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Muscle balance
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PostPosted: Sat Feb 03, 2001 11:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

After reading about the hamstring injuries that Dan suffered I felt that I had to mention this: many injuries and chronic problems such as hamstring stains and shin splints can be related to imbalances in opposing muscle groups and stabiliser muscles. Both strength and flexibility are factors.

Sprinters often tear the hamstring because they build too much quad (and glute) strength. Shin splints can be the result of insufficient strength and flexibility in the smaller muscles of the lower leg. Too much bench press work is renowned for inflaming the rotor cuff which stabilises the humerus (upper arm bone) in the shoulder joint. I like this example because it illustrates both points: give equal training to all muscles that cross a joint, and train the smaller muscle groups that are associated with a joint/area.

The equal training idea is easy to apply - just find exercises that work the neglected muscle group. I do stiff leg deadlifts (sometimes called romanian deadlifts) and leg curls for my hamstrings, and my times have improved with no injury problems.

To train the stabiliser muscles can be a bit more esoteric, but in addition to specific exercises for the target muscles, you should use free weights in preference to machines, do mainly compound or multi-joint exercises, and explore approaches such as: balance boards, form drills, plyometrics, callisthenics, pilates, sand running, cross training (I personally love rock climbing), and exercises/stretches that are multi-planar. This last point relates to either twisting movements or movements where a limb follows a non-linear path - just don't expose your spine to shearing forces.

[Anonymously Posted by: 'nic fox']
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Dan
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PostPosted: Sun Feb 04, 2001 5:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi Nic,

Very true, thanks for offering the advice for everyone's benefit. One problem with the equal training idea is that the smaller muscle groups that are often overlooked cannot do nearly as much work as the large muscle groups. Thus, they will almost always get less work (of the non-aerobic variety, of which large muscle groups tend to break down quicker due to oxygen demand) during anything resembling a taxing workout. A rather nasty loop...

Dan
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PostPosted: Mon Feb 19, 2001 2:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Now this is an interesting subject. I notice that my quads are very small in comparison to my calfs. Thus this creates a lot of knee injuries for me. I was wondering what are the best ways to either stregthen my quads or to get them bigger. Thanks for the help.
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Dan
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PostPosted: Mon Feb 19, 2001 5:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I would lean toward lunges, especially if you have a history of knee problems. Squats tend to put a lot of strain on the knees and, in my mind, are nearly worthless for runners. If you want to do some heavy leg work, the leg press machine (inclined at 30-45 degrees) should work well, while allowing you to control the motion. Other than that, you could experiment with different bouding and form drills, such as high knees.

Dan
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