January 18, 2010

Back in my high school days, one of my closest friends was a guy named Vic. He was a strange kid, no question. He was a good looking kid of Italian extraction, who had an effete, almost feminine quality, but was tough as nails, was definitely not gay, as he nailed anything with a pulse in skirts (had excellent taste too, as I recall), and carried a ten inch knife down the front of his pants, at all times. It wasn’t uncommon for him to be in a fight with someone and I never saw him lose. The guy could really handle himself. 
 
Yet, he also wrote the most beautiful, sensitive poetry. He DID however, threaten to kill me, if I ever told anyone that he wrote it. He also had a soft spot for pets and kept goldfish. Definitely a boy of complex nature. 
 
But as odd as he was, his father was a real piece of work. Reputed to have worked for the CIA (and I never did find out whether that was pure BS, or if it was true–which it well might have been), he was a big, broad shouldered, barrel-chested, handsome man of Italian lineage, with a massive, leonine head and a thick, but well-trimmed mane of long, wavy, jet black hair, barely touched by gray, though he was 53 at that time.
 
(Funny that we once all thought that anyone over 50 was OLD… time tends to change your perspective, doesn’t it?)
 
He was a apparently a very sophisticated man, who was usually very well dressed in business attire, and he had that urbane manner of the continental European, who was both wealthy and well travelled. All of Vic’s friends were very impressed by him, me included. 
 
He was always relaxed and friendly with us, but he had this underlying air of subtle menace about him, a sense that there was danger there, just below the surface. Vic had told me how his father could suddenly convert from an apparent wealthy cogniscenti to a savage fighter, in an instant, surprising a would-be opponent and putting him down for the count, before that poor bastard even knew he was in a fight.
 
Youthful hyperbole? Who knows? I never saw any of that. I only had Vic’s word for it. But he DID look very capable of it. And I only know that nobody would dare to screw around with him. He was accorded a rare and wary respect, by all of us.
 
I never did find out what happened to Vic’s mother, whether she had died, or if they’d been divorced, but Vic lived with his father in an apartment, a few blocks down from me, on 89th Street, a few doors up from Narrows Avenue in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. His dad kept company with a very handsome woman, also very well dressed and of some sophistication, who also had a very cosmopolitan air about her. 
 
I never did figure out exactly if she was his wife, or his girlfriend, but she apparently lived in another house or apartment, not with Vic and his Dad.
 
The truly impressive thing about Vic’s Dad, though, that I DID see, was his great physical strength. It was amazing, especially to my young eyes, at the time. And the moreso, because he WAS 53.
 
He would lie face down, flat on the floor, to eliminate all leverage, and pick up a solid iron 55 pound dumbbell with one hand, palm upward, and a straight arm. He would then curl it above and across his head, pivoting on his elbow, for multiple repetitions, with no discernable effort. Try that some time. It ain’t easy!
 
I remember bringing my then girlfriend, Linda, over with me to visit Vic, when his Dad was there. She was a line-girl for the Copa Cobana, a professional dancer with a really well-toned body and an aura of sheer animal magnetism, that I’ve rarely seen in anyone else. I introduced her to Vic’s Dad and she was really turned on by this “old” guy, at 53 yet! Unbelievable!
 
Whatever he had, I wish I could have bottled it. Woulda made a fortune. That’s for sure. Guy had it all: looks, self-posession, that aura of innate authority and that kind of forever strength, that age couldn’t wither. We all knew he worked out, to maintain it, but still…

I don’t know if he took supplements or not, but I’m betting he did. I’m confident that a guy like him, so obviously concerned with staying fit, virile and young, would be a big proponent of my POWERHOUSE OMEGA FORMULA  http://www.favoriteformulas.com  if, of course, it had existed back then.

I never did find out what happened to him, or if he still lives. Vic and I sort of lost touch after college, when I went off to medical school and, though I’ve tried to find him, so far, no luck.
 
But the other day, I was watching TV when a commercial came on, with the tag line, “Forever Strength.” And for some reason, out of nowhere, I flashed on my memories of Vic and Vic’s Dad. HA! If he were still around, I’d use HIM as a model, for my next fitness program. 
 
As it is, you’ll just have to make do with the fetching blonde personal trainer, who is the model for the knee pain exercises and stretches in my new and expanded PAIN-FREE PROGRAM & DVD: http://www.drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html 
 
Well, wherever Vic’s Dad is, I wish him well. He was someone I admired and looked up to, in my formative years and a really good guy. Y’know, I STILL can’t do that trick of his with the dumbbell… and I never could. The power that guy must have had….
 
Well, that’s it for today. Look for my new Podcast show, “The Wellness Warrior” on mypodcastworld.com and on iTunes. First episode is about the many health benefits of Omega 3 fatty acids.  Til next time, my friend, be well. 
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow and your optimal health,
 
Dr. Bill
 
“The Wellness Warrior”   TM
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html 
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html 
 
P.P.P.S. For conventional and alternative treatments and exercises to relieve knee pain without surgery click on http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html 
 
P.P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html 
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2010 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD, FACS
All rights reserved

Well, Christmas is just a week from tonight.  Unbelievable. I’ve expounded before about the Stillwell Theory of Seasonal Relativity. 
 
In brief, for the uninitiated, this theory states that time progressively accelerates, relative to an observer’s proximity to the Christmas Holidays.  In other words, time subjectively seems to speed up from around April, through the rest of the year, hitting a peak from August through December. 
 
I mean, once you reach Halloween, you blink, and it’s Thanksgiving. Blink again, it’s Christmas, then New year’s Eve. 
 
Then suddenly, on January first of the New Year, it’s like the brakes were thrown on–time is suddenly slowed to a crawl, not to speed up again until late Spring and Summer. Just look at how long it takes to arrive at Valentine’s Day. Seems like it takes forever.
 
And of course, the older you get, the faster and faster it all seems to go. Well, it seems that way to me, anyway. But math was always my worst subject…. 
 
There really is a scientific explanation for this subjective phenomenon, though. The older you get, the smaller the fraction of your entire life experience is each new experience. That’s why the two month summer vacation you enjoyed as a kid seemed to stretch forever, but it flashes by as an adult. Two months is a whole lot bigger fraction of the whole when you’re only ten years old, than when you’re fifty.
 
But now that we’re in the week before Christmas, it’s all going at warp speed. And it doesn’t help that I’m spending a lot of time running up and down the East Coast, to prepare the Northern Command and transport our cats. I STILL have to get all that last minute shopping done, even though I DID start during the summer.
 
With all the extra stresses of the Holiday Season, many people have emailed me with their complaints of sore backs and aching knees. Not surprising, though, is it? Everyone is running around, on their feet longer, shopping, going to office parties, shopping, and more shopping, despite the economy. 
 
And the physical stress is compounded by the extra mental and emotional stress, which transforms into biological stress. This kind of stress makes any inflammation in the body worse and reduces the body’s immune system, as well.
 
So, what to do? Well, even though it’s very tough this time of year, you have to keep up with your exercises.  If you have knee pain, my PAIN-FREE PROGRAM (click here:  http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html )  is ideal for this, because it provides a MENU of proven, effective exercises, from which you can choose.
 
But when time is of the essence, I’d recommend that you concentrate on HACK SQUATS, with the heaviest weight you can handle, to meet the criteria that I outline, and the specially modified HINDU SQUATS I describe at  http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
You can also do simple isometric QUAD SETS, while standing in line at stores, or at every red light, if driving. If you’re at a train station, lean against the columns and do WALL SITTING–effective, but inconspicuous in public.
 
And to boost your immune system and increase your strength and stability, try the life-enhancing topical cream that increases your own endogenous growth hormone,  safely and within physiological limits, like I do:   http://drbillsclinic.com/trans_d_tropin.html 
 
If you try to do these few things, every day, despite being in the very midst of the Christmas Countdown, you will feel better, be less likely to get colds  and flu, and will relieve your knee pain. Try these methods and see what I mean.
 
Til next time, my friend, be well. 
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

 There I was over this past weekend, talking with some of the paticipants of Matt Furey’s GET TOUGH! Fitness Seminar this past Winter. I wasn’t there myself, built as I am for comfort rather than speed . But a near universal remark among those of my vintage, or even a bit younger, was the deep and persistent muscular aching they all experienced. Even those who are very fit and are habitual exercisers felt it. 

One of the ways that you know you’re getting older is this delayed muscular aching after vigorous exercise, that seems to be more intense, and seems to last much longer than when you were younger. The technical term for this is Delayed Onset Muscular Soreness, or DOMS.  As a mnemonic, just remember the old DRAGNET theme: “DOM…DA DOM-DOMS…” 

This is a product of inflammation, provoked by microtears and other microtrauma, induced by exercise. This is the stimulus for muscular hypertrophy–in other words, this is how exercise causes muscle fibers to grow larger and stronger. With age, this process takes longer, and the discomfort is prolonged. Since muscular hypertrophy results from this process,
it follows that it isn’t the exercise, but rather the REST after the exercise that allows the muscles to grow and strengthen. This has practical implications. If you’re trying to get stronger, REST, for proper recuperation, is just as important as the exercise you do.

This is especially important when you’re doing exercises to treat joint pain, such as the specially modified exercises I teach in HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY, at  http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html
 
It’s sometimes difficult to differentiate between the joint pain itself and the muscular soreness that results from the exercises, when it’s excessive. The rule of thumb that I was always taught and that I have found to be true throughout my career is that mild muscular soreness that follows exercise, but fades by the following day indicates just the right level of exercise intensity. If soreness persists beyond the following day, it’s too much.

To treat this condition, first, REST. Don’t add to the problem by exercising before the soreness and stiffness have resolved. Next, apply local moist heat.  You’ll find it feels soothing, which helps to bring healing blood into the area and speed the resolution of inflammation. Anti-inflammatory measures are also helpful, including OTC medications. But be sure to take any of these meds with FOOD, to protect your stomach. 

It’s also worth noting that in the GET TOUGH! Seminar, the exercises were ALL bodyweight techniques–no free weights. And still, many participants had significant persistent soreness, in some cases for many days. That should put to rest the idea that bodyweight exercises are not adequate to really stimulate muscular strength. If you want a full body workout that is challenging, functional and SAFE, try Combat Conditioning, at  http://drbillsclinic.com/combat_conditioning.html
 
And if you want to treat a painful knee with non-surgical methods, including many of my specially modified exercises, see HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY at   http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html  It’s the only program like it out there…and it works. 

Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to   http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html

FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

When I was a kid, growing up in Brooklyn, NY, during the sixties, just about all my friends and I were into weight lifting. Not Olympic weight lifting, but more like weight training, using what are now called free weights, to distinguish them from Nautilus and other mechanical resistance machines that didn’t exist then. “Bodybuilding,” as a separate sport and as a commonly used term, was really unknown, except by those in that subculture. We were into “muscle building” and fighting–typical for young guys. In the full flower of our youth, we were in love with strength.
 
There’s a reason that most auto accidents involve teenage boys and young men under 25 years old–entirely too much testosterone and not nearly enough acetylcholine (neurotransmitter that enables brain and nerve function). So, awash in the flood of newly minted hormones, we lifted and pressed and squatted as much weight as we could, with little regard to form or safety, using techniques that would give a proper trainer heart failure.
 
The amazing thing is that any of us survive our teens. Luckliy, Nature compensates and we all had a resilience and recuperative ability that we’d never know again in this life. And considering our near complete ignorance of the correct principles of training, we actually looked pretty good. The thing about age though, is that the ability to bounce back is rapidly lost. Just try to do some of the things you used to and you’ll be paying the price for quite some time.
 
Especially for Boomers, like me, weight training as a way to get back in shape is fraught with hidden dangers. Chronic back, neck and shoulder pain, aching knees and snapping joints are among the more common results of heavy free weight use. And the risks of sudden injuries, torn tendons, ripped muscles and the like are very real consequences of just one split second of inattention or poor form. For that reason, thanks largely to my friend Matt Furey, bodyweight exercises have made a comeback. His international best seller,  COMBAT CONDITIONING, which you can get at http://drbillsclinic.com/combat_conditioning.html  led the current wave of these functional strengthening techniques. Their advantage is that you develop real strength, flexibility and coordination, but within physiological parameters. That means you never over load your joints tendons or ligaments with stresses they were never designed to handle–the major reason for training injuries.
 
But that doesn’t mean that you NEVER use free weights. It just means that you use them as a supplement to your bodyweight training, rather than the main event. For example, suppose you are trying to do chins, or pull-ups, like those in Ed Baran’s Animal Conditioning Program at   http://drbillsclinic.com/animal_conditioning.html/, but you’re just starting out and you’re too weak to pull your body weight up. Then, you can use dumbbell curls to strengthen your biceps, gradually increasing the weight until your strength has grown and you CAN do the chin-up.
 
Or, if you’re trying to do the knee exercises I teach at  http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html/, and you discover your quads aren’t up to the effort. Then, you can use NEGATIVE SETS to strengthen both muscles and tendons. This technique uses weights to permit the knee to bend and the muscles to lengthen, while resisting the weight all the way down. This is the opposite of the normal way to exercise, a very rapid way to enhance strength. It’s a way of turning a negative into a positive. For the full details on this and other terrific methods of rapidly increasing strength, without injury, try my PAIN-FREE PROGRAM at  http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
The point is, weights are neither bad nor good, by themselves. They’re just tools, a means to an end. Used wisely, as an adjunct to functional bodyweight exercises, they can still help to improve your strength and function, as part of an integrated exercise program to relieve pain and restore function. Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill 
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

Last Friday, my wife and I had to put down one of our cats, Chelsea. I couldn’t even write about it, til now.  As I’ve said before, I’ve had a number of people die in my presence, occasionally even in my arms. I can handle that just fine, even though it’s always sad.  But the animals just GET to me…
 
We were there when Chelsea was born. Her mother, Molly, a beautiful calico longhair had wandered into our garage, pregnant. And she decided to deliver on the night before I was scheduled to fly to Boston for a yearly conference on Total Hip Replacement, hosted by Harvard School of Medicine. Naturally, she pulled this about two o’clock in the morning.
 
There we were, watching the miracle of birth as, one by one, four little wet kittens popped out and took their first halting steps in this world. I finally bailed and went to bed–I had to get up at six AM to make my flight. My wife stayed up all night, talking to the mother in labor and continuing to give her soothing encouragement and comfort. I think it’s a woman thing, that no man can fully grasp….
 
The next morning, on my way out the door to the airport, I was surprised to discover that Molly had delivered two MORE babies, six in total. And one was this little longhair, with a leonine face and a bright orange splotch on her head. My wife named her Chelsea.
 
She had a problem, though–hypothermia, a condition wherein the body gets too cold, and the core temperature drops. Left alone, it’s fatal. My father-in-law, who was visiting, said “Well, she’s gone,” as they drove to the local vet. But my wife refused to give up on her. And she survived, for over 13 years.
 
It’s funny, and people who don’t live with cats don’t understand this, but right from birth, each kitten has a very distinct personality, with very specific quirks. She had this penchant for biting my watch, whenever she got the chance, don’t ask me why. And of all our cats, she had the face that most resembled a little lion. She fit in very well to our happy little family, with all her littermates. This was the group that got us started down the road to insanity, taking in all these strays, as soon as it was safe, after they were born.
 
While all our babies are getting older, even as we are, Chelsea had a special problem. For the last year or so, she had been throwing up periodically, which was making her very thin. She would eat like mad, then projectile vomit impossible volumes for a little cat. This happened every few days.
 
We had the full workup: laboratory tests, physical exam, x-rays, even an ultrasound exam, in an effort to find out what was wrong with her. I suspected a type of cancer, but all the studies pointed to IBC: inflammatory bowel disease. So, we did what we could for her. Fed her special food, and cleaned up after her, when she had an episode. But despite our best efforts, she got so very thin.
 
Then, one day last week, she suddenly got very quiet and just stopped eating or drinking. And this was a cat who lived for food. So we knew the time had come….
 
You wouldn’t think that a little, barely five pound cat could affect us so much. Maybe it’s the complete trust and the innocent acceptance, love and companionship they give us that makes the pathos of ending their lives so poignant. Maybe it’s the implications of our own mortality. I only know that we were there at her beginning; we were there at her end…and we go on.
 
I know it was a kindness to her. I like to think she’s in a better place, now–no pain, no sickness, no hunger. But it’s always hard, and it’s so final…Sic transit Chelsea.
 
Well, we have quite a few more to care for. You know, one of the reasons we admire cats is their innate grace. And the reason cats are so graceful is the enormous amount of muscle, compared with the size of their frames. Cats are Nature’s perfect predator–a seamless blend of  power, speed, and balance. 

If you watch them, you can learn a lot about how we should train. They stretch, they scratch their claws, they run in bursts of speed and they spend a great deal of time resting. When you think about it, they exemplify exactly how we should treat our own bodies. Exercise for strength, stretch for flexibility, get proper nutrition and plenty of rest–just the formula I use in my PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, which you can get at  http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
To get rid of nagging knee pain, patella problems, giving way, water on the knee, and other painful maladies, the best long term, non-surgical option is exercise–specific, specially modified exercise to stretch and strengthen the knee. See how at
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html   Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

I just read on one of the news services that Sly Stallone plead guilty in an Australian Court to importing banned performance-enhancing drugs. It seems he has been on an injectable form of human growth hormone (hGH), by prescription, of course, Jintropin. The problem is that Australia has banned such substances, unless a special permit is obtained.
 
Needless to say, Sly didn’t have the requisite permit. He wrote a letter of apology to the Court, citing ignorance of the local rules for his inadvertant violation of their laws. I think this is very likely true.
 
Now, anyone who has seen Sly Stallone in recent films, like Rocky Balboa, or the most recent installment of Rambo, will not be surprised to learn that Sly uses hGH. The guy is 61 years old after all, but has the muscle mass and definition of a guy many years his junior. Even with heavy weight training, which is probably not a good idea at that age, those results are unlikely without some enhancement.
 
Turns out that Jintropin is the most popular hGH injectable supplement in China. Like all available hGH injectables, it is a synthetic, recombinant form of growth hormone. It is most definitely a “performance enhancing drug.” And, therefore, it’s most definitely verboten in the Land of Oz (as the Aussies, pronounced “Ozzies,” like to call their island continent).
 
We’ve discussed this topic before. Human growth hormone levels are responsible for muscle growth, strength, speed, healing response to injury, and are associated with many characteristics of youth.  Growth hormone falls rapidly with increasing age, and is thought to be, if not the cause, at least a contribution to, or associated with the effects of aging. For this reason, it has been thought that increasing these GH levels will reverse the effects of aging, increase muscle mass, enhance performance and boost the immune system.
 
Injections of hGH, up to now, have been the most effective way to do that. But these injections are only available by prescription from a physician and there has been speculation, if not proof, that the increased circulating growth hormone levels could increase the emergence of cancer, at least theoretically. In addition, large doses of GH may result in blood levels of GH beyond what is needed for optimal health, with unknown consequences.
 
The fact is that hGH production is still carried out in the pituitary gland, even in older age, but it is NOT RELEASED. Wouldn’t it be better to be able to allow that natural GH to be RELEASED, than to artificially raise the level of the hormone?
 
Now, thanks to the research done by a physician friend of mine, you can do just that with Trans-D Tropin
 http://drbillsclinic.com/trans_d_tropin.html  Trans-D Tropin is a botanical formulation that is applied topically, for absorption through the skin.  It stimulates the release of one’s own naturally produced growth hormone. This means that you can return your body’s level of GH back to the level you enjoyed during your teens, but NOT to abnormal levels. It literally “turns back the clock.” 

In addition, Trans-D Tropin has been shown to DECREASE  IGF-1 (Insulin-like Growth Factor-1), the substance identified in association with increased cellular growth and tumor formation. In other words, according to the manufacturers, this formula actually REDUCES the risk of cancer. It also reduces levels of insulin and cortisol, two hormones associated with inflammation and aging. 

I use this myself. I was never a fan of injectable GH–too many unknowns, too much risk for me. But Trans-D Tropin http://drbillsclinic.com/trans_d_tropin.html   enhances GH levels, with all its benefits, within physiological parameters (in other words, within limits that are normal for a young man), and reduces cancer risk, as well. 

Reported benefits of Trans-D Tropin include an improved youthful appearance, with reduction in wrinkles, decreased body fat, increased lean muscle mass, with attendant increased strength and performance, improved stamina and endurance, reduced chronic pain, faster recovery from injury or surgery, increased REM sleep with better, more restful sleep, a stronger immune system, improved overall health and a general sense of well-being.
 
Dr. Nicholas V. Perricone, Assistant Clinical Professor of Dermatology at Yale University School of Medicine wrote, “Trans-D Tropin technology is the single most effective age reversal therapy I have found in over 15 years of clinical practice.” 

So, if you want to look like Stallone when you’re in your sixties, feel better, stronger, faster and healthier and do it with a DECREASED risk of cancer, do what I do.  Get some and rub it on your skin today: Trans-D Tropin  http://drbillsclinic.com/trans_d_tropin.html  It’s safe, it’s easy and, compared with injectable GH, it’s cheap. It’s a no-brainer. Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill
 
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
 http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved

Tiger Woods has done it again! Only a couple of months after arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, for “cartilage damage,” he came from behind to win the U.S. OPEN. Wincing in obvious pain throughout the tournament at Torrey Pines, San Diego, Tiger fell behind earlier in the game, with a couple of bogeys, but then went on to pull even, with a couple of simply spectacular shots, that apparently defied the laws of physics, and resulted in eagles. After 90 gruelling holes of golf, Tiger finally clinched the title from opponent Rocco Mediate in sudden death on the 91st hole. This is one for the ages!
 
So Tiger pulls it off again, against a great player, with a real physical and mental handicap. He’s now won his 3rd U.S. Open and his 14th Major Title, hot on the heels of Golfing Great Jack Nicklaus’ Lifetime 18 Major Titles. And Tiger is only 32 years old (though I bet his left knee is a lot “older”). 

I’m not a big golfer, personally (tough to do when you have a fractured spine and crushed discs), but I fiercely admire excellence and achievement, especially when wrested from adversity. This was the third time that Tiger had this same knee operated on. He had a benign tumor removed in the late nineties, and arthroscopy in 2002.
 
If you were watching him walking in the Masters, he was wincing and in obvious pain from that left knee. It’s very possible that the distraction lost that tournament for him, but even there, he almost pulled it off and finished second. This guy is unbelievable! No matter
how you cut it, he is a true champion.
 
The “cartilage damage” referred to could refer to degenerative or traumatic damage to the articular cartilage, manifested as shredding, crevasses or flaps. If widespread, this could be consistent with arthritic changes, despite the fact that Tiger is only 32 years old. On the other hand, it could refer to a tear or degenerative shredding of the meniscal cartilage. No real details have been made available, so it’s anyone’s guess. But his pathology was likely one of these, or both.
 
What happens when the cartilage is damaged? Well, in brief, whether from direct impact, or from slow, progressive degeneration, the ice smooth resilient articular cartilage coating of the bearing surfaces of the knee joint become softer than normal and eventually begin to fragment and shred. Once the cartilage is physically disrupted, this unravelling of the protein fibers of collagen (that normally give support) speeds up and progresses. This is discussed and illustrated in detail in my LITTLE GREEN BOOK FOR ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN (see it at   http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html)
 
If the damage is to the crescent-shaped meniscus, it’s usually a tear. Thing is, any cartilage damage is a problem because cartilage, once physically broken or torn, cannot heal without very sophisticated surgical techniques (at least with current technology).  But there are a number of supplements, herbs, OTC medicines, and even food choices that can have a positive or negative influence on inflammation and
pain.
 
When Tiger was walking the links in pain, something within his knee was catching in that joint, causing traction on the capsule of the joint and/or the lining membrane. Problem is, if the thigh muscles are weakened by the persistent pain, they can’t stabilize the joint and help absorb the shock of walking (especially up and down the rolling hills of a golf course).
 
The solution, both before and after knee surgery, is to strengthen the thigh muscles, the quadriceps, so they will be able to absorb shock and supplement the ligaments to priovide optimal stability. To do that, a number of exercises designed to increase muscle tone, strength and power, and stretches for the antagonists on the opposite side of the thigh, are necessary. But not any old squatting motions will do. No, you need to strengthen your thighs strategically, based on the type of pathology you have. 

As an orthopaedic surgeon and, more important, as a knee surgery patient myself, I’ve collected the best and most effective exercises, specially modified to prevent or eliminate knee pain, in my PAIN-FREE PROGRAM  http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
Using a combination of the movements described in my PROGRAM, anyone can improve the stability of their knee and relieve their pain. Of course, as I mentioned yesterday, you actually have to DO the exercises. Nothing happens without effort. But if you do them, your thighs will grow strong and your knee pain will get better and better. Try it and see for yourself.
 
Til next time, my friend, be well.
 
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
 
Dr. Bill

P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
 
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
 
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
 
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
 
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved