Tag: injury rehab
How my roller derby injury made me a better skater
When we heard that one of our athletes had been injured, right after moving to a new city (Seattle) and starting in with a new league (Rat City!), we were feeling her pain... what a way to kick off a new league experience! Yuck! With injuries such a regu…
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7 Steps to Rock Your League Holiday Break!
You know I love chocolate, right? So, if someone told me I needed to give up chocolate to be 3.7% better at roller derby, you know I’d tell them exactly where to shove their advice in a hurry. (#teamcocoa) And that’s why I would NEVER tell you that …
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Stability Workout At Home
Stability workouts are critical for derby! This kind of training makes us feel more solid on the track. It helps us absorb hits and stay in-bounds. It makes us stronger in a braced formation. AND - very important - it also helps us to avoid injuries. In …
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Why My Focus Cycle can Beat Up Your Resolutions
What if I told you I thought New Year’s resolutions were kind of dumb? TL;DR version of what follows: “Resolutions” are poorly designed. Our lives are cyclical, and attention spans short. To be more successful with self-improvement, we should use s…
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My Best Derby Training Tips of 2016
Just about everyone can agree, we're all super (DUPER) glad to be seeing 2016 in the rearview mirror. Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out, you crazy year! Nevertheless, there were a few good things to look back on. Perhaps you started pl…
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How to Stretch Everything in Eight Minutes
Stretching feels like a chore. “Flexibility Training”, however, feels like something I can sink my teeth into. Competitive Yoga anyone? I kid. But if you’re like me, you’re a fairly competitive sort, and you like to push your boundaries. That’…
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My Quick and Dirty After-Derby Stretch
We’ve all been there. Practice ran late and you’ve got a big meeting at work first thing tomorrow. As quickly as you can, you gear down, throw your sweaty gear into your bag and run out the door – only to wake up the next morning feeling like you…
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Pre-Hab: How to Build A Derby Booty
It’s time for a frank discussion about your butt. It’s lovely – really it is! But it’s been slacking on the job lately, and that’s not doing you any favours for your game. Today I’m going to show you how to first awaken and recruit, then stre…
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Pre-Hab: Build an All-Star Derby Booty
Hello All-Star! Some of this post is identical to the free, public post - but there are added goodies in here, and an extended video, so be sure to read through all the way!It’s time for a frank discussion about your butt.It’s lovely – really it i…
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The Advice that Got 11,023 Skaters Talking in 2015
Could 2015 have been any more [insert spazzy word here!]?? I’m going to give you the hit list of my best advice of the year, but first, a quick rundown on what 2015 brought. It was shocking: Rollercon left the Riviera, Rose City won the Hydra, and …
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7 Steps to Rock Your League Holiday Break!
You know I love chocolate, right? So, if someone told me I needed to give up chocolate to be 3.7% better at roller derby, you know I’d tell them exactly where to shove their advice in a hurry. (#teamcocoa) And that’s why I would NEVER tell you that …
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Level Up with StrideBooster
It doesn't much matter whether you're a blocker or a jammer (or a "blammer!"). You know that you need strength, power, and agility to be successful out there on the track.You probably know some bodyweight-only strength moves you can do (for example, maybe…
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Returning to Derby after a Concussion
Coming back to roller derby after a concussion can be a tremendous challenge.There are emotional challenges: fear of re-injury, fears you might not be ready, worries you've been away too long and have lost some of your edge... And of course there…
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Three Non-Sweaty Ways to Improve at Roller Derby and Life This Week.
Sure, I'm always here to tell you how many push-ups or burpees to do, and how to become more agile. But sometimes you can also make big strides and improve at roller derby by working out your mind... [PS: Photo courtesy of my fave skate shop, www.rollerg…
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Loving it Low Workout
By popular request, this week's workout is - first and foremost - for anyone who is looking for a strength workout and a good full body sweaty-time. But this one is especially great for those of you who are recovering from an injury. You want to keep yo…
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Salute The Sun Workout
Some days, you just don't have it in you to get out there and do a plyo routine. You want to get some exercise in, and you know you'll feel better if you move, but a lingering cough, or a twingy muscle tell you not to overdo it. Or maybe you're coming bac…
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How to Survive a Derby Injury
We've all seen them happen, if not experienced them first hand. The anatomically impossible angle of a foot in a skate. The breathtaking jolt of a seam opening inside a collarbone. The quiet of the crowd when a skater doesn't get up from a fall... we …
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Five Ways to Fire Up Your Core
Think you’ve got pretty OK core strength because you can do a bunch of crunches? I’ve got news for ya, sister. Crunches are for chumps. Just about anyone can do a few crunches. It’s not a functional exercise. It’s a move people started doing beca…
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Heal Your Injury Fast, With the Right Help – Part 2
Unfortunately in roller derby, the question seems to be not IF you'll get injured, but WHEN. This series is an attempt to give people some tools and ideas about whom to see, and when, to get back on their skates as quickly and safely as possible. See my …
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Heal your injury fast, with the right help – Part 1
Several times a week skaters email me, asking what they should do to return to skating or working out after such-and-such injury. The world of sports injuries, re-hab, and pre-hab can be complex and confusing. Unfortunately, lack of awareness and understa…
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