I always feel like a bit of a rock star anytime I put a conference lanyard around my neck. It makes me feel as if I have special access to something. And of course, I do. I have insider information to some of the highest quality education, training techniques and philosophies in the fitness industry--right here under my feet at The 2011 IDEA World Fitness Convention in Los Angeles. Well, I should say around my feet, beside my feet, behind my feet and above my feet. It’s a bubble. Let me explain.
It’s hard not to get excited about being a personal trainer when attending a session led by Rodney Corn and Michol Dalcourt. Rodney is goofy in all the good ways and Michol is a down-to-earth brainiac who makes you want to sit down and read an anatomy book for pleasure. Together, with the rest of the PTA Global crew, they presented the premier seminar “Systems, Sciences & Tools--Mastering Your Trade.”
This is where the bubble comes in. Throughout the session we were reminded of the bubble--essentially our propioceptive awareness and place in space. We’re not talking about just the planes of motion, but rather all the nooks and crannies around and between the planes of motion that many fitness professionals weren’t taught in school. That’s because we were given a “muscle and bone model” when we really needed a fascial one, according to Dalcourt.
When moving within your bubble you can go diagonally right, horizontally left, above, below, behind--you get the picture. The benefits to your body’s systems are innumerable. You can stay within your bubble, keeping it safe. You can expand your bubble as your confidence climbs.
How is your bubble? Mine is expanding. It has a lot to do with the injection of positive energy I’m already feeling. The vibe was ridiculously upbeat in the PTA Global session, as well as motivational. Everyone was either a “super trainer” or a “genius.”
On the other side of the wall, Douglas Brooks proved once again why he’s a mainstay at fitness conferences. His expert and enlightened instruction in “Training the Fascial Lines” had attendees on their toes--literally. If you want to know at least one method for training the fascial lines, here it is: vary your loads, speed and angles. There’s much more to it than this, of course, and as the body of research grows we are learning that we are really training fascia, not muscles.
We are living in a great time where access to information (and to each other) is immediate and deep. Let’s take advantage of it this weekend. Here’s to emerging from our bubbles on Sunday smarter, leaner and brighter!
IDEA World Fitness Convention Notable Quote
"The body as a shared resonsibilty for motion. Let gravity help you; it's free." -- Michol Dalcourt, ViPR inventor.
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