Training and Maintaining for Robustness:
3. Calf Muscle Example
By Bruce Thomson
www.pilatesrunner.com
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Robustness training, see also:
Intro | Explanation |
Calf Muscle Example | Alignment Challenge
| Pilates Improves
Diagram: Robustness Training for Runners can be divided up into three components:
- Specific Robustness Training
- Non-specific Training
- Maintenance
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Example of Training and Maintaining for Robustness:-
Calf Muscles
Technically sound runners run tall and stay light on their toes.
They use their calf muscles like steel springs that return elastic energy
to the runner with each bound. This is highly energy efficient
(check out the Oscar Pistorius controversy - see picture and links).
It's also safer on the joints (the knee joints in particular).
This safety and efficiency comes at a price however, because there are very few fast runners who have
not suffered from calf muscle pain and the related "Achilles tendonitis".
Let us now discuss-
The Robustness and Maintenance Solutions for Calf Muscles:
- Regularly perform robustness training in the form of ankle bounces, high knees
in the ladder, bounding and other warm up drills.
- Perform None-specific robustness exercise such as the standard Pilates Mat workout
- Perform maintenance exercises in the form of specific and appropriate stretches
and related routines (note 2).
- Listen to the pain and attend to it before it is a problem. If pain
is present, use massage to locate and de-activate trigger points in the calf muscles
and sole of the foot. Once the trigger point work is done, appropriate stretch &
strengthen routines will do the rest.
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Picture: Oscar Pistorius (Alias "Blade Runner - the Fastest Man on no Legs", who's appeal to run
in the able bodied Olympics was granted on May 16th 2008.
Picture source:
Times online, May 17th 2008
; see also Wikepedia
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1. Specific Robustness Training for Calf Muscles
Picture 1 - Example of Specific Robustness Training
Supervised ladder drills such as high knee walk and high knee run, at the same time
as being very good to teach fast running technique, also have a degree of plyometric,
(or "bounce") training for the calf (and other) muscles.
Picture Source: Peak Performance, Issue 259 Publ. www.pponline.co.uk
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Picture 2 - Specific Robustness Training for Calf Muscles
Plyometric training such as jumps, hops and bounding, while being the
best way to put a spring into the running stride are also potentially highly damaging to the calf muscles,
the lower back, and even the neck.
…
Picture Source: Peak Performance, Issue 259 Publ. www.pponline.co.uk |
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2. None-specific Robustness Training for Calf Muscles
Picture 4:
The Pilates Single Leg Stretch actually does help the development of
calf muscle strength for runners, because it conditions "the core" (for "core", read sacro-iliac joint and spine)
to be able to cope with the destabilizing influence of the very vigorous leg movements associated with running drills.
Or to put it another way, if the drills damage your back, you can't do the drills, and you can't strengthen your calf muscles.
So you'd better make sure your back is strong first!
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(Correct Execution is essential):
When performed correctly, the single leg stretch is a buttock muscle stretch (you hug the shin to the chest)
and an alignment exercise (you maintain the knees and feet strictly in alignment with the breast on the same side).
The control and precision that you learn when correctly executing this deceptively simple Pilates exercise will carry through to
every aspect of your running and training, and will massively improve your Running Robustness.
Picture 5:
The Pilates Table Top provides core conditioning and also core alignment training.
Correct Execution is again essential (see above comments).
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Picture 6:
The "Runners's Squat (and other exercises performed while standing), when done strictly according to the Pilates principles of
precision and alignment will add to core strength and at the same time add to core stability by retraining the body's
ability to move the legs strictly in alignment. You can then run fast without "speed wobbles".
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3. Maintenance Training for Calf Muscles
Picture 7:
Eccentric contraction of the calf muscles such as "one up two down" ankle lowering is the perfect way
to stimulate rapid recovery of calf muscles and ligaments that have been damaged
by plyometric contraction.
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Picture 8
Trigger point massage for maintaining the calf muscles
The author takes time out from a warm-up drill to attend
to a painful trigger point in a calf muscle. Trigger points are knots or spasms
in the muscle that can be exquisitely painful. 20 to 40 seconds of moderate sustained
pressure with thumbs or tennis ball will reduce the troublesome knot or spasm, and
enable the muscle to respond better to training and stretching, and also to be more
robust under training and competition conditions.
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Training and Maintaining for Running Robustness: (2)
© PilatesRunner,
Bruce Thomson May 2008
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