Injury Prevention in Tennis

Every summer, it’s time to get out your tennis shoes and racquets. It’s vital to make sure that both you and your kit are properly prepared to prevent unnecessary injury. So here are some tips and advice to help guide you:

Tennis Top Tips

Practice hitting the ball in the “sweet spot”, the shot feels good and the impact force will be at a minimum.
Improve your stroking technique, especially backhand
Modern racquets do not absorb shock like the old ones. To reduce the impact on your arm:-
– Lower string tension
– Increase flexibility of racquet
– Increase racquet head size
– Add lead tape to the head to increase weight
– Increase grip size. The optimum grip circumference equals the distance from the tip of the ring finger to the crease in the middle of the palm (proximal crease)

– Grip higher up handle
– Loosen grip on handle

Play on an appropriate surface. If you play on a hard surface the forces through the joints are much higher: twice your body weight when walking, 3 to 4 times on running and 12 times on jumping. Very dry and hard surfaces can also cause twisting ligament injuries to the knees, due to the increased friction between your shoes and the ground.
Get a biomechanical assessment and if you need them purchase bespoke high quality orthotics. Make sure your footwear is appropriate.
Train at an intensity lower than competitive conditions to reduce the chance of injury
Reduce the total amount of weight bearing exercise. Do some cross training to reduce impact loading, while maintaining training volume.
Mix training sessions with different activities. I.e. cycling, swimming.
Set up a training diary recording rest days, sleep, heart rate and heart rate recovery time.
If the morning your heart rate increases, decrease activity plus add in more relaxation time, and spend more time on cool down post activity.
Eat healthily and adjust your calorie intake to activity level. Take carbs for fuel, protein for rebuilding muscle, high quality vitamin & mineral supplements and drink plenty of water.
Enjoy the stress relief exercise can bring and don’t force yourself if you are exhausted as this is when you are most likely to get injured.
Get regular sports massage to remove trouble spots before they become injuries.
If in doubt see a sports physiotherapist

Warming Up and Cooling Down

Warming up is often overlooked and should be part of your injury prevention routine as there are a number of benefits:

The muscles work better when warm and oxygenated with good blood flow.
The joints become more flexible which reduces the pull on muscles.
The nervous system becomes more responsive.

Including a gentle jog in your warm up will give the muscles the energy supply they need to work properly. Follow this with sport specific exercises and dynamic, sport specific stretching drills. This regime has largely replaced old fashioned static alternatives.

Examples of tennis specific exercises are running for 5 to 20 minutes with heels up to buttocks, or with high knees up to hip level. Increasing the size and speed of movements, as the body warms up and the heart rate increases, will more closely simulate competitive conditions. It is also important to focus on full body conditioning, as predominantly one sided sports, such as tennis, can cause muscle imbalances.

You should allow a total exercise and stretch time of 15 to 30 minutes and no more than 30 minutes before competing, otherwise the benefits will be lost.

Cool down should include a gentle jog plus light stretching to help eliminate waste products and reduce muscle soreness.

If you need help contact the clinic on 01889 881488 and see a physiotherapist or visit www.painreliefclinic.co.uk

Pain can be a result of injury, but in many cases how much pain we feel is a consequence of the decisions we make through our lives and is governed by our beliefs. How we deal with life’s challenges, what we choose to eat and drink, including the quality of antioxidants and minerals, how much effort we put into exercise, posture and weight control, how much sleep we give ourselves – all these are choices of which we are in control.

Unfortunately, most of us make choices which will at some point promote pain. Fortunately, the body is always attempting to regulate pain impulses and heal. With knowledge we can work with, rather than against this process and feel less pain.

How Do We Feel Pain

We have a myriad of tiny receptors all over our body, which pass information to sensory nerves and then to the spinal cord. The pain impulse continues up the spinal cord to the thalamus in the brain, which acts like a router and in effect makes ‘phone calls’ to three other parts of the brain:

Sensory Cortex interprets nature of pain
The mammalian Amydala assesses level of fear/emotion and decides if parts of the body need to shut down to prioritise fight or flight.
The Cortex is the human part of the brain which finalises the decision process

Hence our brains really do decide, like a panel of judges, how much pain is appropriate for us to experience at any time. Pain is then translated into how much we hurt.

Although we naturally want to avoid pain, this acts as important and in some cases, critical feedback. Pain is a warning signal that something is wrong and should stimulate a response to change activity, not to repeat the cause of the pain. Thus if something is wrong and we block the pain, the risk is that we could continue an activity that harms us.

Pain Gate

Imagine you are driving a slow, small car and you are waiting to turn onto a highway and big lorry after big lorry goes past and stops you continuing your journey.

Now translate that analogy, this time the pain signal being the car and other, more powerful signals being the lorries. If we can provide a continuous supply of powerful signals the pain never gets out to the spinal cord and up to the brain.

This is called pain gate theory and goes some way to explaining how and why we can reduce pain. What’s the first thing you do if you hurt your hand in some way? Most of us will shake it. This sends stronger signals to the brain than the pain and so blocks the pain.

Endorphins – The Body’s Natural Pain Killer

Endorphins are released at the point where the pain signals reach the spinal cord and prevent more pain signals being released. It is this process which prevents pain getting through immediately, sometimes after a serious injury. This “endorphin rush” allows an athlete to persist through pain.

Ten Top Tips To Reduce Pain

1. Massage– nice sensations travel seven times faster than pain impulses and block the pain.

2. Acupuncture raises endorphin levels and blocks pain at the gate. Also, it can be linked to electro acupuncture to boost the long-term effect.

3. Nutritious food and supplements. The correct food products are required to make amino acids which are essential to pain-killing hormones. Minerals and anti-oxidants all reduce inflammation and boost the immune system. Too many carbs/sugars metabolise into pain products: reducing the calories reduces the pain. Less obesity – less pain. If the cell is healthy, nutrient-rich and properly hydrated, with few toxins, pain is an unwelcome guest.

4. Reiki and meditation are known to change the brain wave frequency and biochemistry. New research suggests the state of mind impacts DNA transcription and chronic pain. Self-healing methods like these can focus the subconscious mind on reducing both stress and pain.

5. Review your lifestyle and regulate levels of stressful/fearful activity will boost positive emotional activities. Understand your natural biorhythms to make the best of your time awake. – makes you more productive and less stressed

6. Improving your posture, especially sitting, enables the large core muscles to take a load off the back.

7. Taking regular exercise boosts feel-good pain-killing endorphin levels, boosts metabolism, and helps to reduce obesity – fat cells store toxins and enhance pain. Many studies prove correct exercise significantly reduces painful chronic illness and mortality.

8. Tens is a portable hand-held, the medically-endorsed device that sends frequencies, 2HZ to 150HZ, through the sensory nerves to block the pain gate and boost happy biochemistry, such as serotonin and endorphins to kill pain, reduce depression and help sleep. The Tens electrodes can be placed along a nerve root and onto a painful point, or on to specific acupuncture points. With professional guidance, good quality Tens can significantly boost the effects of pain treatment.

9. Consider hypnosis. This fascinating and controversial subject can significantly reduce pain when practised by an experienced therapist. People have even had surgery whilst under hypnosis

10. A warm bath with alkaline salts and aromatherapy, especially lavender, helps with sleep. For more on sleep tips, read this article.

For more information about Nicky Snazell’s Pain Relief Clinic, call 01889 881488 or visit www.painreliefclinic.co.uk

Massage – Time For A New Perspective

Massage has a history which dates back thousands of years and for much of this time has been a primary medical treatment by Doctors, recognised for its ability to reduce stress, anxiety and pain, plus both help prevent and heal injuries and illnesses.

Earliest records of the use of massage in medicine were in Egypt, India and China thousands of years ago. Since then its use has expanded around the globe, with inevitable cultural variations, so we see Shiatsu from Japan, Tuina from China, Ayurveda from India and Swedish from Europe and so on.

Original concepts from India and China were to consider disease and illness as a manifestation of the body being out of balance and not in harmony with the environment. Massage was considered an important treatment to help restore balance and harmony.

In the West massage spread through Europe and was noted by Hippocrates, the Greek Physician, in 400 BC as an important part of overall health maintenance. The use of massage started to decline with the emergence of newer medical techniques and also suffered greatly due to the more unsavory euphemism for sexual services.

This very concern in fact led to the formation in the UK of the Society of Trained Masseurs, later to become the Society of Chartered Physiotherapists that we know today. Thus physiotherapy has its roots in the power of hands on healing.

In more recent years massage has had a new dawn and become available in a many forms. You can now take your pick from intensely relaxing treatments on warm water beds, to deep pressure for the less faint hearted. The basic aim remains the same: to help heal on both the physical and emotional level and enhance the overall quality of life.

Unfortunately, the true value of massage is not widely recognised in the UK and for many it is still pigeon holed as an occasional luxury, or for many men, not something they would do. But let’s go back briefly to history again. Hippocrates recognised the importance of exercise, healthy diet, rest and massage as the ingredients for maintaining or restoring health. Certainly evidence exists for example that through the ages, the Olympics have made use of this philosophy.

Now fast forward to the present day. In the 1984 Olympics, massage was listed as a medical treatment to be provided. In fact many top athletes have their own masseur. For these, diet, exercise and rest go without saying. The message is no different to that proposed by Hippocrates 2400 years ago. You can be sure massage was intensely used in the London Olympics.

In the East, massage is considered a normal medical treatment and we can look much nearer home for cultural differences to perhaps break down British prejudice. In Germany, massage is considered an important part of their preventative and treatment health care. It is quite normal for a German Doctor to prescribe a course of massage, and not drugs, for the treatment of conditions such as back pain, neck stiffness and stress.

Stress we all know is on the increase and quite simply can be a killer. The body cannot heal itself if it is continually stressed. Scientific studies have shown that excessive and uncontrolled variation in heart rate caused by stress leads to increased sickness and disease. Furthermore, just relaxing at the end of the day with your favourite tipple, cannot undo the damage caused by a full day of stress. At the clinic we measure heart rate variance (HRV) and many patients are shocked by the result. Modern technology such as HRV merely amplifies just how accurate our ancient forefathers were about health.

Time and again we see patients at our clinic, who for either physical or emotional reasons would greatly benefit from regular massage, but will not as they cannot get over the stigma of it being either a luxury or not really of therapeutic value. Without doubt, many patients would retain a more pain free existence and be less stressed, if they could overcome these barriers and adopt the attitude of many other countries.

Perhaps it is time to look again with a new perspective at massage and all it can offer you.

If you would like more information on the massage we offer or our HRV technology, then please contact the clinic on 01889 881488 or visit www.painreliefclinic.co.uk

Why you get back and neck spine pain

With our hectic modern lifestyle, there can be so many reasons why we don’t have a healthy spine and as a result suffer back and neck pain. As I have explored in my previous articles, keeping healthy involves four key things; state of mind, diet, exercise and posture.

The spinal cord and nerve roots are housed in a bony structure, the spine, to minimise fraying and compression to sensitive neural structures, further protected by cushioning discs and strong muscles.

If you are unable to eat a healthy diet or have chronic stress, the gut cannot absorb nutrients effectively. The body then starts to crave these missing nutrients and literally rapes the spinal bones of minerals to sustain the vital organs. This accelerates wear and tear in the small finely chiseled spinal facet joints that allow us to twist and turn. They become prematurely arthritic and fire off pain receptors.

Daily impacts due to heavy footsteps on solid surfaces, cause faster wear and tear. Furthermore with sustained poor posture in walking and sitting, amplified by not drinking enough water, the cushioning discs will crack and bulge. Then the fragile nerves are put at further risk by weak muscles. They turn into sensitive dysfunctional nerves which cause muscle contractures, accelerating arthritis, disc damage and general aging.

Hence the way we move will affect the harmonious flow of movement up through all the small joints in the spine. The correct structural alignment of feet, legs, pelvis and spine is very important, especially if you are very active and sporty. The science of how we move is called biomechanics, a physical expression of health, and a predictor of future problems.

So many times symptoms appear totally unrelated to the spine and yet unless recognized and treated the culprit lies dormant and the problem keeps reoccurring. Many times the symptoms of pain, numbness, weakness and pins and needles can be anywhere else in the body but the spine. So often, seemingly unrelated painful conditions such as osteoarthritis, tendinitis or unrelenting sports injury can only be resolved specialist neuropathic treatment to the spine. I firmly believe if anyone has a problem anywhere in the body the neural link to the spine must be assessed. Furthermore with shortened muscles compressing nerves such as sciatica in the leg, or brachialgia in the arm, the best way to quickly release the tight muscle contractures is with laser and a specialist pain treatment called Gunn IMS. We are the only centre in Europe to offer teaching internships in IMS pain relief, after being awarded the highest accolade in treatment and lecturing internationally on this subject.

We very much embrace this approach in the clinic, with our specific diagnostic physical and functional tests . We may also need to arrange an MRI to look inside the spine, and if we want to know if the bone or cartilage cells are healthy enough to repair and hydrated now we have leading technology to tell us.

It’s so exciting the way science is progressing, as now it is possible to repair sports injuries and arthritis at the cellular level. German scientists have pioneered a therapeutic version of MRI that can regenerate cartilage and bone cells throughout the body, including the disc and spine. Following a visit to the German research facility with our inhouse surgeon, we are proud to have joined over 150 European orthopaedic consultants who have helped over 150,000 patients with this non invasive technology.

Fitness & Exercise Pillar

I believe fitness and wellness go hand-in-hand. When our bodies are fit it anchors a sound mind. The pleasure from moving effortlessly envelopes the mind in bliss. This leaves our mind free to concentrate on the pleasures of life.

So how can you achieve a fit body with a busy lifestyle? You need to understand how much movement your body craves and when to rest if fatigue hits.

5 Top Tips to Everyday Fitness

If you drive a car for more than half an hour, park away from your destination and walk briskly, swinging your arms. This will ease the pressure on your spinal discs, loosen stiffened joints and improve blood flow.
If you work at a desk, swap your chair for a fit ball. The small movements keep your mind focused and your spine healthy.
At least ten times a day take three deep breathes. This improves blood flow and sends signals to the brain to reduce the stress chemistry.
By adding in a pilates move of gently pulling in the stomach button to the spine or slow outbreathes, you boost your core postural muscles.
Follow a weekly plan of activity, like mine listed below. If you wish to achieve a steady progression of fitness , or get fit for a holiday or sports activity, as the guidance of a fitness instructor, ask ….. at the clinic.

Example of My Summer 7 Day Programme – suitable for those working full-time

Sat/Sun Power walk or cycle outside for at least half an hour to two hours if not exercising at a gym.

Monday/Wed/Fri Resistive exercises in gym with weights for 45 mins. Fast swim for 30 mins.

Tues/Thur Fit ball, stretches and core work-out for 30 mins at home.

We march into joint problems with innocent ignorance. A poor diet full of processed sugar, excess fat, caffeine and alcohol, leading to obesity, compounded by poor posture and footwear. These dark winter days we rarely get the correct amount of exercise to protect our joints, putting our bodies through repeated stresses and strains with weak muscles. On top of this it is difficult to keep a positive mindset with such negative world news.

No wonder arthritis creeps in.

My patients often ask if they have arthritis and what type. They often think that fibromyalgia is a form of arthritis.

Broadly speaking there are two kinds; osteoarthritis (OA) and rheumatoid arthritis(RA). An examination by your physiotherapist or GP with xrays and bloods, should determine which it is.

OA, the most common type, is wear and tear in the smooth cartilage protecting the bones in joints, which eventually leads to bone erosion, bone spurs and unsightly bony end thickening. The joint juice, the synovial fluid, swells and becomes inflamed and sticky. The attacked bone haemorrages precious calcium. By 50 years old 8 out of 10 of us have OA and by 60, 9 out of 10. Left untreated, OA can have a massive negative impact on quality of life and eventually need surgery. When bone is very fragile, it becomes osteoporotic and breaks easily. By the age of 70, 1 in 3 ladies suffer this.

Clearly, for everyone, it is well worth investing time to prevent the worst. I have mild OA in my right knee following surgery and if I follow the plan enclosed, I keep the symptoms at bay.

RA is totally different to OA, whereby the malfunctioning of the immune system is self destructive to joints and muscles. It is linked to genetic makeup and believed to be triggered by a viral attack.

I am frequently asked about Fibromyalgia, but this is not arthritic or inflammatory. The symptoms of fatigue, sleepless nights and muscle pain are believed to be a malfunction of the mitochondria energy processing system in the cell.

Action Plan

Exercise regulary every 48 hours, include gentle exercise like Tai Chi or Yoga when you are feeling sore and stressed up, and try to exercise outside to get your daily sunshine, vital for vitamin D.

Consult a nutritionalist to check for food allergies and consider a liver function test. Many natural products support the liver, milk thistle, artichoke and dandelion.

Increase fruit and vegetable intake, especially raw. Best for arthritis are; carrots, green peppers, watercress, tomatoes, beetroot, berries, grapes, cabbage, broccoli, brussel sprouts and kale.

Eat less red meat, dairy, sugar laden and deep fryed food, drink less alcohol and caffeinated drinks.

Increase water, ionised if possible.

Consider supplementing, check with a nutritionalist. I take high quality antioxidants, minerals and Omega 3 & 6 every day. Calcium, magnesium and phosphorus are very important for arthritis.

For fibromyalgia, 5 HTP can help sleep, try malic acid with magnesium for pain and to boost ATP energy cycle, manganese and coenzyme Q10.

Check your blood sugar level. Vitamins C,E, manganese and chromium can help with this.

Menopause can increase the problems with arthritis and fragile bones. Mineral uptake can be poorer, vitamin D low in winter, hormone levels of oestrogen and progesterone and parathyroid can be out of kilter. There are great self help books out there, and your GP can advise you on your hormones and bone density.

If pain worsens on walking, consider a biomechanical check for your footwear.

For preventive treatment ask us about on the revolutionary German MBST technology that repairs and regrows cartilage and bone cells for osteoarthritic and osteoporotic sufferers.

Suitable Therapies

For RA( rheumatoid arthritis): laser, acupuncture, physiotherapy and massage

For Fibromyalgia: the above plus Gunn IMS dry needling.

For Osteoarthritis: in addition to all the above, shockwave is excellent.

If you would like help, please contact Nicky Snazell Clinic, 01889 881488.

Optimum Health – Your Route to a Healthier & Longer Life

I want you to think of your body as your sacred temple, housing your mind and soul, with each pillar representing a different aspect of health. To achieve Optimum Health, you must make each pillar strong. If cracks appear, pain and disease will creep in and shorten your life.

Optimum Health Parthenon

I am going to take you on a journey, exploring one pillar at a time, giving you the tools for a happier and healthier life. Here is a taste of what is to come:

Mindset

Over the years I have come to realise that about 70% of suffering is linked to emotional baggage which destroys any enjoyment of life.

You may not realise that the marriage between your unconscious and conscious is not always a happy one because the former reacts coldly to your chattering thoughts.

I will expand on how what you think affects your actions and hence your future. For those of you that have heard of ’The Secret’, I will be touching upon the science behind it and how you can use it to your benefit.

Lifestyle

For most people lifestyle stress is an increasing problem. Research has shown that snatching a little relaxation at the end of the day is simply not enough to counter the negative effects of a long stressful day.

I am going to take you through some powerful techniques to change your biochemistry and brain wave focus and show you technology which can help teach you to relax through the day.

Fitness

Today humans are far too sedentary, all too often sitting in front of a computer by day, followed by sitting in front of TV at night. This lack of physical activity causes emotional and physiological imbalances. Improving your fitness changes your chemistry, acts as a powerful antidepressant, promotes mental clarity and reduces the probability of cancer.

If you are not happy with both how you look or feel about your weight, then with correct guidance, you can break out of inactivity and be rewarded by smiling at yourself whenever you see your reflection.

We will show you how and when you should exercise. The correct mix can extend your life.

Nutrition and Hydration

In an age of junk food, the affects of poor diet are evident everywhere. Perhaps not so evident is that about 80% of the population is dehydrated.

Poor nutrition and hydration will have your cells screaming out to you to listen to their needs and at the end of the day, humans are just an awful lot of cells. Research has shown that premature cell ageing by as much as nine years can result from poor diet.

Healthy food and water is medicine. It has a direct effect on preventing pain, arthritis, diabetes, heart problems, how young you look and much more.

Problem Severity – Fire Fighting

Once you have a problem, we are in fire fighting or reactive mode. With correct understanding of the previous proactive health actions, you can substantially reduce your chances of suffering these problems. Once in pain, or suffering erosion of normal daily activities, then you need involvement of my broad based clinical team.

Nicky Snazell offers her views on the Fitness & Exercise Pillar of the Optimum Health Parthenon in this article originally published in Staffordshire Life.

I believe fitness and wellness go hand-in-hand. When our bodies are fit anchors a sound mind. The pleasure from moving effortlessly envelopes the mind in bliss. This leaves our mind free to concentrate on the pleasures of life. Fitness helps us to avoid chronic pain and promotes well being.

So how can you achieve a fit body with a busy lifestyle?

You need to understand how much movement your body craves and when to rest if fatigue hits.

5 Top Tips for Everyday Fitness

If you drive a car for over half an hour, park away from your destination and walk briskly, swinging your arms. This will ease the pressure on your spinal discs, loosen stiffened joints and improve blood flow.
Swap your chair for a fit ball if you work at a desk. The small movements keep your mind focused and your spine healthy.
At least ten times a day, take three deep breaths. This improves blood flow and sends signals to the brain to reduce stress chemistry.
You boost your core postural muscles by adding a pilates move of gently pulling in the stomach button to the spine or slowing outbreathes.
Follow a weekly plan of activity, like mine, listed below. If you wish to achieve a steady progression of fitness or get fit for a holiday or sports activity with the guidance of a fitness instructor, ask … at the clinic.

Example of My Summer 7-Day Programme – suitable for those working full-time

Sat/Sun	Power walk or cycle outside for at least half an hour to two hours if not exercising at a gym.
Monday/Wed/Fri	Resistive exercises in gym with weights for 45 mins. Fast swim for 30 mins.
Tues/Thur	Fit ball, stretches and core work-out for 30 mins at home.

For more tips

Spinal Vertebra and Nerves Exiting Spinal Chord

With our hectic modern lifestyle, there can be so many reasons why we don’t have a healthy spine. As I have explored in my previous articles, keeping healthy involves four key things; state of mind, diet, exercise and posture.

If you are unable to eat a healthy diet or have chronic stress, the gut cannot absorb nutrients effectively. The body then starts to crave these missing nutrients and literally rapes the spinal bones of minerals to sustain the vital organs. This accelerates wear and tear in the small finely chiselled spinal facet joints that allow us to twist and turn. They become prematurely arthritic and fire off pain receptors.

Daily impacts due to heavy footsteps on solid surfaces, cause faster wear and tear. Furthermore, with sustained poor posture in walking and sitting, amplified by not drinking enough water, the cushioning discs will crack and bulge. Then the fragile nerves are put at further risk by weak muscles. They turn into sensitive dysfunctional nerves which cause muscle contractures, accelerating arthritis, disc damage and general aging.

So many times symptoms appear totally unrelated to the spine and yet unless recognized and treated the culprit lies dormant and the problem keeps reoccurring. Many times the symptoms of pain, numbness, weakness and pins and needles can be anywhere else in the body but the spine. So often, seemingly unrelated painful conditions such as osteoarthritis, tendinitis or unrelenting sports injury can only be resolved specialist neuropathic treatment to the spine. I firmly believe if anyone has a problem anywhere in the body the neural link to the spine must be assessed. Furthermore with shortened muscles compressing nerves such as sciatica in the leg, or brachialgia in the arm, the best way to quickly release the tight muscle contractures is with laser and a specialist pain treatment called GunnIMS. We are the only centre in Europe to offer teaching internships in IMS pain relief, after being awarded the highest accolade in treatment and lecturing internationally on this subject.

We very much embrace this approach in the clinic, with our specific diagnostic physical and functional tests.

Get in touch to find out more.

Unless you fall off, cycling is a sport that causes very little, if any impact injury and is relatively body-friendly. On the road, there’s no impact to jar your joints as you would find in running. In mountain bike riding, although there is still no direct impact there is an element of vibrational force depending upon the type of terrain you ride. Like any endurance sport however, cycling can produce a catalogue of niggling aches and pains, which unless diagnosed and properly treated can often lead to something more serious.

If you are a regular cyclist, maybe training for you first charity ride or even a sportive, it is important that you know how to spot the signs of an injury and that you get the correct treatment and advice to correct any problems.

Avoiding Injury

When you start to increase the amount of riding you do you will be adding stresses and strains on your body. You might be tempted to ignore slight niggles and stick to you training programme at all costs. BEWARE. Riding through the pain is very likely to turn what may be a minor problem into a major one.

If you get injured, take it seriously. Take some time off the bike or adapt your training regime but do not ignore it. If the problem does not ease after rest, it is wise to be assessed by a physio or sports injury therapist. Whatever you do, don’t ignore a potential injury when it’s still in the niggle stage.

Common Injuries

Other than the obvious ﬂesh wounds and trauma caused by falling off there are the less impressive but no less painful sprains and strains caused by overtraining/overuse injuries often resulting from biomechanical stress caused by muscle imbalances or incorrect bike setup.

Knee

One of the most common injuries reported by cyclists is pain in/around the kneecap. This is often likely to be an overuse injury. Patellofemoral pain syndrome or Chondromalacia patellae are two possible causes and are usually found because of tightness or weakness in associated muscles that causes unwanted movement of the kneecap (patella) as you pedal. If the patella rubs on the bones behind it, this can irritate and inﬂame the cartilage at the back of the cap causing pain.

Similar symptoms can be caused by your illiotibial (IT) band becoming tight and pulling the kneecap out of line causing it to rub against underlying bones. If you consider the repetitive nature of the pedalling action – up to 5,000 pedal revolutions an hour – it’s no surprise that a problem like this can quickly escalate into a clinical injury.

The stabilising muscles of your hip/pelvis play a big part in preventing your knees rolling inwards, and can be weakened by an over tight IT band. This is one factor that may lead to a number of painful problems, including medial knee pain, anterior knee pain and even lower back pain, in cyclists and also runners.

Hip

A number of issues can give rise to hip pain one of the most common is Piriformis syndrome. This is often caused by overtraining (particularly if there is a muscle imbalance) and by overworking the gluteus maximus muscles in your buttocks. If overstressed and tight, the piriformis can put pressure on the sciatic nerve, causing pain or numbness down the back of the leg or in the hip and is a common cause of sciatica.

Neck

Pain caused by neck hyperextension can be exacerbated by positional issues on the bike combined with lack of ﬂexibility and core strength. The deep muscle of the neck ( ﬂexors/extensors) help to hold your head up, when they become weak it is left to the trapezius and other muscle groups to support your head as you lean forward. When these muscles get fatigued, you can get the aches and pains in the back and sides of your neck.

Lower Back

After knees, the back is probably one of the biggest causes of pain reported by cyclists. Again lack of ﬂexibility and a poor posture/set up are often the cause. The neutral position for the spine in a standing position allows for the curves of the spine to take your bodyweight and for the muscles to be relaxed. Sitting and reaching forward causes tension in some of the muscles of the spine and can stress the joints causing aches and pains particularly in the lower back and across the shoulders. In extreme cases long periods of being in a bent forward position can damage the intervertebral discs causing them to herniate.

Any exercise causes a small amount of inflammation in muscles, due to microscopic amounts of damage. After a long ride it is normal to ache for a day or so as the muscle repairs. This is often referred to as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS)

Hands

Numbness, tingling, or pain in your arm, hand, wrist, or little finger is all common symptoms especially following a long ride. Approximately one-third of all bicycling overuse injuries involve the hands. The two most common are handlebar palsy and carpal tunnel syndrome. By making some adjustments to your bike and by wearing some protective equipment, you can help prevent these injuries from occurring.

Handlebar palsy

Ulnar neuropathy (sometimes known as handlebar palsy) is caused by compression of the ulnar nerve at the hand and wrist. The ulnar nerve controls sensation in your ring and little finger and some of the muscular function of your hand. Compression of the ulnar nerve is a common problem for cyclists and is the result of direct pressure on the ulnar nerve from the grip on the handlebars and sometimes overstretching of the nerve when using the drop-down handlebar position for an extended period.

The pressure placed on the ulnar nerve results in numbness and tingling in the ring and little fingers, hand weakness, or a combination of both. Symptoms can take from several days to months to resolve. Rest, stretching exercises, and anti-inflammatory usually help relieve the symptoms. Applying less pressure or weight by adjusting your position will help prevent the condition

Carpal tunnel syndrome

Although it is less common than Ulnar neuropathy, carpal tunnel syndrome (compression of the median nerve) is another overuse injury that cyclists often experience. This often occurs when a cyclist holds the handlebars on top and applies pressure directly on the median nerve. Symptoms include numbness and tingling in the thumb, index, middle, and ring fingers and weakness of the hand. Although pressure from this riding position contributes to the symptoms of carpal tunnel, there can be other causes for hand pain and numbness, therefore, an evaluation for other possible causes should be performed by your health-care professional.

If you think you may have any of these conditions, it would be worth getting in touch with the clinic to make an appointment to have it checked out. Call on 01889 881488 now.