Discussion on the
importance of targeting the glutes, hamstrings, low back and hip musculature, in
regards to improving the sprinting, jumping and throwing performances, has been
the focus of the past few Blog posts.
The previous posts focused on the importance of the relative strength
balances of these muscle groups and their interdependence upon each other in
order to perform the correct movement patterns for sprinting and
jumping/bounding.
Indeed, without the
proper strength balances of the all the muscular groups that play a role in
optimal postural alignment of the pelvis/low back, improved sprint and jump
technical efficiency and performance improvement cannot take place. In addition,
the application of training methods targeting speed, power, explosive strength,
elastic strength and strength endurance will invite injury to hamstrings, low
back, hip flexors, etc.
The Fall training
period can be most beneficial if coaches start the training process with a few,
simple screening assessments that will point out the various weaknesses of each
individual. With this information, coaches can devise individual plans of
action that will address the indicated muscular imbalances that predispose
the some athletes to injury, lack of technical proficiency or both. Assigning specific strengthening and
stretching exercises for the indicated imbalances can insure that each athlete
is building a proper foundation for progression to more advanced strength,
power and speed training modes.
The use of
“activation” exercises for the glutes, hamstrings, hip flexors, core
musculature, etc. can be used to find imbalances and weaknesses of these
critical muscle groups. For example,
inability to properly execute a prone leg lift without external or internal
rotation of the femur/thigh, can signal weakness of the gluteus maximus, which has resulted in activation of the external
or internal rotators to help with the lifting of the leg. If the athlete cannot
lift the leg without the femur/thigh turning outwards (resulting in a flaring
inwards of the foot), then that athlete has taught themselves to use the
external hip rotators (piriformis) to lift the leg. The result of this type
of muscular imbalance leads to an alteration
of biomechanics due to weak (gluteus maximus) AND overactive (piriformis)
muscles. This altered pattern will manifest itself in sprint mechanics with a
flaring out of the foot in the all phases of the sprint
movement. These learned, altered
movement patterns will ultimately cause pain, swelling, dysfunction and
eventually lead to joint swelling/pain.
Use of the OVERHEAD
SQUAT TEST is one of the most basic full-body, functional tests that you can
perform prior to developing a training program. It tests total
kinetic-chain neuromuscular efficiency, integrated functional strength, and
dynamic flexibility. Unlike the standard clinical tests used by therapists, the
OVERHEAD SQUAT TEST involves a degree of muscular fatigue.
The test involves
holding an Olympic Bar overhead with an extremely wide grip. The hands should
be close to, or right up against, the end of the bar / collar area. The feet
should be wider than shoulder width (wider stances for some athletes) with toes
pointed straight ahead. This position is
the “end” position of the SNATCH exercise.
From this position, have the athletes squat as low as they can in a
controlled/slow movement that is initiated with a backwards “sitting” movement
of the hips. This will shift the weight to the heels with emphasis on keeping
the heels grounded throughout the entire squat and pause at the bottom. The bar should be held up, with
elbows locked out, throughout decent and accent.
The signs that coaches need to look for are
: 1) Feet Flatten inwards (pronation), 2) Toes move outwards (external
rotation), 3) Knees collapse inward (valgus), 4) Low back arches (lordosis), 5) arms fall forward, 6) arms flex
at the elbows and 7) Chin elevates.
Once these
assessments have been recorded it will be possible to find which muscle groups
are working incorrectly.
There are 3 underlying reasons for muscle
groups working incorrectly:
1)
A muscle is OVERACTIVE and therefore,
constantly tight. This leads to inhibition of it’s opposing muscle
(antagonist). The opposing muscle needs to be
stretched passively, while the overactive muscle needs to be stretched actively.
2)
The antagonist muscle is being
reciprocally inhibited and, therefore, cannot do it’s job sufficiently because
it is being stretched (lengthened), making it more difficult to contract (or
shorten).
3)
There is also a third muscle involved.
This muscle is a secondary muscles trying to do the job for the muscle that is
inhibited. This is not that the primary function of the third muscle and
therefore the third muscle doesn’t perform the job very well.
As mentioned above, when muscle groups
work incorrectly, the athlete develops altered biomechanics to try and
compensate and leads to poor performance, loss of strength/power, poor
sprint/jump/throw mechanics and, ultimately, to injury.
Using the 7 assessment factors,
outlined above, from performance of the OVERHEAD SQUAT TEST, coaches can
prescribe protocols for individual athletes to perform, prior to, and after, each
training session to RETRAIN THE BODY through introduction of correct mechanics through
the use of specific stretching and strengthening exercises.
The retraining plan should follow the
recommendations below that are based on the 7 mechanical signs listed above.
Toes move outwards
> Passive Stretches for Overactive Muscles= gastrocs, peroneals, piriformis,
hamstrings. Active stretches and
Strengthening exercises for gluteus maximus.
Knees Collapse Inwards
> Passive stretching of adductors and iliotibial band. Active stretches and
Strengthening exercises for gluteus maximus and medius.
Low Back Arches
> Passive stretching of ilio-psoas (hip flexors), quads, erector spinae (low
back) and latissimus dorsi. Active stretching and Strengthening of gluteus
maximus.
Arms fall forward
> Passive stretching fo latissimus dorsi. Active stretching and
Strengthening of lower Trapezius, teres minor and infraspinatus.
Arms flex at elbows
> Passive stretching of pectoralis major and minor. Active stretching and
Strengthening of middle Trapezius and Rhomboids.
Chin elevates
> Passive stretching of sternocleidomastoid. Active stretching and
Strengthening of deep cervical stabilizers ( rear neck musculature).
Strengthening exercises such as Squats,
Lunges and Overhead Squats can, in themselves, stretch AND strengthen many
of these mechanical deficiencies. In the next Blog post I will provide some
thoughts on why selecting various types of squatting exercises,
sprint & hurdling mobility exercises and dynamic warm-up activities can minimize
time and maximize training aimed at specific development of the lumbo-pelvic-hip
complex and the specific strength, power, speed and technique training modes for
sprinting, jumping and throwing.
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