Brian Schiff’s Blog

Well, today is Thanksgiving.  It should be a relaxing time to get together with loved ones and reflect on all we have to be thankful for.  I know 2008 has been full of triumphs for me personally and professioanlly speaking.  It has also had its challenges.  I am thankful for both as I reflect back on the year.

Oddly enough, I believe the challenges often lead to the most growth even though they can be very painful.  I feel so blessed to get up every day and help make the lives of others better through my fitness programs and knowledge about injury prevention and rehab.  So, thanks ot all of my clients and customers for putting your faith in me.  You only have one body on this earth, and making it the best body should be a goal shared by all.

With that said, I promised an update about my new e book.  As advertised, you can grab a copy online at www.HealthyGolfShoulders.com for only $19.95 from now until Sunday November 30.  This is half price!  Take advantage of this special Holiday offer.  I think it has great content that will help anyone has shoulder issues and/or plays golf.  You can get a sample online prior to buying if you like.

I look forward to hearing what people think.  If you have questions or comments, please send them to info@thefitnessedge.cc.   I have included another photo from the manual below.  This exercise is one of my preferred core strengthening exercises.  Lots more fun ones in the manual too. 

3 Point Plank

Be sure to tell all your golfing friends and family about the site even if you do not golf so they can test drive the book risk free for 60 days.  Now go enjoy your Thanksgiving feast!

Well, I have to laugh to some degree when I experience an injury myself.  I spend so much time helping clients overcome and prevent injuries that when I experience one I simply have to take it in stride find some humor in it.

You see, I suddenly had sharp pain in my neck 3 days ago.  Keep in mind I suffered a high speed car accident about 4 years ago when I hit a concrete wall at 50 MPH on black ice.  Not fun!  Fortunately, I had no serious injuries, but did come away with chronic neck and back pain.  So, if you ever wondered why people in car accidents complain if this, I can attest that it is very REAL pain.  One massage a month usually keeps my symtpoms in check.

For the past 3 days I have had limited neck range of motion, throbbing pain in my neck that radiates down my right arm, as well as interrupted sleep.  But, the great thing is knowing exactly what is causing it.  No doubts – a bulging disc in the cervical spine.  Probably between C5 and C6.  Why I am telling you this?  Simple.  I wanted to let you know that it is really important to listen to your body and address problems right away.  Since this rather unexpected onset of pain, I have taken 2 days off from working out and even stopped running. 

The running part is especially tough as I am training for a 5K in 2 weeks as well as another half marathon in the Spring.  But, early intervention is the key to avoiding long term pain and the surgeon (yikes).  I am confident I will be back in action next week.  Now, on to the meat of today’s post.  As you know, I am releasing my new golf ebook soon (likely next week).  So, I wanted to share a cool exercise with you that I use to warm-up my golfers prior to play.  The warm-up is almost always ignored by golfers.  Most think hitting balls on the range is the only warm-up they need.  Wrong!  Preparatory movement is key to injury prevention and performance.

The following dynamic warm-up movement is effective for loosenig up the groin, shoulders and torso in preparation for effective weight transfer during the swing. 

You can do this exercise in an alternating fashion left and right for 10-15 repetitions as part of a comprehensive warm-up.  Stay tuned as I will be sharing more exercise from my book in the coming days as the launch nears.  Have a great weekend!

Well, I must admit this whole blog thing is new to me, but I am very excited to commit to more frequent writing for my clients, colleagues and anyone interested in information I have to share.  My goal is to give you 2-3 weekly posts with relevant information, while keeping you up to date on events and publications I have that may be of interest to you.

In that light, I wanted to let you know I have a new column in the online version of Personal Fitness Professional Magazine titled “Functionally Fit.”  It will run twice per month and feature a relevant exercise or technique I use in my training that may add to your own fitness training, health and recovery. 

In addition, I have a new book coming out this month entitled Healthy Golf Shoulders: Your Complete Guide for Shoulder Injuries and Golf Conditioning.  It has been a much awaited project that is now almost ready to launch.  It covers how to handle common golf related shoulder injuries as well as offering 3 distinct circuits desgined to maximize golf performance.  In addition, the guide includes a self assessment tool to determine exactly how healthy you are in terms of mobility and range of motion as well as an interval hitting guide desgined to guide you back to the course (shot by shot) after an injury.

For all newsletter subscribers and faithful blog followers, you will have an opportunity to test drive this new e-book at a reduced price.  So stay tuned and check back often over the next 1-2 weeks as I reveal more information about the book itself.  I look forward to sharing much more information with you about my business, training philosophies and experiences in the future.  Have a great day and make the most of your training!

My name is Brian Schiff, PT, CSCS, a licensed physical therapist, strength coach, personal trainer, author and business owner. I graduated from The Ohio State University in 1996 with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Allied Health Professions (Physical Therapy). I became a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength & Conditioning Association in 1998. I have worked in outpatient sports medicine clinics for the past 11 years. I specialize in treating general orthopedics and sports medicine cases, specifically the shoulder, knee and ankle!!

In 2000, I started my own fitness company, Fitness Edge (www.TheFitnessEdge.cc). My business focuses on personal training and sport specific training. From 2002 to 2006, I have served as the strength & conditioning coach for The Columbus Crew Major League Soccer Team. I currently focuses much of my time training local club soccer players and basketball players, while diligently trying to prevent ACL injuries. I have lectured on this topic at the AFPA conferences, and have co-authored a manual entitled Protecting the Athlete’s Knee: A Complete Guide to ACL Injury Prevention and Athletic Excellence.

I have also authored books on rotator cuff injuries and the treatment of frozen shoulders. I contributed 3 chapters to a golf conditioning e-book entitled The Fitness Secrets of Championship Golfers, as well as a chapter on periodization in the The Power of Champions. I recently served as the clinical director for a large outpatient orthopedic therapy clinic for Physiotherapy Associates in New Albany, Ohio from May 2006 to December 2007, with my practice focusing on sports medicine and general orthopedic cases.

Over the years, I have lectured and given numerous presentations on topics including safe shoulder training, soccer specific training, ACL injury prevention, low back training, functional golf training, general athletic program design, baseball specific training, and sport specific training. I have been featured in the USA Weekender, Men’s Health Best Life Magazine, Better Homes and Gardens, Personal Fitness Professional, Business First and Central Ohio Health Magazine. I serve as a contributing author for PTontheNet and am an expert author for Ezinearticles.com.