ARE YOU IGNORING THESE COMMON MOBILITY ISSUES?
Coaches thoughts from Kriss Hendy
I recently watched a short documentary on Mat Fraser. For those of you who aren’t familiar with him, he was previously classed as 'The Fittest Man on Earth’. He also happens to be a CrossFit athlete. Now, before you scroll away, there is something that stood out to me during his documentary that we can all learn from.
Like many of us (regardless of the sport or standard), Fraser physically pushes his body to its limits on a daily basis. But there is one big difference between him and the majority of athletes I come across. During his rest days (usually once a week), he spends anywhere from three to five hours stretching and rolling. Working hard to realign tissues, improve the range of motion through his joints releasing tight areas.
This is a very extreme example, and very few of us have the time, let alone the motivation to give ourselves this much attention. Whether you are a CrossFit lover or hater, Fraser is an athlete who is at the top of his game, and it’s habits like this that keep him there day after day.
STOP IGNORING THE SIGNS
You don’t need to spend five hours a day stretching and rolling, but if you want to improve, or at least stay in one piece for years to come, you need to stop ignoring the signs and symptoms that are so glaringly obvious.
Being more mindful for a few minutes a day, at the beginning or end of a session could make a huge difference to your next race and next season; not to mention overall health!
There are a few key areas where ultra-distance athletes are notoriously tight or restricted in their movement. This can cause issues if you choose to ignore them, but there are ways to start making improvements with minimal time and effort.
ISSUE #1: TIGHT ACHILLES, TIGHT CALVES AND POOR RANGE OF MOTION THROUGH ANKLES
When squatting, are you unable to get into a good range without leaning forward? Is your weight in your quads and are your heels lifted? Poor ankle flexibility is a common problem that we see in ultra-distance athletes across the board. The focal points here are our ankle, knee and hip joints. As a result of constantly working to intensity, the tissues surrounding the joints only work in specific ranges of motion and thus neglect the full and healthier range.
Tight muscles through the lower limbs and especially your calf muscles will only get tighter until eventually niggles and injuries start to appear in and around the Achilles and plantar fascia.
Developing good ankle flexibility can also help with producing an effective kick in the water. Having adequate mobility to plantar flex (point your toes down) will help create a strong force against the water whilst maintaining the correct body position. The tighter your ankles are, the most you have to adjust your leg position to kick, which creates more drag and therefore slows you down.
HOW TO IMPROVE IT: SQUAT MOBILITY
This is a simple and effective drill that you can perform on a daily basis - all you need is a secure upright structure to hold onto.
Using your arms for support, lower yourself down into a working squat position, keeping your heels on the ground. From here, I want you to spend 20-30 seconds at a time working the angles of your joints, shifting your weight from side to side, all with the aim of improving the range of motion through your ankles, knees and hips.
Take your time with this, and build up your time under tension over the next few weeks.
ISSUE #2: TIGHT UPPER BACK AND POOR SHOULDER MOBILITY
Without generalising too much, a high percentage of ultra-distance athletes who I’ve worked with have a noticeably underdeveloped upper body, especially those who come from a running background. Those with a cycling background often have strong arms but weaker upper back and hold poor postural positions because of a rounded back and weak core muscles. That, and modern day living encouraging a forward rounding of the shoulders and lots of time spent in area position, mobility can become an issue for performance.
Poor stroke technique or limited range of motion in the shoulder joints identified by the band pass over drill can cause problems in your performance. Those athletes who have restricted range of motion in their shoulder joints will certainly not be as efficient as they can be.
In swimming, it can prevent you from maintaining an effective reach and adequate body position. On the bike, your riding position can become compromised due to discomfort and the inability to hold a sustained ‘areo’ position. Similarly, poor posture will affect the efficiency of your run, due to a closed chest position, which will affect your breathing. Equally, in running, there is a certain level of upper body strength required to maintain trunk stability and to hold a strong running gait throughout your run.
What’s key to remember is that ultra-distance athletes do not need to have big shoulders, but they do require a certain level of strength in their chest, shoulders, arms and back muscles.
HOW TO IMPROVE IT: BAND PASSOVERS
Stand in front of a mirror, shrug your shoulders as your raise your arms overhead. Do you arms pass over smoothly and evenly? Band passovers are a great exercise to incorporate into your day-to-day routine, whether at your office desk or at home.
Bring the band up and over your head, without hyper extending or losing shape through your midline. This will help you establish the state of your shoulder mobility. Not only is this a great screening tool, but establishing small simple habits like this on a daily basis can help prevent the onset of annoying little niggles and injuries that may occur.
ISSUE #3: PAIN IN YOUR LOWER BACK AND HIPS
Our pelvis, lower back, core and hip musculature is the focal point responsible for a lot of our athletic performance. While hip mobility allows healthy movement, this area like others also needs to be strong and stable. An athlete who has poor hip mobility and lacks strength will never achieve their true potential.
The consequences of poor hip mobility and stability can translate well away from this area and cause a whole host of niggles and injuries throughout the body.
The Hip complex should be a priority for all athletes as this is the powerhouse centre point. Good hip mobility coupled with good core strength is needed for an efficient transfer of force whether you are swimming, riding, or running. The inability to effectively flex and extend your hips will certainly comprise the way you kick your feet in the water, drive your legs on the bike or life your fit while running.
HOW TO IMPROVE IT: T-SPINE LUNGE
This is one of the most fundamental mobility exercises that we use and tells us a lot about the individual we are working with. This is a great way of opening up the hips and maintaining a healthy level of mobility. By incorporating a couple of reps each side daily before you workout will help you get to a much better place. If you are tight through your back, this will take time, so be patient!
If you’ve got some niggling pain that needs to be addressed, get in touch with us today to find out how we can help.