MovementU's Spring Tour is in full swing. This past weekend we were creating speed, sustainability and smiles for a great crew in Colorado (below.) MovementU hits New Jersey on March 24th, Boston April 1st and Chicago April 14th. Join us!! www.movementu.com
MovementU
19 March 2012
27 December 2011
Zen Triathlon Base Camp 2012!!
For the second year MovementU and I are invading the Zen Triathlon Base Camp. Four full days of feel-great nutrition, movement, swimming, cycling and running instruction in sunny Southern California. In this case BASE does not mean miles and miles and miles; it means KNOWLEDGE. And as we all know, knowledge is power.
Daily MovementU sessions, grocery store shopping, homemade meals with a purpose, bike fitting, running form and ocean swimming sessions, video analysis, cycling and running hill climb challenges and more. Check out the jam packed awesome agenda HERE. There's nothing else like it.
My favorite quote from a participant last year, said with a grin:
Thank you for teaching me what
I did not know I needed to know.
Come! Your mind and body will thank you for it.
All details and registration HERE.
Also leading the charge...
Mike Ricci - Level 3 USAT Coach - D3 Multisport
Christine Lynch - Live and Eat Better - Holistic Health
John Hirsch - Professional Triathlete + Coach
Rich Roll - Ultra Endurance Athlete + Plant-based Nutrition Advocate
and Mr. Zen Triathlon himself: Brett Blankner
Questions? Please ask. Love to see you there!
Wishing you a happy, healthy, best ever start to your new year!!
Move well.
04 November 2011
MovementU Personalized Consulting via Skype Video
One-on-one sessions are a very time efficient and powerful way to discuss one's personal performance and tailor solutions designed to create positive change quickly. As it's not always possible to meet in person, Skype video is a great option.
Jessi offers performance consulting sessions via Skype video. Skype video is free but requires a computer with video camera and microphone enabled, Skype software downloaded and an account created.
Cost: $60 for 60-minute session + $80 for a 90-minute session
Packages available for those interested in ongoing sessions.
You'll receive a questionnaire with a few questions to answer prior to the session so time is maximized during the session. Discussion will be limited to topics related to multisport endurance performance including but not limited to:
- Movement-based training strategies
- Multisport performance programming
- Specific movement dysfunctions
- Sport-specific technique (swim, bike, run)
Click below to purchase. You'll receive a confirmation email to confirm a date and time that works for you.
Through MovementU, Jessi has had the opportunity to offer movement-based training strategies for speed, power and injury resistance to multisport athletes, coaches and health professionals including physical therapists, athletic trainers, massage therapists and chiropractors.
For additional information email Jessi HERE.
18 July 2011
Performance Basics for Wounded Warriors DVD
Introducing MovementU's first DVD, Performance Basics for Wounded Warriors. Inspired by the warrior athletes training for the Warrior Games, Performance Basics for Wounded Warriors is the only comprehensive educational resource geared directly toward reconditioning the warrior athlete. It provides mental and physical reconditioning strategies necessary for training the body and mind for maximum performance in life and sport. Although focused on wounded warriors, these strategies can be applied to all those aiming to realize their full performance potential. Check out the trailer!
LISTEN as fellow wounded warriors describe their own journeys back to excellence and the strategies they implemented along the way.
UNDERSTAND the integrated relationship between mental and physical reconditioning as former Navy Seal Dr. Joe Martin discusses his "Triangle Concept."
LEARN basic nutritional guidelines along with physical reconditioning strategies for decreasing injury potential and maximizing performance potential. Exercises and movements are included for many body types and challenges with specific references to limb loss, paralysis, traumatic brain injury, the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder, cancer, stroke, visual impairment and more. Basic performance principles are also applied directly to the sports included in the Warrior Games.
IMPLEMENT the included strategies immediately into a new or existing training program.
Produced in conjunction with Trigger Point Performance Productions.
Huge thanks to the following service men and women featured in the DVD: Garrick Rard, Martha Barnett, Steven Peace, Chuck Sketch, Ariel Bell, Daphne Wright, Nico Marcolongo and Oscar "Oz" Sanchez.
Joining professional triathlete and movement specialist, Jessi Stensland within the chapters of the DVD are performance specialist Darcy Norman, PT, ATC, CSCS, Jill Whisler, RD and former Navy Seal and head of military education for TRX, Dr. Joe Martin.
$29.95
+ shipping and handling
08 June 2011
Movement Prep: Pre-Season and Pre-Ride
Latest article written for CycleOps. Featured in their newsletter this week. Click here to read the article in its entirety.
Athletes must move. How efficiently and how powerfully one moves is often the difference between being injured and being injury-free; winning and losing; thriving or surviving in sport and in life.
“Movement preparation, as the term implies, prepares your body to move,” explains Core Performance in “The Beginners Guide to Movement Prep.”
Movement preparation may still be a long way off from being as commonly referred to as the terms sleep, nutrition or recovery when it comes to maximizing endurance performance; however, this relatively new kid on the block is bound to become popular as the necessity for time-efficiency and precision in endurance performance continues to rise. It certainly packs both punches.
07 June 2011
06 March 2011
NEXT STOP: NEW JERSEY!!
I'm a Jersey Girl - born and raised. Always a treat to head back for work or play. Can't wait to see my two precious neices AND bring MovementU to two excellent events!! Want in on the action? Join me at one! See below for details.
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Saturday March 12, 2011 // 8am to 5pm // Freehold, NJ
3rd Annual Sport Medicine and Coaching Symposium
It's a full day of interactive education including swimming, cycling, running analysis along with an expo and lectures for all levels of multisport athletes and coaches. All proceeds generated from the symposium will go the I Will Foundation and Stomp the Monster Foundation for cancer research.
I will be presenting two lectures:
- Running Movement Simplified. How to train to maintain it.
- Creating injury resistance and efficiency in endurance performance
MovementU will also have a table within the expo and be available all day for discussion. Stop by for demonstrations of Movement Preparation, Mini-Bands and Trigger Point Performance Therapy.
Cost: $99
Details and registration are HERE. Facebook page for the event is HERE.
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Sunday March 13, 2011 // 8am to 5pm // Freehold, NJ
MovementU's: Swim Bike Run
Injury Resistance, Movement Efficiency and Power
Don't miss this world-class multisport movement experience. MovementU offers the only interactive educational experience focused on providing smart strategies for creating, maximizing and maintaining injury resistance, movement efficiency and power in swimming, cycling and running performance. Class materials and homemade, mostly organic meals provided for each participant.
Cost: $199
Details and registration HERE.
23 November 2010
Reflections on IMAZ...Regarding Movement
Spectated Ironman Arizona this past weekend. Big congrats to all participants. The day packed quite a weird weather pattern punch.
I caught only part of the bike course, but enough to see that the percentage of proper bike fits seemed way higher than I remember from the year before. Longer spines, shoulders and elbows at 90 degrees, less overall movement on the bike was apparent. Whether due in part to the growing popularity of the precision measuring tool of Retul, the more comprehensive bike fitting systems like Specialized's BG FIT System, or the picturesque form of Ironman Kona Bike Course crushers Chris Lieto (below left) and Chrissie Wellington (below right) setting a precedent, its working.
Also a great one of 2 x Ironman World Champion Chris McCormack:
The run however, was a different story. My twitter:
If athletes' abs/glutes were put 2 work as hard as their hearts/souls on #IMAZ run course, I'd predict more smiles, less pain + more power.
I started this blog post to explain what I meant by that - and was motivated further by an email I got from a friend:
"Do tell what you MEAN by this."
Well then - here goes:
ABDOMINALS and RUNNING:
Simply stated, strong abdominals serve to stabilize the pelvis and the spine in a neutral, healthy position allowing one to maintain a strong stable base of support from the hips to the head. Without this, the ability to control the movement of the arms and legs is minimized, and so is one's ability to produce power in movements. Running with abdominals that are not only strong, but able to stay engaged throughout the entire running motion every stride, over the entire race distance is paramount to pain-free powerful running. Yet amazingly it is still a distant thought, if its thought of at all, as a component of endurance performance. It is rarely noted, let alone maximized, in most endurance performance training programs.
GLUTE MUSCLES AND RUNNING:
The glutes are our strongest movers due to their proximity to our core (short lever arm.) They are built to be the driving force behind purposeful, powerful human movement like that which a proper running stride requires. They are designed to engage and co-contract with other muscles such as the abdominals and hamstrings in coordiated movements. In running, it is imperative that the glutes fully engage when in full weight bearing underneath the body, and then co-contract with the hamstring as the leg extends backward in order to propel the body forward powerfully. Powerful foot placement on the ground followed by powerful hip, knee and ankle extension, is what seems to be sorely, no pun intended, missing from running form amongst the masses these days and especially from the end of the race. Heel striking, shuffling and minimal hip flexion and extension are still the norm.
Here are a couple great examples of a powerful stride, not coincidentally two of the fastest runners at the Ironman distance:
Not surprisingly, Craig and Chrissie don't only look like this at the beginning of the marathon, but at the end as well. They are tall; their forward leg is in a great position that will allow for their midfoot to be directly under their body at full weight bearing. From that strong weight bearing position, they then are able to fully extend their back leg as is evident in the photos above. To do this, the abs must be working (and able) to keep their pelvis stable in a neutral position creating a stable/strong base that allows the glutes, hamstring and calf to extend the leg powerfully through the hip/knee/ankle in order to generate maximum power. Coordinating this movement serves to then launch the leg into the swing phase, setting it up for another powerful landing position.
The new question that should be asked is not about proper running form, but how to replicate it and do so for a long period of time. And...why are most people unable to do this, certainly by the end of the run?
My question to runners of any distance or speed would be: when have you trained your leg to extend fully? Powerfully? Often their answer is - they haven't.
There are many options to incorporate this into training in order that it may be accomplished on the run. None of these options are new - but few are understood as to their relevance to healthy movement, running in particular.
ABDOMINAL STRENGTH
But not independent of movement. Meaning, not only "ab/core" work but within coordinated movements, like a glute bridge, squat patterns, lunges, and deadlift patterns in which you must train the abs to keep the hips in neutral as you flex and extend the hips/knees/ankles in a strong, coordinated pattern, just like you need them to work within your running stride. Connect the dots.
GLUTE STRENGTH
As mentioned earlier - Glutes are our most powerful movers. They are the drivers of the extension of the hip, but they have other functions, one of which is to control the rotation of the femur at the hip. The ability to eliminate that rotation, and keep the hip/knee/ankle in alignment like a piston, instead of flopping around all over the place (often seen at the end of ironman - most noticeably - jiggle legs) is paramount to injury resistance and powerful strides in running. Activate, strengthen, stabilize with and use...your GLUTES. Examples of movements are, lucky for us (and not coincidentally,) the same as listed above - glute bridge, single and double leg squats, lunges, deadlifts - where the focus is always proper form. Few reps done right.
RUNNING DRILLS
It's one thing to do drills its another to do them with focus, precision and purpose. If you've ever done running drills while chit chatting or not understanding the exact reason you're doing them as it will relate to your run performance - you probably haven't been doing them as purposefully or efficiently as possible. Do them, and do them right.
DYNAMIC MOVEMENTS + ELASTICITY
Once you've got abdominal and glute strength - it's important to use them to coordinate your movements: parts of the whole which make up great running form. Incorporating movements like jumps, hops and bounds serve to enhance the elastic qualities of your muscles, help maximize neuromuscular control and coordinate the action of hip/knee/ankle flexion and extension. Especially with the goal of maximizing the extension in the leg drive portion of the running stride as mentioned above. There are any number of options and progressions in elastic movements - and once again the focus should be on form and few reps done right.
ULTIMATELY...
Lucky for us, it's not rocket science. What it comes down to is getting back to our roots. As Christopher McDougall entertainingly and unquestionably unearths in Born to Run, our body was born to run. Matt Metzgar says it simply in this short, sweet relevant take on adults and running. A few excerpts below. The whole blog post is here.
"A few times this summer, I watched some kids as they ran around the local park. The running form that many of these kids have is just amazing - huge strides, tons of flexiblity, and lots of power...If you compare a child running effortlessly to an adult jogger shuffling around the track, it's night and day. It shouldn't even be considered the same activity. This running form...seems to be no effort at all for kids! It's tough to reconnect with this natural stride after decades of shoe wear and the less active nature of adult life. But there is always hope!"
Hope and hard work. Connecting the dots is key. Realizing that running is a power sport and that its possible to do it pain-free is a great first step in accomplishing it. Surrounding yourself with others working toward the same is the next...
Go train smart!!
24 August 2010
60 Minutes of MovementU FREE in Fort Collins, CO
FREE – OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
Wednesday, September 1st at 6pm at
1307 E.
Prospect Rd | Fort Collins, CO 80525
Join Jessi Stensland, professional triathlete and
movement specialist for a 60-minute interactive
educational experience designed to give participants a glimpse into how the
body was born to move – efficiently, powerfully and injury-free.
Part discussion and part learn-by-doing, this session
will offer cues for powerful posture and an explanation of its role in
performance while highlighting additional elements the body requires to perform
to its true potential.Learn:3 WAYS TO INCREASE YOUR INJURY
RESISTANCE, MOVEMENT EFFICIENCY AND POWER IN YOUR SWIM BIKE AND
RUN...NOW.
20 August 2010
MovementU's Fall Tour Schedule Announced!
Join me in one of 6 locations this Fall for the ultimate interactive educational experience about injury resistance, movement efficiency and power in endurance performance. Enhance your understanding of your body, eliminate chronic pain and injury, smile more and perform better in life and sport. There's nothing out there like it. Don't miss out!!
SWIM BIKE RUN
INJURY RESISTANCE, MOVEMENT EFFICIENCY + POWER
A FULL DAY INTERACTIVE EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCE
October 3 | MARTINSVILLE, NJ
October 17 | ORLANDO, FL
October 30 | DENVER, CO
November 13-14 | CLEVELAND, OH
November 20 | PHOENIX, AZ
December 13 | LAKE FOREST, CA
DETAILS AND REGISTRATION AT www.MOVEMENTU.com
SEE WHAT THEY'RE SAYING | MOVEMENTU MEDIA
