Excelsior

Follow us on

excelsiorathletic@gmail.com

07976 306 494

Tag Archive: star trek

  1. Common Tennis Injuries

    5 Comments

    Tennis doesn’t have to cause an injury

    The demands of tennis mean that all areas of the body are put under repeated pressures and therefore susceptible to injury. Although a non-contact sport, the asymmetrical nature of the sport and need to adapt to the changeable court surfaces will increase the injury risk.

    By the time a junior player has progressed into the elite and professional circuit, it is estimated that he/she will have made approximately 10,000 hits in order to perfect technique. On the other hand, the deconditioned and recreational player is equally prone to problems.

    Approximately two thirds of tennis injuries are caused by overuse e.g. repeated and explosive serving can cause shoulder pathologies. Continued twists, turns, stops and starts can put intense pressure on the knee joint.

    The remaining third of injuries are acute and are normally short term if managed correctly e.g. an ankle or knee ligament sprain.

    Preventing Tennis Injury

    Conditioning your body in order to prepare for the specific demands of tennis is vital to help prevent injury as well as optimising your sporting performance.
    A change of biomechanics and technique can also help to reduce the risk of injury.

    FLEXIBILITY

    During a match players need to generate extreme force from a variety of positions. Strength through-out an unrestricted range of movement is essential.

    STRENGTH AND ENDURANCE

    Good muscular endurance ensures that you can apply force over a period of time i.e. that you can still hit the ball as well at the end of a match, as the beginning.

    POWER

    Upper and lower body power are necessary to create the explosive movements that tennis demands.

    AGILITY AND SPEED

    The faster you can move around the court, the more time you have to prepare for your shot. This will provide a solid platform from which to hit the ball.

    (For more details on how to get fit for Tennis )

    Common Injuries in Tennis

    SHOULDER

    Statistics show that the shoulder is the most commonly structure in professional tennis. Djokovic struggled earlier this year going into the US Open with shoulder pain.

    Problems often occur due to the overuse of the rotator cuff muscles which can then cause pathologies such as

    • tendonopathy
    • impingement
    • minor tears

    Following initial management to reduce pain and any inflammation, muscle imbalance needs to be addressed.

    Corticosteroid injections have been proven effective to settle irritable impingements so that rehabilitation can be progressed. Both the scapular stabilisers and the rotator cuff need to be strengthened for long term improvement.

    LOWER BACK

    Federer was forced to withdraw from the Qatar Open earlier this year with lower back pain. In tennis, the trunk forms a solid unit which can produce power through rotation of the spine. It transfers the power generated in the legs to the arms, ‘the kinetic link principle’. 

    The strengthening of trunk / spinal muscles as well as improving flexibility with stretching can help correct any muscle imbalance. Manual Therapy and soft tissue massage can also be helpful as an adjunct to rehabilitation.

    KNEE

    The patella-femoral joint is at high risk of injury due to the repeated lunging, jumping, change of direction and speed. Nadal continues to struggle with his long standing patella tendonopathy.

    Corticosteroid injections around this area can be used in isolation but with caution.   A pre-injection U/S scan is often requested to assess tendon quality.

    Eccentric strengthening is advocated for this specific diagnosis of ‘jumpers knee’ following acute management.

    More acute injuries to the meniscus and ligaments are also prevalent in tennis. Risk can be reduced with ongoing work on strength, flexibility and agility.(More details on Knee injury management here)

    ELBOW AND WRIST

    ‘Tennis Elbow’ is the classic overuse injury to the common extensor tendon at the elbow joint. Similar problems can also occur around the wrist joint specifically. Taping and specific supports can be useful in the short term to help offload the irritated tendons. There is some evidence to support the use of acupuncture.

    Eccentric strength work is required in order to achieve a long term recovery.

    ANKLE

    Acute soft tissue injuries around the ankle are reported frequently in tennis due to failure to meet the specific agility demands of the game. This type of injury is notorious for becoming a recurrent and chronic problem if a graded rehabilitation programme is not followed.

    Significant work on progressive proprioceptive exercises is essential. Taping and bracing can be used in the short term but I would not advocate long term use. There is also little evidence to suggest these interventions actually offer any structural support.

    Summary of Common Injuries

    Area of Injury

    Injury

    Cause

    Upper Body

    Tennis Elbow

    Overuse

     

    Rotator Cuff tendonitis

    Repetition of serve

     

    Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

    Impingement of medial nerve due to wrist
     position

         

    Lower Body

    Sprained Ankle

    Surface, lack of strength in surrounding
      muscles

     

    Stress Fracture in foot

    Overuse

     

    Patella tendonopathy

    Repetitive landing

     

    Hamstring strain

    Sudden change of direction on tight muscle

     

    If you would like any more information then please contact me.

    Sarah Marshall 

  2. How to get fit for tennis

    1 Comment

    On Monday we looked at the demands of tennis, now we look at putting that into practice. With a nation inspired by British hopes at Wimbledon, start getting fit now.

     How can I get fit for tennis?

    Start with flexibility and build from there. Every player needs to have a foundation of mobility and flexibility to build upwards from. This needs to be worked on regularly, not something that is done once a week or when you feel tight.

    At Excelsior we encourage our athletes to do a series of exercises called 5×5’s, these are 5 exercises to be done daily for a minute each, these work on control, technique and flexibility.

    Flexibility can be worked on during warm ups with exercises like multi-directional lunges, this exercise gradually puts the body into full extension stretching muscles and nerves prior to playing.

    Getting into the habit of a daily stretch routine is a great way to improve flexibility, this needs to take into consideration exercises that you as an athlete feel working not just one you have been told to do.

    Working out three routines that can be alternated, can alleviate the monotony of one routine

    Fit for 5 sets?

    Training endurance directly is not always simple due to time constraints and should therefore be done during a tennis session if possible. From looking at the demands and research I would suggest a mixture of interval training and longer distance training.

    In a session shorter distance sprints can be done during an extended warm up or within drills themselves. Longer distances can be done when the athlete has time and for example going on a 5 mile bike ride.

    One problem with common training methods for the aerobic system is that it can result in injuries. Athletes going on long slow runs use poor form compared to if they trained over shorter distances, swimming and cycling would be better methods as they reduce impact on joints. injuries.

    (For running technique tips see here)

     Speed/ Agility

    Before working on speed and agility you need to make sure you can brake and control the movements, this is where a base level of control and co-ordination is required. (More information on different surface requirements here)

    The majority of tennis sessions will involve a large amount of agility, if during conditioning sessions this is worked on solely for long periods of time, there is a good chance the body will not be able to recover and see any adaptations before injury occurs.

    Another time this can be worked on is during warm ups, this does not mean repeated sprints but looking at first steps and braking.

    Over the last 4 months the cricketers I work with have used bodyweight exercises to strengthen and braking drills to improve co-ordination. They have all now met the ECB’s criteria on the yoyo test, this is due to being more efficient and stronger when turning.

    Strength

    To make it to the top in any sport you need to practice, this is impossible if you are injured! A strength programme should help build control and technique to withstand the rigors of intensive training.

    All athletes need to improve their strength, this does not mean looking at how much you lift in comparison to your bodyweight, it means improving strength that is relevant to your sport. Tennis for example is a game where you lunge with varying degrees of extension and control.

    By improving areas such as the BIG HOUSE and legs, you will be able to not only control a lunge better but also at greater speed enabling you to return to a ready position quicker.

    When many people try to improve these they use resistance machines in their gyms, these were designed to reduce the need for stabilisation during a movement and are therefore not ideal. Below is an example of exercises that take away the need for machines and are more athletic.

    Muscle Machine Exercise Preferred option 1 Preferred option 2
    Quadriceps Leg Extension Squat Single leg squat
    Hamstrings Leg Flexion Single leg bridge Deadlift

     

    Summary

    • Tennis has evolved over the years and is now a more powerful game, due to different technology and athletes realising conditioning is a vital component of their training.
    • Your programme needs to have a long term plan not just work on a quick fix to one specific area, unless you are in post injury rehab.
    • Building a strong foundation and making small progress will lead you to being an overall better athlete.
    • Starting a training programme can be difficult and you need to get into a routine.
    • It is like pushing a heavy object, getting the object moving takes a lot of effort but as momentum builds its becomes easier to continue the momentum.

    For a comprehensive training programme that fits into your schedule, try our Sports Training System

    Duncan Buckmaster  

  3. What are the Demands of Wimbledon Tennis?

    1 Comment

    Are you inspired by Wimbledon?

    With Wimbledon starting today, we thought it would be good to to look at the requirements of tennis for all abilities and how aspiring players can improve. Duncan Buckmaster has done the research and here are his thoughts.

    Physical demands of Tennis

    Grand Slam tennis is a knockout tournament; matches are the best of 5 sets, to get to the final a player will have played 7 matches over 2 weeks.

    A set is the first person to 6 games with a 2 game margin, the game will go to a tie break should it be 6-6 in games, unless in the last set when the players continue playing games until a two game lead is won.

     in 2010 at Wimbledon the final set of a 1st round match went to 70-68 games, the match in its entirety lasted over 11 hours.

    A game is scored 15, 30,40 then game or if 40-40 it goes to deuce and then advantage, this can continue until a two point lead is won.

    Endurance demands of tennis

    Tennis is a game of high intensity, short duration bouts requiring explosive reactive movements and shots with a variety of rest periods. There is a maximum rest of 20 seconds between points and 90 seconds between games and 2 minutes between sets which are set by the governing body.

    There is some debate on which energy system is provides a foundation during a tennis match. Work done by Fox & Matthews (3) almost 40 years ago stated that 80% of work is done by the Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) system, however, other research has suggested that the aerobic system is the primary aid to restoring ATP throughout a match.

    Commonly we assume working on our aerobic capacity will always improve our athletes, these is normally done with longer less intense workouts. These theories are based on research that shows fatigue can reduce ball velocity and increase injury risk. (1)

    However, research by Hoffman et al (2) has suggested there is a limit to which aerobic training aids improvements, Kovacs (1) suggests VO2 max of between 55-65ml-kg-1 are beneficial but above this further improvements are redundant.

     Speed and Agility for Tennis

    With video analysis now available several studies have been done on distances travelled during matches, this will depend on the level you play, the surface you are playing on.

    Some stats that have been found over these studies:

    • 80% of strokes played with less than 2.5m movement,
    • 5% of stokes played require more than 4.5m movement,
    • An average of 4 directional changes made during a point,
    • Over 1000 directional changes made during a match,
    • 70% of movements are lateral,
    • 20% of movements are forwards,
    • 8% of movements are backwards.

    Flexibility & Mobility for Tennis

    Due to the single sided nature, shots and surfaces; flexibility is a key area of concern among many tennis players. From young age many players will have solely played tennis which could mean they are one side dominant, they have not had a variety of sports to give their body a rounded education of movement.

    From a young age we start to lose this flexibility due to the amount of time spent sitting at school/work or and then going home and sitting down all evening.

    Being inflexible can have a knock on affect on other parts of the body due to how our bodies compensate for weakness. Three examples of how a lack of flexibility can affect
    a tennis player:

    1. A tight pectoral (chest) muscle will pull the shoulder forward in posture; the muscle will be weaker due to its tightness, this will mean the body has to compensate to find power, which could mean the hips & back rotate more giving an inconsistent shot.
    2. A piriformis (a muscle deep inside the bum) in spasm (constantly tight) can cause pelvic immobility; which can mean the lower back muscles tighten, and the thoracic upper part of the back rounds more to create an illusion of mobility.  This would mean that during a forehand shot the shoulder would need to find mobility and power putting the shoulder joint at risk of injury.
    3. A tight hamstring can result in a lack of knee stability, which could lead to injuries due to the lunging nature of tennis. The sciatic nerve which runs the length of the body could also be affected, so when you serve muscles will tighten to protect the nerve causing an inconsistent serve.

    (Information on Common tennis injuries and how to prevent them here.)

     Strength & Power for Tennis

    Over the last 30 years the styles of play have changed from a flowing style to a more powerful style where player try’s to overpower their opponent. If we look at how modern players like Nadal compared to a player from 30 years ago John McEnroe, we can see a difference in musculature.  

    Nadal

     

    John McEnroe 

    Power requires a good foundation of strength (4), this is so that the movement is controlled and consistent.

    Part 2 on Wednesday: How to get fit for Tennis.

    For a comprehensive training programme that fits into your schedule, try our Sports Training System

     References:

    1. Kovacs, MS (2006)
    Applied Physiology of tennis performance. Brit. J. of sports Med. 40:381-386

    2. Castagna, C, Manzi,
    V, D’Ottavio, S, Annino, G, Padua, P, Bishop, D. (2007). Relation between
    maximal aerobic power and the ability to repeat sprints in young basketball
    players. J. Strength Cond. Res. 23:963-966

    3. Fox, EL, Matthews,
    DK. Interval training: Conditioning for sports and general fitness. Exercise
    physiology: Theory application to fitness and performance (5th Ed.)
    1974, P:426,2004

    4. Asci, A, Acikada, C
    (2007). Power production among different sports with similar maximum strength.
    J. Strength Cond. Res. 21:10-16 

  4. March Training Plan- How to run a sub 40 minute 10k

    Leave a Comment

    March training plan

    Now the sun is out and the evenings are longer, March and April are time for me to work on my endurance, dust off the tennis racket and lose some body fat.

    Strength, power and speed have been developed over the last 3 months (came in useful when the handbrake on my car failed and I saw my son rolling backwards down a hill in the car. Had to sprint and jump in. Stuntman is still a career option I think).

    I am aiming to do a sub 40min 10k in 6 weeks, and to lose 2kg of bodyfat.

    Sundayhill running session, 8-10 mins of up and down hill, with a 5 minute hard run at the end. Will progress with an extra set of hills before the end run.

    Monday– weights – barbell complex 20, 40, 45, 50, 55kg of deadlift, bent over row, hang cleans, front squats, mil press, back squats. Then pull ups and body weight exercises at the end working on lateral movement and single leg balance. Evening – tennis

    Tuesday –core session (back and abs strength, rotation, flexion and extension).

    Wednesdayextensive intervals (4 mins run, 2 mins rest) start at 4 sets and build up to 6 sets.

    Thursday- weights, ladder complex of dbell clean and jerk with pull ups. 4 sets of 1,2,3 increasing the weight. Hang snatch and over head squat. Or hang cleans, followed by mil press. Front squats.

    Friday- steady state run- 10 mins to start, progressing to 30 mins over the weeks. Off feet steady state, either bike or row 40 mins. Tennis

    Saturday- intensive intervals– (30 sec on fast\ 30 sec off) 20 sets progressing to 30 sets. Bag work – 5 x 3 mins rounds.

    This with a 15 minute static stretch every day and my 8 min morning routine of ballistic stretches and hindu press ups and squats. Plus 30 mins of walking.

    You might wonder why there isn’t more steady state running. I am not a fan of it, mainly because I find it slows me down.

    Secondly I don’t want to do the “Sunday morning fatty shuffle” and destroy my mechanics. I prefer to run faster and then repeat it.

    There is too much focus on garbage mileage in run training, rather than quality work.

    The weight will come off when I do my concerted food diary effort using fatsecrets– a great online tool that keeps a good account of what is exactly happening calorie wise.