This month we will take a dive into pain at the front of your knee!It is tempting to focus on the usual suspects when it comes to knee pain. The main muscle that inserts into the knee, known as your quads or the opposing muscles on the back of the thigh known as your hamstrings. When a client walks in with pain in the front of their knee, its key that we explore their timeline of injuries and then go about testing them to see if there might be any correlation with these old injuries that may be … [Read more...]
Whats your achilles heel?
Hey everyone. It's been one of those months where I have had an influx of achilles tendon issues that my clients have presented with. They have ranged from full blown tendonitis to rehabbing a full rupture. You know when you realise that you are starting to struggle with this type of injury because you start to feel a sharp morning stiffness in your heel or an ache after a run or do exercise that just won’t quit! So welcome to one of the most stubborn structures in the body. … [Read more...]
RED-S: What Every Athlete Needs to Know
Hey everyone I hope you are all enjoying the lovely weather front we are having at then moment. April is always a fun month with me as I get to work with a great team looking after the GB Athletes competing at the London Marathon. I got to thank the lovely Paula Radcliffe who kindly donated a signed top for Charlie during here fundraiser for children with cancer last year and got the meet the GOAT himself Eliud Kipchoge. One the the big take homes I learnt from my time away was a … [Read more...]
The secret life of Oestrogen!
Hey everyone. Hope you all had a great Easter. I wanted to delve into a slightly different topic this month and the importance of hormones and with a deep look at Oestrogen. This hormone is vital for fertility in women, for immune function in both men and women, it’s also vital for bone and tendon health. As with all these things - you need enough, not too much in order to be healthy. In women ‘oestrogen dominance’ can occur when too much estrogen is produced either in the ovaries … [Read more...]
Pain on the inside of your knee..It may not be your meniscus.
It's half term and I hope there are a good few of you hitting the slopes right now. The six nations has also started and its there us a big correlation with increased stress on the inside of the knee. So it's a busy time of year for me when clients start to present with pain in this area and clients can be concerned that they may have torn there meniscus (cartilage inside the knee) Though this may a diagnosis that I have to either rule in or out, there is another cause of pain in this area that … [Read more...]
The magic of muscle contractions.
In this months blog I wanted to hit home some really key benefits of of strength training and challenging our muscles to regularly contract for overall health Before you start thinking do I need to get down to a gym to gain these effects the answer is a simple no but challenging the muscles stimulus to grow and build will supercharge the benefits below. Doing regular muscle contraction movements throughout the day is recommended over single intense exercise blocks, so like I said we … [Read more...]
The unknown tennis elbow culprit.
Hey everyone. Hope summer is treating you well and you have been enjoying the Olympics. What a match between Alcaraz and Djokovic in the final, it was some of the best tennis I have ever seen and as the commentator said. "They are playing tennis sent from the gods" So it got me thinking about tennis injuries and a common presentation in clinic which we all know is suitably named tennis elbow. It's a name that really frustrates me and it doesn't really define anything apart from pointing to … [Read more...]
The cyclists neck pain.
So the Tour De France started this week and is one of my favourite events in the calendar mostly for watching the beautiful rolling landscapes as they head through the Alps and Pyrenees. There has definitely been an explosion in people hitting the roads when we head out for the weekend with the kids. This has definitely correlated by me seeing more clients seeking some help, advice and management for the prolonged position that our necks live in. The classic forward head posture or in old money … [Read more...]
Medial Stress Syndrome/Shin Splints
Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome (MTSS) is a common overuse injury of the lower extremity. It typically occurs in runners and other athletes that are exposed to intensive weight-bearing activities. It presents with load bearing exercises that causes pain over the front of the lower leg bone (tibia) and is an early stress injury that can lead to stress fractures in the tibia if not identified early. The incidence of MTSS ranges between 13.6% to 20% in runners and up to 35% of the new runners … [Read more...]
Shoulder Pain: SLAP Tears
This month I would like to talk about an injury that presents itself over the winter months as the rugby season gets into full swing and as the six nations is upon us I would like to talk about SLAP lesions. The glenoid labrum is a fibrocartilagenous structure that runs around the rim of the shoulder joint. It provides the first layer of stability to the joint to help prevent subluxation or dislocation. The top part of the cartilage provides the attachment point for the long head of … [Read more...]
