Shift Happens: From The Gait Guys perspective: Rebuilding Sidney Crosby’s Brain.

As we have discussed before, three systems keep us upright in the gravitational plane so that we can walk, run, skate (in Sidney’s case) and ambulate correctly and efficiently:

1. The vestibular system (inner ear)
2. vision and our proprioceptive system (joint and muscle mechanoreceptors).            
3. and our proprioceptive system (joint and muscle mechanoreceptors)

When one of these systems fails or is impaired, the delicate balance between these 3 systems is interrupted and shift happens; our balance and coordination fail and we fall.

This stresses the point that gait and locomotion are as much a central nervous system phenomenon as a peripheral one. The processes really cannot be separated.  Thankfully, we and in this case Sidney Crosby and many others, have physicians like Dr Carrick to assist people in correcting these imbalances. Dr Ivo and Dr Allen were fortunate enough to study under Dr Carrick and his programs.  We try to slip in some of this information on a weekly basis into The Gait Guys blogs, to help you understand the human machine a little better and to also allow you to appreciate the complexity, precision and essential requirements of human movement such as walking gait, running and yes, even skating.

Enjoy the full article link (HERE) about the fascinating and ongoing rehabilitation of Sidney Crosby of the NHL.

Ivo and Shawn…….. two guys pretty crummy on two steel blades (even though one grew up in Canada).

full article: 

http://www2.macleans.ca/2011/11/03/rebuilding-crosbys-brain/