Questions for the Coach

QUESTION:

Dear OPTI Coaches:

I have torn ligaments in my left knee. I have gone through the healing process with physio, etc. I am a martial arts student and have found that jumping is now difficult as when I land my knee is not always stable and sometimes I actually fall because of what feels like lack of strength. What exercises can I do to fix this situation.

Await your response...it's getting very frustrating to train and not be sure of the stability of my knee.

Thanks,

Jacqui S.

ANSWER:

Dear Jacqui:

I apologize for the delay in response. We receive hundreds of questions every month and can only answer so many.

As for your situation, it would be helpful to know which ligaments were injured--the anterior cruciate (ACL), the posterior cruciate (PCL), the medial collateral (MCL), or the lateral collateral (LCL)?

Did you have arthroscopy? How long did your physio last? Was it geared more towards traditional PT or more progressive functional work?

Going only on your description, it sounds like you lack eccentric strength in the lower extremity. Adequate eccentric strength allows your muscles to decelerate and absorb/minimize the forces involved in landing from jumps and leaps.

Eccentric strength contributes to your ability to absorb and thus reduce force during such activities. Eccentric strength is crucial to the Stretch Shortening Cycle(SSC) that occurs naturally in sporting activities that involve sudden explosive movements (often of a concentric, or muscle shortening action) and the subsequent deceleration of those limbs (eccentric, or lengthening muscle action) prior to a second, quick concentric action. (Such as running or multiple, subsequent jumps).

An athlete's ability to produce force and then quickly reduce those forces is crucial to the activities he or she must perform. For example, a pitcher hurls a fastball, producing tremendous forces as he accelerates his arm forward prior to releasing the ball. He or she must them quickly reduce/minimize those forces to decelerate the arm movement or risk serious injury. Imbalance between concentric and eccentric force production/reduction can often result in injury to the soft tissues and joints of the involved limbs.

If there are not adequate levels of eccentric strength, the leg upon which you land will not be able to slow the body's falling mass sufficently to land in a stable position. The result: collapse of the involved extremity under the forces of mass x acceleration (your falling body following a jump) and a subsequent fall to the ground. The involved muscles and joints must be structurally strong enough to absorb (reduce the forces) this landing impact.

The speed in which the eccentric force occurs following a concentric force is also important to athletic performance. The length of time between a concentric action (jumping into the air to deliver a roundhouse kick), the quick deceleration (eccentric action of landing and slowing the body's drop via the receiving leg) and the immediate second concentric action (i.e. re-extending the knee and leg after landing) must be as quick as possible. Some sport scientists term this the ammortization phase.

The neuromuscular system and the mechanoreceptors around the knee joint must be functioning properly if your proprioceptive abilities are to be at optimal levels. Optimal levels of kinesthetic awareness and proprioception allow your body to react quickly with the proper levels of eccentric and/or concentric force in a specific instance and thus prevent injury.

Hopefully, your therapist addressed these qualities in your rehab program. You should first check with the therapist who rehabbed your injury and discuss your concerns. Since that therapist will have first evaluated and re-evaluated your original injury, he or she should have a much better understanding of the clinical situation. Again, it is imperative that you check with your physician and therapist before starting any form of eccentric, dynamic stabilization or functional conditioning protocols.

I wish you the best of luck. Please check back with us after you have contacted your health care provider (therapist or physician).

Sincerely,


Richard Lansky, CSCS
Clinic Director
OPTI Sports & Fitness Clinic

QUESTION:

To the OPTI Coaching Staff,

I have a question on lifting.

When I do deadlifts, should I use an opposite grip (one hand supinated, one hand pronated) or do it with both hands facing in towards my body? What will allow me to pull the max weight I can?

Archie L.
St. Paul, MN

ANSWER:

Dear Archie,

Your choice of grip will depend on a number of factors, including the size of your hands and fingers, your current levels of grip strength and your ability to maintain an isometric contraction of the forearm flexor and hand muscles, including the adductor pollicus.

From a biomechanical standpoint, the over-under style (one supinated, one pronated) will allow you to keep the bar close to the body, thus improving your leverage to execute a pull from the floor. If you are training for powerlifting competition, this will allow you to perform dead lifts without the risk of the bar swinging away from the body. The closer you can keep the load to your body's center of gravity and line of pull, the better the chance for success.

However, if you are performing dead lifts as an adjunct to cleans and snatches (i.e. the "first pull dead lift" or "olympic dead lift"), I would use a overhand or pronated grip with both hands facing palm-in towards the body. I would also recommend the "hook grip" for any olympic style pulls.

In addition, if you find that your grip is weak, I suggest experimenting with a hook grip on your power lifting style dead lifts (sumo or conventional). The hook grip can be adapted to a over-under hand position for these deads.

A word of caution, this grip may be uncomfortable at first, but it will allow you a more secure hold on the bar. I used this method myself (with great success) for the preparatory phase of my training prior to the 1993 American PowerLifting Association Drug-Free DeadLift Nationals.

For more information on the different grip choices for pulls and dead lifts, I recommend the following sources of information:

If you have any other questions, please contact us at the OPTI Sports & Fitness Clinic by clicking HERE.

Good luck with your lifting. May you never lose a dead lift attempt because of a weak grip.

Sincerely,


Richard Lansky, CSCS
Clinic Director
OPTI Sports & Fitness Clinic

Back to O.P.T.I. Questions for the Coach

Back to O.P.T.I. Home Page

Copyright © 1998, O.P.T.I., Inc. Site by FX Media, Inc.