Posted: Tuesday, November 16, 2010 1:30 am | Updated: 3:12 am, Tue Nov 16, 2010.

Doc Dossman | 0 comments

Welcome to Ask Doc Dossman, a weekly column where you can ask Long Beach’s pre-eminent sports therapist…whatever you want!  If you already forgot who Doc is, click here to read our introduction.  To visit Doc’s website, click here, and buy his book, What I’ve Learned From Your Kids.  Email questions to Doc ataskdoc@docdossman.com.

What’s up Strong Beach? I just got back from Fresno State University! Stay tuned for another installment of “On the Road with Doc Dossman.”  We followed two ex-teammates Isaiah Green and Travionte Sessions, who went up against one another as Fresno State Bulldogs hosted the Nevada Wolfpack. Much love and respect to Ms. Alice Anderson-Green for showing my crew such excellent hospitality! We had a great time!

Today we have some great questions to address so let’s go!

Hello Doc Dossman!

I have been enjoying your column and I think your video blogs are totally awesome! I have a strange question. Do you only work with Long Beach Poly athletes? Are you exclusive to them? What should the rest of us do . . . in case we need sports injury care from . . . Long Beach’s pre-eminent Sports Therapist?  Please don’t take this personal. Part of me is only teasing. The other half has noticed you on Poly football sidelines and in their tents at track meets.  I have seen you on the scene for quite a few years but never in association with any of our other worthy Long Beach athletic programs. You might not even address my question but I just thought I’d throw it out there and see what happens. Nonetheless, keep up the great work!

- Mrs. Mill I. Kan

Hello Millikan!

I welcome your question! I get this one ALL OF THE TIME! I am used to it. I am actually happy that you asked, because now I get a chance to make a public statement about this. It is getting old and I’d like to put the “Doc works for Poly” MYTH to BEE-e-Dee!

I DO NOT WORK FOR LONG BEACH POLY.  I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO CONTRACTUAL ARRANGEMENT WITH LONG BEACH POLY. THERE IS ABSOLUTELY ZERO FAVORITISM IN MY OFFICE. I did not attend Poly. I moved to New York after attending Middle School at Bancroft Middle School. I would have attended Millikan if I had lived in Long Beach during high school.

With that said, I do, in fact, work very closely with a few teams at Long Beach Poly.  When I first started out in solo practice, I was asked by one of the coaches at Poly to help with his main running back.  I worked my customary magic which led to more opportunities to work with other members of the same team. On the high school level, coaches work in multiple sports, so I ended up working with other teams at Poly through the relationships I had formed with the coaches. Currently, I pretty much work extensively with three different programs at Poly. These programs happen to be the higher profile programs due to their success: girls’ soccer, girls’ basketball, boys’ and girls’ track & field. 

Three teams hardly generate enough work to keep a sports medicine practice in business. I have a growing man-child of my own to feed. He may only be 3 years old, but he looks 6! Please, send me your Millikan, Wilson, Jordan, Cabrillo, Compton, Lakewood, and any other athlete. I love taking care of all competitors and I love to make a living! It all works out!

I love what I do. I have no preference for the educational institution from which a sports injury comes. I love helping people. I love supporting my family. I need to support my family. I love Long Beach!  I love young people.  I guarantee that you will find no discrimination here in my office; I work with kids from all over the state. I work with Paramount Track & Field, La Mirada High School Cross-Country, Eleanor Roosevelt Track (Corona), Serra Track & Field (Gardena), and the list goes on. Any one of the coaches of these teams will certainly vouch for the fact that Doc is passionate about helping their athletes.  They will tell you that I love all people. Thanks for letting me air that out!

Hi Doc!

I can’t believe you wouldn’t just answer my question when I asked you at the football game!! “Email me!” he says. Okay, so here it is: You know that I am no athlete, but sometimes I get these cramps in my shins and feet that are the worst! My son gets them sometimes too. (He is the healthy athlete in the family.) Is cramping something that I may have passed down to him genetically? What should I do? Is there anything that will help him?

- Concerned Mom

Hi Concerned Mom!

Do you know how many people approach me with the attitude that I am simply a walking “Ask Doc Dossman”column? You know, sometimes a guy just wants to enjoy the game! :) Besides, it just sounded like a cool question to address in the column. So thanks for cooperating!

Okay, first off, you don’t need to be an athlete to get muscle cramps. You just need to be dehydrated or have an electrolyte imbalance. It is highly likely that you are not drinking enough water. I don’t have much health history background to go off of, but I can give you some generic advice that anyone can apply. Try to drink about 1 liter of water for every 50 pounds of your body weight.  Remember that diuretic medications, caffeinated drinks (including teas) and nicotine actually dehydrate your body and pull water out of you. You might think that you are drinking enough water but if you drink soda or smoke, your efforts might not be effective.

Secondly, muscle cramps are not typically genetic. The most likely way that you are responsible is through observational patterns. Our kids watch us. They pattern their habits after our habits. Parents with poor dietary habits have kids with poor dietary habits. Show me a parent that only drinks soda and coffee, and I will show you a kid that isn’t drinking 1 liter/50lbs of his/her bodyweight.  This is an exceptional topic for my video blog! Stay tuned for that one: “The HYDRATION Video Blog.” Yeah, yeah, I know you’re thinking, “He’s so creative!”

Here is another piece of advice for either you or your son.  Most people, especially athletes, tend to sweat during exercise.

Rule of thumb: if you are sweating, you are losing electrolytes. Replace them. This means that water might not be the answer at this time. Grab a sports drink of your liking. I like coconut water myself. Save water ingestion for the rest of the day. If you don’t replace electrolytes, you WILL have CRAMPS.  Thanks for your question. You have even inspired another blog topic!

What’s Up Doc?

I have been following your column and video blogs. Good stuff! I notice you have thrown in a hint on several occasions about your love of the Los Angeles Lakers. You seem to be shamelessly attempting to score some free tickets! I’m not mad at that! I just wanted to know if you ever employ a bartering system with your services? Let’s say that, hypothetically, I had access to season tickets and an injury prone son playing football, would you [consider an exchange of services or] would you find this proposition insulting?

- Laker Fan Too

Well, Hello, Laker Fan Too!

Insulted? Me? There isn’t much I won’t do for Laker seats . . . hypothetically! The bartering system is awesome!

In the colonial era, during the 17th and 18th centuries, money was scarce, so the colonists relied primarily on bartering, with commodities such as beaver pelts, corn, musket balls, nails, tobacco, and deer skins – from which, incidentally, we got the modern slang, “buck” meaning “dollar”.

In other words: CALL ME!!! (562) 951-0741

Doc!

Please help! I’m confused. I run cross-country and middle-distance track. I am not sure what I should be eating on race day! Should I eat the same way on practice days? What do you think about team “carb load” dinners the night before a race? Cross-country season is over for me but I am now training for the upcoming track season.  Any advice would be appreciated.

- Jaime L.

Jaime

Your timing is impeccable! Stay tuned for next week’s video blog. It is on this very topic: “The “Pre-Game Meal”. For now, I will give you a little insight on your team’s carb load dinner. Unless you are following a specific nutritional program for your sport, what you do the night before your event is not as important as what you do 3 hours prior to your race.

Most “carb load” dinners are really about encouraging team unity and keeping you out of trouble the night before a race.  The high glucose content of the foods consumed at a carb load will put you to bed early for the night. This is a win-win for a coach who needs his/her athletes well rested for the next day! Trickery? I wouldn’t say that. Sounds like good game plan for victory to me! Keep your eyes open for that video next week! I break down the principles and make it very easy to understand! Thanks for your question!

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Remember to send me your questions.  Ask me anything! Once again, that was pretty fun, I love this stuff! Of course, I always request more information. Remember, my perspective on your problem is limited by the information you provide, so please don’t take my recommendations over your own physician who examines you regularly. The more information you give me, the more I can help. I need to know things like age, sex, date of injury, past injuries, and things of that nature.

Well, that is all we have time for today folks! Until next week, stay STRONG BEACH!!

- Doc Dossman

To visit Doc’s website, click here, and buy his book, What I’ve Learned From Your Kids.  Email questions to Doc ataskdoc@docdossman.com.

Doc Dossman- Dynamic Stretching

Posted: Tuesday, November 9, 2010 12:30 am
Article on core stabilization
Doc Dossman 

Welcome to Ask Doc Dossman, a weekly column where you can ask Long Beach’s pre-eminent sports therapist…whatever you want!  If you already forgot who Doc is, click here to read our introduction.  To visit Doc’s website, click here, and buy his book, What I’ve Learned From Your Kids.  Email questions to Doc ataskdoc@docdossman.com.

What’s up Strong Beach? I hope your week is off to a positive start. If not, there is always tomorrow! I hope you enjoyed the first installment of our video blog on stretching.  This week we will close things out with the final video discussing DYNAMIC stretching. Stay tuned. Okay, I have a few questions to address so let’s go!

Hi Doc.  I've been doing the Insanity workout, and the interesting thing to me is that I can do it physically. OF COURSE it's very challenging, but my muscles, bones, joints, whatever, are fine.  At a certain point, I start feeling nauseous, enough to make me take some Tums and cut the workout short. What is that? Should I keep trying to do it? I really want to get in shape, I like exercise, and I'd like to push through and really give this program a chance. If a certain workout makes me want to vomit every time I do it, is this a huge problem or should I just soldier on?

-Evelyn M.

Hi Evelyn! Congrats on your ambitious endeavor for fitness. Insanity is a very intense program. I have had the pleasure of completing it earlier this year. It’s INSANE! Knowing exactly what you are going through physically, your complaint does not surprise me at all. That particular program is very hyperactive. You are jumping, dropping to the ground, popping back up to your feet, and then repeating! All of that jarring causes the digestive juices in your stomach wall to move around as in a blender.  This type of activity starts what might feel like reflux or heartburn. This is fairly common. 

It sounds like you may have a type of Gastro-esophageal Reflux Disease (G.E.R.D.). When this problem happens during exertion, some doctors call it Exertion-Associated Gastro-esophageal Reflux (E.A.G.E.R.). Here are some tips that will help you SOLDIER on:

1: Make sure your most recent meal is completely digested before starting your activity.  In other words, wait about 3 hours after your meal before you exercise

2: Avoid foods that cause heartburn in general (fatty, greasy, caffeinated)

3: Take TUMS prior to the exercise rather than after the onset of your symptoms

4: If you were someone else, I’d say try an exercise program that’s less “bumpy,” but you would have to give up Insanity altogether if you took that advice! For anyone else, less jarring activities would be things like riding a bike, walking, swimming, yoga, etc.

Hope this helps! 

Hey Doc.  This summer before training camp I was working out and I injured my back. MRI says it’s a bulged disc between L4 and L5 pushing on a nerve root. I’m using my redshirt this year because it’s so messed up. Do you have any tips or suggestions?

- Quintin B

QB! Sorry to hear about your diagnosis. I am happy to hear that you have that redshirt available. Playing through disc issues isn’t advisable. This will give you the season to get things right before getting back out on the field.

A bulged disc between L4 and L5 is one of the more common areas to have this problem.  If it is pushing on the nerve root, it’s likely that you have leg pain, numbness, or weakness. You did not mention this. If you did have nerve-type pain, it’s likely that you would have mentioned it. If in fact you don’t even have nerve-related leg pain, this highlights an important point:  MRI findings have to match up with your symptoms to be clinically relevant. 

Just because the MRI picture shows a disc on the nerve, it doesn’t mean much if you don’t have the right symptoms (no clinical correlation).  I say this to encourage you.   Your MRI results are NOT a death sentence.  It all comes down to how you feel. The expensive testing is really just there to CONFIRM or EXCLUDE what we think we found clinically.

One of the best things that you can do for yourself is to strengthen your core muscles. This will function to support your spine.  Unfortunately, the hype about “the core” has really watered down proper education on spinal stability. Rather than tell you to strengthen your core and watch you go off to build your abdominal muscles, I will instead refer you to an article that I wrote--click the link just below the photo above to read it.

I am hoping that you are on some type of physical therapy program at the school.  If so, stay vigilant about following through with the program. Stay active! It’s the guys that listen to the “bed rest” advice that usually get worse in time. Immobility leads to deconditioning of the spinal stabilizers and lowers your general fitness as well.  This is a vicious cycle because when you decide to move, activity becomes painful.  This encourages further inactivity which causes further deconditioning.

Ask your physical therapist about the McKenzie Protocol. It’s very effective for disc problems if you find someone who knows how to apply it! Keep in touch!

Hey Doc- What do you think of those negative ion necklaces/bracelets? Are they a gimmick, or do they really work?

- Ziah D.

Whoa!!! I knew this one was coming! There has been much hype around ionic jewelry over the past few years.  You have ankle bracelets, wristbands, shoe inserts, necklaces, and even finger rings.  They all claim to tap into our bodies’ natural energy and balance it according to our needs – all for the low, low price of $29.95. I work with professional athletes everyday and I would say that 8 out of every 10 of them are wearing some sort of ionic jewelry. When the pro athlete wears them, its not long before the amateur and the weekend warrior follow suit.

The jewelry works on a basic concept borrowed from this acupuncture theory:

“Optimal health and peak performance occur when your body maintains ionic balance (the exchange between negative and positive charges) and free flowing energy pathways (harmony) at the optimum frequency. […] “

I might recognize this as a legitimate eastern medicine theory, but I cannot validate that a bracelet is capable of balancing anything. On the flip side, I cannot say that it does not either. I have many patients that swear by the bands. I have many that just wear them because they don’t want to miss out on anything that the bands might offer. Some thinks it’s a placebo. I am totally fine with placebos.

Many things have been given the moniker of “placebo” as if it is a bad thing. I have heard that chiropractic, acupuncture, massage, and even certain herbs are all PLACEBOS. If something proves to be effective, it is effective. If you think that it is all in your mind, great! It is all in your mind! So even if it gives us a placebo effect, I’m cool with that too--I myself do not wear any form of ionic jewelry but maybe I will try one out and get back to you.

Now of course there are many that think this stuff is off the meter, scam material.  It’s snake oil! They think it’s a big rip off. Unfortunately if there is a reputable product on the market, there are tons of terrible knock offs.  One industry CEO said that if your band was made in China, then it has nothing more than ornamental value! I bet everyone is flipping their bracelets inside out to check for the “made in China” imprint. Who can tell the difference? I’d say try it out.  If it works for you, go with it!  If not, get your money back and keep it moving! I am not the one to blow the B.S. whistle here. Sorry.

By the way, if these bands in fact do work as claimed, you would theoretically only need to wear one. I have patients that put them in their shoes, wear them on both wrists and ankles, and wear the necklace as well.  I think its funny, but if that’s what works for you, go with it!

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Remember to send me your questions.  Ask me anything! Once again, that was pretty fun! I love this stuff! Of course, I always request more information. Remember, my perspective on your problem is limited by the information you provide, so please don’t take my recommendations over your own physician who examines you regularly. The more information you give me, the more I can help. I need to know things like age, sex, date of injury, past injuries, and things of that nature.

Well, that is all we have time for today folks! Until next week, stay STRONG BEACH!!

- Doc Dossman

To visit Doc’s website, click here, and buy his book, What I’ve Learned From Your Kids.  Email questions to Doc ataskdoc@docdossman.com.