The Athlete's Lawyer

The National Football League is looking into kickoff modifications in order to help ‘deal with injury numbers’ according to news reports this week.  Indicating that it was a matter of safety, along with possible suspensions for player who make illegal hits, the NFL is recommending that kickoffs be moved from the 30- to the 35-yard line — as it was before 1994.  Also, kicking team members must line up within five yards of the ball.  This would prevent the kicking team members from lining up 10-15 yards behind the ball to get a running start.  By the time these offensive players got downfield, they were at full speed.

The sound of the impact when 300 pounds of professional football player, sprinting at top speed, strikes another player moving in the opposite direction at maximum velocity, it something not soon forgotten.  The momentum of each player (speed times mass) is truly shocking.  The league recognizes the potential for devastating and career ending head, neck and brain injuries and is looking into way to modify the game while still keeping its essential features.  Read more at the Washington Examiner.

When I followed professional football as a teenager in the 1970s, only Bubba Smith weighed more than 300 pounds.  Now, “super sized” linemen are commonplace.  Can you imagine a 300 pound person falling on top of you ?  How about 2 or 3 ?!!?  What about the health effects on these gigantic players, making sudden movements with all that weight, hitting each other and running anaerobically ?  And what happens to these large men when their playing days are over, and they are no longer professional athletes looked after by a team of doctors, trainers and dietitians ?

According to a report in the New York Times, there are more than 500 300-pounders presently.  A 1994 National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health study found that former offensive and defensive linemen had a 52% higher rate of death from cardiovascular disease than did the general population. Since then, the players at these positions have only gotten bigger, with the average weight in the NFL 252 pounds.  A 2005 University of North Carolina study found that more than a quarter of the NFL’s players fit the category of Class II obesity, Read the rest of this entry »

Triathlon Trial Lawyer Doug Landau of the Herndon law firm ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd., was runner up in his age group at the Reston Town Center New Year's Day 5k road running race

In a new addition to the New Years Day racing lineup in Northern Virginia, our friends at Potomac River Running (“PRR”) have come up with a New Year’s Day 5k in Reston. The 5k started on Market Street at the Reston Town Center at the very civilized hour of 10 a.m.  One of the advantages of this venue is that there is plenty of free parking available in the numerous garages at the Town Center.  The race was computer chip timed, and packet pick up was available at the PRR Reston store. Read the rest of this entry »

After DUathlon Nationals, TriathlonTrialLawyer Doug Landau went to a spin class and learned of SportFit's FREE triathlon cycling seminar TODAY at Worldgate Sport & Health

As part of the 2010 SportFit TRIATHLON CLINIC SERIES Doug & Beth Baumgarten will once again hold a free clinic at the Worldgate Sport & Health Club in Herndon, Virginia.  If you are a first time (or novice) triathlete or an experienced multisport competitor, SPORTFIT LAB is a source for information on training, equipment, and race preparation.   Educational and bike safety seminars such as produced by the Baumgartens will hopefully increase the skills of participants in local triathlons, duathlons and bike races, and decrease the number of bike crashes, athletic injuries and sports accidents.  The husband and wife team has scheduled concise 90-minute sessions for athletes learn the latest science of triathlon training.

NEXT CLINIC: FRIDAY MAY 7th- 5:30-7:00 P.M. AT SPORTFIT LAB (Worldgate):

“THE BIKE IN TRIATHLON”

For more information, contact: SPORTFIT CONSULTING LLC of Northern Virginia

Email: db@sportfitconsulting.com   Phone: 703-657-7609   Mobile: 301-448-5499   Fax: 888-750-2869

When athletes "taper" for a big race, it means they reduce training volume & intensity so as to be rested, uninjured and ready for triathlon success.

Reston Triathlon Trial Lawyer Doug Landau is often asked, “How are you able to train consistently and push yourself so hard so as to compete in State, Regional and National competitions ?”

The harder task for the sports injury and disability lawyer is “tapering” before a major biking, running and/or swimming race.  “Tapering” means reducing the volume and intensity of training in order to be well rested, fueled and uninjured in order to achieve peak performance.  Often, instead of a workout during this period, Landau will try to nap, stretch, relax, hydrate and get extra sleep at night.  In truth, the staff at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. will tell you that the boss finds it very hard to do very little in the days leading up to a big race.  But the goal is not to be “overtrained” or fatigued come race day.  Landau hopes to be at the starting line so well rested and ready to go, that he is literally, “jumping out of his speedo !”

Coach Todd Katz of Hammer Down Cross Fit training in Chantilly Virginia putting people through their paces !

Recently my bride and I were invited to try out our friend Todd Katz’s “Hammer down cross fit” training program at his home.  As an athlete who likes interval training sessions and respects the incredible results of English mile champion Sebastian Coe, who mixed calisthenics with explosive movements and continuous movement, I was keen to see what Hammer Down Cross Fit was all about.  Todd had told me that Cross Fit can help with sports injury prevention, posture and core strength – all good things for this triathlon trial lawyer.

En route to a race in Southern Florida, we came across this Cross Fit studio !

Several friends have been training through the winter with Katz, who is an exceptional runner and competes in long distance road races.  First of all, it was cold.  Hard core cold.  Don’t take off your mittens cold, as we lifted dumbbells, did push ups, sit ups and other exercises outdoors on a frigid morning.  There was some running also involved, and the “regulars” seemed to feed off the energy and each other.  Todd recorded repetitions, tines and PRs and most looked like they were having fun.  My wife’s favorite part was the hot coffee afterwards.  I liked snack time.  Todd now has a permanent INDOOR location in Chantilly, and many videos showing you the exercise routines.  So, if you want something different, give Cross Fit a try !  Call Todd and visit his Chantilly fitness studio and see if what Cross Fit training has for you,

Dr. Dowling is shown giving ART treatment to competitor (& Maccabiah Gold Medal Winner after the ITU Dextro Triathlon in Washington, D.C.

“Active Release Technique” or “ART” is a patented, state of the art soft tissue system/movement based massage technique that treats problems with muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia and nerves. Doug Landau has had ART treatment before and after races and found it to be beneficial, especially with regard to iliotibial band (“IT Band”) pain and hamstring tightness after hard multi sport training.

Headaches, back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, shin splints, shoulder pain, sciatica, plantar fasciitis, knee Read the rest of this entry »

Rehab to Racing (“R2R”) announces

OPEN WATER SWIMMING AT MILLBROOK QUARRY

Beginning Sunday May 17, 2009, 2:30-4:30PM

Supervised open water swim opportunity for Northern Virginia Triathletes and long distance swimmers. Learn techniques to help you in open water triathlons and swimming races. These sessions can really give you a “leg up” on your competition and help you feel more “at home” in the lake, river, pond and ocean swims that host multi-sport events. Better to learn in a legal setting than have to learn to do the “perp walk” later ! (See post on “Illegal swimming can land you in hot water”

Measured and marked swim course with buoys. Wetsuits and visible swim caps required. $25 per session.

Planned swim dates: May 17, 31; June 14, 28; July 12, 19; (later dates TBD)

Contact the Coaches at Rehab to Racing at openwaterswim@rehabtoracing.com and information at Tickets and information available at R2R

TriathlonTrialLawyer Doug Landau is asked, “Why do the majority of Triathlon fatalities occur during the swim portion of the race, when competitors are still fresh, and are not at risk for overheating or orthopedic injury ?” Statistically, almost all the fatalities reported in multi-sport events in the United States have been from the often frantic, frenetic open water swim portion of the race. Doug Landau has had anxiety attacks from coming into freezing cold water in several events early in his career, but now employs several strategies to deal with this difficulty. Swimmers can’t easily signal for help or slow down to rest during swimming as they can in the biking or running parts of a triathlon, said Dr. Kevin Harris, a cardiologist at the Minneapolis Heart Institute at Abbott Northwestern Hospital. Harris led a study at an American College of Cardiology conference in Florida. The Minneapolis institute’s foundation sponsored the work and tracks athlete-related sudden deaths in a national registry. Dr. Harris, who also has competed in these events, noted that rescuers may have trouble spotting someone in danger in a crowd of competitors in the lakes, rivers and oceans where these events typically are held.

Of the 14 deaths identified, 13 occurred during swimming; the other was a bike crash. Autopsies on six of the victims showed that four had underlying heart problems. Two others had normal-looking hearts, but they may have suffered a fatal heart rhythm problem, Harris said. A search of the Minneapolis registry and the Internet found four other triathlon-related deaths from 2006 through 2008 beyond those that occurred in the officially sanctioned events. “While not a large risk, this is not an inconsequential number,” Harris said. Herndon Reston sports injury lawyer Doug Landau recommends reading tomorrow’s post, with doctors’ recommendations for preparing and safety.

Following up on the news stories about fatal injuries to multi-sport athletes this Fall, the AP carried a story about a new medical study. Swim-bike-run triathlons pose at least twice the risk of sudden death as marathons do, according to this first study of these competitions. Understand that “twice the risk,” statistically speaking, may still involve very small numbers or percentages of the endurance sports population, according to Triathlon Trial Lawyer Doug Landau. In other words, according to Herndon Reston injury lawyer Landau, 15 deaths out of one million long distance race participants is twice as many, statistically, as 8 out of the same number of athletes (elites, age groupers and “weekend warriors”). Read the rest of this entry »