Brian Schiff’s Blog

Ever wonder why your fitness program does not work, or why that nagging pain in your back, shoulder or knee never goes away?  I will tell you WHY.  It’s because most people fail to listen to their body.  Stay with me here.

If your fitness program is not yielding results, I bet you are not working hard enough and likely doing the same old routine.  Your body knows this and tells you this as it is not ever sore, nor does it change.  Likewise, the body sends signals of injury or mechanical failure in the form of pain, swelling, stiffness and weakness.  If you blow it off, bad things are likely to follow in time.

Consider the stubborn client who has a small shoulder pain related to a new kettle bell class he has been taking.  The pain starts out as a minor irritation, but as time goes by it grows.  Now bench press and shoulder press is hard to even do.  Even getting dressed is uncomfortable.  You guessed it.  The rotator cuff is flat out mad and inflamed.  Continuing to ignore it may lead to a tear, chronic inflammation and certain activity restrictions.

Can this be avoided?  In many cases the answer is yes.  Recognizing changes or the lack thereof, should give all of us a call to action.  It is much easier to solve pain and inflammation with early detection.  Telling yourself you can work through it and it will get better in time is foolish.  Not true 9 times out of 10.  Look at my neck problem.  I tried to work through it for a week and then realized it was not going away.  In fact it got worse.  Then I started an anti-inflammatory medication (mostly beneficial early on) and cervical traction.  The result is my symtpoms are resolving within 5 days of beginning treatment.  Whew!  The surgeron can keep waiting for me because I have no plans to visit anytime soon.

Am I fortunate?  Absolutely.  No one likes a pinched nerve.  But, do NOT discount the value of early recognition and intervention.  It has and will continue to keep me healthy long term.  So, listen to your body.  It provides all the clues necessary for people like me to help you stay fit and healthy while overcoming the plateaus and physical injuries.  Check back as my next post will give you some guidelines to determine if and when you can safely ramp activities back up after injury.

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.