Overcoming adversity is a common theme in athletics/training, especially during a 60 minute stamina session.  In defeat and injury, which we will ALL experience at some point, athletes are either created or destroyed.  Objectivity, reason, and action are keys to turning defeat and injury into opportunities to discover weaknesses and learn more about yourself (Gray Cook, 2005).    It allows one to take a step back and learn why they got injured and how they can prevent it from happening again.

A common question is when to push through an injury and when to lay off.  I tell all of my patients “let pain be your guide”.  If it hurts, don’t do it.  I know most of us get discouraged when side-lined because of an injury and the thought of altering a workout or taking it easy is frustrating.  On the contrary, being injured is not a free pass to do NOTHING!  Complete rest is rarely prescribed for an injured athlete.  The rehabilitation process typically involves bringing the athlete back to the basics, addressing the faulty functional movement patterns that caused the injury, and correcting these issues.

What is Functional Movement?

Functional movement is comprised of two basic components:

1.     Mobility:  The ability of a neuromuscular system to allow for efficient movement of a joint or series of joints through a full non-restricted pain free range of motion

2.     Stability: Active muscular control exerted on a joint to redirect force and control movement in the presence of normal muscular flexibility and joint mobility

Ideal Mobility & Stability = Good Functional Movement=Increased Performance=Better Skilled Athlete

Conversely:

Mobility/Stability Imbalance = Inefficient Movement = Compensation = INJURY!!!

For example, if you are unable to get your hips below 90 degrees during a back squat due to poor mobility in the hip joint, you will eventually get injured because all of that force is now translated to the lower back.  This is why the durability portion of the workouts…the exercises that we often skip out on because we feel they aren’t important or we don’t have time for them, are the exercises we need to be doing to help us improve our mobility and stability (i.e. Jane Fonda’s, Ride it downs, toe touch complex).  These types of exercises are often MORE important than the workout itself because they are the foundation to provide us with the best Functional Movement patterns.   Optimal functional movement means better performance and skill, and a stronger, faster athlete!  Movement is what defines great athletes!

Let’s discuss pain for a minute.  Pain results form microtrauma– small amounts of stress placed on the body over time as a result of poor body biomechanics and overtraining. Both place excessive strain on the body.

Poor biomechanics: movement mistakes whereby the body compensates using suboptimal joint misalignments, muscle recruiting patterns, and posture.  Often these mistakes are not visible to the untrained eye and go unnoticed.  In addition they often don’t hurt performance immediately. Since the tiny mistakes aren’t hurting the athlete, the athlete is usually not aware of them.  Yet another great reason to workout in the presence of a coach!

Overtraining is NOT an issue with movement mistakes and can result from too much of the right thing.  Most microtrauma’s are blamed on overtraining and not enough rest/recovery, but this is not always the case.   For example, imagine an athlete who has increased her running distance, added plyometrics to her workout routine,  incorporated speed and agility,  and added a strength component, and she now has left knee pain.  How come her right knee isn’t bothering her…it did the same amount of work??  Obviously there is a weak link in her biomechanical movement pattern that is causing a breakdown and must be detected.    A “weak Link” doesn’t necessarily mean a muscle weakness; it could mean a faulty movement pattern, a lack of flexibility, or poor coordination.

Why do I know this….because I have been there.  As a former competitive athlete, I have suffered my fair share of injuries.  I’ve spent countless hours rehabbing injuries on a narrow time line to be ready for that next big competition, because the competitions didn’t wait for you.  I have competed injured and failed miserably, and I have competed strong and had success.  The bottom line is, like all athletes I had to overcome adversity, find my “weak links” and do the work/rehab/durability/training to get back in the game.   I still have to do this, I still get injured… we all do!

Although my Olympic dreams are long gone…my aspirations to be in the best possible shape from a fitness standpoint are not!  That is why I train with Atomic Athlete.  I can honestly say that there have been Atomic workouts that have challenged me more mentally, physically, and emotionally then any workout from my competitive days!  There is an air of anxiousness that overcomes me en route to the  gym as I contemplate what the workout might be and know that it won’t be easy…it never is.  That’s a good thing… nothing worse than complacency with exercise…it’s pointless!  I wonder what goals the coach will have for each of us that day, and know they will be hearty ones.  There is comfort in knowing that the coach will have my well-being in their best interest.  Best of all, I look forward to the sense of empowerment that fulfills me when I am finished the workout.

“On this week’s Carrozza’s Corner, Ricky Doyle is joined by Dr. Kyler Brown from Austin Sports Therapy to talk about kinesiology taping.

Austin Sports Therapy will be hosting an informational clinic on taping and its uses. The taping can be useful for both performance reasons and to help rehab injuries. The clinic, using RockTape, is Saturday January 22 at 10:00am at RunTex Riverside.”

Click here to view the video.

What is that crazy looking tape that so many people are wearing at the gym or on the trail these days?
This my friends is Kinesiology tape and has become a staple in the world of sports rehabilitation and
performance.

Although Kinesiology taping has been around since the 1970’s (invented by a Japanese chiropractor
named Dr. Kenzo Kase), it really made it’s debut in the 2008 summer Olympics with the Volleyball
players.

Unlike conventional athletic tape that is designed to limit Range of Motion, Kinesiology tape is meant
to improve range of motion, enhance vascular improvement, decrease compensatory reactions, and
improves dynamic support of the muscles and joints.

How does this work you might ask? With respect to muscle injury, the tape acts to lift the skin
away from the fascia of the muscle which stimulates the mechanoreceptors in the skin and reduces
nociceptoin/pain. The lifting/decompression effect of the tape increases blood flow, decreases
congestion/edema and adds extra stimulation to the local mechanoreceptors, and improves the
function of the muscle. However, you don’t necessarily have to be injured to wear this tape. The tape
can also be used as a tool to improve athletic performance. We call this “Power Taping” and this is used
to enhance the kinetic chain of movement patterns that are specific to your sport.

There are several different kinds of Kinesiology tape, however the docs at Austin Sports Therapy prefer
to use Rock Tape. We feel it lasts longer, has more elastic properties to it, and is slightly thicker then
conventional kinesiology tapes.

The key to getting the most benefit out of taping techniques is to understand the anatomy of the
structures you are taping. Since purchasing tape over the counter has become very popular , we feel it
is important for people to know how to apply the tape properly to get the most benefit. That is why we
are hosting a FREE ROCKTAPE SEMINAR on Saturday January, 22nd at 10AM at Runtex!! Come out and
learn specific taping techniques that will help you overcome injuries and improve your performance.
FREE ROCKTAPE SAMPLES will be given to all who attend. The Docs will be there to answer any questions
you may have.

We all want to turn things around and use this new year momentum for some serious gains. But lets do that in the correct way-the SLOW way. Physiology has its own pace, and if we try to fight that, we may set ourselves up for an injury, tendinitis, or worse. Nothing ruins our self-produced momentum like a painful, often limiting injury. Did you know that AST is busiest the first 2 months of the year? This happens every year. Part of the inflation in numbers is due to the increasing distance and time of Austin’s running season, but also due to what I like to call New Years Resolution syndrome.

My recommendations:
1. Be honest with yourself. You may have played football in college and could deadlift 200 pounds. That was college. How long ago was that? Have you deadlifted AT ALL since then? If not, please don’t charge back in at your twenty year-old 200 pound personal record.

2. Get a plan. A gym, trainer or running group are a terrific way to get the guidance of “breaking you in”- that introductory period in training that provides a good amount of mobility exercises, overall muscle activation and impact training. I know, both options can be expensive. Many personal trainers (Austin has a TON of great personal trainers- AST knows most of them, just ask us) offer a consultant or program design. Meet with them once, discuss your goals and fitness level. Then have them coordinate with AST to remove or design around risk factors. Furthermore, trainers are a great way to avoid redundancy in your workouts. This prevents boredom, keeps your body guessing (more gains) and helps prevent repetitive strain injuries. Enable yourself for success, don’t just wander around hoping to get in better shape.

3. Warm up. Don’t do a static stretch before working out- get your heart pumping, and if you love stretching, do it in an active, dynamic way. Email me if you have questions, there are great books out there.

4. Don’t wait until injuries are really bad. Muscle soreness lasts a couple days. If something is painful (for example that twinge in your shoulder or sharp pain in your hip) for more than 2-3 days, its time to get it checked out. AST can quickly determine which things are serious and need immediate attention or if you are ready to go for it and just push through! ]

Looking forward to seeing friends and future friends at the Free rocktape seminar at Runtex this weekend.

Please email any questions to dr.kyler@gmail.com.