Movement, Muscles and Machines

Sport encourages the integration of the whole organism because it is necessary to think as we move and plan ahead. In performing each movement in response to the run of play, we use mechanisms that nature evolved for the purpose of survival in a hostile world. Sport is today’s equivalent of the hunting, fighting and avoidance of predators that kept our ancestors alive. The skills developed in our past are essential in today’s sport; accuracy, speed, strength and intelligence are all requirements for success.

We have come to believe that the stronger a muscle the better, without a thought to what we actually do with a stronger muscle. I am not advocating we should do nothing, or that all exercise is harmful. The important issue is why we exercise and what is it we hope to achieve? If we want to get fit, ask the question – fit for what? When did you last review your objectives for devoting so much time and effort to its pursuit?

To help achieve optimum performance it is useful to understand the physiology involved so you do not misuse your body. All movement, even of the smallest part, involves the total organism yet many exercise systems fail to recognise the integral nature of human function. Exercises have always been designed to achieve specific improvements for one part of the body in the belief it will benefit the athlete for the particular demands of their sport. My view is that the concentration on individual parts whilst performing these exercises destroys the unity of the organism necessary for good movement.

Getting into shape usually involves a trip to the local gymnasium with its staggering array of equipment. A combination of technology and clever marketing has transformed the dull exercise machine into an essential piece of equipment capable of ‘achieving miracles’. Today’s machines have made it possible to work individual muscles in isolation – the first-time gym user will often joke they ache in muscles they did not know existed. Unfortunately, in the rush to develop the ultimate range of equipment, I believe a vital factor in human development and movement has been overlooked. That is, no single movement involves either an individual or isolated set of muscles! Machines that work a muscle whilst immobilising or supporting part of the body, encourage ‘unnatural’ actions never to be repeated outside the gymnasium, sports scientist Dr Mel Siff wrote: -

“….it is well known in physiology that the body knows of actions, not muscles, so that it is inappropriate to place any intentional stress on individual muscles rather than on the desired motor patterns.”

Even the harmless looking treadmill does not replicate natural activity. Running on a moving surface employs a different combination of muscles when compared with road running. Chuck Wolf, the director of sport science and human performance for the U.S.A. Triathlon National Training Center in Florida acknowledges this problem with the exercise machine saying,

“… our love of machines has caused us to lose sight of the way the body functions. Machines are ideal for multiple repetitions of the same movement patterns along a single plane. Unfortunately, that’s not how we move.”

Too much emphasis is placed on muscle and hence exercises to improve strength at the cost of neglecting the systems that control them. Complex machines are able to analyse the strength of individual muscles in specific movements. However, these machines do not measure the body during natural activity. Problems are then identified with the suspect muscle and exercises prescribed to correct the condition. But what causes the weakness initially? Why is a muscle weak or too tight? A muscle can only do what it is told to do and as we do not have the ability to directly control a muscle we cannot be certain of what we are actually telling it to do. The ‘offending’ muscle is only performing its function as directed by the controlling mechanisms for which we ultimately carry the responsibility. When the police stop a speeding motorist they prosecute the driver not the car!

This is not to say that gymnasiums are harmful – far from it! It is how we approach the use of a gym’s equipment that is vital. They do offer an opportunity to develop body awareness and strength but the temptation is to focus on the specific muscle being exercised whilst ignoring how the whole body can be used. For example, it is common to see people gritting teeth, straining neck muscles and arching their back when using machines to work the biceps. All this unnecessary action is not going to help build the biceps but it will develop poor muscular habits that will affect other activities. If used with the total body in mind these exercises will develop every other muscle appropriately as they are needed to stabilise the frame. So rather than looking to build the abs, biceps and quads separately, be aware of their involvement on every machine.

More recently other gadgets have started to appear on the market that promise to improve balance and proprioception (our ability to sense the position, location and movement of the body and its parts). But do these devices really help to improve performance in your sport? Or do you just acquire a new skill such as balancing on a swiss-ball that may be fun but does nothing to help your game? Bill Hartman, sports scientist and golf coach, writes

“So what can you do to improve your golf-specific balance? Play golf. There is not a gadget or exercise which will improve your golf-specific balance like playing golf. Why? Because nothing can duplicate the demands of playing golf other than playing golf. I know, it sounds silly doesn’t it. If you look at other athletes in any sport from martial arts to gymnastics to hockey, you’ll find that they simply perform their sporting skills over and over to acquire their amazing balance skills. They don’t rely on silly, useless gadgets. If you were a tightrope walker, would you practice on a wooden beam or stand on a stability ball. Of course not, because it would not duplicate the demands of tightrope walking. The rope has its own “feel” and sway that nothing else but a tightrope can duplicate. So if you want to improve your golf-specific balance, play golf.”

So perhaps to get the best from the gymnasium we should take our time to use the machines with total awareness of the actions involved (avoiding distractions such as the gym TV or listen to music ). And perhaps ask whether the action encouraged by the machine is a ‘natural’ one. Will I ever be hanging at an angle where I need to perform a sit-up? It may strengthen the abdominals for that movement, but do I need it? How will it benefit my body as a whole?

For further information visit http://www.artofperformance.co.uk

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Referential Offers

It is not inconceivable, when marketing a property in an environment of multiple offers, that a Seller might come across what it is generally referred to as a ‘referential purchase price offer’. A multiple offer situation arises when a subject property is simultaneously appealing to multiple Buyers, which then proceed to submit their respective bids. As Buyers are unaware of the price and terms of competing offers, a referential purchase price clause may seem like the optimal solution – but,in fact, it is not.

The thrust of the referential purchase price offer is to piggyback on the next highest bona fide offer that is acceptable to the Seller. The offer contains a clause that reads, in general lines, as follows: “The purchase price is $1,000 above the price offered in the nearest competing bona fide offer acceptable to the Seller to a maximum of $350,000. The Seller agrees to provide a copy of such nearest competing offer on acceptance of this offer”. The referential purchase price offer, therefore, is a clever way by which the Buyer endeavors to establish a purchase price by reference to prices contained in competing offers. As it can be reasonably anticipated, there are many variations in the wording of referential purchase price clauses.

The problem with this kind of offers is that there is a very good chance that neither the Seller nor the Buyer may pursue a legal remedy should either of them default at completion, due to the wording of the referential purchase price clause. The leading case is a 1985 decision of the House of Lords in England, which held that referential offers are invalid. This case has since been adopted at Common Law, at least insofar as it applies to referential bidding. The general principle of law holds than an offer by one bidder which is dependent for its definition on the offers of others is invalid and unacceptable. The rationale is that this type of offers is inconsistent with and potentially destructive of the very tendering process in which it is submitted.

Whether the focus is on the referential purchase price offer or on the bidding tendering process, there are enough similarities for a Seller to be concerned when dealing with referential offers. An approach that could be employed to circumvent problems involved when confronted with referential purchase price offers would be for the Seller to counter with an Addendum, which deletes the referential purchase price clause and inserts a fixed price for an identical amount in its stead. The benefit for the Seller is, of course, that he will not find himself in a position to have to disclose to the Buyer the nearest highest offer, but whether this will be acceptable to the Buyer is an entirely different matter.

What this all means in a multiple offer scenario is that in the eventuality that a referential purchase price offer comes around the Seller will have to assess its legitimacy, the enforceability of the offer and the bona fide of the contract. Unquestionably, therefore, the Seller that accepts such an offer will take an extra risk, the measure of which may very well lie in the offers that the Seller has decided to disregard in favor of the referential purchase price offer. A risk this that ultimately may not be warranted.

Luigi Frascati

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Not All Glass is Created Equal

Pressed glass, Depression glass and crystal — this month we’ll review the basics of these different types of glass and some tips on telling the difference.

History

Glass was first recorded being made in ancient Rome, Egypt and Syria. It was made by heating and fusing sand, potash or soda with lime.

Types of Glass

Soda glass, potash glass and lead glass are the three main types of glass.

Soda glass

Starting in the 13th century, soda glass was made in Venice. Glassmakers were able to form molten glass into elaborate shapes because it contained burned seaweed, making the glass very malleable.

Potash glass

Potash glass came from northern Europe. Potash was made from a combination of burned wood and bracken making the glass well suited for engraving and cutting.

Lead glass (crystal, lead crystal)

Starting in Europe in the 17th century, lead glass was developed. It was derived from adding lead oxide to potash glass. The words lead glass, lead crystal and crystal all mean the same thing. Crystal is simply a type of glass. It is the addition of lead to mix that makes crystal harder than regular glass. Crystal is less likely to have bubbles, which is helpful when cutting

Pressed glass

Popularized during the Victoria era, pressed glass is made from a mould and is less valuable than cut glass. You can identify pressed glass from the mould line that is visible and the less sharply faceted decoration.

Depression glass

Popularized during the Great Depression, companies such as Hocking Glass, Federal and MacBeth-Evans mass-produced this form of pressed glassware. It was often given away free as a gift with purchase. There are many colours and patterns available.

Decoration on glass

There are four types of decorations used to adorn glass: cutting, enamelling, gilding and engraving.

Cutting

Facets cut into glass reflect light and create sparkle. One tip to help date a piece of glass is to look for shallow surface cuts which were used in the earliest days of glass cutting.

Enamelling

In the 15th century, the Venetians popularized the enamelling of glass that is a process of painting on glass.

Gilding

It is a technique of adding gold decoration to glass that was often done by firing the gold onto a glass surface.

Engraving

It was done by diamond point engraving (scratching the design onto the surface of the glass using a diamond nib), wheel engraving (scratching the design on the surface of the glass using small copper wheels rotating against the surface) stipple engraving (scratching the design onto the surface of the glass using fine diamond needle that taps out the design in a series of dots and lines) or acid etching (scratching the design on the surface of glass using a sharp tool then subjecting the glass to hydrofluoric acid which etched the design onto the glass).

How to tell crystal from cut glass

Weight is the number one tip-off that something is crystal rather than glass. The lead in crystal makes it is heavier than cut glass. The telltale ping when you flick your fingernail against crystal is another way to tell crystal from glass.

Why is modern-day crystal less brilliant than antique crystal

Crystal made in the early 1900s contains about 25 to 28 percent lead. Modern crystal contains only 10 to 12 percent lead. This reduction in the lead content makes modern crystal less brilliant than antique crystal.

How to tell if it is early glass

Old engraving will look dark and grey against a white background. New glass engraving will not look grey against a white background.

Spotting reproductions

There are many reproductions circulating because modern glassmakers made imitations of 18th century glass. There is nothing wrong with reproductions as long as you know that is what you are buying. You can spot reproductions three ways:

Colour

Reproductions may not have the distinctive tint caused by natural occurring impurities. Use the white background test; if the engraving looks grey against the white, the item is likely to be old.

Manufacturing signs

Machine-made glass will not have the rough bump under the stem that hand-blown glass will have. This bump results from the item being removed from the glassblower’s rod. Also, hand-blown glass might have imperfections such as uneven thickness, ripples or striations that machine-made glass does not have.

Proportions

Styles and proportions have varied over the years. One thing to look for is that the foot on antique glass is often as wide as the bowl.

Value

Glass and crystal are one collectible where the secondary market is more affordable than the primary market. The reason is supply and demand. Plenty of crystal was made over the years, plenty of people took good care of it, and, as a result plenty of it is still around.

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