The KRUSE ELITE Podcast Taylor Kruse

What if an old scar is causing your brain to erroneously map where your body is in space? In Part 3 of a series on the neural hierarchy, I speak with my podcast producer, Tony, all about the proprioceptive system and how our sense of where our body is in space lives not in the body, but rather in the brain. I discuss why the proprioceptive system is closely related to performance and pain, and how this system ties in with the rest of the neural hierarchy to make decisions about movement, balance, mobility and threat.  By understanding how the proprioceptive mental map is made, I show how seemingly unrelated exercises that "clarify the map" can help decrease pain, increase performance, and even lessen things like anxiety and stress.

Thank you to my podcast idea man and coach, Tony Fowler (Instagram: @tone_reverie) for helping me put together this episode!

Whenever you're ready here's how we can help you:


Follow structured programs to keep your joints healthy and your muscles strong even as you age by joining the Strength & Mobility Dojo
Restore your brain-body connection by deliberately training your unique nervous system using the neurologic blueprint we provide in our specialty course, the Neuro Dojo

What if your tight calves are actually caused by a deficiency in how your brain perceives balance? In Part 2 of a series on the neural hierarchy, I speak with my podcast producer, Tony, all about the often overlooked vestibular system and how it is integrally related to balance, posture, respiration, blood pressure, and potentially, pain and performance.  I discuss some clues that might make me suspect someone has a vestibular deficiency, how I can test the vestibular system, what kinds of drills and exercises you can use to train the vestibular system, and more.  I also tell some powerful stories of clients that had lifelong vestibular deficits that they weren't aware of, and that when identified and targeted, led to huge improvements in quality of life and performance.  

Thank you to my podcast idea man and coach, Tony Fowler (Instagram: @tone_reverie) for helping me put together this episode!

Whenever you're ready here's how we can help you:


Follow structured programs to keep your joints healthy and your muscles strong even as you age by joining the Strength & Mobility Dojo
Restore your brain-body connection to decrease pain and improve performance using the neurologic blueprint we provide in our specialty course, the Neuro Dojo

The neural hierarchy is a powerful explanatory framework for how our brain relies on sensory information when we are active, but what if the vast majority of the movement and fitness industry only focuses on the least important sensory system?  Today, I speak with my podcast producer, Tony, about the neural hierarchy.  I outline what the three sensory systems in the neural hierarchy are and focus on the visual system which accounts for 70% of the sensory information that our brain receives.  I discuss my own challenges with visual impairment as a young athlete, how the visual system interacts with movement and athletic performance, and why a visual deficit can potentially lead to pain and injury.  I also discuss how training and activating the visual system can have surprising benefits in pain management, threat reduction, and strength and coordination.  

Thank you to my podcast idea man and coach, Tony Fowler (Instagram: @tone_reverie) for helping me put together this episode!

Whenever you're ready here's how we can help you:


Follow structured programs to keep your joints healthy and your muscles strong even as you age by joining the Strength & Mobility Dojo
Restore your brain-body connection by deliberately training your unique nervous system using the neurologic blueprint we provide in our specialty course, the Neuro Dojo

 

Have you ever managed chronic pain? Or, maybe you've struggled to come back from an injury. Maybe you've had issues with your menstrual cycle as an athlete and need some tips on how to better care for your body. All of this and more is the reality of professional athlete, Lila Lapanja. If you're interested in learning how a Professional Alpine Ski Racer has walked through this journey and is coming out the other side with better health and performance than ever, you'll love this episode. 

In this episode, I interview one of our very own Strength & Mobility Dojo members, Lila Lapanja. Lila and I talk about:


Her personal experience as a Professional Alpine Ski Racer beginning as a teenager and continuing on for over a decade now
How she discovered the role your brain and nervous system plays in managing chronic pain, regulating metabolic health, and the impact it has on your overall health an lifestyle
How her perception of her chronic pain patterns has completely transformed since learning the science of pain and how to quickly resolve issues as they arise
How overhauling her training and eating habits played a massive role in improving her metabolic health and restored her menstrual cycle
How improving her metabolic and hormonal health translated into better athletic performance and helped her make wiser training decisions
Her training tips to help you restore balance to your training and to improve your health in the process

Thank you to Strength & Mobility Dojo member, Lila Lapanja for sharing your personal journey as a professional athlete learning to listen to your body so you can improve not just your performance but your overall health.

You can follow along with Lila's athletic journey here:

Website: https://www.lilalapanja.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lapanjalila/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lilalapanja/ 

Whenever you're ready here's how we can help you:


Follow structured programs to keep your joints healthy and your muscles strong even as you age by joining the Strength & Mobility Dojo
Restore your brain-body connection by deliberately training your unique nervous system using the neurologic blueprint we provide in our specialty course, the Neuro Dojo

 

The immediate feedback self-assessment process is a powerful tool, but what do you do if you're getting negative or confusing results?  Today, I speak with my podcast producer, Tony, about common problems that can occur during the self-assessment process and how to know when you need to make some changes.  I discuss the importance of body awareness, how changing the speed or the load of an exercise can change how your body responds, why negative results are just as important as positive ones, and why self-assessment results might change over time.  I also discuss the importance of fuel capacity and the minimum effective dose, and what actually happens in your body when a drill or exercise yields an immediate effect on your movement or pain.

Thank you to my podcast idea man and coach, Tony Fowler (Instagram: @tone_reverie) for helping me put together this episode!

Whenever you're ready here's how we can help you:


Follow structured programs to keep your joints healthy and your muscles strong even as you age by joining the Strength & Mobility Dojo
Restore your brain-body connection by deliberately training your unique nervous system using the neurologic blueprint we provide in our specialty course, the Neuro Dojo

Understanding how pain works and where it comes from is one of the most important pieces of the puzzle when it comes to solving your own pain issues. Pain can be very frightening for people because they generally associate pain with damage, but this is not necessarily true. Today, my goal is to introduce you to pain science to help you learn about what pain is, where it comes from, and why it exists in the first place. 

We cover these 4 main concepts:


Pain lives in the brain
Pain does not equal injury and injury does not equal pain
The severity of your pain does not dictate the severity of your problem
Just because you have pain does not mean you have a mechanical problem

Pain is a signal. It is a protective output. The goal of the pain is to get you to change your behavior in some way. So you have to ask yourself, 'what is the protective reason for my pain?' 

I discuss a variety of factors that may contribute to your pain experience, a study on low back imaging of people with bulging discs or disc degeneration yet they had no pain, a story of a young gymnast with chronic back pain years after her original injury, and a review of The Threat Bucket as an educational tool to help you identify areas of your life that may be contributing to your pain experience.  

Whenever you're ready here's how we can help you:


Follow structured programs to keep your joints healthy and your muscles strong even as you age by joining the Strength & Mobility Dojo
Restore your brain-body connection by deliberately training your unique nervous system using the neurologic blueprint we provide in our specialty course, the Neuro Dojo