Tuesday, January 30, 2007

The Secret of Success Is Constancy To Purpose

Education is the best way to advance ones game. There are many who have experience in fitting, but are they consistent & repeatable?

Our CAD takes into account your 3D for the best solution. We see it all the time, after the WN CAD, the Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish works best.

When you get to the bottom of it, the "purpose" of it all is to fire the muscles in the correct order.

Saturday, January 27, 2007

Kinesiology/Biomechanics/EMG equals the most Effective!

You read and hear from your local pro about the perfect pedal stroke? How to get the most energy from each revolution? What about being the most effective? What gets you to the finish line first?

We agree that the stroke is very complex and we agree that mastering it can make a difference.

Aristotle was the first to analyze and describe the complex process of walking, in which rotatory motion is transformed into translatory motion. This guy had a better understanding of Newton's three laws of motion and he could "demonstrate" the roles of gravity, the laws of motion, and leverage.

That is what we do, we show you! You watch and learn what you need to do!

Let it be understood, there is not one perfect stroke. Even on flat terrain, tt, you can change the timing of your muscles by changing your positions! This was the very problem w/ the top World Cup coaches and their skiers. Each team/coach would just copy what the others are doing during a given season? There is no "Sliver Bullet". Bike fitting pros claim where the greatest muscle activity is, how do they know that w/o EMG?

There are claims of hamstrings vs. quads, etc... At a certain degree e.g. 12 o'clock, 3 o'clock, 6 o'clock, etc... Does everyone have the timing of Rectus femoris
spot on?

Physical characteristics of the body of a human is the first important step in analyzing its movements. How one grew and their structure of the bones, joints, and their muscles can be used to determine appropriate or inappropriate movement activities for a variety of age groups.

Our anthropometrics, or the measurements of the body's physical characteristics is what makes a difference. The mechanical aspect of any system is called mechanics, and that is divided into two categories statics and dynamics.

To go deeper in study, is to look at the time and space factors of a system, and kinetics, the study of the forces acting on a body that influence its movement.

One may attempt to perform a static analysis e.g. KOPS knee over pedal spindle, however, dynamic analysis is required because total body or segmental movement takes place. Bone mass makes a difference.

Watch anyone who becomes a student on how to perform the perfect ski turn and you will more than likely see poor performance. They look good, but how effective are the moves? When I lived in Jackson Hole, WY I would watch the full cert PSIA guys & gals attempt to use what they learned on a less steep hill and attempt to use it, only to get carried off the mountain by the pro patrol. This is not a joke, this is real!!!

How can a person who has spent years to become a full cert PSIA/coach come to Jackson Hole, WY, to tear up Teton Village and use moves that don't work? Immediate comment poor"timing"., wrong moves on the wrong play ground! Their best turns at home are not "effective" on that mountain.

Efficiency and effectiveness of performance are not the same. If one is to consider the efficiency of movement, one must incorporate the concepts of work and energy. An efficient movement is one in which a given amount of work (movement) is done w/ a minimum of energy expenditure. This is a definite advantage to performers as in a marathon to limit their amount of energy for repetitive tasks for hours. Is this true for the long haul on the bike? Not in all cases.

For most sports activities, however, the primary concern is not only w/ saving energy to prolong performance. That energy might come from ones efforts. Rather, biomechanist's focus on these activities are concerned more w/ the effectiveness of a performance,that is, w/ determining the most appropriate movement options to help the performer successfully accomplish the overall performance objective. If you can't tap into your maximum, don't expect to cross the line first!

The degree of work required by the movement or the amount of energy expended in performing it are not as always the most important. Example, runner in a 100-m run can be performed more efficiently by a runner who runs at half the speed of a more effective runner who arrives at the finish line first.

The same holds true for the athlete being effective (successful) in the mile race if the running speed were minimized to conserve energy. Instead the runner needs to learn how to optimize their speed (and rate of energy expenditure) to accomplish the purpose. If the saddle is set for saving the most energy, making a certain technique, you might not get to the end of the race first.

So if you set the saddle location to allow the user to "LEARN" through practice finding optimal speed, but they can move to conserve energy, then back to maximize performance over the course, that might be a better option.

So all the talk seems to be "optimizing efficiency to maximize effectiveness".

Generally, an effective movement is optimally efficient; however, a maximally efficient movement is "NOT" necessarily bi mechanically effective if the saddle constraint does not allow you to maximized you stroke.

EMG allows objective quantification of the energy of the muscle. You can "see" synergies in the energy patterns that cannot be seen w/ the naked eye or a powermeter.
The observer is allowed to see the muscle energy at rest & changing continuously over the course of a movement. With multiple sensor arrays, it is possible to differentiate how different aspect of muscles do different things.

To state there is a "The Perfect Pedal Stroke" is very misleading!

A better question is does the "muscle fire early or late" in a recruitment pattern? Does a particular exercise actually activate the muscle it is intended to, or is there a substitution pattern present? Does the muscle turn off following a given movement, or does it show irritability following movement? That is a waste!

One thing is for sure, if your saddle is set to minimized the energy, but does not allow for maximize performance you are not going to be the first across the line.


We think you need to learn what is the best of all worlds. Maximize, minimize, and optimize your game.

The "Perfect Pedal Stroke" NAUGHT! A person who is more "effective" and knows how to do it all and who arrives at the finish line first is the focus. The saddle set in a location so you can't optimize your game has no chance.

Friday, January 26, 2007

Craig Upton's New Zealand's countryman takes tt down-under.

Craig holds office in CA., and he is our master fitter! He started w/ Wobble-naught years ago in NYC w/in his home. Now his partner Mike runs things from their Performance Labs. He is part owner of TEAm Lipton and has hepled many reach their goals or golds!!! Below is only one of many who Mr. Upton has helped.

CHADDIE Wins TT Nationals

New Zealand born Australian raised Glen Chadwick won the inaugural elite men's national time trial championship in perfect conditions in Upper Hutt today, three seconds ahead of Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Gordon McCauley. McCauley was nearly 40 seconds up on Chadwick at the 20km half way point but a fast second half of the race saw Chadwick, who was seeded ninth, sneak home ahead of top seed McCauley, - see latest news at http://www.performancelabshc.com

Performance Labs HC is New York City's endurance solution, specializing in precision physiological testing, training and biomechanics. Whether you're an amateur or World Champion, our training methods focus exclusively on the most scientific approach currently used by athletes on professional teams such as Rabobank, Navigators Insurance and World Championship winning TEAm Lipton.

Performance Labs
Craig Upton
1832 Centro West
Tiburon, CA 94920
craig.upton@gmail.com
t: 917 353-4083

What' in your game?

Big Guns Going to Herriott Sports Performance!

Todd Herriott has the respect of many, after racing for many years. Todd is now getting even more respect after conducting our fits and his services at his new "Herriott Performance Center" in Seattle, WA. Todds informs us that he has nothing but super feedback e.g. newcomers to the 2007 Healthnet Team Ryder Hesjeda(CAN).


Herriott Sports Performance
Todd Herriott
1207 6th Ave. North
Seattle, WA 98109
Tel: 646 206-3349
todd@herriottsportsperformance.com


What's in your game?

Monday, January 22, 2007

Does our Science work? Great Britain team sprint Gold




2007 World Cup Track sees the Brits taking Gold. For many of you, you would not have known or been aware that the Brits have worked very hard for two years w/ Dartfish software to get it to work w/ SRM to study their game. The results - Gold!

It is true, not everyone can be on a National Team, having the tools to learn how to peform better. But that will change. By this spring, that same high-tech will be part of our Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish that works w/ SRM pkg. You will be able to see your game inside & out. Many of our dealers can't wait. The game will never be the same!

Saturday, January 13, 2007

Want to get up to 15% from you Quads?



Rectus femoris (Biomechanics)

Using our Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish, we can find more power.











The rectus femoris comprises 15% of the normalized physiological cross sectional area of the quadriceps and acts parallel to the shaft of the femur.

What's in your game?

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

TEAm Lipton 2007 Roster

2007 TEAm LIPTON
NEW YORK, NY (January 5, 2007) – LIPTON Tea reveals its commitment to health and vitality, with its continued support of TEAm LIPTON women’s pro cycling and triathlon team for the 2007 season. With 580 days until the beginning of the Olympic Summer Games, TEAm LIPTON has assembled its roster and race calendar to focus on the Olympic Games. Team LIPTON is poised to dominate women’s road racing and looks to build on a highly successful 2006 campaign that included a World Championship title, the National Road Championship title, the National Time Trial Championship title, the NRC overall Team title, over 35 wins and nearly 100 podium finishes.

Leading the TEAm LIPTON squad again for 2007 will be Kristin Armstrong, the World Time Trial Champion, current U.S. National Road and Time Trial Champion and 2004 Olympian. The elite roster includes several Olympic hopefuls for the 2008 Beijing Games, and some of America’s best young riders.. TEAm LIPTON will expand its race calendar to prepare for the 2008 Olympics with a race schedule that includes more than 100 events in several countries.

“The TEAm and its athletes are really motivated to use the momentum gained last year to have an even better season this year,” said Thomas Liese, TEAm LIPTON’s director sportif and former Tour de France rider and German National TEAm member. We’ve assembled a TEAm of women who are on top of their game and who respect one another and work incredibly well together,” added Liese.

As a new national squad in 2006, TEAm LIPTON deftly became the top TEAm in the United States and one of the best in the World. Much of the TEAm’s fast track to the top stemmed from the composition of the team, its staff and management and the professionalism of its athletes. “The camaraderie on TEAm LIPTON is second to none,” said Ed Beamon, of Edj Sports Management, the firm overseeing TEAm LIPTON. “The selflessness of our TEAm leader, Kristin Armstrong, has created an atmosphere that helps motivate everyone to give 100%, and that adds up to success,” added Beamon.

For 2007, Armstrong will be headlining a TEAm with five returning riders from the 2006 squad, including Kori Kelly Seehafer, Grace Fleury, Lara (Daily Distraction) Kroepsch, Kristen (Sassy) LaSasso, and Meredith Miller. The squad is made complete with four newcomers, including Lauren Franges, Kim Geist, Brenda Lyons and Nicole Evans. Professional triathlete Rebeccah Wassner and two Ironman triathlon specialists will provide race an extensive multisport calendar that includes World Cups and the Hawaii Ironman World Championships.

“I couldn’t be happier with the TEAm we have for this season,” said Kristin Armstrong. “We have a really solid TEAm with the most supportive staff and management.” “There is no better, more accomplished and vibrant team of athletes to represent the LIPTON brand,” says Patricia Zenobi, Unilever Marketing Director, LIPTON US. “Their commitment to quality performance and inspiring Americans to live well and achieve their fitness and nutrition goals mirrors our values completely.”




2007 TEAm LIPTON Roster

TEAm LIPTON consists of 13 top-level athletes, with a stellar combined resume featuring the Olympic Games, the Tour de France, and the U.S. National and World Championship teams:
• Kristin Armstrong, Boise, ID: 2006 World Time Trial Champion, 2005, 2006 National Time Trial Champion and 2006 National Road Champion, 2004 Olympian and US top finisher in the road race
• Kori Kelly Seehafer, Louisville, CO: Ranked in the top-10 of American road cyclists
• Grace Fleury, Winston-Salem, NC: 2006 Stage 8 winner Tour de l’Aude, 2005 Atlanta 10K Classic champion and 3rd place, 2005 U.S. National time trials
• Lara Kroepsch, Newbury Park, CA: 2005 Colorado State Cyclocross Champion; Two-time Collegiate National Criterium and 2005 International Women’s Criterium champion
• Kristen LaSasso, La Canada, CA: 2006 Cascade Cycling Classic Champion, climbing specialist
• Meredith Miller, Fort Collins, CO: European World Cup veteran, all-around rider
• Lauren Franges, Asheville, NC: Ranked in the top-10 of American road cyclists, all-around rider
• Brenda Lyons, Santa Rosa, CA: Criterium specialist, 2006 Tour de Toona Stage Winner
• Kimberly Geist, Emmaus, PA: A track and sprint specialist
• Nicole Evans, Sandy, UT: A climbing and stage race specialist
• Rebeccah Wassner, New York, NY: 2004 Pro Rookie Triathlete of the Year and World Cup triathlete
• Kiki Rutkowski, MD, San Francisco, CA: Ironman World Championship top finisher in 2004 and 2005
• Bodil Arlander, San Francisco, CA: Ironman specialist and multiple-time All-American
• Thomas Liese, Leipzig, Germany: Director Sportif, Tour de France finisher, former German National Champion

“We’re thrilled to be managing a women’s program of this caliber,” added Beamon. “We are extremely grateful to LIPTON, a committed brand that will help grow the sport and provide great opportunities for athletes.”

Other supporting sponsors of the team include Fuji Bicycles, Shimano, Biemme, Selle Italia, Oval Concepts, LAS helmets, DeFeet, Smith Optics, Cateye, SKS, SciCon, Continental Tires,Arundel and Wobble-naught, Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish. For more information about TEAm LIPTON, go to www.TEAmLipton.com. For more information on all the health and vitality benefits of drinking tea, go to www.Lipton.com.

Monday, January 08, 2007

TEAm Lipton's take NRC rankings!

Congratulations to the gals of TEAm Lipton. We are so pleased to be part of their game, to watch them be one of "The World's best".

Not only did they take "Best Women's Road TEAm", but Kristin Armstrong took "Female Roadie" of the Year!

What's in your game?

Saturday, January 06, 2007

The Knee Joint - Why use Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish

The knee joint.

We never know how someone has their bike set up? There is much behind what we do! We don't just eye things!

Why in other sports like golf do people go and spend so much time at the driving range to practice their swings. Why do they go to the practice green to work on their putting. Why do they go to a PGA pro to learn? Tons of time working on the small things like their grip, addressing the ball, getting the club to make perfect contact. They work very hard on their take-away and their timing to obtain better results.

Money can buy the very best clubs (bikes) you want, but you still have to learn how to use them. Infact you can spend a life time and never learn the swing! Sure you enjoy the game, posting high scores. Ha!

Then you take the cyclist who spends much money on their $$$$ bike, this and that, a coach for training, mostly online. In most cases, its a "training coach" doesn't live near you to watch or know how you pedal? How would they, if they don't have sEMG and Dartfish working together? Just using Dartfish is not letting you know the tone of the muscles.
That is the whole point of Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish, That is why we have taken over two years now, putting them together!!!

We don't think a bad golf stroke is going to imporve your game. The same holds true about a bad pedal stroke, how is it going to improve your game? A powermeter helps in training, but only records the sum of the muscles and it will not show you the loads on your muscle! It will not inform you or the coach on what muscle is doing what!

It seems most do their thinking from "hear-say', or they read something in a mag, or not at all? They just jump on their bike and ride "Bad motor skills" or not.

Myo-facts sEMG/Dartfish is a major break through and it really makes a difference for learning. It shows you the "TRUTH". Read whatever, study whatever, but the bottom line is your "Know How". Where you get your "Know How" makes a difference!
But first understand this, if you can't address the club head on the ball, good luck. Every stroke counts, and every pedal stroke counts.

Top coaches like (Hunter Allen, Rick Crawford, Kendra Wenzel, etc...) are sending their racers our way! They all know that we provide the best fit and biofeedback, leading to better results.

Why should you care about your pedal stroke? The person who wants to live a long active life style!













The knee joint as a mechanism of three joints (Biomechanics).

The knee joint is a complex mechanism of four bones the femur, tibia, patella and fibula which interact in three separate joints the tibiofemoral, patellofemoral, and tibiofibular joint. The function of these joints is to allow certain movements, restrict others, and to provide load transfer through the lower limb.

Tibiofemoral joint loading: tensile and compressive forces (Biomechanics).

The knee is subjected to high external forces in many directions: compression, anterior-posterior shear, medial-lateral shear, internal-external, flexion, and varus-valgus moments. The ligaments and other soft tissues, such as the posterior capsule (image) , hold the knee joint together. These tissues are under great tension with each pedal stroke. The articular surfaces and the menisci hold the knee joint apart. These are under compression with the pedal stroke. Joint loading is estimated by applying the results of pedal analysis to a joint model. The tibiofibular joint is loaded to approximately three times body weight during walking, with most of the compressive force passing into the medial compartment. It is less when on the saddle, but still subjected to high external forces.

The knee joint is the largest synovial articulation in the body, and of all joints possesses the most voluminous synovial cavity. It is defined as a compound joint on account of the irregularity of contour, and the number, of its articular surfaces. Correspondingly, movements of the knee joint are complex in the pedal. Thus the knee joint is capable not only of flexion and extension, but also of "complex rotatory movements".

The knee joint is also described as a complex joint because of the presence of intraarticular menisci and intraarticular ligaments. Even with the perfect fit, the tone and timing of the quads changes its loads and functions.

The knee joint is an articulation between the lower end of femur, the meniscus-bearing upper surface of tibia, and posterior surface of the patella. Although sharing a single capsular investment and a single synovial cavity, the knee joint is a complex of three articulations; a medial tibio-femoral articulation, a lateral tibio-femoral articulation and a patello-femoral articulation.

In terms of function and movement the knee joint may be defined as a modified hinge joint, capable of flexion, extension and rotation.

Despite the apparent lack of congruence between the various articulating surfaces, the knee joint is a remarkably stable joint. This stability is due largely to the presence of several strong ligaments (both intracapsular and extracapsular), and various tendinous and muscular attachments.
















Medial tibial plateau (Biomechanics)

The concave medial tibial plateau increases knee joint stability when under compression, as the resultant compressive forces act to locate the medial femoral condyle in the concavity.

















Lateral tibial plateau (Biomechanics).

The convex or flat lateral tibial plateau allows more mobility of the lateral compartment of the knee. Therefore, the motion of the lateral compartment is guided primarily by the muscle loading, soft tissue restraints, and external moments, rather than the joint contact force between the femoral condyle and the lateral tibial plateau. The only way to see the muscle loading is by using EMG.

This mobility of the lateral compartment is more pronounced with injury to the soft tissue structures of the knee which restrict tibial rotation, such as the anterior cruciate ligament. Such an injury frequently causes the 'pivot shift', which is the movement of the tibia from one position of stability to another. Bad motor skills also decrease its stability.















Even with the presence of the several strong ligaments and tendinous and muscular attachments poor loading of certain muscles with a poor pedal stroke/saddle location can cause mobility issues at the knee.













Patellofemoral joint (Biomechanics).

The patellofemoral joint has six dof. The patella is very free to move passively, that is, the ligamentous restraints to patellofemoral motions are small when still, but under active motion the patella follows a reproducible path of motion. The motion is known as the patellar tracking and a measure of the freedom-of-motion is known as the patellar laxity, or patellar stability.

The patellofemoral joint has one main mechanical function: to provide a fulcrum to increase the lever arm of the quadriceps to extend the knee joint, or to stop it from flexing. These are critical in all aspects of cycling, as is only takes milimeters to be off. The extensor force required for this activitie is very high. The force magnitudes across the whole extensor mechanism of the knee are thought to be the highest in the whole human body. The hyaline cartilage of the patella is the thickest in the body and provides an environment with minimal frictional losses under high compressive loads.














Physiological cross sectional area (Biomechanics).

Muscle strength and loading is difficult to quantify as direct measurement of muscle forcesl. A number of different approaches for quantification of muscle forces have been applied in the literature. Electromyography can indicate the intensity of muscle activation, but it is not yet possible to determine accurately the force exerted by each muscle in a complex. One approach is to relate a muscle's ability to generate force to its size and architecture.

Cross sectional area has been used to measure force ratios. The physiological cross sectional area (image) (PCSA), (cross sectional area of the muscle perpendicular to all of its fibers), is however believed to provide a estimation of muscle strength, being proportional to the number and cross sectional area of the tension-producing fibers.

The PCSA can indicate the contribution of each muscle in a group of muscles, particularly when they reach a limiting stress, such as in strenuous activity like cycling. This is where we take our readings!






























Patella (Biomechanics).

The patella is the largest sesamoid bone in the body and has the thickest hyaline cartilage in the body. The areas of the medial and lateral facets reflect the ratio of patellar joint force that they transmit: the Q-angle biases the load 60:40 onto the lateral facet.

The most obvious morphologic feature of the articular surface of the patella is its asymmetry. This is important as very few people have the same shape. This morphologic differences produces different pedal styles. We do not want to change one's style to match another for this reason. There are many simply using lasers to keep everything on the same plane. This is wrong!

Based on this asymmetry (Wiberg) classified patellae into three types:

Type I: the medial and lateral facets are gently concave and nearly equal in size.

Type II: the medial facet is flat or convex and smaller than the concave lateral facet.

Type III: the medial facet is very small and is usually prominent and convex, while the lateral facet is broad and concave.

The most common type is type II (55%), while type III accounts for 25%. Other types of classification systems have been proposed, the most common is the one proposed by Ficat and Hungerford (1977) which is based on the angle subtended by the two major facets.

The primary function of the patella is to increase the lever arm of the extensor muscles. This requires a surface adapted to bearing high compressive loads with minimal friction. This can change, given one's focus on the firing of their extensor muscles.














In our fitting process, we don't just use a plum-line to find a saddle location. Even the best of pros are learning from our EMG, as they have a better chance of firing their muscles at the best time. More important, they stay in the game!

Their is much more to our fit than meets the eye.

After we find your constraints, we use a very powerful CAD program in the background of our site to get it right! Then we use the Myo-facts sEMG/Dartish with great care to find the combination of medial/lateral & flexion/extension loads for the type of game you wish to play.

What's in your game?