How many of you remember the old, traditional athletic supporters. Nope, I'm not talking about the Booster Club - I'm talking about the infamous Jock Strap. In this day an age, the jock strap has pretty much gone by the way-side...at least that is what I thought until I started browsing the web for images of a jock strap. Which by the way, is not something I would suggest you do...unless you are looking for some very interesting photographs.
The Infamous Jock Strap!
Anyway...now that I have your attention, I will tell you that this post is not about jock straps either.
Nope.
This post is about a much more important type of athletic supporter. In my case - my wife Donna.
My amazing wife...Donna
That's right, many of us aging athletes would be lost without our support team - which often is comprised of our spouse or significant other.
These selfless supporters are there for us, without fail, every time we decide to embark on another journey to find out what we are made of. Sometimes they are there when you are in a jam, and need them to bail you out. No, I'm not talking about jail. Regardless of the reason - they are there.
At least that's the way it is in my case.
Donna has been my support staff for quite some time now...not just in my athletic adventures either. This amazing woman stood by my side and supported me, never once complaining, when I decided (at age 42) to pursue my Bachelor's degree - and then move right on into my Master's program, just weeks after graduation.
During my last two 12-hour solo mountain bike races she served as my pit crew, readying my hydration and nutrition so that I could quickly throw it down my gullet, and get back to pedaling. Without her, I would not have achieved my lap goal for either race. As a bonus...she was the hottest pit crew at either race!
The support doesn't just come at race time either. As many of you know all too well, these events require months of preparation. In my case, that means logging hundreds of hours and miles on my mountain bike...all of which are spent away from my wife. It takes a very special person to be supportive of that kind of time commitment, and I am truly blessed to have someone like that in my corner.
My wife has come to my rescue more than once, picking me up when my bike broke beyond trail-repair - when I lost my keys out in the middle of nowhere - and most recently, when I realized (almost 10-miles from home) that I had forgotten my water bottles. Yep, she put her life on hold to bring my bottles to me. Amazing!
As many of you are aware of, I am now training for yet another cycling adventure...the 2013 Ride 430 Challenge. This event is the culmination of months of fundraising to provide much needed financial support for injured/killed U.S. Marines and their families. To donate to this great cause, click here.
I have already logged hundreds of miles in the saddle of my Trek Domane road bike, and spent many hours away from my wife. Over the course of the next seven months, I will log over 2000 miles, spending many hours apart from her.
Her position? Completely encouraging, and totally supportive.
I have an amazing support system - how about you?
Please take the time to comment, sharing stories about your support team...I'd love to hear about it!
hamstrungpast participle, past tense of ham·string (Verb)
Verb
Cripple (a person or animal) by cutting their hamstrings.
Severely restrict the efficiency or effectiveness of.
OK, this post is not about cutting one's hamstrings, and disabling them...but it is about how our hamstrings can disable, or cripple us...specifically, during the golf swing.
How many of you have tight hamstrings? How many of you don't know if your hamstrings are tight or not?
How many of you just don't care? Alrighty then...move along.
What are the hamstrings anyway?
The hamstrings are a group of muscles that are part of what is known as the posterior chain. The posterior chain is comprised of the muscles that are located posteriorly on our body...on our backside. The hamstring muscles include the Biceps Femoris (long and short heads), the semimembranosus, and the semitendinosus.
The actions of the hamstring muscles include knee flexion, hip extension, hip flexion, rotation of the tibia...both external and internal rotation. As you can see the hamstring muscle group is responsible for a great deal of lower extremity movement - which means that it sees more than it's share of action, and thus needs to be taken care of.
Yesterday I mentioned that a rounded back posture during the golf address and swing could be due, in part, to tightness in the hamstrings. I know some of you are thinking "How can tight hamstrings cause my back to round?"
Let me explain.
The human movement system (HMS) is comprised of a number of subsystems...groups of individual muscles and muscle groups that work together to create movement, and stabilize the body. The hamstrings, specifically the Biceps Femoris, is part of the Posterior Oblique Subsystem (POS). Here is a quote from the National Academy of Sports Medicine Corrective Exercise Specialist textbook...
"...the POS transfers forces that are summated from the muscle's transverse plane orientation to propulsion in the sagittal plane. The POS is also of prime importance for rotational activities such as swinging a golf club or a baseball bat, or throwing a ball."
What does all that mumbo-jumbo mean...and how does it pertain to you and your golf swing?
In short, what it means is that forces are transferred along the muscles that belong to the POS, starting from the ground up. When you swing your club, you create ground-force by driving your feet into the ground to stabilize your body during movement. This force is then transmitted upward, through the posterior chain musculature, through the Biceps Femoris, and into the thoracolumbar fascia (TF). The TF attaches to the various points within the hip complex, as well as to the latissimus dorsi (lats) musculature and deep spinal musculature...as shown in the picture below.
When there is over-activity or tightness in the Biceps Femoris, the muscle pulls downward on the TF (as shown by the blue arrows). This creates tension across the TF and all the way up into the lats and spinal musculature. Tension of this sort can actually cause a great deal of low-back pain during both normal and sports related activities.
Due to the tension in the TF, it becomes increasingly difficult (and uncomfortable) to flex at the hips, as is required during the golf swing. The body compensates by flexing throughout both the lumbar and thoracic spine...creating the rounded back posture seen below. You will also see that the golfer below has very little knee flexion (bending) at address. This too is a result of tight hamstrings, as they cross the knee joint. Poor ankle flexibility (tightness in the calves) can also play a significant role in decreased knee flexion.
This golfer clearly has tight hamstrings, and is placing a great deal of stress on his back.
Our own hamstrings can cripple us. Not only on the golf course but in everyday life. What seems relatively benign can, both acutely and chronically, result in pain and dysfunction throughout the body.
Take care of your hamstrings and they will take care of you!
Check back soon to see just how you can take care of your hamstrings.
Let's see...where were we before I went off, chasing 'mavericks'? Oh yes, self myofascial release!
I've been promising and promising you all that we would get down to business, so to speak, and get working on some exercises. Guess what? Today is the day!
First however, a quick review (shocking huh?).
In my last post we learned about the physiology that is behind the 'magic' of self myofascial release techniques (SMR). We pulled back the curtain, and saw that there are intelligently-designed receptors that serve as protective mechanisms, doing their best to prevent our muscles from being torn.
Today I introduce you to yet another receptor known as the muscle spindle. The muscle spindle works to increase muscle tone, while the golgi-tendon organ actually relaxes muscle tissue. The process by which the muscle spindles work, is known the stretch reflex.
Have you ever been driving late at night, and started to doze off...or have you witnessed someone do this? Thankfully, many sleep-driving accidents are thwarted by muscle spindle activity, and the stretch reflex. You see...as you begin to tire, your head tips forward resulting in a relatively quick stretch of the muscles on the back of your neck. When this happens, the muscle spindles sense this stretch, and as a protective mechanism, they create tension within the muscle to prevent it from stretching too far, and possibly tearing. This tension in the muscle quickly returns the head to an upright position, which is what causing the 'bobbing' motion seen in the video below.
Physiologically speaking, there is a great deal more going on with both the muscle spindles and the golgi-tendon organs, than what I have taught you so far...but you really just need to know the basics to understand how and why SMR techniques work.
Now...onto the exercises!
This entire long, drawn-out series began by discussing the importance of proper thoracic mobility, and the performance/injury reduction benefits that it provides for golfers...remember?
So let's look at a couple of SMR techniques that you can use to improve your thoracic mobility.
Have you made your tennis ball peanut yet? If so you will notice that there is a channel formed between the two balls. This channel is where your vertebrae will 'rest' while performing the exercise. The tennis balls will provide the stimulus (tension) to the muscles that run along the sides of the spine.
Your vertebrae will 'rest' in the channel between the two tennis balls
In the first video, the athlete is using the tennis ball peanut to release overactive muscles within the thoracic spine. To do this, sit on the floor and place the peanut just below your shoulder blades. This is the first vertebrae below the scapulo-thoracic joint (STJ). Remember, the STJ is designed to be stable, so DO NOT place the peanut on your shoulder blades. Our goal is to improve mobility in the thoracic region below the STJ. While watching the video below, you will note that the athlete performs two or three small abdominal crunches while 'resting' against the peanut. Once he has completed the crunches, he lies flat against the peanut, and alternately performs a few arm flexion/extension movements.
I have used the term rest while describing this exercise however, I must be completely honest with you...this exercise and the term 'rest' really do not belong in the same sentence...in fact, they don't belong in the same paragraph! This exercise will not be comfortable! You need to understand that the muscles you are targeting have (most likely) never been addressed like this before. Therefore, they are going to be very tender until they have been 're-trained' and released of their tension. Once this occurs however, the tenderness will be reduced significantly...I promise!
Once you perform a set of crunches and arm 'swings' on the vertebrae just below the shoulder blades, move the peanut down one vertebrae, and repeat the movements. Follow this procedure downward, vertebrae by vertebrae, until the peanut is located just above your lower back. DO NOT...I repeat DO NOT perform this on your lower back!
If you find this exercise to be too uncomfortable to perform, you can begin with a less-advanced exercise...but you will need to purchase a foam roll first. You have clicked on the Trigger Point Therapy link above by now...right?
The next video demonstrates the use of a foam roller to prepare the muscles of the thoracic spine for more advance mobility exercises. Rolling the t-spine in this manner helps to relax the muscles more superficially prior to diving in and attacking them more deeply. This technique can be used prior to the tennis ball peanut as well. Note that you can modulate the amount of pressure being applied to your back by changing the position of your hips. By elevating your hips off of the floor, more pressure is applied to the foam roller. Conversely, by placing your hips in contact with the floor, less pressure is applied. Play with your hip position to find the perfect amount of pressure for you.
This next video demonstrates the use of a foam roller to perform your thoracic crunches on, rather than the tennis ball peanut. This technique causes less discomfort, and can be used to progress into the tennis ball peanut version of the exercise.
Alright...we're making progress here! Whether you choose the tennis ball peanut or the foam roll, understand that you are working to improve one aspect of thoracic mobility...mobility in the sagittal plane (forward/backward). There are three planes of human movement (sagittal, frontal, transverse) however, and the sport of golf requires adequate thoracic mobility in each of these planes of movement. What does that mean? It means that we have more exercises to perform!
Think about the golf swing for a moment. When a golfer addresses the ball, he bends (flexes) at the hips, knees, and ankles as he stands over the ball, preparing to swing. Optimally, the back should remain nice and flat, both at address and during the swing itself. Unfortunately (as we have discussed previously) our American-Posture tends to be one which includes constant thoracic flexion...rounded back and shoulders.
The rounded back is due to the muscles of the thoracic spine having adapted to the position they spend the most time in. Remember that concept...adaptive shortening? The exercises shown above serve to release those shortened muscles, thereby allowing them to be lengthened and return proper flat-back posture.
The pictures below illustrate the difference between a flat-back and a rounded-back while addressing the ball. Which one looks more athletic to you?
Unfortunately, the majority of amateur golfers have posture similar to that of the golfer in the red shirt. This is the result of both poor thoracic mobility, and poor hamstring flexibility (which we will address in the next post).
The other aspects of thoracic mobility that we need to address are frontal-plane and transverse-plane mobility. So let's dive in!
Frontal-plane movement refers to lateral movements such as side-shuffling and side-bending. Within the game of golf, not much side-shuffling occurs, but there is a need to be able to side-bend. Transverse-plane movement refers to rotational movement patterns, much of which (in sport) takes place amidst the hips and spine relationship.
While the act of side-bending is not really prevalent in the golf swing, the ability to side-bend (laterally flex) provides for a greater degree of rotational movement, therefore exercises to improve lateral flexion will aid in the development of thoracic rotation, and the ability to create greater power and an improved follow-through.
Below you will find some examples of lateral flexion exercises which can be easily incorporated into your new routine.
These are relatively simple exercises...in fact, many of us learned them as kids in PE class, but have failed to incorporate them into our lives as adults.
The next plane of movement to address is the transverse-plane...rotation. The video below is an example of a great exercise to improve both thoracic rotation and shoulder mobility.
The next video demonstrates another thoracic rotation exercise, but this one is performed while standing rather than lying on the ground. I like this one due to its similarity to the golf swing however, I feel it may be best performed after you have developed the ability to perform the lying 90-90 T-Spine stretch shown above. While this is a great exercise, I am not impressed with the execution by the athlete in the video. This movement should be performed in a much more controlled manner, while keeping the hips still. This provides an inverse relationship between the torso and the hips...which mimics their relationship during the golf swing.
Ok! Finally we have learned some exercises that will help to improve golf performance and reduce the potential for injury. In my next post I will discuss the importance of hamstring flexibility, and the role it plays in a proper golf swing.
Until then...make up a tennis ball peanut, and click on the Trigger Point Therapy banner above to order yourself some SMR tools! I promise it will pay huge dividends!
Last night my wife and I watched a movie called Chasing Mavericks. No, this is not a movie about chasing wild horses...it's a movie about surfing.
I take that back...Chasing Mavericks is a movie about chasing a dream, and making it a reality. It's a movie about setting attainable goals, the work that goes into achieving those goals, and the lessons you learn along the way - which ultimately serve to aid you in achieving what is quite possibly the biggest challenge of your life.
Mavericks is a once-secret surf break that produces some of the world's largest waves. It is located near Half Moon Bay in California...which is located about an hour north of Santa Cruz.
The movie is based on the true story of local Santa Cruz surfer, Jay Moriarty, a fifteen year-old kid who discovers that the legend of Mavericks is real - and is determined to ride the killer waves.
Jay Moriarty
Jay enlists the help of a coach...local surfing legend Frosty Hesson, to help him prepare to ride what few others had dared. Frosty takes young Jay on a journey of not only physical preparation, but one of self actualization...one which leads to the understanding of who he truly is, and what he is capable of.
The iconic shot of 16-year old Jay Moriarty at Mavericks
As I was watching the movie, I realized that I have chased numerous Mavericks in my life.
A few years ago, a great friend introduced me to mountain biking...shortly thereafter, he introduced me to mountain bike endurance racing. I remember preparing for my first 24-hour team race - thinking to myself "What in the world have you gotten yourself into?". You see, I had been riding for less than a year, so I was far from experienced. I was still trying to master the skills necessary for riding during the day. Now I was going to have to strap on lights, and ride at night too? On top of that craziness, I would be riding 10-mile loops, on mountainous terrain, every three hours...for 24-hours!
During that time, and a handful of races later, I realized that these events had changed my life. I had achieved something I didn't know I was physically or mentally capable of. I had found a part of myself I never knew existed.
Fast forward a few years...
I have now moved on from competing in team-based 24-hour races to solo 12-hour events...a new Mavericks...one that, once again, has taught me something about myself that I did not know before.
In December of last year, I rode my mountain bike 100 miles in just under 10-hours to raise money for injured U.S. Marines and their families. I had never dreamed I would be capable of such a feat, but the lessons I had learned from chasing previous 'Mavericks' had prepared me for what would be the most physically and emotionally challenging event of my life...well, maybe not the most - after all, I am a father!
Now I am facing an even greater challenge...one which will require me, and others, to ride our road bikes nearly 430 miles, in just four days. "Why?" you ask. Once again, this is to raise money for injured/killed U.S. Marines and their families. These heroes have put their lives on the line for our safety, and many of them are in desperate need of financial assistance.
In years past, this ride began is Scottsdale, Arizona and ended in San Diego, California. Riders were faced with tough challenges including the grueling climb out of the Imperial Valley, up and over the Santa Rosa mountain range.
This year however, the course has changed - and it is going to be even tougher. For 2013 the course will take us into the
beautiful mountains of northern Arizona. We will pass through historic
towns such as Wickenburg, Prescott, Strawberry, and Payson as our
riders complete more than 16,000 feet of vertical climbing in less than
four days. This year's route promises to be the greatest physical
challenge we have faced yet.
Great. Welcome to the team John!
Why am I sharing this with you? Am I bragging about what a tremendous physical and emotional feat I am taking on? Absolutely not.
I am sharing this with you because I am scared. Yep...me, the big tough guy, who's not scared of anything - well let me tell you, this scares me!
This is my Mavericks...what's yours?
Please help me raise much needed financial assistance for these true American Heroes by visiting my fundraising page. You can click here or click on the link on the right side of this page. It only takes a couple of minutes to pledge your support, and all donations are tax deductible!
Self Myofascial Release...now that's a term you don't hear everyday!
The term conjures up a vast number of thoughts and ideas...you should try introducing that term to a group of firefighters!
So what is Self Myofascial Release (SMR)?
To understand it better, let's break down the term into parts...Okay?
Self - this probably goes without saying but...it simply means that this is a procedure that is performed by you...on you. It does not require assistance from a massage therapist, athletic trainer, or physical therapist.
Myo - myo is a medical prefix that denotes a relationship to muscle. Essentially myo = muscle.
Fascial - within the confines of anatomy and physiology, fascia is a sheet or band of fibrous connective tissue enveloping, separating, or
binding together muscles, organs, and other soft structures of the body. The study of the human fascial system is currently one of the hottest topics in health and fitness today. The body contains a network or web of fascia that essentially links every part of the body together...like a common thread running throughout the entire human body. We'll discuss fascia in detail another time.
Superficial fascia...white connective tissue
A microscopic look at the fascial 'web' that lies deep within our bodies
Release - Merriam Webster defined the word release as... "Allow or enable to escape from confinement; set free."
Remember yesterday, when I mentioned that SMR techniques would be used to address the fourth step in the Cumulative Injury Cycle?
Basically, what we are doing is using a variety of implements to apply pressure across a section of muscle, thereby releasing tension and adhesions within the muscle tissue, while simultaneously providing freedom of movement between the muscle tissue and its surrounding fascial sleeve.
The National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) defines SMR as a flexibility technique use to inhibit overactive muscle fibers.
So how does it work?
A muscle is made up of muscle cells, which ultimately form muscle fibers. The muscle fibers are grouped and surrounded by a form of fascial tissue, which serves to keep the grouped fibers together...think of it as a package of sorts.
Cross-section of muscle tissue showing grouped fibers
Tendons are found at each end of the muscle, and serve to anchor the muscle to bone. When the muscle contracts, the tendons transmit the contractile force to the bone, causing movement to occur. Tendons are thick, fibrous extensions of the fascia surrounding the muscle and it's individual fibers.
The point at which the muscle and tendon meet is referred to as the musculotendinous junction (MTJ). Located within the MTJ are tiny receptors known as Golgi Tendon Organs (GTO). GTO's are sensitive to changes in muscular tension, as well as how quickly the tension is developing. These magical little receptors become excited when they detect tension across the muscle, and cause the muscle to relax as a protective mechanism to prevent muscle and tendon tearing. It is this amazing process that we are targeting during SMR techniques.
So how do we do it?
Self Myofascial Release is performed using 'tools' or 'implements' that put pressure on muscle tissue, thus creating tension...and exciting the GTO's. The tools can be quite specialized, but can also be as ordinary as a tennis ball.
To get the most benefit however, I recommend that you purchase a set of 'tools' that will enable you to perform SMR techniques on all the major muscles and muscle groups in your body. You have clicked on the Trigger Point banner by now haven't you? If not, please do...simply to check out the website.
As I mentioned before however, I am an affiliate sales rep for Trigger Point, which means that I will receive a small commission should you choose to order through my blog. I use Trigger Point products on myself and my athletes. I have also equipped each of our fire stations with a Trigger Point kit...I truly believe they are the best made and most effective SMR tools on the market.
The picture below depicts one of many SMR exercises used to improve flexibility, range of motion, and even reduce or eliminate pain!
Thoracic SMR on a foam roll
Another great tool you can use to improve thoracic mobility via SMR, is a pair of tennis balls taped together, as shown below.
A great, inexpensive SMR tool...the Tennis Ball Peanut
In my next post, I will show you how to use these tools, and provide some sample SMR exercises for the aging golfer. BUT...before then, you must put together a Tennis Ball Peanut...and you must check out the Trigger Point Therapy website by clicking on the banner at the top of this page.
I know these tools are a little pricey, but believe me...it is worth it. You are investing in your health and performance, and the cost of these tools is far less than you would pay to treat just one injury!
Alright, let's do a quick recap of where we have been...
I began this series with a post titled "The Aging Golfer". My intent was to educate my fellow aging athlete golfers on the importance of maintaining adequate mobility within the hips and spine, as this would not only improve their performance on the links, but possibly stave off the degenerative spine disease that so many golfers suffer from later in life.
As we have learned along the way however, this information pertains to other aging athletes as well...and even non-athletes. This is the kind of information that everyone needs to have. In fact, this is the kind of knowledge that our doctors need to know, but unfortunately...most don't.
"The doctor of the future will give no medication,
but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, diet and
in the cause and prevention of disease.”
―
Thomas A. Edison
The quote above reflects some pretty forward thinking...especially for someone living in the early 1900's. It is time for more importance to be placed on the care of the human frame...by all, not just athletes.
Ok, I'm beginning to rant. I shall dismount my soapbox and get back on track.
So...what can we do about our decreased mobility? Over the next couple of posts within this series, I plan to take you through some mobility exercises that are used by Physical Therapists to regain flexibility and range of motion. You don't have to be a Physical Therapist to do these exercises, but you will need to have some specific equipment.
I would expect that by now you have clicked on the Trigger Point advertisement on this blog, and purchased your very own, life-changing Trigger Point Therapy kit...yes? What? You didn't think it was necessary? Alright, there's still time. You can always click on that banner right now, and then come back to this post once you have received your 'tools' and learn the exercises.
Before we dive into fun stuff however, we need to do a little more education. I know, I know, you've had enough teaching, and you want to get on with the fun stuff. Believe me, I've heard it before...but trust me, because this information is important, and will help bring it all together. Really.
We need to talk about the Cumulative Injury Cycle (CIC).
"What is the Cumulative Injury Cycle?" you ask. Great question!
The CIC is a process that occurs within the human body, and disrupts the human movement system (HMS)through the development of muscle imbalance, altered neuromuscular control, etc.
The National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) describes the CIC as "A cycle whereby an injury will induce inflammation, muscle spasm, adhesion, altered neuromuscular control, and muscle imbalances."
But you're not injured, so this doesn't pertain to you...right?
Wrong.
The term injury is used to describe both acute traumatic injury, as well as chronic overuse injury patterns. Every time we engage in physical activity, we create micro trauma to our muscles and connective tissues. This small amount of injury is enough to trigger the CIC.
I want you to have a solid understanding, so let's dive in a little deeper and go through each step of the CIC.
Step 1: Tissue Trauma
Tissue trauma can result from an injury
such as a strain, or it can simply refer to the micro-tears and
contractive tension in a muscle which are normal results of strength
training. The body treats this stress on the tissue as an injury and
initiates the repair process. The only way muscles get bigger and
stronger is when the body undertakes this healthy, normal repair process
on these micro-tears. Excessive tension, however, is NOT normal and
healthy. It interferes with the healthy growth of the muscles by
allowing them to remain in a shortened, contracted state.
Step 2: Inflammation
Any trauma to tissues leads to
inflammation of the traumatized area. Inflammation triggers the body’s
pain response system, which activates protective mechanisms meant to
prevent further damage. At the microscopic level, we are talking about
activation of tiny receptor sites called muscle spindles that sense the
level of tension in the muscle and attempt to protect it by initiating
contraction.
Step 3: Muscle Spasm
When the muscle spindles are stimulated,
microspasms begin to occur throughout the muscle, creating further
tension and shortening.
Step 4: Adhesions
Also known as “knots”, adhesions are the
result of the microspasms in step 3. These adhesions can be described as
tight nodules within the soft muscle tissues. They reshape the muscle
itself, creating an inelastic matrix of roadblocks which prevent the
muscle from contracting and releasing as it should. Untreated adhesions
can become permanent features of the soft tissue as the tissue repairs
itself to cope with the demands of strength training. Inflexible tissue
causes postural compensations as the body attempts to find ways to move
itself in spite of its new limitations. Remember...life will find a way!
Step 5: Altered Neuromuscular Control
These permanent adhesions cause compensatory movement patterns to occur . The body wants to move, and it
will find a way to do so even if it means using muscles and joints in
suboptimal ways which deviate from their intended functions.
Step 6: Muscle Imbalance
Repeated patterns of movement model the
body in their image. If the body moves in a suboptimal manner over time,
the faulty patterns will be built into the muscles and joints
themselves. Remember...the body adapts!
And Then the Vicious Cycle Repeats and Reinforces Itself
The CIC is a process that feeds on itself. As the cycle draws to a close, the muscles are left in sub-optimal states. This reinforces each of the previous steps within the CIC, and essentially causes the cycle to repeat...over and over again, until a severe acute injury occurs. At this time, most people simply write it off as just another injury, when in fact it was caused by a failure to recognize and mitigate the CIC from the outset.
Pattern Overload and the Cumulative Injury Cycle
The cumulative injury cycle is directly tied to the concept of
pattern overload, which means placing repeated stress on the body
through performing the same motions. Poor posture combined with pattern
overload is the recipe for repetitive stress injuries.
Alright, now that you are familiar with the cumulative injury cycle, let's talk about what we are going to do to restore some movement in your thoracic spine.
There are two corrective techniques that we are going to employ...corrective flexibility, and self myofascial release (SMR).
Corrective Flexibility training involves a variety of different stretching techniques that can be used to re-lengthen over-stressed, shortened muscles. The goal is to return those muscles to their normal resting length.
SMR techniques will be used to attack the adhesions (described in Step 4 above) that are reducing the elasticity of the muscles. These exercises are carried out with the use of SMR tools, such as those produced by Trigger Point...hence my reminder to click on the ad banner and purchase yourself a set.
In my next post, we will learn how to use these tools, and get down to the business of Self Myofascial Release!
