Throughout my time, I have dabbled here and there as a "professional amateur" cook whereas my kitchen turns into a Top Chef episode, or maybe a Nailed It episode depending on the day. All in all producing some good, and some not so good, results. Most endeavors I choose to take on, I can usually keep the pressure turned on until I achieve the desired level of success. In the kitchen, however, it seems to pan out like a bad nightmare! The harder I try, the faster I fall into the abyss known as "I guess this will taste good." Thank goodness for cooking, and baking shows to provide some much needed tips along the way. Spending a little time on those channels gives me hope for my future as a home culinary expert! It has certainly opened my eyes to all the different levels of cooks that are out there...
I’ve begun to collect as many tips of the trade as I can possibly unearth. The quality of the ingredients are just as important to the end result as the quality and maintenance of tools, i.e. keeping your blades sharp not only ensures the precision cut, but also eases the repetitive motion strain on hand, wrist and elbow. Proper shoes that not only cushion and protect the feet from hours of standing, but also maintain "surefootedness" (another word we've made up, see FingerWeights as exhibit A), as well as repel any extraneous falling ingredients that would otherwise become unsanitary.
After all the logistics are set for personal success, then the most important tool of all must be considered and appropriated for; that one element making it all possible...our bodies! As I researched injuries linked to the commercial kitchen, I was overwhelmed at the vast numbers of reports, especially those that are repetitive motion in nature. Makes sense, but I guess I was hoping that there was a magical way for professionals to circumvent this...a secret of the trade if you will.
As it winds up, maybe there has been an untapped resource all along. Not a ‘cure,' but a way to optimize the body’s performance and fend off potential injury in the kitchen. Progressive resistance training, anyone? Bueller, Bueller... Rings a bell, doesn’t it? Chefs speak of proper posture, sharp tools, supportive footwear... What do we know aids these scenarios? Certainly ample stretching of all affected body parts (for me, I’d say the entire body), toned and strengthened supportive muscles, tissues, tendons and ligaments would seem to round everything out nicely. All this makes for the most prepared, connected and grounded ‘tool’ a person could hope for. Tried and true progressive resistance training keeps us healthy, flexible and as strong and resilient as humanly possible. Every body part we choose to engage in this way will be elevated to our optimal performance level. Strong abs, strong backs, obviously support best posture. Strong and stretched legs and feet will assist with the many hours spent standing while one prepares a meal for guests, or at their five star restaurant. And last but certainly not least, strong and stretched fingers, hands and arms will also keep functioning the many processes necessary for the tasks at hand...
The more preventative measures we put in play with regard to utilizing our bodies on a daily basis, the longer and more efficiently our bodies will perform for us. FingerWeights Global's mission is to improve hand performance, one finger at a time.