Hitting the slopes? - read our Ski & Snowboarding training advice

It's that time of year again when it gets dark early and the weather is general wet and a little bit miserable. The only up side to all of this is that for some of us this means that it's time to hit the slopes. Preparation for this holiday is key and by preparation I don't just mean dusting off the old ski gear! Preparation for such a physically demanding holiday should involve some physical effort. On average you will be on the slopes a staggering six hours per day. This level of physical exertion has a huge toll on the body. To make the most of your trip and to help avoid fatigue and injury we have put together some top tips for getting ski and snowboard fit:

• Cardio fitness -  most injuries on the slopes occur later in the day when fatigue has set in. By increasing your cardio fitness you will decrease your levels of fatigue thus great reducing your chances of injuries. Simply cycling, running, swimming or playing a sport like tennis, squash or football you can help improve your cardiovascular fitness. 35-40 minutes of any of these activities three times a week will really help.
• Strengthen - strengthening your legs to help handle the prolonged loads of skiing and snowboarding is key. Exercises like squats, lunges, dead lifts and calf raises are very beneficial. As your leg strength improves incorporating some ploymetric exercises can really help. Box jumps, squat thrusts, lateral lunges are a good place to start.
• Core - a strong core can help us really enjoy and make the most of our snow holidays. An exercise plan that includes sit ups, oblique twists, planks and Swiss ball abdominal work will have big benefits on the slopes.
• Balance - a week balancing on a thin piece of plastic while hurtling done icy mountains may not appeal to everyone but for those of us that do enjoy the thrill of ski and snowboard holidays working on balance before we go is vital. Simple exercises such as balancing on one leg can be a good starting point. This can be progressed to standing on a cushion to simulate and uneven surface. This can be further progressed to adding a distraction while balancing on the cushion something such as throwing a ball against a wall works quiet well. For the more advanced using wobble boards and bosu boards can also be incorporated.

Jade Windley talks about her experiences at Wimbledon 2013

Wimbledon Logo

Last summer I was proud to be part of the biggest tennis tournament in the world; Wimbledon. I made the main draw of the ladies doubles event with fellow Brit and friend Samantha Murray. I also competed in the qualifying event of the ladies singles, where I was only one of two British players to make it past the first round; beating a top 140 WTA player along the way. None of this would have happened without the outstanding treatment and training I have received from my physio Mike Boyce. I have been receiving regular physiotherapy from Mike for 3 years now, whereby he has aided me in the recovery of several injuries, including a very serious sesamoid problem in my foot. It is highly likely I would have had to undergo surgery, had it not been for his unrivalled knowledge and treatment, so I have an awful lot to thank him for!During the weeks of Wimbledon, from my first singles match in qualifying through to my main draw doubles match, I insisted on attending an increased number of physio and training sessions with Mike, to ensure my body remained fit and healthy for the biggest experience of my career! Mike attended to my physical preparation before practise and matches, with a thorough stretching procedure, plus he aided with my recovery afterwards through deep tissue massage; not the most painfree of experiences but without a doubt the most beneficial! We also carried out many training sessions, including strength and conditioning and injury prevention. Without the strong work ethic, diligence and vast understanding that Mike displays in his work, I feel my body definitely wouldn't hold up under the high pressures of professional sport.

Jade Windley 1

Wimbledon 2013 was my first main draw senior Grand Slam and I loved every minute of it! Sam and I narrowly lost out in three sets to formidable opponents; Andrea Petkovic, a former top 10 WTA singles player currently ranked in the top 50 and Flavia Pennetta, a former world number 1 doubles player and also current top 20 singles player. We put up a great fight for our debut match at Wimbledon, and almost caused an upset in front of an unbelievably loud and supportive British crowd, where Mike, my coach Guy and many others were cheering!

Since Wimbledon my world rankings have improved dramatically and I have the aim of reaching the main draw of Wimbledon for both singles and doubles in 2014, plus a long term goal of breaking the WTA top 100. Mike is an integral part of this journey and I believe with the continued hard work Mike, my coach and I are all putting in, we can fulfil these targets.

The Physio Rooms visit Brighton & Hove Women's Running Club to host a course on preventing injuries

On Monday the 27 January Mike and Tom from The Physio Rooms had the pleasure of being invited to present their running injuries workshop to the members at Brighton and Hove Women's Running Club.    www.brightonandhoverunningsisters.org.uk

As many of the attendees were training for the upcoming Brighton Marathon and Half Marathon, we spent much of the evening giving advice on training and common training errors. We discussed different training methods, the importance of gradually increasing mileage as well as strength and conditioning for runners.

           

We had a very enjoyable evening and look forward to working with the club members again in the future and we wish them all the best for their events in 2014.

The Physio Rooms debut their new tent & banners at The Hove Park Run

On Saturday 25 January The Physio Rooms' Mike and Tom went along to spend some time with the lovely people at Hove Park Run. With our new event tent and banner flags in tow we set up camp to answer any questions that any of the runners or organisers might have regarding injuries and training.             

We had a very busy morning fielding questions about calf pain, knee pain and training for performance. On the morning there were nearly 400 runners of all capabilities. We saw 3 athletes finish with very impressive sub 17 minute times. Some members ran with children in buggies some ran with their dogs on leads. Altogether it was a great community event. We would like to thank John and all the volunteers for having us along and making us feel very welcome. It was great to meet such a positive group of people doing a much appreciated service for the local community.

www.parkrun.org.uk/brighton/

The Physio Rooms visit Lewes AC to host a course on preventing & managing running injuries

On the 16 January 2014 we were very pleased to be invited to give a talk to Lewes Athletics Club (AC).  Out of their 350 members we spoke to around 35 people on the topic of preventing running injuries. We used guidance from recent research and the key concepts of actually managing injuries successfully. Luckily one of their runners agreed to be studied and we were able to use them as a practical case study to demonstrate to the group.

Following this talk we have been requested to research and provide a thorough discussion on women's health and its connection to running as a course topic.

It was great to meet all the team involved and the athletes with a view to establish a regular clinic where our physiotherapists will be available on a drop in basis to discuss any niggles and questions.

   www.lewesac.co.uk

Our top 8 tips to avoid tennis injuries

Here at The Physio Rooms we see tennis players of all levels and abilities. From the elites to the recreational players everyone wants to avoid injury and missing the sport they love. So how can you keep playing and stay injury free? Here are our top 8 tips:

1. DON'T OVER DO IT - a common cause of injury is simply doing too much too soon. Sudden increases in playing time or training too often with too little doesn't allow the body adequate time to adapt and strengthen in response to exercise. Tendons, muscles, joint, ligaments and bone all react to being overloaded in different ways but with a common result - pain! Monitor your playing time, increase it gradually and take regular rest.
2. BE STRONG - recent research has shown that strength and conditioning work may reduce overuse injuries by as much 50% and reduce traumatic injuries by a third. You might be surprised to know that tennis leg injuries are more common than problems with the arms. Strong legs can help keep you injury free! In addition tennis has been found to create muscle 'imbalance' around the shoulder. Several studies have found that the muscles that turn the shoulder in (internal rotators) become stronger than those which turn the shoulder out (external rotators). Strengthening the external rotators may help reduce risk of shoulder injury.
3. BE FLEXIBLE - tennis is a dynamic sport with rapid changes in direction. It's part of what makes it so exciting! The body needs to be flexible enough to make these movements with ease. Work on flexibility of the trunk and thorax to help with rotation. Tennis players often report tight quads, glutes and hamstrings - these can also benefit from stretching, especially after playing. Again there are some specific recommendations for the shoulder from the research - internal rotation range of movement tends to reduce in tennis players. This can be tricky to stretch but can benefit from physiotherapy techniques such as joint mobilisation.
4. BUILD MULTI-DIRECTIONAL STABILITY - very little movement in tennis happens in a straight line. When your foot contacts with the ground you need to be able to maintain balance and stability despite moving in multiple directions. Work on your balance - start with simple exercises such as single leg balance and then progress to include rapid direction change like multi-directional lunges.
5. SELECT THE RIGHT RACQUET - whether you're a beginner or hoping to be the next tennis champion, buying a tennis racquet can be a huge investment, and selecting the right one can make a big difference for your game. Grip size, racquet head size, string tension are but a few of the considerations. We will cover all aspects of racquet selection in a later article.
6. CHOOSE THE RIGHT SHOES FOR YOU - tennis is a sport that requires much agility and body coordination. Due to the back-and-forth nature of tennis play, as well as the need to constantly switch directions when running, the shoes are often the most worn out piece of gear for an avid tennis player. Similarly, a well-chosen tennis shoe will help a tennis player to endure the physical stress of playing well. When deciding how to buy a tennis shoe, you will need to take into consideration your foot type and your play style as well as the type of court you will be playing on most often. We will cover all aspects of tennis shoes selection in a later article.
7. DON'T PUSH THROUGH PAIN - many athletes keep going despite pain. They often think that as long as they can keep playing it doesn't matter! Don't ignore persistent pain - see a physiotherapist for a thorough assessment and solutions to prevent a niggle becoming a nightmare!
8. ASK FOR HELP - come and see us at The Physio Rooms - we'll assess you and guide you through strength and conditioning work. We'll show you how to improve flexibility and stability and advise you on shoe and racquet selection. We work with tennis coaches, personal trainers and local sports shops to ensure the best service for you.

The Physio Rooms visit Nick Rivett to host a course on running injuries & shoe prescriptions

In November 2013 we were delighted to be invited to visit Nick Rivett Sport Ltd, Intersport, Hove where we presented our run workshop. This workshop includes all the latest evidence and research concerned with all aspects of running. We had some great discussions with Nick's Run Squad members. Topics that we discussed on the night included injury prevention, training error, strength and conditioning for running and many more.Following on from our workshop with the Run Squad we were asked to do some work with Nick and his staff regarding advice for running shoe prescription.

We also joined in with their running sessions and organised a 12 mile run across the downs.www.nickrivettsport.co.uk/the-run-squad

Acupuncture is not just a Traditional Chinese Medicine!

Acupuncture is one of the many treatment options available at The Physio Rooms. Many think of it in terms of its role in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) where it has been used for thousands of years. As part of TCM it is thought to improve energy flow within meridians in the body, western medicine doesn't subscribe to this view and instead considers acupuncture to have effects on the tissues, the nervous system and the healing process.Research suggests acupuncture promotes the release of naturally occurring pain relief within the body, helps reduce muscle tension and may have an anti-inflammatory effect. The National Institute of Clinic Excellence (NICE) recommends acupuncture in its guideline on the management of low back pain.

While acupuncture has many benefits it's best used as part of an integrated approach including exercises prescription, improved understanding of your condition and changes to lifestyle/work/training schedules as indicated.

What is physiotherapy? - a short definition

Physiotherapy is a profession associated with assessing, diagnosing and treating illness, disability, musculoskeletal pain and dysfunction. Here at The Physio Rooms, we aim to help each patient restore movement and function to maximise physical potential. As physiotherapists we endeavour to help our patients overcome injury or pain through accurate assessment by implementing the most evidence-based treatments available. We use many strategies to help our patients reach their goals.  We assist with pain management, and prescribe rehabilitation exercise to restore range of motion and strength. Clinically, physiotherapists use manual therapy, acupuncture and electrotherapy, as well as biomechanical assessment, functional movement screening and gait analysis. We treat each patient individually and ensure a holistic approach to treatment.

We pride ourselves on being part of The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. As members of this society we are encouraged to apply the latest practices that research has to offer. Physiotherapy is a science-based profession with each of its members achieving a degree at university.

In order to maintain the highest professional standards and ensure that the latest evidence based research is used in practice, physiotherapists are required to maintain a record of their continued professional development.  This entails studying and critiquing the latest evidence, and attending courses to develop new assessment and treatment skills - making sure that our patients get the best possible advice.