As many of you know, The Renkens Center has recently moved into its Bedford Commons location. We are extending an invitation to all of you to attend an open house celebration from 5pm - 7pm on the evening of Wednesday, November 19th. It will be an opportunity to relax, share stories, and be around some of my favorite people.

If you golf or know someone who does, please bring a friend. Jim Williams, owner of Golf In The Now, will also be showcasing his teaching area that evening with demonstrations, free swing analysis, and some give-aways of his own. 

Address: 3811 Bedford Avenue, Suite 104.

I hope to see you there.  Please join us at 5pm on the 19th!

One of the purposes of our newsletter is to provide you with relevant, accurate information that you can use to improve and better maintain your health and well being. New research is showing that vitamin D has a much larger role in our health than previously thought. Once considered a bone nutrient with importance for preventing rickets and osteomalacia, vitamin D is being used for several therapeutic and preventative applications.

Recent research suggests that vitamin D may provide protection for musculoskeletal pain, osteoporosis, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, depressioin, several autoimmune diseases, cancers including prostate, breast, and colon, and type 1 diabetes. In a recent edition of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, doctors list 36 organ tissues in the body whose cells respond biologically to vitamin D, including bone marrow, breast, colon, kidney, lung, prostate, retina, skin, stomach, and uterine tissues.

An unrelated study also suggests that low vitamin D is associated with Parkinson's disease. The majority (55 percent) of Parkinson's disease patients in the study had low levels of vitamin D.

Vitamin D can be obtained naturally from two sources: sunlight and dietary consumption. However, the ultraviolet-B rays from sunlight that allow the body to manufacture vitamin D do not penetrate the atmosphere in the winter at latitudes higher than that which corresponds with Atlanta, GA. In other words, if you live north of Atlanta you cannot maufacture this important vitamin during the winter months.

With its impressive array of protective and therapeutic applications, ensuring adequate blood levels of vitamin D is one of the most important steps you can take towards maintaining your overall health. One other note of interest is that the cost of effectively supplementing with vitamin D is very low. With the winter months approaching make the steps to ensure adequate vitamin D levels now and throughout your lifetime. 

4:45am  -  Wake up
5:15am  -  Workout consisting of kettlebell circuits, interval running, and core stabilization
6:45am  -  Play trains with son, Wells
8:30am  -  Hike white trail at Percy Warner Park with Wells walking by my side and my other son, Gage, on my back (approximately 3 miles)
11:00am - Play baseball with Wells and his uncle and two cousins
2:00pm  -  Go to Parmer Park....walk Gage in stroller while Wells rides his bike, play on jungle gym, and push Wells on swing
4:30pm  -  Walk / jog next to Wells as he rides his bike to Whole Foods for dinner. Gage is again on my back.  After dinner, we walk / ride back home
6:00pm  -  Wash my car
6:45pm  -  Give Gage bath and help get boys ready for bed
7:15pm  -  Read Wells a bedtime story
7:45pm  -  Finish preparing dinner
9:30pm  -  Shower and go to bed

The above weekend day was quite full of acitvity.  I write all of this for no other reason than to show that if we have the physical capacity and the energy, we can do and accomplish many, many things in the time that even one day allows. We need to do our part in maintaining our health. 

How can we be proactive towards maintaining our health?  For starters, by engaging in daily physical activity, making the correct food choices, getting adequate sleep, and keeping stress levels to a minimum.  Whenever I get an opportunity to work with an individual, be it doing soft tissue work, guiding them nutritionally, or showing them some exercises, it is my intent to be influential in them becoming more physically able to enjoy what they love most.

Our approach is based on the premise that pain and dysfunction occur as a result of impaired patterns of movement. It is important to realize the nervous system controls and regulates muscle function and subsequent movement. 

Whether due to overtraining, the repetitive stress of sports, or acute or chronic injury, there are times when the the timing, sequence, and coordination of muscle recruitment patterns become altered. Alterations in these patterns will most likely lead to pain and decreased efficiency during certain functional tasks and sport skills. 

It is imperative to discover and treat postural and muscle recruitment alterations prior to initiating any strengthening program. Any inefficiency in the neuromusculature will cause a perpetuation or substitution pattern (synergist dominance), enabling the dysfunction to persist. Furthermore, when an existing compensation is put under increased tension and load, the dysfunctions are further magnified. 

By recognizing and effectively correcting deficiencies and dysfunction, we can begin the process of re-establishing normal movement patterns. Only then is it appropriate to institute a corrective exercise and strength training program which incorporates a more dynamic environment.