Ultimate Frisbee Injuries: How to fully rehabilitate your power and strength?

Just Finished playing a week-end tournament?

Flush out swelling from direct impact with the ground using K-Tape

Ultimate Frisbee Activation: How to Warm up for Ultimate Frisbee

How can we get a huge benefit from a few minutes of warm-up?

by Vancouver Physiotherapist Travis Dodds

Warming up

Warming up for sport has changed dramatically in the past couple of decades. Spurred on by ground-breaking programs such as FIFA 11+ in soccer, and the FMS study in NFL football, athlete health professionals are beginning to focus more on how to prevent injury, improve functional movement and fuel long term performance.

Ultimate is characterized by a very wide distribution of injuries. They may be acute/traumatic due to collision with the ground, other athletes, or even the disc. Even more injuries are chronic due to the imbalances inherent to the sport such as pivoting from a dominant leg/throwing arm, not to mention the sheer volume of running, jumping and cutting at high speed!

Functional movement refers to an individual’s capacity for complex, full-body movements, such as a squat, toe touch, back bend, full body rotation or single leg balance. When these fundamental movements are in great condition, we can develop skill, strength and speed and strive for peak performance. The problem is, repetitive activities and sustained postures tend to lead us to develop imbalances that can impair our fundamental movements. From this moment on, our capacity for truly reaching full physical potential will be limited.

With that said, we set out to answer the question –

“What is the best way to warm up for ultimate frisbee!?”

The answer – well it depends what you’re trying to achieve. If all you want to do is increase your heart rate, then run around in a big circle and throw the disc a few times. Boom, done! Ok but that’s not what we’re here for.

This warm-up is designed with three purposes in mind:

1) To help prevent injuries by developing mobility, stability, balance and strength for the whole body. Especially the core, hips, shoulder girdle, anterior chain, posterior chain, hamstring, knee, calf, foot and ankle (let’s stick with the whole body).

2) To help athletes improve their capacity for functional movement. Move better. Improve range of movement, quality of movement, and maintain it for life.

3) To activate or warm up key muscle groups and movement patterns that will enhance on-field performance. Fundamental athletic movement patterns that don’t receive enough training are especially the squat and deadlift, which are featured prominently.

If you haven’t tried it yet, here it is!

Ok cool. Now, how should I sequence my warm-up?

Prior to this activation sequence…

Athletes should complete any individualized rehab or prehab exercises, and spend a bit of time rolling or releasing tight muscles in areas that affect their movement. In an ideal world, athletes might access physiotherapy for an annual head-to-toe assessment that would identify and systematically correct their specific limitations. Perhaps the most widely known method for such an assessment is the SFMA (Selective Functional Movement Screen), so if you’re interested in that I would suggest finding a practitioner who has taken the time to study it and routinely incorporates it into their clinical practice.

Just before the activation sequence, the coach or captain might say a couple words and also suggest a “functional movement challenge of the day”

The challenge could be any particular movement, balance position or low-impact skill that you can evaluate for quality and a clear definition of functional or dysfunctional (pass/fail). For example, stand with one foot off the ground, arms crossed to touch the opposite shoulder, and close your eyes for 10 seconds without altering your posture.

How to perform the activation sequence…

Quality of movement is the most important thing here. Go at a pace you can control. Oh, and one thing I love about this sequence, you can vary the number of reps so if you need to get ready quickly, 2-3 reps will be done in 3-5 minutes. 5 reps will take about 10 minutes, and if you’re planning for a light practice with an increased fitness and recovery emphasis, try 10 reps or go through the sequence twice.

When to do the activation sequence…

This activation sequence is ideal prior to on-field training and competition, as well as strength and conditioning workouts. It can also be a nice recovery stretch on days when you’re not training, to help you continue to break down imbalances and improve your capacity for functional movement.

What to do after activation…

For on-field training and competition, it should be followed by field dynamics that emphasize fast footwork and progress to explosive sprinting and jumping. Fast dynamics include high knees, butt-kicks, shuffle step, carioca, sprint starts, backpedals. Jumping can include various styles of jumps such as single leg stick landings and broad jumps. I like to challenge athletes to land four of five single leg stick landings, and to compete to see who can jump the furthest with three broad jumps.

Once you’re done with this, you can begin your skill warm-up (throwing/cutting drills etc.)

How do I know if I am doing it right?

Sadly, you might not! While learning the warm-up, do not under-estimate the complexity and precision required to execute these movements to the best of your ability. After years of teaching movement skills and exercises, I can assure you that most people who think they’re doing it perfectly could actually benefit from further assessment and coaching. Not to mention that professionals themselves are continually learning, and advances in best-practice methods are significant in this relatively new field of research and practice.

I have the following tips:

1) Movements should be pain free at all times. Pushing through pain leads to abnormal movement patterns. Abnormal movement patterns are inefficient by definition, and usually lead to decreased performance and injury. Pain is a signal to you that something isn’t functioning well – listen to your body and do what you can to learn from it. While in some cases, rest may help, if pain always returns when activity increases you need to do more to understand the cause of the pain!

2) Breathing is critical – comfortable breathing is often your best indicator of the quality of your movement. If you notice breathing becomes more difficult, back off on your range of movement a bit, and work on the breathing itself – comfortable, deep breaths with slow exhales will help you to develop strength in your core and diaphragm, and with time your movement should improve.

3) Whenever possible get access to good coaching on your movement quality. A well trained physiotherapist or kinesiologist with significant expertise in sport and fitness conditioning can be a great help. But a video that a friend shoots of you can also give you great feedback! Do what’s right for you.

I’m a keener, tell me why these exercises?

There are many great exercises out there. The exercises I have chosen are based on an understanding of the injury patterns associated with the sport through my on-field experience and what I can glean from published literature on the sport. But beyond this, they’re designed to help multi-sport athletes as many athletes at both high-performance and recreational levels participate in other activities too (in fact, it’s a principle of long term athlete development that young athletes should not specialize in one sport too early).

If you want to know more, refer back to the three purposes this warm-up is designed to achieve. Reducing injury rates, improving functional movement, and activating key movement patterns that are critical to immediate and long-term performance.

My hope is that the efforts of progressive coaches, strength trainers, therapists, physios, chiros, doctors etc. will continue to progress and build upon what we know now. But more importantly, that we begin to better implement the best available resources that are already known. Don’t warm up like it’s the 1900′s!

This blows my mind… what else can you tell me about reaching my potential?

Well, if you haven’t already read Reach Your Potential, that’s where I’d suggest you start. It’s about the big picture of how you move toward reaching your physical potential, so if you look closely it will tell you where you need to focus.

Good luck, and please comment, share etc!

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  Ultimate Frisbee
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  Ultimate Nationals with Vancouver’s West Coast Wildcard

About Travis Dodds

Ankle Injuries in Ultimate Frisbee

Return to Play…

Worlds 2012 – Finals As someone who used to play Ultimate and now works a lot with Frisbee players, one of the most common type of injuries we see are with ankles. Whether you mildly roll over on it and play through it to spraining it badly enough requiring crutches and being on the sidelines for a while, full rehabilitation and recovery for return to 100% unencumbered play is the same. What is an Ankle Sprain? An ankle sprain is when varying degrees of damage to the ligaments, capsule and soft tissue (including tendons) of the outside or inside of the ankle providing it stability occur. Milder cases include ligaments being over stretched to more severe cases involve complete ligament and capsule tears, tendon strains and cartilage damage to the inside of the joints and even avulsion fractures. When to seek out Physiotherapy? What to look for: If you are unable to walk, run, jump or balance normally If you have swelling or bruising If you have bone tenderness If you have pain in the medial arch or the side of the ankle or foot What can I do to prevent an Ankle Sprain? 1.   Strengthening the calf and surrounding ankle muscles and the intrinsic foot muscles. 2.   Strengthen your core and your hip muscles. 3.   Stretch calf muscles, hips and keep them flexible. 4.   Ensure you have optimal range of motion, coordination, and muscle balance in your ankles, legs, hips, pelvis and spine. – If you feel stiff or have doubts about your mobility or muscle coordination seek out a Physiotherapist that can perform a Functional Movement Screening Assessment (FMSA) for you. 5.   Work on your balance – do your single leg balancing exercises. Your ‘Proprioception’ is important for power and agility with sharp cuts and quick stop and go motions. 6.   Use Tape or wear an ankle support (brace) when you play. A video, made by Travis Dodds of INSYNC PHYSIO, that may help showing you how you can tape up your own ankle for playing: Do it Yourself ankle taping How Do I Excel Again? Whether you sustained a mild sprain or just on the cusp of fully returning from a more serious ankle injury, one thing remains the same. You need to develop the mobility, strength, power and agility to get your game back! This includes a strong core with increased mobility in your hips, knees and ankles.  Below are some videos made by INSYNC PHYSIO that can help you develop strength for core stability and power for your lower quadrant. Any exercises that you do should be pain free and never result in decreased range of motion or increased swelling. Dysfunctional movement patterns themselves can cause more significant problems, so playing through pain is generally a bad idea. Core Stability Strengthening Lunge Squat Hops Whether your injury is mild or a more serious one, if you somehow just don’t feel right during your recovery process it is wise to seek out a health care professional that can properly diagnose the problem and help you treat the root cause of the injury. Every injury is different, and with them can come unique aspects to the process of recovery and its rehabilitation so that you can resume full function and return to the way you really want to play again. _____________________________________________________ Wil Seto is a Sport Physiotherapist and has worked with the Australian National Ultimate Frisbee Teams since 2008 helping them win bronze and silver medals in World Championships and World Games events. Currently he will be travelling to World Championships in Italy this summer to help the Australian Men’s Masters Team. INSYNC PHYSIOTHERAPY provides services in Sports Injuries, Spinal injuries, Post surgical rehabilitation, Exercise Rehabilitation, Massage Therapy, Acupuncture & IMS. We use an integrated patient–centred health care approach. Our commitment is to give you the highest level of professional care & service while utilizing latest advances in physiotherapy & health care to treat the underlying cause(s) of your aches and pains & helping you connect with how you really want to move again.

Cooling Down After Exercise

Why?

Cooling down after physical exercise allows the body to smoothly return to a steady resting state.

Gentle Exercise Cool Down

The primary reason for doing a cool-down is to reduce heart and breathing rates, gradually cool body temperature, allow muscles to return to optimal length-tension, prevent venous pooling of blood in the lower extremities, which may cause dizziness or possible fainting, and bring physiological systems back to baseline.

Benefits of a Cooling Down

• Bring the heart and breathing rates back to normal
• Cool body temperature
• Allow muscles to return to optimal length-tension 
• Prevent venous pooling of blood in the lower extremities 
• Restore physiological systems back to baseline           

Keeping Muscles Strong and Flexible

Warm Down / Recovery – Performance Enhancement

Performing a cool down after your workout can help the elimination of waste products from your muscles, such as lactic acid, which can build up during vigorous activity. The most effective way to remove lactic acid accumulated in the muscles is by doing gentle exercise for 10-15 minutes. This also helps to prepare your muscles for your next session. 

Stretching

Stretching For Recovery

Static stretching for 10 – 15 minutes targeting particularly tight muscle areas or areas in your body where you have experienced a past injury can improve flexibility and prevent injuries from occurring. (Research indicates that stretches are most effective if performed for 3 sets and held for at least 30 seconds in duration). 

Summary

Cooling down should be considered an integral part of your exercise routine and part of what is considered your Pre-habilitation program to enhance the recover of your body in any exercise program. As a result, you will be also be more in tune with your body and connect with how you really want to move again!

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INSYNC PHYSIOTHERAPY provides services in Sports Injuries, Physiotherapy, Exercise Rehabilitation, Massage Therapy, Acupuncture & IMS. We also accept WorkSafe BC & ICBC claims. We are excited to be providing integrated patient–centred health care services to help you get back “InSync” with your optimal health & maximum potential for sport, work or play. We are committed to give you the highest level of professional care & service (one-on-one 30-60 minute dedicated appointments) while utilizing latest advances in physiotherapy & health care to treat the underlying cause(s) of your problem. 

Contact Us:

Unit #102 – 4088 Cambie Street            
Vancouver, BC, Canada V5Z 2X8

Telephone:+1 604 566 9716
E-mail: Send Email 

Hours:
Mon—Fri:7am—7pm
Saturday:8am—2pm

Prevent Injuries Before They Occur

The Functional Movement Screen can be Helpful 

There was an article in The Globe and Mail earlier this year stating the importance of prehabilitation. Read the article here (PREHABILITATION).

Core Stability Muscle Training

In summary, the article states that many people go to physio once they’re injured, but a physio could help you prevent that injury from occurring in the first place. Physiotherapists look at seven main things during an assessment:

1. Posture
2. Movement Screening
3. Muscle weakness
4. Muscle inflexibility
5. Joint mobility
6. Faulty movement patterns
7. Activities of daily living

Strength & Flexibility – INSYNC PHYSIO

Mobility – INSYNC PHYSIO

A Functional Movement Screen (FMS) is a process that analyzes movement patterns that you do on a daily basis. The screen uses a ranking and grading system to identify imbalances and asymmetries in the body that lead to pain, tightness and distorted body awareness. The screen examines fundamental movement qualities such as range of motion, muscle strength, flexibility, coordination, balance and proprioception. After completing the FMS, a score is generated that is used to: 

1. Target your weakest movement patterns
2. Track progress

Your personalized score is then used to generate a custom exercise program to restore functional movement. The FMS was designed for everybody – not just athletes can benefit from a Functional Movement Screen! The FMS has been used by professional football players as a screening tool to indicate those at greater risk of injury during the season (check out the article here: Functional Movement Screen) and continues to be a fundamental part of preseason training for many different sports teams.

Balance, Posture & Proprioception – INSYNC PHYSIO FMS

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Heather Camenzind (Johnstone), Registered Physiotherapist Send Email

M.Sc(PT)

Heather attained both her Masters of Physical Therapy and Bachelor of Human Kinetics in Exercise Science degrees from The University of British Columbia. She has experience working with a wide variety of clients, including sport injuries, motor vehicle accidents, work related injuries and post surgical related cases.

She is a certified FMS provider. On your first visit, Heather will take a short history that allows you to express your goals. She will then guide you through the FMS process. She will discuss the scoring findings with you and set a plan of action. On your second visit, Heather will guide you through your customized exercise program. Don’t worry if you don’t want to go to the gym or have any equipment at home, Heather can design a program that is achievable for you in your home without any specialized equipment.

Please email Heather If you have any questions regarding the FMS.

PAIN

Understanding & Tackling it!

What an interesting concept Pain is! According to the International Association for the Study of pain, pain is described as “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage, or described in terms of such damage”. The first part regarding actual damage makes sense to most, however the second part of this definition leaves something to be desired. You might be thinking right now, are you telling me that I can have pain without having actual tissue damage? Absolutely, and this is what makes pain such a fascinating thing.

To better explain, its best to take a step backwards and explain why pain exists and what purpose it serves for us as busy, moving, functioning human beings. We have learned a lot about pain in the last 20 years and treatment of pain has really changed now that we understand more. At its roots, pain is a fantastic protective mechanism! 

Take for example, burning your finger on a hot stove element: if your finger touches the element, the receptors in your skin immediately send a danger signal to your brain (important note: NONE of our body’s tissues have pain receptors, only ones to send danger signals). 

Once this DANGER signal gets to your brain – which thankfully takes milliseconds – based on previous experience with hot stoves, likely having burned your fingers or other body parts before, and awareness of the situation, your brain will interpret this as a real danger and quickly send a PAIN signal to the finger. As a result of this PAIN signal reaching your finger, your brain reacts quickly to the rescue and you pull you finger away and run it under cold water to protect it and help it heal! Naturally, it’s a perfect protective mechanism.

As you can see from this example above, PAIN IS EXCLUSIVELY CREATED BY THE BRAIN.

Just In Your Head?

Does this mean that all pain is just “in your head”? No, all pain is real but it does mean that because its created by the brain, there are lots of factors that can influence this pain system. Some of these factors include stress, anxiety, emotions, beliefs around pain, expectations, fear, and activity levels. These all contribute to the sensitivity of ones pain experience – some will increase it (e.g. stress, anxiety, fear, negative expectations) and some will decrease it (good activity level, low stress, positive beliefs and expectations). This is why its important to talk to a health professional to figure out what may be contributing to your pain as research has shown that pain education is one of the most effective management tools.

Nocebo Effect

Lets re-visit the idea of having pain with no actual tissue damage. There is an emerging concept in pain science called the “nocebo” effect which tells us that symptoms like pain and illness can emerge from simply believing or expecting that we have been exposed to painful stimuli or potential illnesses! For example, in drug trials, a certain percentage of participants are given a fake drug (i.e. sugar pills) and told that they are taking the real medication and that there are some potential side effects. What we see with these trials is some of the participants report these side effects from a drug that they ARE NOT EVEN TAKING! (Source: ‪nocebo effect). These participants think they are on the real medication and therefore think themselves into the side effects. Similarly, in research around perception of pain, subjects reported amplified pain ratings even with harmless stimuli when they were told to expect a painful stimulus! (Moseley & Arntz 2007).

As you can see, pain can be a tricky thing and because of this, it’s important to tackle your individual pain with a tailored approach. It is always easy and tempting to consult Dr. Google or ask your friends or family members that have had similar aches and pains but it is important to recognize that no two injuries or pains will be quite the same.

Summary

There are a few key points regarding pain that apply to almost all types of painful situations and injuries:

1. All pain is real and all pain is created by the brain

2. Many factors influence the pain experience and this makes it a very individual thing

3. Education around why you are in pain one of the most effective management tools!

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Jeffery Jukes, Registered Physiotherapist Send Email

MPT, B.Sc., CAFCI(Acupuncture), IMS

Jeff Jukes is a registered physiotherapist at INSYNC Physiotherapy in Vancouver. He has lots of experience working with chronic pain populations and therefore has done extra training and individual research to effectively help with all kinds of pain. Jeff’s treatments are multi-modal in nature and include hands on treatment, pain education, acupuncture, Intramuscular stimulation (IMS), and therapeutic exercises. Talk to Jeff regarding any type of injury or pain!

Pregnancy, Exercise & Massage Therapy

FEEL YOUR BEST

Let us start by reviewing the facts; 40-42 weeks is 10 months, not 9.  However, the amazing journey to motherhood can actually comprise a year-long (or more!) period of metamorphosis.  The question I hear repeatedly from patients during their pregnancy, (including the 3 months post partum ‘trimester’) is:

“Are Exercise and Massage Therapy Safe?”

The simple answer for uncomplicated and healthy pregnancies (and 4-6 weeks post partum following straightforward vaginal delivery) is YES. After receiving the go ahead from your midwife or obstetrician there are some simple guidelines to follow.

EXERCISE

Pregnancy and exercise

According to the Public Health Agency of Canada’s “Healthy Pregnancy Guide”, Regular physical activity during pregnancy can:

• improve your mood and self-image

• help ensure appropriate weight gain

• help you relax and reduce stress

• promote better sleep

• increase your muscle tone, strength and endurance

• help build your stamina for labour and delivery

• speed up your recovery after labour and delivery

• help increase your energy levels

Two Main types of Exercise

There are two main types of exercise to consider: cardiovascular and strength training. While continuously monitoring your current pregnancy status thru the trimesters is important, you must also heed your pre-pregnancy level of fitness.

The Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada advises that with the go-ahead from your health care professional, for those with at least 6 months of previous activity, “sports or workouts” can be safely continued. They further advise that for those with a history of inactivity, to start exercising in the second trimester; adopting a “low and slow” (low impact) regime including both cardio and muscle toning exercises.

There are many pregnancy specific exercise programs available in the community including yoga and weight lifting classes. If you or your health care provider have any questions regarding whether or not you are fit enough to participate, ask your fitness professional to use the screening tool, the Physical Activity Readiness Medical Examination for Pregnancy, produced by the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology, available here:

http://www.csep.ca/cmfiles/publications/parq/parmed-xpreg.pdf

Precautions

• avoid exercises in the supine position (lying on her back) past 16 weeks
• avoid bouncing exercises, activities that cause falls and contact sports
• stretches should be controlled
• avoid abdominal exercises if diastasis recti (splitting of the connective tissue midline in the front abdomen wall) develops

MASSAGE THERAPY

Neck Massage

How it helps

Health link BC suggests the use of massage therapy during pregnancy as an aid for “relaxation and to help relieve muscle tension and pain”. The body makes many accommodations for the growing fetus and endures hormonal changes in joints to allow for eventual delivery. For some the resultant laxity or looseness in the joints is pain free but other women unfortunately experience aches and muscle pain adapting to the added weight and postural changes that occur during pregnancy.

The Massage Therapist’s Association of British Columbia suggests that massage therapy during pregnancy can:

• Reduce general muscle tension and pain
• Decrease stress, tension and anxiety
• Improve mood and sleep
• Decrease back and pelvic pain
• Reduce headaches
• Manage symptoms of edema and sciatica

What to Look For

Choose a therapist with the right training. All registered massage therapists in BC receive education that applies to the treatment of pregnant patients.

Be aware that special pillowing and modified tables may be used and/or your treatment position could eventually remain in side lying for your comfort and safety.

Certain essential oil usage during your treatments should be avoided. Rattray and Ludwig list these as: basil, bay, clary sage, cypress, fennel, frankincense, hyssop, jasmine, juniper, marjoram, myrrh, peppermint, rose, rosemary and thyme. (p 185, Clinical Massage Therapy, 2000)

In ALL pregnancies there are certain signs and symptoms that need to be addressed immediately! According to the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology these include:

• Excessive shortness of breath
• Chest pain
• Painful uterine contractions (more than 6-8 per hour)
• Vaginal bleeding
• Any “gush” of fluid from vagina (suggesting premature rupture of the membranes)
• Dizziness or faintness

The Last Word

Every woman and every pregnancy is different. I know women who because of their pre-pregnancy athletic lifestyles completed ½ marathons at 7 ½ months gestation, managed step aerobics until 7 months and did yoga until the day of delivery. It would be folly to start training for a 10km timed event, if you were not already fit enough to complete one before pregnancy. And eventually, like a patient who stopped bike commuting to work at 7 months, safety must be your priority. 

Be smart, modify as necessary and listen to your body!

References

http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/hp-gs/guide/04_pa-ap-eng.php
http://sogc.org/womens-health-information/
http://www.healthlinkbc.ca/healthtopics/content.asp?hwid=tn10070
https://www.massagetherapy.bc.ca/

Call INSYNC PHYSIO at 604-566-9716 to book your Massage Therapy appointment today.

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Michelle Robichaud, Registered Massage Therapist Send Email

BHSc, RMT

Michelle has had varied experience in her massage therapy career, working in sports, spa and general practices in Vancouver, Whistler and Victoria.  After graduating from the WCCMT in 1996, she upgraded her basic diploma to enhance her practice skills and then went on to complete a Health Science Degree from Thompson Rivers University (2011). Michelle is a member in good standing with the College of Massage Therapists of BC and the Massage Therapists Association of BC.

After 15 plus years of practice Michelle remains passionate about her profession and is keen to continue learning; she loves helping people feel better. Michelle employs various techniques such as trigger point therapy, fascial release, joint play and Swedish massage to help address headaches, pregnancy related issues, sports injuries and work related concerns, such as low back pain.  From recreational sports enthusiast to computer programmer at the desk, many different people can benefit from massage therapy. 

Michelle stays active with her young family enjoying biking, hiking, yoga, golf and fitness classes.

Ultimate Frisbee Injuries

World Ultimate Championships 2008

Stay Strong and Injury Free

Preparation 

If you’ve been sidelined by previous injuries, it’s a really good idea to start up those specific

Functional Core Strength

Physiotherapy exercises. The focus is to achieve more neuromuscular balance through appropriate stretching and strengthening of your core, power and agility muscles. If you are playing through any type of pain, then you are most likely not playing at your full potential. Are you holding back 75% to 80% because of pain or stiffness? When you play through any injury, even if it is a minor one, you can develop compensation patterns and muscle imbalances that make you more susceptible to either a traumatic or a chronic repetitive strain injury.

World Championships 2010

When I worked with a team at The 2010 World Club Championships, one of the players had partially tore his rotator cuff from aggressive layouts earlier in his Ultimate Frisbee career. Being the best at his prime he was known for his ability to layout hard for the disc all the time.

Rotator Cuff muscle attachemnts

However, he waited too long before he sought out intervention for it and the injuries became full blown tears in his rotator cuff tendons. He shrugged off his aches and pain and stiffness to “Just playing hard”.

 

 

Core strengthening

If you have a strong inner core, you can prevent your hamstrings or groin muscles from being so overworked, which can lead to muscular strain. A hypermobile or unstable sacro-iliac joint (SI joint) can contribute to this. Wearing core shorts can also assist in helping you make it through the season or Worlds, but ultimately you want to strengthen your inner core correctly and ensure that your outer core functions in coordination with your strength and power and agility.

S: Swelling – Does the joint look puffy or muscle swollen more than usual after playing? Swelling can cause peripheral damage to healthy tissue surrounding the area that is affected due to the physiological / chemical response to an injury. It can also cause muscle inhibition of the muscles around the joint, which can then lead to compensated movement patterns. Limping, whether obvious or not, can cause detrimental altered movement patterns where muscles no longer work together and imbalances begin to occur.

By getting at the root cause of your problem, we can help you connect with how you really want to move again!

World Games 2013 – Cali Columbia

 

Managing & Treating Climbing Injuries

It’s climbing season again, which means it’s time to prepare and get stronger for upcoming challenges.

Ventral view of the deep muscles of the forearm. FDP is shown in blue.

Recently, I’ve treated a number of avid rock climbers coming into the clinic with a sore forearm.

Upon further evaluation, they were experiencing what I would call “climber’s elbow.”  There was pain on the lateral aspect of their forearms (lateral epicondyle) and weakness and pain throughout the extensor carpi radialis longus and radialis brevis muscle and tendons. 

Consequently, their finger tendons (flexor digitorum superficialis and profundus) were also being over worked and sore and needed to take time off climbing – That’s no good!

Assessing the issues

Treatment

Muscles of the neck. Lateral view.

Neck and Shoulder

With Manual therapy, we can ‘unlock’ the spinal segments of the neck facet joints utilizing gentle mobilization techniques to restore its mobility. Gentle stretching and mobility exercises can then be use to safely increase the flexibility of the muscles and soft tissue and to reinforce the gains in joint mobility. Specific core strengthening exercises can then be used to progress static and dynamic strength.

Scar tissue also usually builds up in either the front or back capsule of the shoulder from the impingement syndrome. 

Using gentle joint mobilization and soft tissue techniques, we can free up the shoulder to restore a more optimal range of motion. 

Forearm

The forearm muscles also need to be released because the tightness actually puts a prolonged strain on the finger tendons thus not allowing them to fully recover from your repeated bouts of climbing. 

This is especially important for people that also sit in front of the computer typing for most of the day. In addition to restoring mobility, it is also extremely important to work on achieving muscle balance in the “whole upper quadrant” from the hand all the way up to the neck. 

Acute and Chronic Injuries.