This will really get those buttocks going!

This is a fantastic exercise as it is performed in standing which is when we need both the muscles around the knee and buttock working to give us stability. Even more important if you spend a lot of time power walking or running.

The starting position:

Stand next to the wall with your right shoulder at the wall. Place the stability Chi ball between your right knee and the wall. Stand on your left leg so that your foot is straight, your left knee is in line with your 2nd/3rd toe and your hip. Find your neutral pelvis by tilting the pelvis backwards and forwards and resting in the middle position. Think tall with the spine and neck. Use your right hand on the wall for support to help keep your trunk straight.

The movement:

Standing on the left leg, squash the Chi ball with your right knee. The control to counteract the pressure pushing you away from the wall is provided by your left buttock muscles. This primarily is your gluteus medius muscle, very deep and in the upper portion of your buttock. Hold your pelvis still as you perform a ¼ squat on your left leg and return to standing. During the squat maintain the knee in line with the 2nd/3rd toe. Repeat 8 times then swap sides.

Your focus:

Try to maintain your pelvis in a neutral position and keep it level across the hips. Also keep tall and try to avoid allowing your trunk to fall to the side. Keep your waists long and even! If you are maintaining this, your trunk postural muscles and core muscles will be really working in addition to challenging those thighs and buttocks.

Remember that strong legs and buttocks support your trunk!

Katrina

Be Pro- active and prevent injury.

Image: Physicalliving.com from article: “Building Blocks of Becoming a Strong Resilient Runner”. Click here for article. 

Melanie’s Tips for runners and walkers to lower your injury risk

Over the years of my clinical experience as a physiotherapist I have seen many running injuries and have come up with “maintenance exercises” to try and reduce the number of running injuries. The same can be applied to walking.

Exercise is very beneficial in many ways and disrupting the routine with an injury doesn’t help.

So, prevention is always best. Follow these 5 easy exercises regularly up to 3 times per week to maintain your body for walking and running.

Calf stretch.

The muscles that take a battering during walking and running are absolutely your calves! Try this stretch by standing on the ball of your foot on the edge of a step with your heel hanging off the back of the step. Slowly lower your heels while holding onto the railing and hold here for 1 minute. Repeat with your knee bent to stretch the smaller deeper calf muscles. This can be done on both legs at the same time or one at a time. Remember to align your knee over your second toe as you stretch.

Calf Massage.

Nerve (neural) structures within muscle can also become tight and may not release with a stretch. Sitting on the floor with your leg bent out on front of you. Using cream on your thumbs push both thumbs into the middle of the upper calf and run them down in a straight line towards the ankle. Use as much pressure as you can tolerate. Try 15 times. I would not advise to do this one immediately prior to running. Repeat on the other leg.

ITB releasing.

The ilio-tibial band (ITB) is quite difficult to stretch. It is a muscle that runs from the outside pelvis to your outer knee, crossing the hip. It is typically tight in those that walk and run a lot. As it is difficult to find a position for stretching, I recommend releasing the fibres instead.

There are 2 ways of doing this. Firstly, massage. Sitting on your bed, using your knuckles and cream, press into the side of the thigh and run your knuckles down towards the outside of your knee. Use as much pressure as you can tolerate and try this for 30 seconds then repeat on the other side. This one is quite easy to do after the shower. Secondly, you could use a foam roller. These are easy and fantastic. Lie on top of the foam roller on your right side with the side of your right thigh resting on the roller at your hip. Bend your left knee and place it in front of the right leg for stability. Keeping your right leg straight and using your hand for support roll yourself along the foam roller until it is at your right knee. Then roll back up to the thigh. Repeat for 30 seconds and try on the left side.

The gluteus medius muscle of the buttock is extremely important for control of your sideways hip and pelvic movement each time you bear weight on your leg. It is also an integral in controlling your thigh stability for good knee mechanics below. Try the Clam exercise or single leg squatting to strength and build control here.

The clam.

Lying on your left side with your knees bent, feet in line with your bottom and shoulder. Find your neutral pelvis and make sure the hips are stacked on top of each other. Lift your top knee while keeping your feet together without rolling the hips backwards. Think about the leg being heavy and lifting it with only the bottom. Aim for 2 sets of 8 and repeat on the right side.

For a harder more functional exercise, try the single leg squat which is our exercise of the week outlined below.

Core strength.

Last but not least, activating your ‘core’ -the diaphragm, pelvic floor, transversus abdonminus (TA) and multifidis muscles - are key to maintain stability of your pelvis and spine as you shift your weight from side to side and twist the trunk with running and walking.

To assist in you picturing this ‘core’ system imagine the following: your pelvic floor muscles are shaped like a hammock running from your pubic bone to your tail bone right between the legs. Your TA acts like a corset from the front of the abdomen and wraps around deep in the waists towards the spine. These deep abdominal fibres interlink with your deep spinal multifidis muscle, stabilising one spinal vertebra on the adjacent.

Try this simple exercise to increase your awareness of these muscles working together. Lie on your back with your knees bent in a neutral pelvic position. Take a breath in and as you exhale lift through your pelvic floor muscle and deepen the navel towards the spine. Relax as you take a breath in and repeat this activation each exhale. Make sure your buttock muscles are relaxed and you stay in a neutral pelvis position.

Your exposure to our exercises at The Fix Program aims to challenge these ‘core’ muscles in many varying positions – standing, squatting, when using your arms, or on the mats. Your job now is to be that little more aware of them when out for your walking or jogging session.

Take the time to be a little more pro-active and prevent injury and pain. Have fun!

Mel

In part 1 of our opinion on barefoot running we took a look at the scientific and anecdotal evidence that is floating about on both minimalist and shod running. As you may have read, there is no real conclusive evidence on what works best for your body.

This edition we will explore the implications of the research on your running - if you are a runner. But I would say the same could be said if you are a walker too.

So, here are my personal feelings on the topic. I am married to an avid runner, so I can’t help but soak up his excited feelings for the barefoot stance. It does make some sense that we were born to run without shoes and that the evidence for the wearing of shoes has shown little greater benefit as far as injury reduction is  concerned over the past 4 decades. But of course, being a physio and therefore a scientist of sorts, I can’t help but trawl trough the evidence to feel confident in giving
advice based around the research on this subject.

However, as I dabble in running, not long ago I found myself at a local oval, taking off my shoes and socks and running barefoot! This wasn’t my intention, but then, here I was with my shoes off running laps around the oval. And what a feeling! I felt amazing- that feeling of the cool grass between my toes, feeling the natural  spring in my stride and legs working hard as I picked up the pace on those few laps. I could even say that I was ‘buzzing’ after the experience.

Perhaps this is why some runners are so absorbed and passionate by barefoot and minimalist running. I guess in that small experience, I understood the passion better. And, without the OK from the ‘scientific evidence!’  Why don’t you give it a try? Remember, small amounts of exposure to begin, such as 1 or 2 laps of
an oval. Enjoy the sensations of the earth between your toes and notice the changes in your running style and muscle activations as you do.

These changes in running style felt with running barefoot, such as shorter stride lengths, faster cadence, mid to forefoot ground striking can all be applied to your running styles when wearing shoes. Why not become aware of your own running biomechanics and try the following changes on your next jog?

1. Cadence.
This is defined as your strides or steps per minute. A higher cadence will shorten your stride length, encouraging a mid to forefoot strike pattern on the ground and improve running efficiency. It will also improve your body’s natural shock absorption patterns and muscle strength in the lower limbs as outlined in part 1. Aim for a cadence of 90- 92 steps per minute. If counting is the last thing you feel like doing, why not count your number of steps in 15 seconds and times by 4? Much like taking your pulse rate.

2. Mid- to fore-foot ground strike.
Running to a higher cadence will do this for you, but there are other tricks to help you to achieve this. Imagine that you are running quietly, or running on a slippery ground surface such as ice. This will bring your ground strike forward on the foot and encourage strengthening of the small intrinsic foot muscles in your arch, the plantar fascia and other muscles across the lower leg. Again, do this slowly with small graduations in exposure, so that your muscle and other connective tissues have a chance to adapt and not inflame.

And what about for the walkers of you? There is no reason why walking barefoot around the oval or on the sand of a beach would not have the same effects for strengthening and balance in your feet and legs.

Give it a try!