“Movement is understood as a
transfer of energy between two directions, up and down, heaven and earth. The
most effective centre is empty, available.”
Aline
Newton - (Dynamic Body –Exploring Form
Expanding Function – pub: freedom from pain inst 2011 ) author of
articles on aspects of movement, biomechanics and psychodynamics – www.alinenewton.com
Running has been a long standing favourite fitness activity for
millions of people, and has seen a large upsurge in popularity in the recent
economic downturn.
However as more and more people are catching the running bug, more
and more people are presenting with overuse injuries.
Running occurs mostly in the Sagittal Plane, it is repetitive and
tends to be high impact, and thus many runners fall foul to postural imbalance
and injury.
Common running injuries stem from issues with muscle length
(flexibility) mobility or strength – Pilates principled Movements or Evolved
Movements can be invaluable to the runner if incorporated into their daily
fitness regime.
At BODYFIRM Pilates /
Fitness studios we offer workshops / private training sessions for runners.
The objective of these
workshops/sessions is to offer an injury prevention class that can be taken as
part of a group or integrated into a personal routine. (We fully appreciate that the optimum route to take is a movement
screen first)
These sessions are structured in 4 distinct but integrated zones.
Zone 1 Flexibility/ Fascial
Elasticity - Zone 2 Mobility - Zone 3 Strength - Zone 4 Core alignment
We will approach our workout from the perspective the body is a
moving, expressive system. Feel a sense of elegance – avoid jerky movements –
avoid repetitive movements add variation in terms of direction / tempo /
resistance
Flexibility / Fascial Elasticity thought out the body coupled with
joint mobility and shoulder / pelvic balance and stability will feature heavily
in this program
Using this approach – our ‘core activation / stabilization’
technique is very important
·
Leave the centre open – a centre that is rigid
will hinder movement
·
Start with a slight activation of only the front
triangle of the pelvic floor
·
Let the breath flow – whether we are running,
singing, or sitting the respiratory diaphragm has to be free to follow the
changing needs of respiration
·
Timing – timing for the stabilizer system is
important – take time over this area allowing your client an opportunity to
develop good technique
·
Brace – not hollow (remember keep the ‘centre
open’
Aline
Newton - (Dynamic Body –Exploring Form Expanding Function – pub: freedom from
pain inst 2011) author of articles on aspects of movement, biomechanics and psychodynamics
– www.alinenewton.com
The
Pilates Manual – PROGRESSIVE Pilates Academy 2012
There is a lot more to running than putting one foot in the other –
the body needs to be able to sustain repetitive movement in a (predominately in
a ) single plane – it needs to move with fluidity and with balance (anterior /
posterior / left & right).
The “Sitting” Psoas
Have you ever driven for hours – sat for hours – or
cycled for hours and found that the transition from sitting to standing to
moving was affected by a tightness in your hip flexors, that your ability to
walk upright even momentarily was inhibited by
the long bout of a ‘tightening psoas’
the long bout of a ‘tightening psoas’
Hours of sitting (repetitive working position) affect
the psoas’s ability to extend to its full and natural length - this length
allows us to stand in postural alignment and perhaps more importantly allows
for hip extension as we walk.
So how many of our clients come to running / fitness
following 8 hours of sitting at their jobs (multiply that by days / weeks and
years in a repetitive postural position) that further perpetuate the skeletal
arrangement of a shortened psoas – then is should come as no surprise that the
exercising population has so many psoas – related issues of the lower back,
pelvis and hips
Given the repetitive nature of the
sport, running injuries can be very specific and can be caused by either the body’s
own intrinsic factors or extrinsic factors
Before we start –
training or running an event regardless of distance, there are some very
important questions that should be considered first
Are you fit to run? –
Is your body structurally and postural sound
to run – is your core strong enough – are you fluid and flexible in your
current adl’s [activities of daily living] (intrinsic
factors that effect running)
When running the body is
operating in a closed chain system as the foot comes into contact with the
ground – all the forces / mechanics are transmitted along the leg to the spine.
Repeated step by step means if anywhere along this chain there is dysfunction /
misalignment there is a potential for injury
Is your preparation correct
What is
your running or proposed running shoes like – do you have the correct training
program – does it include the correct prep and closing phase – is your
nutrition / hydration program suitable for what you are about to do (extrinsic factors that effect running)
So are you fit enough to run?
All sessions and classes are lead by qualified Corrective Exercise / Performance and Pilates Coaches
All sessions and classes are lead by qualified Corrective Exercise / Performance and Pilates Coaches
Call BODYFIRM Studios at 01 868 4600