Cryotube Ice Baths and Recovering From The Car Accident

So, if you have read my blog, you will probably know I was in a pretty ugly car accident this past Thursday evening.   The cars - a taxi, and a Ford Explorer - looked like a serious mess from the outside, but in all fairness (and thanks) the cars were both so well designed to protect against collisions that I, along with the others who were involved walked away only a bit bruised and banged up.  It could have been much, much worse.   Thank God nobody was seriously hurt.

But that doesn't mean I am not sore.  My body aches! Or should I say, my body aches a whole lot less that what I was expecting considering the impact, and how I felt over the past two days.  

Seriously, I went from bad to worse to ... Hello Cryotube Ice Bath Recovery - Where have you been my whole life!

Over the past two days I took two Cryotube Ice baths to help my body heal.  Last night, I felt some of the sweliing go down and my body a little less sore.  However, earlier this evening I took another amazing ice bath using the Cryotube.  And I can't begin to share how amazing my body feels!

The Cryotube Ice Bath has allowed me to quickly rehabilitate from my rather serious body injuries and general soreness that occurred due to the accident.  HOW Remarkable.  And surely, I intend to take another ice bath tomorrow - let the healing continue!

The following write-up about Cold Water Immersion was written by the folks at Cryotube.  I am in the middle of trying to heal for my injuries, and I can't say enough about how Cold Water Immersion is helping me immensely.

And before you hesitate about getting into an ice bath - let me tell you  this - the cold water really is not bad after you get use to it - which should only take a few moments.  And if you are serious about rehabing from a serious injury - use Cold Water Immersion.  And switching from an ice bath to a hot bath has been sensational.

Of course ... I am a proud member of the Polar Bear Club . . .  but that's a whole other story.

	Cold Water Immersion    Cold water immersion has been used extensively over the past few years for recovery by athletes. Many athletes have used cold water recovery for many reasons, not the least of which is that if that athlete is doing it, I need to be doing it also! Not the best reason, but with this recovery strategy, I would have to say that you have been doing the correct recovery!  There have been numerous research studies completed over the past few years. I will try to list as many as I can below so that you can be better informed about what you are doing and what you should be doing.   The bottom-line with the research is that cold water immersion is effective , although the effects are very individual. As well, the exact deleterious mechanism that is minimized by cold-water immersion has not been determined. As you can see in many of the research papers, lactate removal is enhanced and subsequent performances are improved.  The Applied Muscle Physiology Lab at the University of Calgary is undertaking presently research to determine if the mechanism is related to low-frequency fatigue. We feel that this may be one of the key mechanisms that allow subsequent performances to be at a similar level to the first performance. I will publish our results here as soon as they are out!  Contrast baths (cold & warm water with approximately 60 seconds of cold and 120 seconds of warm) have been used extensively by the Russians for many years. This has also been shown to be effective.  Recommendations:   1.       Cold water immersion could enhance your next workout or athletic endeavor by decreasing muscular fatigue and enhancing recovery. It will not affect negatively your subsequent athletic endeavors or workouts, so get that tub and start immersing yourself!   2.       Contrast baths (cold & warm) may also aid in recovery.   3.       The ideal temperature has not been determined yet, but some research has suggested 6-80 C. has been recommended by some researchers, as has 12-150 C. My recommendation would be somewhere around 10-120C.   4.       The ideal length of time for immersion in cold water has been shown to be approximately 10 minutes, but 5 minutes is better than none.   5.       Active recovery after you exercise, plus cold water-immersion may enhance recovery more than either mode on it’s own   6.       Hot baths (the ‘hot tub’ recovery method) may actually affect your recovery adversely, so avoid the hot tub after you exercise!   Research Papers (Note – this is by no means an exhaustive list):  Bailey, D. M., Erith, S. J., Griffin, P. J., Dowson, A., Brewer, D. S., Gant, N. & Williams, C. (2007). Influence of cold-water immersion on indices of muscle damage following prolonged intermittent shuttle Barnett A. (2006). Using recovery modalities between training sessions in elite athletes: does it help?. Sports Medicine. 36(9):781-96, 2006.   Crowe MJ., O'Connor D., & Rudd D. (2007). Cold water recovery reduces anaerobic performance. International Journal of Sports Medicine. 28(12):994-8, Dec.   Duffield R. (2008) Cooling interventions for the protection and recovery of exercise performance from exercise-induced heat stress. Medicine & Sport Science. 53:89-103. Review article.   Eston, R. & Peters, D. (1999). Effects of cold water immersion on the symptoms of exercise-induced muscle damage. Journal of Sports Sciences, 17 (3), 231-238. Goosey-Tolfrey V. et al (2008). The effectiveness of hand cooling at reducing exercise-induced hyperthermia and improving distance-race performance in wheelchair and able-bodied athletes. Journal of Applied Physiology. 105(1):37-43, 2008 Jul.   Hayashi K. et al (2004). Effects of brief leg cooling after moderate exercise on cardiorespiratory responses to subsequent exercise in the heat. European Journal of Applied Physiology. 92(4-5):414-20, Aug.   Howatson G.,Goodall S. & ,van Someren KA. (2009) The influence of cold water immersions on adaptation following a single bout of damaging exercise. European Journal of Applied Physiology. 105(4):615-21,Mar.   Jakeman, J. R., Macrae, R. & Eston, R. (2009). A single 10-min bout of cold-water immersion therapy after strenuous plyometric exercise has no beneficial effect on recovery from the symptoms of exercise-induced muscle damage. Ergonomics, 52 (4), 456-460. Mantoni, T., Rasmussen, J. H., Belhage, B. & Pott, F. C. (2008). Voluntary Respiratory Control and Cerebral Blood Flow Velocity upon Ice-Water Immersion. Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine, 79 (8), 765-768. Montgomery PG. et al. (2008) The effect of recovery strategies on physical performance and cumulative fatigue in competitive basketball. Journal of Sports Sciences. 26(11):1135-45, Sep.   Montgomery, P. G., et al. (2008). Muscle damage, inflammation, and recovery interventions during a 3-day basketball tournament. European Journal of Sport Science, 8 (5), 241-250   Morton RH. (2007). Contrast water immersion hastens plasma lactate decrease after intense anaerobic exercise. Journal of Science & Medicine in Sport. 10(6):467-70, Dec.   Paddon-Jones, D J. Quigley, B M. (1997). Effect of cryotherapy on muscle soreness and strength following eccentric exercise. International Journal of Sports Medicine. 18(8):588-93, Nov.   Peake J. et al (2008). Body temperature and its effect on leukocyte mobilization, cytokines and markers of neutrophil activation during and after exercise. European Journal of Applied Physiology. 102(4):391-401, Mar. Research Support,   Ramanauskiene I. et al (2008). Influence of heating and cooling on muscle fatigue and recovery. Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania). 44(9):687-93, 2008.   Rowsell, Greg J., Coutts, Aaron J., Reaburn, Peter & Hill-Haas, Stephen (2009). Effects of cold-water immersion on physical performance between successive matches in high-performance junior male soccer players. Journal of Sports Sciences, 27 (6), 565-573.   Scott, C. G., Ducharme, M. B., Haman, F. & Kenny, G. P. (2004). Warming by Immersion or Exercise Affects Initial Cooling Rate during Subsequent Cold Water Immersion. Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine, 75 (11), 956-963. Sellwood KL. Et al (2007). Ice-water immersion and delayed-onset muscle soreness: a randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Sports Medicine. 41(6):392-7, Jun.   Vaile J. et al (2008). Effect of hydrotherapy on the signs and symptoms of delayed onset muscle soreness.[erratum appears in Eur J Appl Physiol. 2008 May;103(1):121-2].European Journal of Applied Physiology. 102(4):447-55, Mar.   Vaile, J., Halson, S., Gill, N. & Dawson, B. (2008). Effect of Cold Water Immersion on Repeat Cycling Performance and Thermoregulation in the Heat. Journal of Sports Sciences, 26 (5), 431-440. Yanagisawa O. et al (2004). Magnetic resonance imaging evaluation of cooling on blood flow and oedema in skeletal muscles after exercise.   European Journal of Applied Physiology . 91(5-6):737-40, 2004 May.   Young, A.J., Muza, S.R., Sawka, M.N., Gonzalez, R.R. & Pandolf, K.B. (1986). Human Thermoregulatory Responses to Cold Air Are Altered by Repeated Cold Water Immersion.Journal of Applied Physiology, 60 (5), 1542-1548. Prepared by:   Shane Esau - BSc, MKin   Human Performance Lab, University of Calgary
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Yellow on Yellow - The Car Accident ... Uggh

Have you ever had a day that peaked in the morning and just went downhill from there?

Well, I had one of those days yesterday.  I mean my morning and afternoon were lovely: work, meetings, catching up with an old friend for a bit, a good workout at the gym and then another little meeting that went, unexpectedly into dinner. 

But I should have finished dessert!  Unfortunately, the person across from me had  a long trip back hoome, and so, I let the apple tart with chocolate ice cream essentially sit unattended. 

Now, I know from past experiences to never let an apple tart with chocolate ice cream go unattended.

If I only had taken the two minutes to finish desert, I would not have grabbed the taxi I did.

And I would not have been in the back seat of the cab that went through the red light.

Nor would I have gotten thrown around like a ping-pong ball.

And I surely would not have spent so much time at the hospital.

Lesson to be learned:  Never, ever, but ever let an apple tart with chocolate ice cream go unattended!

New York Governor Takes Aim At True Gun Control Reform In Fiery New York State State Of The Union Speech

I am a GIANT Fan of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo because the indefatigable New York Governor has consistently bypassed state politics and governed outside of political agendas but instead, led by acting for the greater good of the citizens of New York State.

The ability to actually get things done ... a budget, a equality-of-life via gay marriage, peace on the education front ... the list can go on and on.  Bravo Andrew Cuomo.

And now the New York Governor takes aim at what, in my opinion, is the most important agenda of his entire political life: the creation, passage, and implementation of serious gun control laws that will protect lives.

God speed Governor Cuomo. God Speed!

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for tougher state bans on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines of ammunition as part of a progressive agenda in a sometimes fiery State of the State speech Wednesday.

"No one hunts with an assault rifle. No one needs 10 bullets to kill a deer," Cuomo said. "End the madness now!

"The tragic events of just the last few weeks in Newtown, Conn., and West Webster, N.Y., have indelibly taught us guns can cut down small children, firefighters and policemen in a moment," Cuomo said.

The state already has among the most restrictive gun control laws in the nation, and the governor noted that New York passed the nation's first handgun permit law, in 1911.

A deal is expected soon that could make New York one of the first states to pass gun control laws following the Dec. 14 shooting, in which 20 first-graders and six educators were gunned down with a powerful weapon at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. The shooter also killed his mother and himself.

New York's effort was hastened further by the Christmas Eve killings of two firefighters in western New York by a man who set his neighborhood on fire, lay in wait with a high-powered rifle for responders, shot them and killed himself. Webster residents related to the firefighters were honored guests at the State of State address.

"Let's lead the way once again in saving lives," Cuomo said in an often rousing speech that some observers said better positioned the Democrat for a 2016 run for president.

Cuomo would also require follow-ups for owners of handgun licenses to make sure they are still qualified to possess a gun based on criminal and other records. He would increase sentences for gun crimes including for using guns on school property and for gang activities.

Legislators were working Wednesday behind closed doors to reach agreement on the governor's demand for tighter controls on assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines.

Democratic Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Republican Sen. Martin Golden agreed the closed-door talks have brought all sides to within 95 percent of a deal, which could be announced and acted on this week.

"New York leads the nation, it's time New York lead the nation in this," Silver said. His priorities are bans on assault rifles and high-capacity magazines of ammunition.
"Our goal is to try to get something done by the end of this week," said Senate Republican leader Dean Skelos.
Cuomo started the last half of his first term striking a far more progressive tone than the fiscally conservative positions he used to fashion himself as a "new Democrat." But he also achieved many of his fiscal goals, including a cap on property tax growth and curbed spending.

Cuomo's agenda Wednesday included decriminalizing open possession of 15 grams of marijuana to a violation, fighting for women's workplace and abortion rights and raising the minimum wage. He sounded more like his father, former Gov. Mario Cuomo, than like former President Ronald Reagan, as he did two years ago, said Lawrence Levy, political commentator and executive dean of the National Center for Suburban Studies at Hofstra University.

"It was a long list of initiatives that have been part of a progressive, liberal agenda and which could be very expensive in the long run," Levy said.

"It's a clear road map to a progressive agenda, but the road goes through the Republican Senate," said Michael Kink of the Strong Economy for All Coalition of labor and progressive groups.
"I think it's a pivot because of the politics of 2016," said political commentator Michael Benjamin, a former Bronx Democratic assemblyman, referring to the next presidential elections. "There's no way to see how he'd pay for it."

Cuomo will have to present his budget Jan. 22.

One of his bolder ideas would increase "learning time" by at least 25 percent, while proposing higher pay for better teachers and recruiting top performers to teaching. The state would pay the cost of longer days or longer academic years, with local school districts deciding whether to opt in. That innovative idea could finally overcome the hurdle of expanding school years beyond 180 days and typically six-hour days, which would require more pay for teachers and other school employees.
Brian D. Backstrom, president of the Foundation for Education Reform & Accountability, was critical of the governor's proposal, saying it "does little more than nibble around the edge of real reform."

In other priorities, Cuomo proposed raising the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $8.75 an hour. He called the current wage "unliveable."

His response to Superstorm Sandy would include eliminating the Long Island Power Authority, which he said failed in crisis. It's part of measures to better protect New York City and Long Island and would "harden" the energy network that failed for millions of New Yorkers for as many as 21 days with the Oct. 29 superstorm.

Other proposals include a statewide volunteer network of skilled New Yorkers, such as electricians and carpenters to respond to superstorms and other disasters, Cuomo said at a conference center in Albany.

Cuomo also sought to drum up support for a November referendum that could legalize casinos beyond a half-dozen Indian casinos and more than two dozen electronic gambling games at race tracks.


Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/01/10/new-york-gov-cuomo-proposes-gun-ammo-magazine-limits-in-fiery-speech/#ixzz2Hb4AJPPJ

Critics Praise Peter Thomas Senese's CHASING THE CYCLONE: Author's Foundation Resuces Internationally Kidnapped Children

Critics Are Praising

 

Chasing The Cyclone

Below is a sampling of some of the wonderful book reviews of Chasing The Cyclone.  On a personal level, I sure do appreicate the fact that so many other readers appreciate my writing; however, the true measure of Chasing The Cyclone comes in how many individuals this story has impacted and how many children have been protected.  On this note, Chasing The Cyclone has been a tremendous hit because a rather large and growing number of children and familes in crisis from all around the world have been aided directly and indirectly from the publication of this novel.  And that is pretty cool.

"Chasing The Cyclone is a well-written thriller . . . Senese shares myriad emotions by writing in the first-person as he weaves through the action in this suspense-filled story . . . Filled with a plethora of powerful characters and puzzling predicaments and dead ends, the story moves quickly . . . Cyclone will leave you informed and satisfied . . . you will be reluctant to put down." - New York Journal Of Books

"Peter Thomas Senese is a gifted storyteller who takes readers on a heart pounding journey around the globe . . . The writing is raw and the emotions are real . . . The story is filled with twists and turns . . . You will not be able to put it down. It may very well change the way you look at life, child custody, and interactions with your child's other parent. I cannot endorse this book strongly enough." – The Examiner

"Suspenseful! Nail-Biting! Engaging! These are just the outer layers of Peter Thomas Senese's emotionally charged … Chasing The Cyclone [is] an intricately woven web outlined in 400-pages that includes lawyers, lies, international laws and politics, betrayal, court appearances, and how one parent can shrewdly use the innocence of a child as a pawn to exact revenge, to spew hate and to extort funds from the financially able parent. Senese's Chasing the Cyclone_ is powerful because it is borne from experience. It is richly detailed and emotionally wrought with an accuracy that can only be known by those who endured such traumas. Well-written and expertedly executed: A must read!" – V Stevenson, Reviewer at Kirkus

"Peter Thomas Senese now opens the windows on the magnitude of these tragedies in his excellent "Chasing The Cyclone"... As if the fast paced energy of this story weren't enough to satisfy the reader, Peter Thomas Senese demonstrates his quality as a writer of distinction on many levels... this impossible to put down book." - Dr. Grady Harp: Amazon Hall Of Fame Reviewer

"If I had to use one word to describe Chasing the Cyclone by Peter Thomas Senese it would be phenomenal. As in remarkable. Extraordinary. I have read many books over the years, for enjoyment, for education, because I had to, because I wanted to. I cannot think of any other book that comes close to making me feel as I did when I read this book. I believe these feelings will stick with me forever." – Guilty Pleasures Book Reviews

 To purchase a copy of Chasing The Cyclone in e-book or any of my other international thrillers, please visit:Amazon or Barnes & Noble

Thanks For Your Support - and remember 100% of my proceeds are donated to the I CARE Foundation.

 

- Peter Thomas Senese -

Peter Thomas Senese and I CARE Foundation Confirm New Film About International Parental Child Kidnapping

I am very pleased to confirm that I will be producing on behalf of the I CARE Foundation and Pacifica an upcoming feature documentary film 150,000 Internationally Kidnapped Children focuses on the cataclysmic growth of international parental child kidnapping in the United States, Canada and abroad.  The film will dissect why the hideous crimes against innocent children has reached pandemic levels that have claimed so many lives and what can be done to prevent abduction, while also offering solutions that should be implemented that can help current child-victims of cross-border kidnapping.

The film's title 150,000 Internationally Kidnapped Children originates from a widely distributed and cited study titled Crisis In America written by renown child advocate Carolyn Vlk (a member of the Board of Directors of the I CARE Foundation, and a member of the Special Advisory Board of the Amber Watch Foundation) and myself.  150,000 Internationally Kidnapped Children is the average weighted forecast of that takes into consideration how many children living in The United States, Canada, and Mexico are anticipated to actually be internationally parentally kidnapped over the next ten years.

The film will bring viewers into several intriguing parental child abduction cases, through the legal system available to targeted parents and children, the psychological trauma of kidnapping and its affects, and eventually above a microscope looking at the government agencies and their existing policies responsible for protecting children. Paramount to the film's direction is the intent to offer new solutions to a serious social problem that in the United States alone is expected to cost the American economy over Six Billion dollars over the next decade.

150,000 Internationally Kidnapped Children will also focus on how children of both parental and stranger-abductions are easily removed from one nation's border to another under existing policies in North America, and particularly in Europe.

The I CARE Foundation and several of it's Board of Director members have been studying key aspects of international parental child abduction for some time.  150,000 Internationally Kidnapped Children will include substantial data and information based upon these unique and groundbreaking studies. Studies and information, I might add, that I fully expect will change the landscape of abduction prevention. Which is, by virtue, the mission of the I CARE Foundation.

And of course, I am thrilled to once again be working and writing with Carolyn Vlk, who is one of the brightest and most knowledgeable persons concerning abduction that I know.  In the past, Carolyn Vlk and I produced the important educational documentary film series Chasing Parents: Racing Into The Storms of Child Abduction that has come to benefit many targeted parents from around the world, as well as our publication of the most up-to-date resource guide on child abduction prevention and reunification titled The World Turned Upside Down. 

As a storyteller deeply familiar with the world of child abduction, it is my personal hope that this film will not only raise awareness of parental abduction so targeted parents may act to protect their families, but it is my aspiration to also provide keen social insight into the horrors that exist so our lawmakers will move on new laws and policies that will help protect children in a similar manner that we accomplished through passage of Senate Resolution 543, the State of Florida's Child Abduction Prevention Law, the State of New York's and the State of California's criminal Cyber-Impersonation and Cyber-bullying laws, and the implementation of the highly effective abduction prevention tool - the federal Prevent Departure Program by the Department State in conjunction with the Department of Homeland Security.

150,000 Internationally Kidnapped Children  will be released during the late Spring - early Summer, 2013.

Similar to all projects associated with my work as a child advocate and steward raising awareness of child abduction, the 150,000 Internationally Kidnapped Children film is personally funded through charitable donations from my business holdings. 

For those of you interested in learning more about abduction and my writing, may I suggest you read my critically acclaimed novel Chasing The Cyclone - and remember, 100% of all my proceeds from sales of all my books are presently donated to the I CARE Foundation, which sure has created more than a few miracles for children.

Attorney Joel Walter, who is a member of the I CARE Foundation's board of directors and one of the best litigators I know, and who, over the course of many years, has represented many professional athletes and entertainers, and who is intimately involved in the upcoming production recently wrote, "The research on abduction the I CARE Foundation has and continues to conduct is critical to the fight to save children of kidnapping's lives.  In Mr. Senese's upcoming 150,000 Internationally Kidnapped Children film, the work of the I CARE Foundation will act as the story's rudder, guiding the narrative into a solution-oriented universal message. On a personal note, I continue to be flawed at the deep committment of Mr. Senese, including using a tremendous amount of his personal resources, in our fight to help families in crisis.  As a critically acclaimed storyteller and one of the most committed and published child advocates around, combined with the data drawn from the I CARE Foundation's research, we expect 150,000 Internationally Kidnapped Children to become a socially important and influencial film.

Shocking Report On Total Number Of International Parental Child Abductions To Be Released

Through the combination of stewardship of sharing the message of international parental child abduction and the actual growing number of child kidnappings that are occurring each year, society is slowly but surely becoming aware of the existence of the international parental child kidnapping crisis upon us, and surely coming to terms that when a parent illegally removes or detains a child in another country without permission of the other parent, the child taken is not simply with their other parent, but with an abusive criminal kidnapper.

So, you would think that the total number of international parental child abductions would be made easily available upon, in the very least, signatory countries of the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Parental Child Abduction in lieu of the urgent worldwide dilemma at hand.

But they're not. Not even close. 

In fact, many member states of the Hague Convention to not publish their statistics. 

Why?

It is beyond me.

The I CARE Foundation has been spent a great deal of time researching the question, 'What is the Total Number of International Parental Child Abductions?'  Of course, there are many ancillary questions that stem from this question. 

In the near future, and as the I CARE Foundation prepares to announce a series of legislative initiatives, we will be releasing a shocking report that addresses the issue of how many international parental child abductions exist each year worldwide that is so concise, measurable, and sadly, alarming.  

If you are a journalist interested in receiving a copy of the report prior to it's publication, please contact the I CARE Foundation. If you desire to be placed on an e-mail list in order to receive a copy of the report, please click here.

What will be shared is remarkably alarming. And it affects everyone. 

- Peter Thomas Senese -

 On Behalf Of The I CARE Foundation

Speaker John Boehner Abandons Hurricane Sandy Victims - Makes Music Video Instead of Having House Vote

UPDATED FROM PREVIOUS POST


After making an error to not have the Hurricane Sandy Relief vote immediately scheduled, Speaker Boehner reconsidered the necessity of having the House vote on the aid measure.  The relief vote will occur this Friday, January 4th, 2013.  The Speaker realized that a mistake was made and reversed his position to delay the vote to January 15th, 2013.  Now that's good politics and we applaud the Speaker for listening to the needs of the people impacted by the super storm.