Viscosupplementation With Hyaluronic Acid Injections for Knee Arthritis

In the world of knee injections, there are your typical steroid injections and then there are injections that are non-steroidal. One of these is termed viscosupplementation and consist of hyaluronic acid. The hope is to provide lubrication to the joint and also stimulate the joint to produce more lubricating synovial fluid in a nonoperative fashion with a low risk profile.

There are no better substances that have come onto the market which perform this function currently. There are some regenerative substances that have come into existence including stem cells that have shown some promise, but nothing that has been the subject of long term randomized prospective studies yet.

It is an injection of a gel like medication into the knee joint to supplement or replace the thick synovial fluid that cushions the joint. This treatment may help reduce arthritis pain. The doctor sterilizes the skin and then numbs up the area of injection.

The physician will then place a needle carefully into the knee joint space. At that point, the hyaluronic acid preparation is injected, which will then cushion the joint. A small bandage is applied after the knee injection is completed. Pain relief may occur right away, or it may take weeks.

The hyaluronic acid preparations come in numerous formulations and are named Synvisc, Hyalgan, etc. Synvisc is made up of salt water, and sodium hyaluronate. The hyaluronic acid part actually comes from the combs of chickens. When injected, there is no graft versus host true reaction.

The injections may be placed either in one injection or a series of injections. It used to be they all required multiple injections, but there is a new formula that provides the medication in a "long lasting" preparation.

It is very important that the doctor sterilizes the area diligently. One of the complications that can be seen with these injections is a pseudo infection where the area gets red, itchy, and painful. This typically goes away within a few days without antibiotics since it is not really an infection.

How well do they work? A number of studies have been completed, with the overall results showing over a 60% good to excellent results at one year. In younger patients who still have some cartilage remaining, the main goal is to reduce pain while eliminating the need for a joint replacement. We know that joint replacements work great, but are not able to last over 10 to 20 years.

Top 4 Sandbag Exercises to Get Faster, Stronger and More Explosive For Football Linemen

Sandbags are the perfect strength training tool for developing big, fast, explosive football linemen. Gone are the days of big slob-type lineman. Take a look at the top Lineman in College and the top guys in the NFL now. Sure, some of them still are a little fat, but they are a far cry from the damn-near 400lbs of the 90's. Lineman today are big, fast, insanely strong and quick. Defensive linemen especially are becoming leaner and much quicker each year.

At the base, lineman need to be extremely strong. They need to do tons of heavy, Max Effort work in the weight room with movements like Box Front and Back Squats, Deadlifts, Snatch Deadlifts, etc. Without these, a lineman will never be successful. Remember, maximum strength is foundational to all other elements of athleticism...speed, explosiveness, agility...so, without building maximum strength, no other skills can be acquired on the line.

However, all that max strength training is useless if you can't learn to transfer that strength to the football field. Lineman on both sides of the ball need to build strength in body positions and from angles that simply cannot be trained in the weight room alone. This is where Sandbags come in.

We refer to this gap between the weight room and the football field as strength leakage. The undertrained lineman will literally leak power from the knees, hips, or shoulders and be unable to transform that 600lb Squat into pancake blocks.

When a lineman who can Bench a ton and Squat a Buick but can't bring his hips into a block, he has big time strength leaks. Simply, his hips, legs or shoulders either aren't strong enough in all the necessary angles or they aren't strong enough in relation to the bigger, stronger muscles of the hamstrings, glutes, quads, pecs, etc.

Sandbags, because the force you into awkward angles, low positions and have you lifting a "weight" that continually moves and shifts, are an excellent remedy for fixing these leaks. They can build the necessary strength in the smaller but all important stabilizer muscles so the big muscles can do their job.
While all Sandbag exercises are helpful, here are the top 3 for building explosive lineman and eliminating strength gaps.

Sandbag Shoulder and Throw

This is an excellent way to teach transfer of power from the ground up. The Sandbag Shoulder and Throw looks a bit like something you'd see in pro-wrestling but its oh-so-good for football lineman.

Grab a sandbag and shoulder it. Now, while still in a bear-hug grip, bend forward and let the bag come between the legs, stop the backward momentum, pop the hips and "throw" the bag behind you. For you wrestlers out there, this looks a bit like a German Suplex.

This movement is great for teaching that explosive hip strength needed to block while working against a "live" weight and staying in body positions that are very similar to those on the field.

You can use this movement as a hamstring/glute finisher on your leg day, at the end of the workout. Three sets of five throws is plenty. If you can't bring the hips hard and the bag just flops down, you're going to heavy.

-Sandbag Clean & Push

And we come right back with another Sandbag exercise that is a coach's dream come true when it comes to building explosive lineman. The Sandbag Clean and Push comes about as close to replicating the body motion that takes place by O and D lineman as anything I've ever seen, blocking sled included!

Grab a heavy bag, clean it forcefully and catch it in a half-Squat. Now, immediately explode upwards like you would in a Clean and Jerk, but rather than press straight up, you push violently up and out (more line an Incline Press) and actually release the bag.

With a barbell, this is impossible, unless you want to break your equipment. Plus, with the bag not only are your hams, quads, glutes, shoulders and low back firing, so are the pecs, obliques and abs in stabilizing roles.

And, of course, there's the fact that because the bag shifts, no two reps will be the same...just like no two blocks are exactly the same. This is something that too many players and coaches miss. We don't always want our training to be perfect. This is why machines have limited application when training football players and, really, all athletes. You build raw strength with barbells and use exercises like the Sandbag Clean and
Push to transform it into usable power on the football field.

-Sandbag Swing with Band

The Sandbag Swing has quickly become one of our favorite exercises for building speed & explosiveness in lineman. It is the perfect storm of unstable weight, accommodating resistance, speed, explosiveness and coordination.

We love Kettlebell Swings for building football speed and explosiveness but they have a major drawback.

Despite their crazy-effectiveness, guys let their ego get in the way, and, instead of using an appropriate weight to get the needed snap (eliciting the stretch reflex), they grab a bell that's way too heavy and end up doing a slow swing. This is exactly what we don't want.

With Sandbags it's difficult to see how much weight someone is using so the ego factor is out.

Plus, with the Sandbags, you can position the hands so the palms are facing each other (like when blocking) and by adding the band, you accommodate resistance and keep the tension from bottom to top.

But, you have to use a small band. Too big of a band and you'll defeat the purpose. You want to use a light band and a medium-heavy bag and snap the hell out of your hips.

Again, stay in a good body position that is exactly like you would use on the field. This is a violent movement, you should think of using the Sandbag to knock an opponent out...wield that bag like a weapon...there's no room for slow movements here.

Use Sandbag Swings after your main heavy movement on leg day. But, beware, the extreme speeds can cause big-time soreness.

-Bearhug and Duckwalk

If there is one thing that just kills me it's watching a big, strong lineman lose all of his power, strength and explosiveness because he doesn't have the flexibility or strength necessary to hold a low position. Because their hips are tight and their low back and mid back aren't strong enough when stretched, they lean forward when trying to block or tackle. I don't care if you're as big and strong as Reggie White, if you lean forward, anyone can beat you. Its simple physics...get 300lbs rolling forward and tilted down at high speeds and you'll see 300lbs hit the ground.

Stretching helps and must be done, but, to really work that position and correct this problem, you need the Bearhug and Duckwalk.

All you need to do is Bearhug a heavy sandbag, drop into a low squat and waddle along. The key is to keep your upper body upright while staying in this extreme low position. Yes, I realize we don't Squat this low on the field, but, build that kind of flexibility and strength in such an extreme position and the normal body angle will be a piece of cake (lineman usually like cake).

The key is to sink down and keep your abs and obliques tight. This movement will do more for you hip flexors than any stretch you can imagine. Don't round you upper back, keep your chest up and shoulder blades pulled together, just as you would on the field. This is not an easy exercise but it's one that will pay enormous dividends when it comes time to take the field.

Use this either as a finisher on leg day or as a conditioning exercise. 3 - 4 sets of 10-yards is a good start...a little goes a long way.

A Brief History of Public Speaking

Public Speaking is one of the oldest forms of communication known to mankind. The concept of speaking publicly is extremely important. The first manual for public speaking was written around 4500 B.C. by the people of ancient Egypt. Public speaking was the first known mass communication process. Throughout history civilizations would rely on powerful, as well as, eloquent speakers to inform, pass laws and uplift audiences.

Ancient nations such as India, Africa and China used public speaking. Aztecs and Central and Southern American cultures used systems for speaking to massive groups. They would set up "relays" where the "relayers" would repeat what was being said.

In the Greece and Rome public speaking became principal and more intergraded in the prospective cultures. The Greeks and Romans used it as a way of education. Talking to large amounts in a group was very common place. Aristotle and Plato used to teach there philosophies, math and history in front of the eager listeners.

Imagine being able to theorize on deep and meaningful things and not be able to explain or talk about those things due to fear or some other reason. The question I would ask myself is this, what would be the point of actually thinking about a subject, coming to conclusions and not being able to effectively tell anyone about it?

History provides prime examples of problem solving techniques that work for humankind. Public speaking is no different; the ancient peoples valued it, taught it and practiced it. You and I should learn from their example. Practical reasons might encourage you to become a better public speaker. Work promotions sometimes hinge on public speaking and the courage it takes to speak publicly.

Driving to an appointment the other morning I sat in my car at a stop light and notice a bumper stick. "Speak Even if Your Knees Knock" is what that sticker said. I thought, "Wow!" I never thought of it that way. Perhaps that is a perfect way of putting it. People throughout history did it and you can too!

How to Stop Arthritis Pain Naturally

Arthritis means inflammation of the joints and it is accompanied by swelling and pain. It is a degenerative disease that can cause disability to millions of people because in severe cases sufferers find it hard to move around and perform basic tasks like walking and using their hands. Of course it is best to consult your doctor to know the best treatment for you to relieve the pain and swelling. Medications and therapy are the common treatments and in severe cases, surgery maybe recommended by your doctor. Although doctors and therapists may recommend treatments for you to cope with arthritis, you also play an important role in improving the quality of your life despite the presence of arthritis. While you are under treatments, there are also natural remedies and home care that you can do to stop arthritis pain naturally.

Use of splints and arthritis devices. Living with arthritis can be very difficult and there are limitations with your movements and the things that you can do. With the use of proper arthritis devices, the joints will be protected, the pain will be reduced and your everyday life will be easier. The use of splints on the aching and swollen joints can offer relief and can help the joints to relax. Ask your doctor and therapist about the proper splint and arthritis device suitable for your condition.

Practice stretching. It is important to practice stretching to relieve stiffness, relieve fatigue and to stop arthritis pain naturally. Resting the affected joint too long or holding one position for too long can make the joint more stiff and painful. Work with your therapist with the proper exercise and stretching program suitable for your condition.

Sleep. Although the pain will make it hard for you to sleep, a complete 8-10 hours night sleep is important for your recovery and can be very helpful to stop arthritis pain naturally. Relaxation techniques and meditation can be very helpful if you want a complete rest and night sleep. If the pain is so severe that it prevents you from having a goodnight sleep, talk to your doctor.

Acupuncture. There are people who found relief in natural remedies like acupuncture. This is a method done by professional and licensed acupuncture therapist to help sufferers stop arthritis pain naturally. The method involves the use of needles on specific points to relieve arthritis pain.

Heat and cold treatments. The application of heat and cold can be very helpful to stop arthritis pain naturally. Swelling can be reduced with the application of cold packs on the affected area while hot packs or a warm towel applied on the affected area will increase blood flow and will ease the stiffness and pain. Ask your doctor what is the best treatment for you.

It is important for you to know how to manage your arthritis to improve the quality of your life. If not treated, arthritis can make your life miserable. If the conventional treatments failed, alternative treatments are another option. Find out more on how to stop arthritis pain naturally visit Cure Painful Arthritis.

Emergency Room Insurance Supplements

Emergency room insurance supplements in the United States are a form of accident medical coverage that covers accidental bodily injuries. These plans have no health questions or underwriting, meaning everyone can qualify. Guarantee acceptance is usually until age 65. Since this is a form of accident insurance, plans can be used with any licensed doctor, emergency room, urgent quick care facility, or medical clinic. Some sales brochures might refer to these plans as 24 hour accident coverage, accident medical expense benefit, personal injury insurance plan, accident health insurance, or personal accident insurance. It should be nick named "pound for pound most useful plan" based on its practicality.

Supplements that provide this form of emergency room coverage are a membership based indemnity. A indemnity plan compensates for a loss in cash payments to member or medical care provider. Plans pay part of the medical expenses charged by doctors or hospitals up to a benefit amount of $2,500, $5,000, $7,500, or $10,000 per accident. Plans are not marketed as insurance, rather a limited accident medical expense policy. Plans are tied into a association that offers it's members this type of emergency room insurance coverage. Coverage is for bodily injuries and not sickness related ER visits. On a good plan, injuries sustained in kids league sports like soccer, football, and baseball are covered. High school sports injuries are also covered on some plans. Professional or College level sports injuries are not covered. Just like any other health insurance plan, injury must happen while coverage was in force and directly caused a loss to you covered under the policy. So benefits are only payable if the policy was active before the injury occurred. Kids can stay on the family accident plan until age 26 when they'll have to switch to an individual policy.

Since plans are not insurance but a association, applications have no health questions and acceptance is guaranteed. Emergency room coverage plans can't have a strict "in network or out of network" set of rules. The ER supplement I'm writing about here can be used at any hospital, doctor, or clinic. Plans also can be used as travel insurance while outside the United States. Most plans only will cover abroad for two consecutive months. So if your vacation out of country go's past 2 months, plan won't cover any bodily injury claims. But who's really worried about health insurance during a 2 month vacation?

Personal injury insurance plans pay for all injuries from any one accident up to the policy benefit of $2,500, $5,000, $7,500, or $10,000 minus a $100 dollar deductible. Deductible is the out of pocket expense you (the insured) pays before the accident plan pays. Put differently, members can choose accident medical benefits of $2,500, $5,000, $7,500, or $10,000 US dollars with a $100 deductible per occurrence. Currently, most injury plans have a $100 or $250 deductible. Indemnity benefits reset after each accident and benefits are paid per injury or per accident with a new $100 deductible.

Emergency room coverage includes:

-Ambulance Charges
-Hospital Emergency Room Care
-Operating Room Costs (inpatient or outpatient)
-X-Rays
-MRI's
-Lab tests
-Doctors visits (inpatient or outpatient)
-Doctors fees for surgery (inpatient or outpatient)
-Anesthesia Expense
-Physical Therapy
-Prescription Drug expense
-Dental treatment for injury to sound natural teeth.
-Nurse expense
-Miscellaneous hospital expenses during stay, outpatient surgery under general anesthetic.
-Hospital room and board
-General nursing care

Lowest plan rate found so far. Note: Many insurance agencies sell these accident plans packaged with dental, vision, and other random discounts. So these prices are just the policies for straight accident coverage.

Individual: $5,000 policy value - $22 monthly.
Individual: $7,500 policy value - $28 monthly.
Individual: $10,000 policy value - $34 monthly.

Family: $5,000 policy value - $35 monthly.
Family: $7,500 policy value - $41 monthly.
Family: $10,000 policy value- $47 monthly.

( Monthly price for a family policy includes everyone. It's the same price if you have a 3 person family or a 8 person family).

Emergency room health insurance supplements in the United States are commonly used in conjunction with HDHP (High Deductible Health Plans) to cover the big deductibles. Typical PPO deductibles are up to $5,000 and $10,000 due to constant rate increases from insurance companies. Increasing the deductible every year offsets the annual rate increase. The issue people have with these large deductibles is that one emergency room visit from a broken bone or torn ligament will meet the deductible for the year. A lot of HDHP deductibles are maxed out from bodily injuries that required X-rays, MRI's, and eventually surgery. Emergency room insurance plans pay out of pocket bills associated with accidents and can pay off the high deductible PPO plan. Combining a HDHP with a ER plan of the same amount will offset any claims resulting from bodily injuries.

One specific benefit worth highlighting is the surgical benefit. Members can pick any doctor. Of course the policy must be active before injury occurs. For example, let's use one common sports injury like a torn ACL. This knee injury often needs a complete ligament replacement to get back to an active lifestyle. The torn knee ligament isn't going to heal itself and for people who do sports and move around it's a must. In this example, however you injured the ACL, the knee buckled and then you'll hear a pop. The knee swells up and it just doesn't feel the same. At least this was how my ACL tear went down. At this point, someone can go directly to an emergency room and get the MRI or X-rays.

Or they can schedule an appointment directly with a Orthopedic surgeon. Either way the next step is diagnostic testing to see what the damage is. If the diagnosis is a torn ACL, you'll have time to schedule surgery as an outpatient. Ask some Physical Therapists in your area who the best Orthopedic Surgeons are for ACL reconstructions. Physical Therapists know exactly who the top doctors are because Therapists are the first person to see patients post operation. Surgeons who do Sports Medicine and work with professional athletes are the elite. Contact the doctors office and get quoted for the ACL repair. In a lot of common sports injuries the emergency room insurance policy face value of $10,000 dollars will pay off the entire surgery and the post operation physical therapy. Total out of pocket expense would be the plan deductible ($100 or $200). Not to mention the best knee surgeon in the state took care of you.

Do Knee Braces Help the Osteoarthritic Knee?

Anyone living with a chronic condition such as osteoarthritis of the knee should keep an eye on developments in the field. Knee braces are one treatment that has been progressing in recent years. In the past, knee supports, such as generic neoprene sleeves, were all that was available. These provided a small amount of assistance to the knee and kept it warm. Thankfully we have moved on from then.

There is a new category of product that can have significant benefits for osteoarthritis sufferers. Offloading braces can dramatically reduce pain and increase activity levels - but they are not suitable for everyone.

In order to benefit from these braces you need to have osteoarthritis in half of the knee only. Unicompartmental osteoarthritis occurs when the damage is restricted to one area, either the inside or outside of the knee. In this situation all of the body's weight is taken through the affected half of the knee causing an increased rate of wear and increased pain. These braces work by changing the angle at the knee, redistributing the body's weight so it is evenly shared between the inside and outside. This removes the focal point from the painful side.

By the unaffected side doing its share of the work, pain is reduced and mobility increases. It should be noted however, that the brace does not treat the affected side which remains worn. The only thing that will make that area 'unworn'is joint replacement surgery.

There are many braces on the market claiming to offload the knee but it should be noted that a study by The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery  found that only 2 braces physically offloaded the joint. These were the OAdjuster by Donjoy and the Thruster by Bledsoe.  If you think you may benefit from this type of bracing, speak to a Physical Therapist.

2 Explosive Leg Power Production Drills For Football!

Your football strength and conditioning tactics have to be very specific for the purpose of the game if you stand a chance in hell at competing. You know as well as I do that the game is physical and violent and there is no room for "BS." You have got to train and train with purpose to achieve results. This is why I have included 2 great explosive leg power drills for your football strength training. Read on if I have your attention.

The Best Explosive Drills For Football!

1. The Power Clean: Now when I talk about explosive leg power I really mean core strength and leg power combined. The key to getting in shape enough to propel your body towards someone to knock their helmet sideways requires the functioning ability and strengthening of your core midsection which works directly with your legs. One great drill for helping you get this is the power clean.

Now the term "clean" means to pull the weight off of the ground and up to your chest in one "clean" movement. This is the origin of the lift. In terms of power cleans this is exactly what you are doing with a barbell and bumper plates. In order to pull the bar up off of the ground you have got to engage your hips and knees into a state of explosive extension to elevate that bar off of the ground far enough so that you can get up underneath it to catch it at the racked position at your chest and shoulders. This is one hard hitting explosive leg workout that will totally benefit your football game performance.

2. Kettlebell Snatches: If you are looking for another lift to assist in your core and leg power development you have got to engage in overhead kettlebell snatches. This is a single lift that you can perform with the kettlebell that is sure to take your game to the next level. I have always said that if you want punch someone hard or run somewhere fast then this is the lift for you. The overhead kettlebell snatch is an olympic style lift that is great for the development of your hip power, core strength, shoulder stability, and even cardiovascular conditioning. This is a win/win lift when talking about your best explosive football drills.

In order to pull this lift off you will need the availability of at least a single bell of moderate intensity. The objective is to pull the bell from either the ground or from between your legs up to a held position above your head in one smooth explosive movement. Once again you have to engage your hips and knees in a state of forceful flexion and extension in order to create the momentum to swing the bell up to a "high pull" position just lateral to your head. Once the bell reaches this "high pull" position then you complete the lift by vertically punching your palm towards the sky to lock the weight out overhead. This is a tremendous weigh lifting drill for your explosive development.

If you haven't already started to implement these 2 drills into your leg power development then you are missing out. Take the time to learn more by accessing more of my articles on the subject for free. Remember that most any player can train hard, but only the champions train smart!