22 Injury Prevention words by Peter Georgilopoulos

Exercise related back & hamstring

The most commonstiffness problem facing endurance athletes

osterior thigh, back and hip Stretching of the hamstring, groin, buttock Try the following lower back and pelvic soreness following prolonged and calf muscles, often frustrates athletes stretches and measure flexibility gains. exercise is undoubtedly by not achieving improved flexibility. The the most common problem method of measuring flexibility may also reported by endurance be deceptive especially if a simple forward athletes as a result of reach test is undertaken which may mask repetitive impact on load bearing joints. flexibility losses in a specific muscle group. A The most common feature of this gradual much more reliable and accurate method of onset of pain is that is it often linked hamstring flexibility assessment would be to to increased stiffness in the hamstring lie on the back, place a towel under the heel muscles, frequently the groin and / or of an outstretched leg and then passively buttocks and occasionally the calf muscles. pull the straight leg upwards using the angle The gradual stiffness, if ignored, may often to perpendicular as the recorded measure. Piriformis stretch. Tight buttock structures Running athletes should aim to achieve at are often implicated in sciatic nerve irritation result in true muscle tears and strains as and subsequent hamstring tightness. well as diminished running performance least 90 degrees of hamstring (posterior as tight hamstrings, groins and calves thigh) flexibility between training sessions. limit stride length and increase energy In research conducted by the author in expenditure in overcoming this resistance. 2011, recently published in the Journal Treatment of the tears may repair the of Manual Therapy, loosening the joints of damage caused by continuing to accelerate the lumbar spine through specific manual through an increasingly tightening muscle techniques (spinal joint mobilisation) but commonly the underlying cause of the outperformed passive sustained hamstring tightness may not be established or treated stretching in achieving significant immediate and so recurrent episodes are likely. improvements in hamstring flexibility when The typical scenario involves the athlete compared over 3 and 6 minutes. Stretching Slump stretch. A stretch for the entire nerve complaining of muscle soreness, particularly the hamstrings over 3 minutes surprisingly complex. Bend the neck forward to complete the stretch. in the buttocks, back, hips and groin with did not significantly improve flexibility stiffness noted in the lower back when whereas mobilising the joints of the lower arching backwards. Some recovery of (lumbar) spine for 3 minutes, resulted in a symptoms occurs over the subsequent very significant improvement in hamstring hours or even days leading up to the next flexibility. When tested over 6 minutes, training session but what is often missed passively stretching the hamstrings did result is that there is often an incremental loss of in significantly improved flexibility but results hamstring, groin or calf flexibility. were still below those of both the 3 minute and the 6 minute spinal mobilisation group. Too frequently athletes who may be meticulous in documenting body weight, Perhaps an interesting explanation might Psoas muscle stretch. Tightness can further BMI and hydration, often don’t set be that the repetitive impact of running on the joints of the lower back, not only causes compress the joints of the lumbar spine and measurable land marks to ascertain their internally rotate the hip joint. optimal level of flexibility. It is therefore back stiffness, but may be responsible predictable that gradual losses of flexibility for irritation of the nerves of the lumbar over subsequent training sessions are not spine (sciatic nerve) leading to increased noted and can result in either an acute activation of the nerve and consequently the muscle tear or strain or quite frequently muscles supplied by these nerves. lead to over use issues such as ITB Runners may well find that loosening friction syndrome or hip joint inflammation the lower back prior to undertaking (capsulitis or bursitis) as an increasingly stretches of the hamstring, groin and tightening iliopsoas muscle (strong hip calves results in much greater and more flexor), internally rotates the hip joint and rapid return of flexibility. Anterior hip joint capsular stretch. Internal effectively places the gluteals (buttock rotation of the hip joint often results from a muscles) at a biomechanical disadvantage. tight psoas muscle.

Coast Multisport & Paddle Magazine