Tag: TMD

All About the Neck

A comprehensive look at cervical biomechanics and exercise The Wu-Tang clan once said “Protect Ya Neck,” but how in the heck can you do that if you don’t know the biomechanics?????? The neck can be quite complicated considering all the factors that influence it’s dynamics: Ribcage position Thoracic spine Hyoid bone Cranium Temperomandibular joint OH MY! Yet despite all of these influences, there are simple, useful heuristics you can follow that can lead to favorable changes in neck mobility! Want to make the neck, cranium, and more ridiculously simple to understand and apply? Then tune in for Movement Debrief Episode 125.

Read More

Introduction to Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy Course Review

How improving tongue mobility can impact sleep and nasal breathing I hit a plateau. I was getting good results with many clients. I was making infrasternal angles dynamic, restoring hip flexion and extension, and getting ribcage mobility on fleek. Yet there were still some folks who I couldn’t get the symptom change they needed. Either they had really stiff necks, craniofacial issues, or difficulty sleeping. I knew I was missing something. Then I found myofunctional therapy. My buddy Joe Cicinelli, my myofunctional therapist, gave me some tongue exercises surrounding my tongue-tie release surgery, and I noticed some interesting changes with myself. My neck felt looser, I was sleeping better, and just overall feeling better. I decided to experiment and try a few activities here and there on some clients. With having only a rudimentary understanding, I started seeing some of those troubling cases improve. Necks were less tight. Sleep was improving, jaw pain was vanishing. I needed to learn more. That’s when I came across the Academy of Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy (AOMT) and saw they offered an introductory course. I was in. Four days later, a gap was filled. Having applied these techniques to several patients, many of those troubled cases were not so troubling. Although I was addressing airway with most of my treatments, I neglected the uppermost portions of it. The folks at AOMT give you that and then some. With this course, we deep-dived into anatomy, evidence, assessment, treatment, and business. You really get a total package

Read More

The Unsexy Side of PT

Struggle with mouth breathing? Much of the stuff taught on my site focuses on maximizing your breathing skills from the neck on down, but what happens when that is not enough? What if you still have issues with neck or jaw symptoms? Or worse yet, struggle with sleep? These are the topics we dive into on The Optimize Your Capacity podcast I did recently. You’ll learn all types of things featured in the netherworld of performance, including: Craniocervical posture and how to test for movement limitations in this region The “ideal” tongue posture to promote nasal breathing What a proper swallow entails to reduce neck strain What the keys are to having a dynamic respiratory strategy that maximizes movement options through the body Is there a “best” posture to sleep in? That depends on your body 🙂 and more! Click the links below to check it out! The Unsexy Side of PT: Zac Cupples (Apple Podcasts) Spotify Stitcher

Read More

Mandibular Retrusion, GIRD, and Distance Assessment – Movement Debrief Episode 85

Movement Debrief Episode 85 is in the books. Below is a copy of the video for your viewing pleasure, and audio if you can’t stand looking at me. Here is the set list: What is the relationship of mandibular in relation to the head and spine? What could be a negative consequence of the retruded mandible? What treatment strategies would you use to improve it? What is GIRD? Does my hierarchy for improving movement change with someone who has GIRD? How would you improve GIRD? How do I perform an assessment with a distance client?

Read More

Frequently Asked Questions

Over the last year I’ve been asked a bunch of questions, and I’ve tried to answer them immediately. Instead of sifting through all my Movement Debriefs to get your answer, maybe you just want to get a quick answer and then go apply what you learned. Or maybe you can only stand listening to me for so long. I GET IT! Well, look no further. Below is a link to every question that I have answered thus far on my Movement Debriefs. While I won’t continually update this post, going to my FAQ page will be updated after each debrief. If you have a question, just sign up for my newsletter, and when the next email comes by, just hit reply and I will do my darndest to answer yours. [yikes-mailchimp form=”1″ submit=”Yeah, I want Zac to A my Q”] Learn away my fam! Continuing Education   PRI vs. DNS Exercise Coaching Anchoring Old Movements to New Coaching Progressions Getting Changes to Stick Home Exercise Execution Lower Body Death of the Vertical Tibia Slideboards Squats Performance Agility Programming Exercise Programming Periodizing Physical Therapy Sessions Upper Body Dead Hangs   Overhead Pressing Pushups vs. Quad Sets   Health and Wellness The Off-Switch Sleeping Tips for New Parents Stress Response Taking care of your health Personal Development Daily Routines Building Daily Routines Deciding What to Learn Just in Time Learning Embracing Failure Detaching Refocusing Check Your Ego The Art of the Debrief Work-Life Balance Professional Development Questions to ask an interviewer New

Read More