Thumb Spica Taping

This taping technique will limit movement in the joint between the thumb and the hand to help the soft tissues heal after a thumb sprain. You use loops of tape around the thumb that attach to the wrist and ‘rein in’ the thumb to prevent it from moving.

Equipment Required

1. 2.5cm Zinc Oxide Tape
2. Scissors (optional)

Instructions

Step 1: Start by creating an ‘anchor’ on the wrist. Circle the wrist once with the zinc oxide tape as pictured:

Step 2: Now you add the tape strips that will support the thumb itself. With the zinc oxide tape, start on the outside edge of the wrist – i.e. on the same side of the wrist as the little finger is. With a single continuous strip of tape, bring the tape diagonally up the back of the hand, onto the first joint of the thumb. The tape should cross the main knuckle of the thumb (the knuckle where it joins the hand.) Continue all the way around the thumb, so the tape crosses itself, then come down the base of the palm and around the outside of the wrist to finish the strip of tape where it started. The steps are pictured here:

Step 3: Add a second support strip of zinc oxide tape directly over the first strip from step 2:

Step 4: Finally add a second anchor directly over the first anchor from step 1, to lock off the loose ends of tape. That’s it.

Tip: This technique will be helpful for lighter thumb sprains and in situations where you can’t wear a brace but still need to give some support to the thumb. However, a more complete immobilization of the thumb using a splint or brace may be more effective than tape. Therefore, you may wish to consider purchasing a thumb spica brace.

5 Surprising Benefits of Training Your Glutes

Booty, butt, derriere, backside, rump, fanny, keister, caboose, tush. So many different names for the one body part everyone wants to build, tighten and tone.

By far the largest and strongest group of muscles in your body, the gluteals (gluteus maximus, gluteus medius and gluteus minimus) and the hamstrings (biceps femoris, semitendinosus and semimembranosus) work together to extend, rotate and abduct the hip. They also contribute to stabilization of the pelvis, in particular during walking, running and climbing.

A well-trained rear end isn’t just nice to look at. Strong glutes and hamstrings can help improve posture, alleviate lower back, hip and knee pain, enhance athletic performance, reduce bone density loss and even eliminate that stubborn abdominal pooch. What’s more, because muscle burns more calories at rest than fat does, increasing lean muscle mass via glutes training can accelerate fat loss and help to keep it off.

All pretty good arguments for training your glutes, don’t you think?

1. Better Posture

As a consequence of “sitting disease”, many of us suffer from poor posture. Tight, shortened hip flexors, weak, over-stretched hip extensors and glutes that ‘forget’ how to activate properly all contribute to the most commonly observed postural deviations: swayback and kyphosis-lordosis.

What’s more, forward-tilting hips push the abdomen out, creating the illusion of a ‘gut’, even in the absence of excess belly fat.

Try adding squats, lunges and dead lifts to your current strength training routine, making sure to adequately stretch out the opposing hip flexors to improve posture and reduce belly ‘pooch’. This is perhaps the quickest (and easiest) way to lose 5 pounds and appear an inch or two taller!

2. Pain Reduction and Injury Prevention

Strong glutes support the lower back. When the glutes aren’t strong enough to perform their hip extension function, muscles that weren’t designed for the job will take over. Over time, these ‘helper’ muscles may become overstressed, resulting in pain and compression in the lumbar spine, hips and knees.

Because the glutes are also hip stabilizers, weak gluteal muscles can result in poor alignment of the entire lower body, leaving you prone to injuries including Achilles tendonitis, shin splints, anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) sprains and tears and iliotibial (IT) band syndrome.

Protect your hips, knees and ankles by strengthening your glutes with hip thrusts, single leg dead lifts and weighted clam shells.

3. Improved Athletic Performance

The gluteus maximus is capable of generating an enormous amount of power. This power can be translated into sports-specific speed, acceleration, vertical distance, and endurance. Training the hips to extend powerfully and propel the body forwards is key to improving your ability to run, jump, and cycle faster, harder, and longer.

Try adding in a day or two of lower body strength training on days when you’re not scheduled for a long run or cycle. And don’t forget to stretch and foam roll afterwards to maintain hip mobility and flexibility. A great love-to-hate hip opener? Eka Pada Rajakapotasana, the one-legged pigeon pose.

4. Increased Bone Density

Bone density peaks somewhere between 5 and 10 years after we reach skeletal maturity. Starting as early as age 30, old and damaged bone is resorbed faster than new bone is formed resulting in increased risk of osteopaenia (lower than normal bone density) and osteoporosis (a progressive bone disease).

Exercises that place mechanical stress on the bones, including lower body weight training, running and some forms of yoga, can postpone and even reverse the effects of age-related bone-density loss. The earlier you start incorporating them in your training, the greater their potential benefits.

5. Fat Loss and Fat Loss Maintenance

Fat loss requires a daily caloric deficit. Burn more calories than you consume and you’ll lose fat (more or less). Unlike adipose tissue, muscle is metabolically active, meaning that even when you’re not working out, your muscles will burn calories from stored fat. In fact, studies suggest that for every pound of muscle you build, your body will burn an extra 50 calories per day.

Given that the glutes and hamstrings are two of the largest muscle groups in the body, their potential contribution to fat loss is not to be underestimated. Try incorporating a variety of squats and lunges in a whole-body-compound-lift style circuit to build muscle, torch fat and continue burning calories for 24 to 48 hours after your workout is over.

InSync Physiotherapy is a multi-award winning health clinic helping you in Sports Injuries, Physiotherapy, Exercise Rehabilitation, Massage Therapy, Acupuncture & IMS.

Are Exercise Injuries More Common in the Cold?

Q: Am I at greater risk of muscle or joint injury when I exercise in the cold?

A: In general cold-weather workouts are almost always safe, as long as you bundle up (layers are key) and pay extra attention to slick, slippery surfaces. But what’s happening inside?

Cold weather certainly can increase your risk of straining or tearing something. That’s because the lower temps cause our muscles to tighten a little bit more.

Think about a block of clay that’s been sitting there, that cold block of clay would tear if you stretched it, compared to how pliable it would be if you spent some time warming it up in your hands first. Our muscles and connective tissue also have less elasticity when the temperature gets lower.

That’s why warming up is more important now than at any other time of year. In average temps when you’re not using your muscles, most of your blood flows to your internal organs. When you start to call on your legs and arms to get moving, blood vessels open up to fuel those working muscles, but when the mercury drops, you’re amplifying that effect. If you jump right into a sudden, powerful movement such as sprinting on a stiffer-than-normal muscle, that force could lead to injury.

The cold may also slow down some of our sensory mechanisms. When your nerves are colder, there’s slower transmission rate, making, say, your feet a little numb, which could throw off your balance. It’s possible then to be doing damage without being totally aware of it: In warmer weather, you might read a twinge of pain as a signal to ease up; in cold weather, you might push yourself through the twinge toward injury.

The good news is cold-weather exercise injuries are preventable. If you’re dressed appropriately for the weather and you do a gradual, proper warmup, you can avoid a lot of that. Look at the warmup as literally warming up the muscles, tendons, and other parts of your body to get ready for the greater forces that you’ll be applying to them in sprinting, jumping, or landing.

6 Stretches to Prevent Rounded Shoulders

When you spend the majority of your time with your arms in front of you, it becomes habit for your body to round the shoulders. As a result, the muscles in the upper back and neck strain, overstretch and overwork. The chest muscles shorten, the small muscles between the shoulder blades weaken and the back muscles stretch and lengthen. Smaller muscles that are not designed to be postural muscles have to work doing a job they were not designed to do.

And all this poor posture can have a tremendous impact on our health. Poor posture causes all sorts of muscle and ligament imbalances which can lead to chronic back, neck and shoulder pain, headaches, fatigue, difficulty breathing and other more devastating health problems. If you are having pain, it’s important to see a physical therapist and/or a chiropractor who can help your muscle imbalances and align your spine properly.

When your body is aligned it means that your heels, knees, pelvis, and neck are directly stacked on top of each. Your body will not only be able to move so much more efficiently, but you will be able to carry heavier loads, tire less easily, have better digestion and will be less susceptible to injury.

These stretches, yoga poses and exercises are very important to work into your regular training program for improved posture and to combat rounded shoulders. If you sit at a desk or have your arms out in front of you for a large portion of the day (driving, texting, typing, etc.), it’s extra important that you do these as often as you can.

The first 3 can be done sitting on a chair, standing, kneeling, or sitting on the floor. These are great stretches for someone with a desk or office job and can be done (and highly recommended) anytime throughout the day.

Back Bound Hand Pose

Squeeze your shoulder blades down and together and bring both arms and hands behind you. Grab the right elbow with the left hand and then grab the left elbow with your right hand. If this is too hard, grab your wrist or forearm with the opposite hand. Take a few deep breaths. Lift your chest and keep your shoulder blades down and back. Now repeat by grabbing your left elbow with your right hand this time.

Shoulder Squeeze

Bring your shoulder blades down and back and clasp your hands behind you. Slowly lift your arms as far as you are comfortable as you squeeze your shoulder blades together. I like to pretend there is an orange in between my shoulders and I am trying to squeeze the juice out of it by my shoulders. Breathe deeply for a few breath cycles as you are doing this stretch.

Cow Face Pose

Place the back of your left hand on your lower back and slide it up as far as it will comfortably go. Now stretch your right arm up and bend your elbow reaching behind you to grab your left hand. This is difficult, so if you can’t do it, do not worry. Just go as far as you comfortably can and over time you will get better and better. Remember to keep your chest lifted and your shoulders down and back. Hold for a few breath cycles (30 seconds or so) and then repeat sides.

These 3 yoga poses below are excellent for expanding and stretching the chest, strengthening and reducing tightness of the shoulders, releasing tension in the back, all which will give you excellent results for rounded shoulders and better posture.

Baby Cobra Pose

Lie on your stomach with your hand directly beside your shoulders. Inhale and slowly press yourself up, keeping your elbows bent. Breathe deeply for a few breath cycles and then come back down.

Bridge Pose

Lie on your back, knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Take a deep breath and raise your hips off the floor as high as you are comfortable going. Now draw your shoulders down and back and clasp your hands together if possible. Try to reach them as far to your feet as possible. Breathe deeply for a few breath cycles and lower your body gently to the floor.

Camel Pose

Kneel on the floor with your back to a chair. Keep your feet hip width apart and grasp the chair with your hands. Now push your pelvis forward and lift your chest to the sky. Breathe deeply as you keep pushing your shoulder blades back and down and keep lifting your chest as far as you can comfortably go. Hold this pose for a few breath cycles.

Protecting your Wrists: 5 Exercise for Computer Users

Many people have desk jobs that require them to work on a computer all day long, for forty hours each week. This much repetition and overuse can cause wrist issues. Even those who use a computer recreationally and spend several hours per day typing on the keyboard can be at risk for a wrist injury.

It’s crucial to protect your wrists and prevent injuries that would make it painful for you to use a keyboard at work. Consider performing these easy exercises to help protect your wrists while using a computer and reduce the risk of pain.

1. Hold your arms out straight in front of you with your wrists limp. While keeping your arms still, raise your wrists so that your fingers point toward the ceiling, then lower your wrists so your fingers point downward. Repeat ten times.
2. Open both of your hands and stretch all of your fingers out, the close them and make a fist. Continue this for 20 repetitions.
3. Lay your forearm on a flat surface and rotate your wrist in a full clockwise motion for five repetitions. Then reverse the motion to perform five full counterclockwise motions.
4. Lay your wrist and palm on a flat surface. Use your wrist to rotate your hand so that your palm faces upward. Perform this for ten repetitions.
5. This exercise is similar to the first one, with some additional pressure for maximum stretching. Hold your left hand up with your palm facing away from you. Using your right hand, pull back on the fingers on your left hand to stretch your wrist. Make sure you feel a good stretch, but you shouldn’t experience pain. Then, bend your left wrist so your fingers are facing downward and use your right hand to stretch your wrist in that direction. Repeat five times on each hand.

When working on the computer for a long period of time, it’s important to remember a few helpful tips throughout the day.

Rest Periods

Spending the entire day with your wrists typing on the keyboard in the same position can lead to possible damage. To prevent this from happening, schedule periods of rest throughout the day so your wrists have a chance to recover. Take a five-minute break for every 20 or 30 minutes of continuous keyboard or mouse usage. This doesn’t mean that you have to completely stop working. You can use these short breaks to review tasks on the computer screen or for other forms of reading. Just be sure to keep your wrists rested.

Good Posture

Maintaining good posture while spending time on the computer will reduce the amount of strain put on your body. Be sure to set up your workspace in a fashion that allows you to sit comfortably without pain in any area of your body. Have a desk that is the appropriate height so your legs fit beneath it with enough room to move. Keep your back straight against your chair and your feet flat on the floor during the day.

Using these simple exercises and tips, you may be able to protect your wrists from any adverse effects caused by prolonged computer use.

7 Muscles Everyone Ignores

While the showoff muscles get all the acclaim, they’d be nothing without the supporting cast of smaller stabilizers and assisting muscles. Ignore them, and you’ll eventually pay the price. The cost? Injury. Missed workouts. Painful runs. An unbalanced body. Wondering if your’e guilty? Here, experts discuss the most neglected muscles, why they’re important, and how to strengthen them for an even, injury-free physique.

The Rotator Cuff

Deltoids the size of grapefruits won’t do you much good if you tear your rotator cuff, which is a group of four muscles that literally form a “cuff” to stabilize the shoulder joint. Injure it, and you’ll restrict your range of motion, making overhead movements painful. Shoulders have the most mobility, so they’re also the most unstable, keep them strong by taking a ‘pre-hab’ versus a ‘rehab’ approach. You typically only see people doing these exercises after they’re injured.

Strengthen it: Attach light to medium resistance tubing to a door hinge, then stand with your left side to it, grasping the handle of the tubing with your right hand. Bend right arm at a 45-degree angle to your side (your elbow is at your hip and your forearm is at a 90-degree angle in a handshake position), then rotate your arm at the elbow, pulling the tubing out towards the right side without pulling your upper arm away from your body— like a door opening on a hinge. Next, stand with your right side towards the door hinge. With your right arm bent at a 45-degree angle next to your side, grasp the handle of the tubing with your right hand and rotate your arm at the elbow, pulling the handle in towards the center of your body. Repeat 10 to 12 times on each side, alternating sides for each set.

The Erector Spinae

You probably work your upper back and traps for that wide expanse, but you’re likely neglecting the very muscles that keep you upright. The erector spinae is actually a bundle of muscles and tendons that extend throughout the lower, mid and upper back. They’re more about posture than anything. Weak spinal erectors and poor posture may lead to back pain and sports injuries.

Strengthen it: Lie face down over a back extension machine with heels anchored. (You can also use a fitness ball if you have a partner to hold down your ankles). Place your hands behind your head with elbows out to the sides. Slowly raise your torso (don’t swing) just until your body forms a straight line, with ears, shoulders, hips, knees and ankles in line. Slowly return back to start. Do three sets of 10-12 reps.

The Gluteus Medius and Minimus

Few muscles get as much attention as the gluteus maximus, yet it could not reach its full potential without these two lesser-known helpers, which serve to stabilize the pelvis— especially when standing on one leg. They’re vital for any athletic performance and crucial for walking and climbing stairs. Plus, when they’re toned they lift up the glutes.

Strengthen it: Using a heavy resistance tubing circle, step inside the tubing with both feet and fasten around each ankle. Stand in a wide sports stance, knees slightly bent, toes pointed straight ahead and hands on hips or out in front. Step out to the side and continue walking sideways for 8-10 steps, then repeat in the opposite direction. Perform 2-3 sets, 2-3 times a week.

The Tibialis Anterior

Have you ever suffered from shin splints? If so, listen up: failing to strengthen this vital muscle—which runs along the bottom part of your leg, next to your shin bone, and plays a huge role in forming a healthy gait—can increase your risk of getting those nagging lower-leg pains. The tibialis anterior plays a vital role in walking, running and sprinting.

Strengthen it: Do this 2-3 times a week: Sit on a chair with your feet flat on the floor, then—keeping your heels on the floor—raise your toes off of it for 8-10 reps. To increase the challenge, you can balance a small dumbbell (5 lbs) on your foot for added resistance. Or you can also sit on a high chair or bench, with enough room for your feet to dangle, and do the same exercise with a dumbbell between them.

The Obliques

All the crunches in the world won’t get you six-pack abs without working these puppies. The obliques include the external and internal obliques, which cross diagonally from the bottom of your rib cage to your pubic area. Functionally, they keep you stable in an upright position. Cosmetically, the obliques form a ‘frame’ around the mid-section of your abs. Problem is, most people believe they’re strengthening them by doing side bends— but they won’t work.

Strengthen it: Do Bicyle Crunches. Lie on your back with your legs extended, feet about 10 inches off the ground, and your hands behind your head. Rotate your right elbow toward your left knee, keeping your opposite elbow on the ground and your opposite leg straight. Exhale as you rotate, thinking about your ribs squeezing toward your hips, then straighten your leg back to the start position. Pause, then repeat the motion to the opposite side. Do 8-10 reps 2-3 times a week.

The Hamstrings

Sure all those squats, dead lifts and lunges indirectly hit the hamstrings—but not enough. Most guys are quad dominant and ignore their hamstrings, which are only about 60 percent as strong as the quads. So what’s the big deal? Any imbalance of opposing muscle groups, like big quads and weak hamstrings, can cause unequal pull on the joint. And in this particular case, that sets the stage for knee injuries.

Strengthen it: Prone hamstring curl machines and standing leg curl machines are both effective, or try this leg curl move using an exercise ball. Lie on the floor with your heels on top of the ball, toes up toward the ceiling, and legs slightly bent. Lift the hips by pushing down on the ball with your heels, then roll the ball towards you by pulling your heels towards your seat, kneecaps pointed towards the ceiling. Keeping the hips off the ground, roll the ball back out to the starting position and repeat. Do 8-10 reps 2-3 times a week.

The Forearm Extensors

Since these muscles are responsible for gripping heavy things, like dumbbells and barbells, weak ones my hamper your ability to train larger muscles and weaken your entire workout—not to mention your tennis backhand. We get the forearm flexors with all pulling moves or curls or even tricep presses but nothing other than reverse biceps curls hits those muscles.

Strengthen it: While watching TV, you can simply squeeze and release a tennis ball, doing 3 sets of 10 reps 2-3 nights a week. Or try this: tie a light weight to the end of a rope, then tie the rope around a piece of broom handle or a wooden dowel. Stand with arms extended in front of you and roll the weight up and then down by rotating the broom towards you and away from you. Do 2-3 reps.

Stretches You Can Do At The Office

Let’s face it. Too much of our time is spent sitting these days, and it’s not always easy to think about doing your stretches after you get home from a loooong day at the office. So why not incorporate some stretching into your work day?

1. Neck side stretch: hold on to your chair with one hand and lean your head away from that hand. This creates a bit of a traction across the neck and shoulder. For a deeper stretch, gently pull your head with your opposite hand.

Gluteal Muscles Workout

The gluteal or buttocks muscles are a muscle group that can be neglected during daily life because we spend so much time sitting these days. This sometimes means that when we do go to complete a workout, the gluteal muscles are a bit lazy at first. The glutes are a super important group both during standing and keeping balanced and have also been referred to as the “engine of the athlete.” An enormous amount of power can come from the gluteal muscles during running and jumping (e.g. did anyone see Simone Biles’ phenomenal height reached during her tumbling passes?!). So, since gluteal muscles sometimes get lazy, try adding a few of these activation exercises in as warm-up before a run or before bigger lifts or jumping drills to get the most out of your engine.

1. Glute Bridge/Hip Thrust: basic, safe to learn and a physio favourite. Start by laying on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Before you thrust your hips to the ceiling, create tension in your torso by activating your abdominal muscles, then push through your heels to bring hips towars the ceiling. For an added challenge, try doing this with one leg up at a time. By using single leg, you’ll notice how much you shift from side to side or how one hip tends to drop. Work on trying to keep hips even, stable and centred.

 

5. Glute and Hamstrings Slides: this is similar to the glute bridge but adds another component. Set yourself as you would for your glute bridge, but place a towel under your heels between your feet and your ground. Activate your abdominals, thrust your hips to the ceiling and slide your feet out very slowly. As you slide, keep pushing your hips to the ceiling.

Sciatica

Sciatica is not actually a specific diagnosis, but actually a symptom of another underlying cause. Sciatica refers to the pain that is produced in response to pressure on the sciatic nerve, which runs from your lower back (or lumbar spine) down to your buttocks, hip and lower limb.

How To Be More Active Throughout the Day

Let’s face it, getting to the gym or going for your run is not always easy. Life can get in the way and mess with your usual schedule, or there may be some days you are just not feeling up to the task. However, we all know that staying active is important in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. We’ve made a list of ways to stay active throughout the day. These are short tasks and do not take up much time, so for the days you are feeling off or feeling short on time, try these! Or, if you’re having a great active day, use these tips and tricks to increase your activity level over the day:

1. Take the stairs (or climb the elevator if stairs are not easily accessible).

2. Park farther away from the store so you’ll have a longer walk to the entrance (it’s also usually easier to find a parking spot further away from wherever you’re going!).

3. Use a shopping basket instead of a cart at the grocery store (provided of course you are purchasing a reasonable number of items).

4. When you clean, clean vigorously. We all need to deep clean our surroundings every so often, so when the time comes, make the most of it and really put in some work (you will burn a surprising amount of calories just by scrubbing the toilet!)

5. Set an alarm. We all run the risk of getting tied up in work, or a good book, or the Netflix marathon. Set an alarm at regular increments to get up and walk around, or do something else active as a break. Bonus = walking around while studying has actually been shown to improve memory retention of the material studied!

6. Take a walk. Sometimes a proper full workout is just not something you’re up for. That’s okay. Everyone has these days. Instead of a full workout, try going for a walk. It’s low impact. It can last for a short or long time, and the fresh air is always a good idea!

7. Exercise while watching tv. If you have exercise equipment at home, use it! If you don’t, try stretching while you watch television (this is also a great time to work on your exercises from your physio!). Again, this is a low impact option that can help break up the monotony of just sitting while staring at the screen.

8. If you are needing to pick up only a few items, walk or bike to the store instead of driving.

9. When at the mall or grocery store, take an extra few laps around the store before you start shopping.

10. If you’ve been considering getting a dog, get one! Taking pets for walks is an excellent way to keep your activity level up, and your four-legged friend will love you for it.

11. Play with your kids. If you have kids, or nieces or nephews, join in on their games. Chances are they’ll keep you on your toes and you’ll both get some good laughs.

12. Before you shower, do 10 squats, 10 lunges, 10 pushups and hold a plank for 10 seconds. This mini workout will help you wake up in the morning and get your blood flowing for the day ahead.

13. If you’re not feeling the gym, try doing an exercise video at home. You’ll save time staying at home and there are many fitness apps and videos with varying lengths of time, so you can find one for exactly how much time you have.