In Episode 68 of the Heads 'N Tales podcast I interview Parabolic Performance & Rehab Performance Director, Angelo Todaro, CSCS, FMS, USAW. Rather than talking about persevering after injury, illness or another obstacle, Angelo and I discuss how to prevent injuries from happening in the first place. Obviously, it is impossible to quantify injuries prevented, but we discuss what goes into building a body of resilience. We use the elements involved in building a house as an analogy, which includes the foundation, support beams, electrical panel and the esthetic exterior. Angelo is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist by the NSCA Certification Commission and a certified Sports Performance Coach through USA Weightlifting. Before joining Parabolic Performance and Rehab, Angelo owned and operated a very successful private training business in Bergen county New Jersey. He has held the position of strength and conditioning coach with the San Diego Padres in their minor league system and with a United States Tennis Association regional training center. He has also completed coaching internships with the University of Connecticut Strength and Conditioning department in Storrs, Connecticut, and at the National Strength and Conditioning Association’s Human Performance Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Building a Body of Resilience Foundation: The foundation is the most important part of building a body of resilience, but it is also the least sexy. The foundation is comprised of general health markers that include, blood profile, organs, hormones, and immune system. Angelo recommends going to see your doctor to getting blood work and a general physical to find out if there are any glaring issues. In addition, having solid general movement patterns is a key principle to the athlete's foundation. Angelo and his team at Parabolic use the Functional Movement Screen (FMS) to assess their athletes in this domain. The FMS tests 7 movement patterns which include a deep squat, in-line lunge, hurdle step, pushup stability, shoulder stability, leg raise and rotary stability. The key to the test is that all movements can be performed without pain. Click the link above to learn more about the FMS. The team at Parabolic also utilize methods from the Postural Restoration Institute to address foundational issues. I have been doing some of these postural restoration exercises with Parabolic Physical Therapist, Dr. Danielle Clarke and have been seeing great results in my knee rehab. Some of the exercises involve inflating a balloon, which sounds bizarre, but I must say, I now feel the best I have felt since before my surgery. Overall, the foundation of a resilient body includes having good general h
