOL My shoulder decided to rebel afterwards so my weekend included trigger point massage.
Here’s a link to a nice write-up on trigger point therapy/massage titled: Self-Treatment for Chronic Neck Pain, Stiff Neck, Pinched Nerve in the Neck, Crick in the Neck, Relief for Neck Ache, Sore Neck, Neck Arthritis
I thought I should say that John Salgado is my trainer and has been with me for years. John is great– he never yells at me but always pushes me past my whining. 🙂
John is a professional MMA Fighter and runs Inner G Training in New York. He also trains other professional MMA fighters. I’ve never attended any of his actual classes [let’s face it, I don’t like group activities] but they look impressive. We tend to do strength exercises using the Tabata method and then some cardio kickboxing with pads and punching bags. I’m guessing that my workouts most closely resemble his Cardio Combat classes but I ‘ve never asked him. Our cool downs focus on QiGong. [I’ve included links to some QiGong videos and exercises you can try on my Weight Loss and Nutrition Guidance/Exercises page.] All together, it makes for a high calorie workout.
John always recommends rolling my legs out with a foam roller to help alleviate my knee issues.
Qigong is an ancient Eastern practice of whole-body healing, accomplished by way of postures, movement, and breathing rituals intended to release the bodies flow of chi. The Livestrong.com site has some QiGong exercises you can try. Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/19110-qigong-breathing-exercises/
My husband and I walked a bit in the park today [he went to the gym without me as my knees are still achy.] My issue for the day relates to sore forearms from my kickboxing work out on Thursday afternoon.
I haven’t done a kickboxing session since the end of March when I hurt my hand and began a serious bout of traveling! While it was great fun to be back [and a serious surprise that I was still conscious at the end of the hour] I have been incredibly sore. My shoulders and forearms have not recovered from my trainer’s tabata rounds of push up and pull up exercises.
All the podcasts I’ve listened to so far agree that strength exercises are best. Of course they also agree that 90 percent of weight loss is determined by diet and nutrition rather than exercise. I am easing my way into better nutrition. As I mentioned previously, I will start by avoiding high fructose corn syrup. 🙂 That’s harder than you’d think as we are attending a Staten Island Yankees game with All-You-Can-Eat tickets.
In the interim, I have just ordered Clair Davies’ The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook: Your Self-Treatment Guide for Pain Relief, Second Edition from Amazon.com. 
I hope that I can begin to work on getting the kinks out of my legs and arms without having to go to a massage therapist. I decided to use a small racquetball rather than purchasing any massage equipment; the foot log that I purchased a while ago may also come in handy.
I found an article online called Trigger Point Massage. Simple Self-Help for Chronic Pain by Christian Lemburg, that seems to cover the basic points.
Trigger Point Rules
1. Trigger points are small, localized muscle cramps that feel like hard lumps or knots in your muscles.
2. Trigger points arise at predictable places in the muscle and cause predictable patterns of referred pain.
3. Trigger points hurt like hell when pressed, and referred pain may be felt, according to the characteristic pattern for that trigger point.
4. Trigger points can be treated by massage.
5. Massage with short, slow strokes in one direction, applying deep pressure.
6. When massaging, use your elbow, your knee, your knuckles, or a ball instead of your fingers. Use a ball between your body and a wall or the floor to reach hard spots.
Read the entire article: http://www.crossfit.com/journal/library/37_05_trigger_points.pdf