Blog post from Kevan, Our Sports Injury Specialist:
It’s been an absolutely AMAZING week…….
I’ve got two clients which have literally blown me away…. Their care is very different to what I’ve ever provided as they’ve both had strokes and are on the long road to recovery.
They unfortunately won’t reach a return to 100% but what impresses me the most is even knowing this they come in and not only work unbelievably hard but with a smile on their face 😀
Literally every minute we laugh and even I get a sweat on keeping up with them!
Both of them hit a personal milestone this week,…. one walked 40 yards (with a walking stick) for the first time. This is huge for him and his family as 5 months ago it was a struggle for him to even sit up by himself.
And the other managed to play fully and walk with her 2 year old grandson. The joy she got out of this was amazing and she was close to tears when she told me (so was I)…
……
How did they do this? you ask
ALL this was achieved by firstly activating and training their important core muscles…
What is core?
The core muscles are those that surround the spine. They not only protect the spine but when activated and strengthened they allow the other muscles to do their naturally designed jobs…
…They also switch on and work every time you move your arms and legs. They’re the muscles in the stomach region that tense when you cough (or laugh).
Think about it the next time you reach for a drink or the remote….your core stops you from literally falling off the chair your sitting on!!! (unless you’ve had one too many in the pub that day 😉 )
Now we’re in a position where we can work on the muscles that need to do other jobs so they can be switched on and trained more effectively and perform better doing exactly what they’re meant to do instead of worrying about helping out your spine.
……
And how can this help you in your everyday and sporting life?
By activating and training these muscles it can help you go about your day and reduce your day to day aches and pains.
If your sat at a desk all day your actually switching off your core muscles so that when you need them they simply cant work effectively as their strength has been reduced. Then you have to use other muscles to support the spine!
Likewise if you’ve got an active or manual job then these other muscles are getting overworked as they’re doing double the workload they were designed for.
Then when it comes to your sport or training the stress is INCREASED further so your seriously risking an injury!!
This all leads to one problem…..pain in the weakest parts of the body as they are getting gradually overworked and overused!!
……
BUT there are somethings that can help such as simply following these easy steps to tense your core muscles……
1. Lie on your back with knees bent and feet on the floor
2. Concentrate on the area below your belly button
3. Whilst breathing normally, draw the bottom ofyour stomach in towards your spine
4. If you feel on the inside of your hip bones you should feel the muscle tighten and push up against your fingers
5. Try not to flatten your lower back into the floor, focus on keeping your back still.
P.S. I’ll keep you informed of the progress these two fantastic people continue to make 🙂
Kev 🙂
To read any of my other blog posts simply click on this link http://www.paulgoughphysio.com/blog/?cat=46
You might know Paul as an expert Columnist who writes weekly health articles for TWO of the North East's biggest daily Newspapers, The Northern Echo And The Hartlepool Mail, he is a regular Speaker at Industry Seminars around the globe and a Radio Personality, often heard on the BBC. Paul has been an expert guest on dozens of Radio shows and regularly interviewed in newspapers, magazines and trade journals all over the world, including the Guardian.
Paul’s background included working extensively in the Premier League with a Top Professional Football Team, and since quitting his job in Professional Football in 2007, his Physio Practice has become the fastest growing in the UK and biggest in the North East. So successful, that companies like BUPA, ASDA, The Vela Group And Coast & Country, repeatedly retain his Physio company's services to keep healthy their own staff and workforce. Paul Gough Physio Rooms is now a large multi-physio, multi clinic speciality practice in Darlington, Durham, Guisborough and Hartlepool.
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