Last week Dale from Bulletproofbodies
had the pleasure of being the Physio on an Army Expedition to the Dolomites in
Italy.
Naturally, when you take a Physio with your expedition they add significant value in many different ways. They are an expert in Musculo-Skeletal injury able to provide injury prevention, treatment and management throughout the expedition. As well as taking a stretching session after a day of hill walking. There is lots of opinion about stretching and injury prevention and it appears that there is a lack of scientific evidence to support this. However, when I go out on the hills I always stretch afterwards as this helps my body to recover and feel better post exercise. I ran Yoga classes every day for those on the expedition and they all reported the benefits of feeling less stiff and painful the next day. Plus it is also a great group activity that gets everyone involved. In addition to basic stretching and Yoga, I also use a Compex with aid with recovery.
The most common type of injury when climbing or walking up and down mountains is an over-use injury. This typically manifests as lateral knee pain, particularly when going down hill, carrying a back pack. This will be later diagnosed as ITB Compression syndrome.
There is no way to stretch the ITB but you can influence the lateral chain, by performing a body stretch to the side.
But this best way I have found to keep ITB under control is to roll. Or Pulseroll to be more precise.
There are two
significant problems with Foam Rolling.
It is painful and time
consuming.
But what if your Foam
Roller could Vibrate?
Then you could put more
pressure into your foam rolling, making it more effective and time efficient.
Enter the
CrossFit Athletes are
very good at looking after themselves in comparison to other recreational
athletes.
However, sometimes you
just don’t want the pain of the foam roller.
So, you can quickly
develop a habit of not using it.
Whereas with a
Pulseroll product, because it uses vibration therapy it has a desensitizing effect on the "pain-pressure threshold."
Pulseroll products now
have a remote control, this allows you the user to switch between the 5
different vibration speeds at the touch of a button rather than having to reach
around for the button on the side of the Pulseroll.
We are loving the Single Ball version that is great to travel with:
Check out the new products from Pulseroll on the link:
Foam rollers have found
their ways into every gym, health club and physiotherapy room for a reason!
Fitness professionals have learnt that releasing myofascial tissue has many
benefits for the body.
Pulseroll is the
evolution of the old foam roller, with scientific evidence showing positive
effects mechanical vibration can have on fascia as well as balance, mobility
and circulation.
It’s easy to use a
vibrating foam roller anywhere you need it, being a portable and lightweight
product.
The combination of both vibrations and pressure as you roll helps to
enhance blood flow to targeted muscles and soften the tissue to improve both
performance and recovery.
The vibrating foam
roller can be used during your warm up for softening the muscle tissue, cooling
down after a workout and to massage various parts of the body.
Using the unique
combination of pressure and vibration it will help loosen your muscles, increase
blood flow and flush away lactic acid.
The vibrating foam roller is a
super-versatile piece of exercise equipment that offers many benefits similar
to a sports massage.
It can be used in the gym, home or rehabilitation clinic
to improve a person’s flexibility, balance and core muscle strength.
Through
continued use you will notice an increase range of motion and flexibility and
will increase your circulation.
A foam roller can be a very helpful device for all individuals.
It comes with advantages that make it essential in improving performance and
the general quality of life.
It reduces the
severity of injuries or the likelihood of the same when you use it to warm up.
This is because it activates your muscles and allows the blood to start pumping
through and minimizes injury chances and the severity too.
It decreases the
recovery time after exercises because it mimics deep tissue massage. It works
by improving the flow of blood carrying oxygen and nutrients to the muscles and
at the same time it aids the fast removal of toxins from the body improving the
recovery time greatly.
It eases back pain,
sore calves, runner's knee and other kinds of pain. This is thanks to the focus
on pressure points all over the body easily relieving the pain. You can use the
foam roller for all types of pains and still enjoy quick relief.
The massage roller
helps in loosening tight muscles, relieves soreness and releases muscle tension
just the same as deep massage does. You can control the intensity of the
massage using a good roller depending on your needs.
Roller Types
When it comes to the
foam roller, the market has a wide range of the same. It is of important to
know your options before making a purchase so that you can select the best
roller to serve all your needs.
EPE foam rollers
- The
rollers have a pool noodle surface finish and are relatively inexpensive
because they are basically low in quality. They, however make very good
introductory rollers so you can consider them if you are just starting with
your use of the device.
EVA foam rollers
- They
have a smooth finish and are better in quality and durability compared to their
EPE counterparts. They are also a bit expensive and offer better massage
results.
Molded foam rollers
-
These rollers are also smooth in finish and were introduced in the market
recently. They last long and offer amazing massage experiences and can be
termed as more effective than the EPE and EVA rollers.
Rumble rollers
-They
are presented in small flat square ridges and are smooth in finish and they
tend to be the most intense in the market. They have a better reach on areas
such as the shoulder and the hips making better choices.
Grid rollers
- They
have a flat square smooth surface that looks like a grid and are considered the
best rollers currently in the market. The contours offer better roll compared
to the generic brand and they are also incredibly durable.
Fitness rollers
- Most
have a honeycomb grid design and are quite effective. They are more like a
combination of rumble and grid rollers only that the ridges are much smaller.
Vibration Foam Rollers
- Pulse Roll is a revolutionary new type of Foam Roller that incorporates vibration therapy into the foam roller itself. This mean that you perceive less pain when using the Pulse roll as your as your mechano-receptors are distracted by the vibration. This is the future of Foam Rollers.
When choosing your
muscle roller design, the structure of the roller, the size and all important
features so you can select the most effective and the easiest to use.
A trigger point roller
can be very beneficial to the body and muscles. When choosing a foam roller
make sure you consider all features and the ease of use to have a pleasant
experience every time.
The most common manual
therapy for self-release is the Foam Roller which has evidence to suggest that
it increases flexibility for 10 minutes post treatment.
However, the mechanisms
by which it does this are unclear.
It is theorised that
mechanical pressure influences a state of tissue relaxation through afferent
signal input to the central nervous system via stimulation of the Golgi Reflex
Arc and other mechano-receptors.
These effects can be separated
into:
Mechanical
Neurophysiological
Possible causes
include:
• Thixotrophy
• Piezoelectricity
• Fascial adhesions
• Cellular responses
• Fluid flow
• Fascial inflammation
• Myofascial trigger points
Physiological effects:
• Increase pressure-pain threshold
• Reduce arterial stiffness
• Improve vascular endothelial function
Foam Rolling
Flexibility and range
of movement are essential for making the right “shapes” during Exercise and
Sports.
If you can’t make the
right shape, then you will compensate for the movement you are unable to
perform.
Stretching is the go to
method for increasing flexibility, but current research recommends that we don’t
static stretch in the warm up, otherwise we might loose strength.
Here is where foam
rolling is so beneficial.
Foam rolling is now
common place for both the Warm up and the Cool down phases of activity. How Long Should I Foam Roll for?
Foam rolling has been shown to have short-term effects for increasing joint motion without decreasing muscle performance.
Foam rolling between 30 seconds to 1 minute can have an effect up to 10 mins on muscle length.
Foam rolling 20 mins per day for 3 days may decrease the effect of DOMS.
The harder the roller the more the therapeutic effect
Subjects use their own body weight to lie onto the foam roller.
No standard pressure or cadence for Foam rolling has been set or recorded.
There is currently no consensus on the optimal Self-Myofascial Release intervention in terms of treatment time, pressure and cadence.
What’s the History
Behind Foam Rolling?
Jerome Robbins - 1960's Ballet
Feldenkrais method introduced Foam Rolling in 1980's
Mike Clark (Physiotherapist in the USA) - 2001in his book integrated training for the new Millennium. Now used everywhere! Vibration Foam Rollers There is now a new type of Foam Roller that combines vibration therapy within the Foam Roller itself.
The Fan Dance is a gruelling
24km SAS Selection test march staged over Pen y Fan, the highest mountain in
the Brecon Beacons.
The infamous march is
the world's oldest Special Forces test and is considered the yardstick of a
candidate's potential to perform well on Test Week and ultimately pass the SAS
& SBS Selection course.
The AEE Fan Dance event
Series is the original version with a provable and undeniable heritage, and the
only one exclusively managed and delivered by actual former SAS & SBS
staff.
Sign up for this amazing challenge on the link below:
Raising money for SHOC - Slough Homelessness Our Concern.
The atmosphere and camaraderie
at CrossFit Slough was simply amazing.
It was a real pleasure to
be part of this experience and provide much needed Physio support for these
brave athletes.
The first Hero WOD was for
a British Army Officer, Ralph Johnson from the Household Cavalry, killed in Helmand Province in Afghanistan 2006.
Lewis Howard was the expert organiser for the days events. Before each Hero WOD a brief history of that Service person was given so that we would be inspired by their story.
A combination of both British and American Heroes were used from the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The event was well organized
and the athletes completed a Hero WOD every hour on the hour for 24 hours!
The master of ceremonies
was Box Owner Dai Palmer, who was the driving force between workouts and made
sure athletes kept to the required movement standards by scaling accordingly.
The athletes were keen to
use my Physiotherapy services and use a new type of Foam Roller with added
Vibration therapy – Pulseroll:
Crossfit Slough is run by Dai Palmer, who earned his stripes in the Royal
Army Physical Training Corps and in the strength and conditioning field,
Crossfit Slough is located in Slough Trading Estate - an area which offers the
much-needed space for workouts.
Slough and the
surrounding area is a region significantly affected by homelessness and social
exclusion. SHOC is a day centre that provides care and long term
transformational help towards independence for the homeless.
The Immortal Challenge
As a result 24 brave
CrossFit Slough members have taken on the ultimate challenge of performing 24
WODS (workouts) in 24 hours. We will be tackling one workout every hour on the
hour, for 24 hours. enduring high intensity workouts on minimal sleep and food.
