Put Me In Coach, I Have Accelerated My Recovery

Well, it’s actually called an Accelerated Recovery Program (ARP).  And it’s a great way to spend your spare time between your professional athletic performances and preparations for your next game appearance.  Just buy yourself one of the ARP machines and plug in (or “tune in” in as they used to say in the 60s, sometimes followed by “drop out”).  But in this case, these guys are definitely trying to “tune in” to enhance their athletic performance.  Maybe it’s just an example of trusting the old adage, “it can’t hurt.”  But it just seems that no one really knows what it can do or actually does?

One professional ice hockey player described the treatment as “It doesn’t seem right, you know.”  He also added, “It’s weird to see what your muscle does when it’s on it, how it moves and contracts.  It doesn’t seem right.  Then once you figure out exactly what it’s doing and get some more information on it, then it starts to make sense.”  As a public service, manufacturers should let atheltes and the public know more, but there doesn’t seem to be much research around.  In all fairness, there has been one study at the University of Hawaii medical school, which found that ARP “significantly improves” quadriceps strength after ACL (anterior cruciate ligament/knee) surgery.  ARP will give you stronger (bigger?) thighs.

Your recovery will happen faster.  And as one recovering athlete noted: “I can watch TV and work out.”  I wonder what he would recommend watching?

Ray Myers

This is Your Brain on Google – Part Three

Just a few more thoughts about Google’s effect on your brain, and maybe something to think about over the Labor Day holiday.  I can remember the old expression, “he doesn’t have a brain in his head.”   Perhaps you never heard it?  Maybe I did because people were talking about me?  In any case, you really shouldn’t worry about it too much because in the future some experts are predicting that our memories will be going from our heads to the web!  And technology will improve to the point of doing many routine and complicated human tasks.

Two examples are “driverless cars” and “surgical robots.”  Does this make you feel safer on America’s highways and hospitals’ operating rooms?  I just think it will be very unnerving to see empty cars driving past me on the road, especially the high speed lanes, if I am the only “person-driven” vehicle.  And I would hate to be on the operating table and wake up to see a robot telling me the operation was a success, but there at no guarantees!

Maybe all these concerns are really an overreaction on my part.  Or just something on my mind, or in my brain that will soon be going to the web?

Ray Myers

Happy Labor Day Weekend.  I will be taking off too, blogging again on Wednesday next week.