United States Sports Academy
America's Sports University^®

Echinacea, a popular but largely untested herbal remedy for the common cold, showed no benefit when given to a small group of college students with sore throats and stuffy noses, researchers say. University of Wisconsin researchers gave capsules of the herb to 73 students suffering from cold symptoms. Another 75 got a placebo, or dummy pill, made of alfalfa. After 10 days, both had gotten equally ill, the study said.

Editor note: Dr. Lou Pack has been a Podiatrist for 30 years. Involved in teaching his entire career, he is a nationally known lecturer and author and has done presentations abroad as well. Dr Pack has many credentials attached to his name, not the least of which is Director of Certification, Functional Foot Orthodics, Division of Enhanced Performance, United States Sports Academy- to say that Dr. Pack is the leading developer of the most effective orthodic devices in the world- an expert performing a service at the top of his game. Utilizing his devices, and working through his intelligence can be both a service to yourself and your athletes and as well as a means of furthering your business career.

My early interest in biomechanics was born of recovery of my own running injury problems. Fortunately, in the early 1970’s the epicenter of knowledge regarding biomechanics was in Northern California, and although I was training to become a surgeon, using orthotics to solve my running problems began a 30-year interest in lower extremity biomechanics and orthotics. During this period, I became amazed at two specific facts: First, that most athletes are not examined biomechanically as thoroughly as they could be prior to an injury, and secondly, the dramatic difference a good, properly casted and fabricated set of functional foot orthotics can make, both in injury prevention and in optimizing performance.

Mercury, a potent neurotoxin capable of damaging the central nervous system of adults and impairing neurological development in fetuses and children has been used as a manufacturing catalyst in urethane-based running track surfaces since the 1970s, and most tracks built today continue to use mercury in their construction. But recently, influenced in part by rising litigation, stiffer federal regulations, and more clearly defined health risks from mercury exposure, colleges are becoming more socially conscious and having running tracks built without the use of mercury.

SI recently reported on the epidemic decline in the number and quality of individual sport stars presently representing the United States. Even though sport fans are well aware of some outstanding performers, on reflection this apparent state of affairs is alarming. The only way to combat this demise is to reexamine the qualities of our former champions to understand how future aspiring American individual athletes can adopt their greatness. In looking back to the great individual performers of generations past, no luminary is more representative of what we should revert back to than super USA miler Steve Scott.

It is 42 years since Australian miler Herb Elliott broke the world’s record for the mile by the largest margin in history. His coach, Percy Wells Cerutty, was a pioneer in many aspects of training. His most well known approach was to have his athletes run up and down a long sand dune till they were completely fatigued. I was the last coach to train with Cerutty as I set up a tour for him in 1974 when I was Director of the Esalen Sports Center in San Francisco and Big Sur California. By then, an elder sage, I learned his training principles and was the last person to receive the synthesis of his complete program for training athletes to become world champions. One of the wonderful things that will occur in 2003 is a new biography on Cerutty’s life and work. The biography is written by Graem Sims, the editor of InSport, the largest sport magazine in Australia. The long overdue publication will cover Cerutty’s work in training over 30 world record holders, and his innovative resistance training methods.

Bringing International Care to New Regions of the World

Over the past few years I have had the opportunity to participate as a healthcare provider at the World Indoor Track and Field Championships in Atlanta the Costa Rican National Olympic Games in San Jose, Costa Rica and the Central American Games in Guatemala City, Guatemala. As a Doctor of Chiropractic rehabilitating the athletes for their injuries you attain a special relationship with the individuals. I was not only their Doctor but their higher education as well. Most of these athletes had never even heard of a Doctor of Chiropractic much less the rehabilitative powers of the “adjustment.” As with most western nations, their perspective had been more with the traditional medical approaches of pain relievers, muscle relaxers and/or performance enhancers. Of course at any level of competitive athletics these pharmaceutical approaches are frowned on, tightly regulated, and in most cases banned during competition. The formal testing to ensure a level playing field discourages even those approved drugs should they cause any level of suspicion. The natural Chiropractic approach is hand and glove with the Olympic Ideals espoused at the highest levels of athletic achievement.

Editors note: Mackie Shilstone is not only coach to the professional athlete, he has helped thousands of people become healthier, longer. His new book, “Maximum Energy for Life” is rising quickly on the national best selling fitness book list.

Once you have embarked on a conscious and well-thought-out plan for losing weight, one of the best things you can do to shed pounds and keep them off is aerobic walking. Walking between 45 and 60 minutes a day is, by far,one of the easiest and most beneficial forms of exercise anyone can engage in.

Ephedra, an herb found in weight-loss and bodybuilding supplements, is unsafe even when taken in recommended doses and should be restricted, according to doctors who studied reports of bad reactions to the herb.

U.S. poison control centers reported 1,178 adverse reactions to ephedra dietary supplements in 2001, said the study, which was to be posted on the Annals of Internal Medicine’s Web site Tuesday and published in the journal next month.

David Meggyesy - “Taking Sport Education to the Masses”

The former Syracuse University and St. Louis Cardinals football star, Mr. Meggyesy has spent the last 22 years as the West Coast representative for the NFL Players Association. Meggyesy is the author of the 53rd best selling sport book of all time, Out of their League, which was the first expose of the exploitation and abuse of football players. Meggyesy also is the initiator of the Academy’s cooperative agreement with the NFL Coaches Association to create programs to help stimulate interest in local communities in youth football programs.

The realization that our present generation is the first ever to have a lower life expectancy than all previous is a statistic that’s right in your face. It comes at a time of world crisis when rather than be vulnerable, American citizens must be prepared for any and all occurrences. The worldwide challenges make one reflective of the future. What can we do to help the current generation be more prepared of body, mind and spirit? A new generation of health and fitness teachers understands the problem and are organizing for change.