Never More Alive

I rode my bike last Saturday.  That should be no surprise.  Except that it was 19 degrees.  And you know what...my wife didn't tell me I was crazy a single time!  (It was more like 8-10 times.)

It did soon warm up into the 20's (warmed up?) but it stayed cold most of the morning.   It really isn't as bad as it sounds.  Once you start to generate some body heat, riding a bicycle in cold weather really can be fun.

So we're riding down the road, the sun was coming out, we were in a comfortable pace, and then it hit me--I maybe had never felt more alive than I did at that moment.

Sure, there was a little discomfort but by and large I was in a really good place.  With friends.  Doing something I love.  Something about dealing with the cold made it even better.  Sort of shared misery I suppose.

I've got cares and troubles;  I am human.  But at that moment, in that place, things that might have been bothering me ceased to exist. 

Now think about those people in Gatlinburg.  Any trials and tribulations I might have are nothing compared to what most of them are going through right now.  Utter devastation is what people that have been there have described.  A way of life has been upturned.  Families and homes destroyed. 

I read a story this morning about a man who had visited one of the distribution centers in search of dog food.  That's all he wanted.  Dog food.  24 years old.  No vehicle--he walked to work in downtown Gatlinburg from a shared apartment.  His name wasn't on the lease so he might not qualify for much of the assistance becoming available.

He had found work but his paycheck wouldn't arrive until the end of the week.  And his dog was hungry.  Forget his needs.  Forget that he didn't having housing or food or clothing.  He could deal with that.  His dog was hungry. 

There were a lot of folks in the same boat.  Minimum wage workers sharing an apartment and their job and shelter are gone.  It's highly unlikely that they had much in the way of savings to help them through a crisis.

When the World Trade Centers were hit on September 11, 2002, there were questions about whether our sporting events should be played.  Some were cancelled.  Others played on, often criticized for doing so.

I think we need our sports.  We need diversions.  We need to get lost in something.  A lot of times, sports give us that. We need that place where we can go and everything is OK, even for a while.

I find myself thinking more about those Gatlinburg folks.   I'm not worried about the buildings or the trees right now.  It's cold and I'm worried about the people.  Neighbors, friends, relatives, without the life they built. 

I pray for their relief and I hope for success in building their lives again.  I am proud that my state is coming to their rescue but I know that the process will take years, even lifetimes.

And on that cold morning, on the back of a bicycle, with a little bit of a headwind and blue skies above, all was good, even when maybe when it wasn't.

Dare To Be GREAT!

I've had the good fortune to speak to a lot of groups over the last few years.  Most of the time it is physical therapy students.  Just this week, I was in Johnson City, sharing with the ETSU physical therapy class that is about to graduate.

I enjoy doing that.  A lot.  My first college degree was in education so I guess I'm still a teacher at heart.  My first career decision was to be a preacher (I was about 12) and my mom always thought I had missed that call but I don't think so.

Still, I can be quite preachy, whether it be live in front of a crowd or in this space.

I do think I have something to offer.  Part of that is likely due to the candles on the birthday cake.  Experience can be a great teacher. 

Goodness knows that it isn't because I have everything all figured out. I definitely don't.  I've made pretty much every mistake in the book (which will be the title of my parenting book, if I ever get it finished). 

My personal mantra about all that is a paraphrase of Proust and goes something like this:  Embrace those that seek the truth--beware of those that have found it.

But I obviously do have some advice to give.  Thirty years of writing this column means I must have had something to say about a lot of things.

Lately, the message that I'm shouting the loudest to those students is simple:  Aspire to greatness.

That's it.  Think about it.  Nobody aspires to mediocrity (which is the rest of that story).  When we're young and full of ideas and dreams, woe be it to the one that discourages those ideas and dreams.

I think there's a special place in purgatory for them.  Probably because of some negative experiences in my own past, I've tried my whole life (what portion of it that I've had so far) to be a positive influence on young and old alike.

With my own kids, it was always the sky is the limit.  They heard from an early age that there is nothing that you can't do. 

I've chased my share of dreams.  I wanted a job that I enjoyed; a job that allowed me to give back.  Check.  I wanted kids.  Check.  I wanted good health.  Check. 

My life has gone way beyond those dreams.  I know for a fact that every English teacher (but one) that I ever had would never have predicted that I would have a newspaper column that has been printed weekly for this long.  Guarantee it. 

And I've traveled and seen places I didn't even know existed and I've been married to the same wonderful lady for over 40 years.  And I've been a part of a lot of cool things and have some of the best friends you can ever find.

The naysayers tell us that you can't have it all.  I say "why not?"   If you want it bad enough, you will achieve it.  Oh sure, there are limits.  The 5'4" female is not going to play offensive line in the NFL.  There are realisms there.

And I'm not here to tell you that all your dreams will be fulfilled.  Life does get in the way.  Priorities change.  There are roadblocks along the way.

But chase those dreams with vigor and drive and persistence and you will build a life that is everything.

Looking Back...

High school football is officially over.  Alcoa High School won their 15th state championship in football while Greenback's stellar season fell one win short of that gold ball.

It's this time of year that all of our Athletic Trainers stop and look back on what we might have done differently.  It's the nature of the beast.  Could we have done anything to reduce the incidence of injuries?  Could we have done anything to reduce the severity of injuries?

It's not that we aren't always doing our best.  We really have to bring our "A" game every single day.  It's just that self-reflection is part of how we make sure that we are always doing all we can.

You may not know that our sports clinic (Total Rehabilitation-Cherokee) is open at 7 AM for evaluation of athletic injuries of all kinds, for all sports.  Monday through Friday.

You may also not know that Ortho Tennessee-Maryville (formerly known as Maryville Orthopedic Clinic) opens their doors early just in case we need to send an athlete up for an orthopedist to see.  That's unheard of.  I know of no other community where the orthopedists provide that service.

But what I'm sure you don't know is that to provide that athlete evaluation clinic at Cherokee every morning, we bring most of our athletic trainers in to take care of those athletes.  One of the really great things about that is the collaboration that we use to make sure that we are doing the very best job that we can.

If I'm unsure about something, I've got a bevy of colleagues to call on for help.  And if we still don't know, we can call on the doctors at Ortho Tennessee-Maryville for advice and/or evaluation.

So with all that said, what did all that retrospection reveal?

Shoulders need to be stronger.  I have forever been against using the bench press in strength training.  It's not so much that the bench press is a bad exercise, part of it is that kids just put way too much emphasis on it and end up with shoulders just looking to be injured.

Ankles need more training in changing direction.  Lots of athletes run for training.  What I'd like to see them do is work more on ballistics (look it up) and changing direction.  If their sport is on grass, then they need to train more on grass. 

Everybody needs better core strength.  Everybody.  What is the core?  Everything from your kneecaps to your armpits.  Pretty much every high school athlete we see has an inadequate core. 

Necks need to be stronger.  We know that this helps prevent concussion.  More education is needed in concussion prevention as well.  Kids need to know what happens when the head is used in play.

Weight training needs to emphasize "whole body" exercises.  Isolating muscles for development is a waste of time when considering athletic performance.  The best example is probably curls.  Isolated curls are a waste of time.

The closer to the time of injury that an athletic trainer can look at an injury, the better the outcomes will be.  This year, I had one football player that got Turf Toe and didn't tell me about it for 2 weeks.  I learned about the injury 3 days before a big game.  That's way too late.

There's no reason for that.  We are there.  We are at every high school football practice held in Blount County.  If you're in sports, you know how to find us.  Our 7 AM clinic is just part of our outreach programs.  So there's no excuse for not checking in with us.

None.

Thanksgiving 2016

I hope you had a good Thanksgiving this week.  For me, it was a time to count my blessings. 

I'm thankful for my health.  I don't take it for granted.  It's what gets me up every morning and to the gym or out on the bike.  It's why Dr. Kevin Turner knows me on a first name basis. 

I'm thankful that my kids chose Blount County to live their lives.  That means those six wonderful grandchildren live here too. 

I'm thankful that Blount County is the kind of place where they want to spend the rest of their days.  The schools.  The community.  The mountains, lakes, and land.  

I'm thankful that I get to share my life through this space.  I used to be known as "Joe Black, the physical therapist."  Now I'm mostly known as "Joe Black, that guy that writes in the newspaper."

I'm an educator at heart (which was my first college degree) so this column serves as my main avenue to fulfill that.

I'm thankful for friends.  Lots of people criticize social media and smart phones but both of those allow me to stay in touch with those friends far and wide.

I'm thankful for football.  The sport I love above all others is under fire.  Interest in the NFL is declining.  Lots of parents are prohibiting their children from playing football.

Most of that has to do with injuries.  Chief among those are concussions. 

I get it.  I have those same concerns.  I played one game in high school that I don't even remember.  My son tells about getting slapped in the head so hard by a Florida State defensive lineman that he didn't remember  anything until he got to the sideline.

But I still believe it is the best sport out there (not the only sport by any stretch) for learning about teamwork and how hard work is rewarded.  Football helped make me the man I am today.

Interest waning?  I don't think so.  Tell that to college football fans all across the nation that continue to pack stadiums.  And I'll still insist that high school football games on Friday nights during the fall are the best place to be.

It's just up to me (and others) to do everything we can to make the sport as safe as possible.  Rule changes happen almost every year, almost always with the intent of making the game safer.

I'm truly thankful for all sports.  They teach life lessons, help create active adults, and make exercise fun. 

On a day where we are thankful for so many things, family, friends, food, the many blessings we all have, it is important to remember those not so fortunate.

Like the hungry.  The number of hungry people in the world exceeds the combined populations of the United States, Canada, and the countries of the European Union.

And the homeless.  33% of the children in the world don't have adequate shelter.

And those in poverty.  80% of the world's population get by on less than $10 per day.  And 3 billion people survive on $2.50 or less.  That's amazing.

So in this holiday season, share of your bounty.  Love everyone--we are taught that.  Pay It Forward.  Hug a stranger.  Be thankful not so much for a full belly but for a full heart.

What are your priorities?

In sports, we ask that our athletes place their sport at a high priority.   To be successful, it has to be that way. 

For a lot of athletes, it's pretty much a full time gig.  During the season, there may be no other priority (often to the detriment of their grades, their families, and their personal growth).

They have to practice, of course, but they also have to train.  That will likely include strength training and maybe stretching, yoga, conditioning, running, study, or some combination of any or all of the above.  Many young athletes have personal trainers and personal coaches.  Weekends might be spent on travel teams. 

The best athletes  understand the sacrifices that you make to be good.  At some levels, those sacrifices are monumental.  Athletes can sacrifice their relationships, their education, even their health in the pursuit of athletic success.

We all prioritize our lives.  We do what we think is most important to us.

I have a friend that tells a story about juggling.  Some of the balls that she juggles are made of crystal.  Those are the things most important to her.  Those are her highest priority.  The others are made of rubber. 

Obviously she pays closer attention to those crystal balls.  She definitely doesn't want to drop one of the.  They might be family, health, religion...any number of things.  She takes great care to preserve and protect them.

But some of those life priorities are like those rubber balls.  She has decided they are less important.  So if she drops one of them, it's OK.  She has learned that there have to be places where you can drop the ball.

 So what are your life priorities?  And where do you put your health on that list?

Do you exercise regularly?  Back in the days of using slides in a presentation, I had one that asked  "what fits your busy schedule better, exercising one hour a day or being dead for 24 hours a day?"

Is your diet a nightmare?  Do you get regular physicals?  Better yet, do you have a relationship with your Primary Care Physician to the extent that when you walk in their office, they know you by name and not by your chart?

Do you smoke?  You know where I feel about that one.

OK, let's look at this from a different direction.  How many "favorite" TV shows do you have?  Are there shows that you build your personal schedule around to avoid missing? 

All of us need some "down" time but how much time do you really need to spend on mindless pursuits? 

Are you willing to do the planning and food prep that is necessary to eat healthy all the time?  Or is it just too easy to drop by the fast food place for lunch and then again for take-out on the way home that evening?

Life, like sports, is all about your priorities.

Ride For Lucas

First of all, this isn't at all about the bicycle.  It might seem that way but it isn't. 

I haven't forgotten the late great Jim Dykes admonition "I like your column but get off that (expletive deleted) bike fetish."  So every time I start to write something about biking, I remember that.

No, this is a love story.  But let me back up a bit. 

There was a bike ride last weekend.   It all got started about 9 AM Saturday morning from Cycology bike shop.  About 220 people attended and another 20 or so completed a 5K run/walk.

The bicyclists had the choice of 25, 42, or 62 mile routes, mostly through south Blount County, traversing our beautiful back yard.  It was a gorgeous day too.  A little cool at first but once it warmed up a bit, it was glorious.  The fall colors are definitely off this year but our mountains are still just as majestic.

Bike pro Nina Laughlin joined the ride from her home in Brevard, North Carolina. She rides for the Visit Dallas DNA Pro Cycling Team and coaches for Carmichael Training Systems.  Oh, and she's from Maryville!

Tour de France pro Matthew Busche had tried to get here for the ride but when he couldn't get here, he sent an autographed jersey.

The ride was called The Ride for Lucas.  And that's where the story really starts.

Lucas Jones is an 8 year old boy battling Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma.  Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma is a cancer primarily affecting children and can be particularly aggressive.  Lucas is currently undergoing a combination of therapies in his fight. 

The ride was a combination of a fundraiser for the Jones family, an opportunity to lift Lucas and his family up, and an opportunity to call awareness to childhood cancer.

A couple of months ago, Kadena Hodson didn't know Lucas or anyone in the Jones family.  She certainly didn't have any idea what Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma was.  She actually discovered the story of Lucas on Facebook.

But Kadena has got a heart the size of your house and has an 9 year old son of her own.  She wanted to do something for Lucas and his family.  That's where the idea for a bike ride came up.

She knocked on doors.  She found sponsors.  She got her biking friends to help.  And then on November 5th, the Ride for Lucas happened.  And oh my, it was a huge success.  In so many ways.

Every Blount County business that Kadena contacted donated something.  250 people participated.  The Jeff Roth Cycling Foundation folks were there.  Cycology donated 10% of the day's proceeds.  A community came together.  People got to meet this brave little boy. 

At the end of the day, $10,00.00 was collected for the Jones family.

But this story is not just about Lucas.  It's not just about Kadena.  It's also about strangers that came together showing love for a boy and a family that none of them knew. 

That's the kind of place where we live.  That's the kind of neighbors we have.  And it didn't really have anything to do with a bicycle. 

"High" Ankle Sprain?

You've probably heard the term "high ankle sprain" before.  I don't really like that term very much. It doesn't really tell us much and it just seems like we should also have a "low ankle sprain" too (maybe we do, but it is never referred to as that).

So let's start today with a bit of a lesson on injuries and anatomy.

Most ankle injuries are the same thing. The foot is turned to the inside, maybe from jumping up and coming down on somebody's foot, quick changes of direction, or landing on some other object.  But in any case, the foot turns in, injuring the outside of the ankle.

Specifically, it is in the area in front of and just below that bony prominence on the outside of your ankle, known as the lateral malleolus.   The tissue most often injured is the Anterior Talo-Fibular Ligament or ATFL. 

It will hurt.  It will probably swell.  In most ATFL injuries, there is some microscopic tearing of the ligament but it remains intact.  All it needs is the proper treatment and rehab and it is just about as good as new. 

More extreme injuries to the ATFL can occur but rarely is surgery needed to get good results.  Often it is just time spent in a boot or brace.  The worse the injury, the longer the immobilization. 

Treatment is ice, compression (if there is swelling--and there almost always is some), and protection. 

A "high ankle sprain" is actually a syndesmosis sprain.   The syndesmosis of the ankle is the connective tissue connecting the fibula and the tibia where they meet at the ankle.

OK, maybe I better back up a minute.  The tibia and fibula are the bones of the lower leg.  The Tibia is the big one, the fibula is the long, thin one on the outside of the lower leg. 

They come together and form the roof of the ankle.  The lateral malleolus that I mentioned above is actually the bottom end of the fibula while the medial malleolus (its counterpart on the inside of the ankle) is the bottom end of the tibia.

Connecting them just at the ankle is a really strong band of connective tissue called the syndesmosis.

It takes a lot of force to injure the syndesmosis.  Most of the time it happens when a lot of force is placed upward into the ankle, usually when landing on a dorsiflexed ankle (that's the position when your foot is bent up toward your knee as far as it will go.

What happens in most of these is that the bones that form the base of the ankle are pushed upward into the roof of the ankle, sort of wedging apart the tibia and fibula and injuring (you guessed it) the syndesmosis.

Syndesmosis sprains are nasty creatures simply because any weightbearing aggravates the sprain.  In the most extreme cases, we take them off any weightbearing on that ankle through crutches.  They will at least get a boot to protect the ankle.  Again, ice and compression are essential to the post-injury care.

Syndesmosis sprains tend to linger because weightbearing can be difficult until those tissues are completely healed.  Running and landing hard on that foot are also impossible, sometimes for several weeks.

Right now, I'm dealing with one athlete that has injured both.  He has a syndesmosis sprain and an ATFL sprain.  It makes getting better even harder.

In either case, you need an athletic trainer or sports physical therapist to help you get back on the playing field quickly, safely, and efficiently.