Athlete: a person who is trained or skilled in exercises, sports,

or games requiring physical strength, agility, or stamina.

So, how do you ensure your body is at its best, for you to achieve optimal physical strength, agility and stamina?

Self-care, mobility and stability are all important factors to consider in making sure your body is functioning optimally. Self-care elements of moving well, stretching, resting, eating and thinking well are essential for any athlete- whether you are professional or part time.

It is important to remember that self- care, however essential and valuable, can have its limitations.

True soft tissue restrictions, such as adhesions or scar tissue, can limit movement and impair healing. In such cases, massage, physiotherapy or specific soft tissue work such as trigger point therapy can help to isolate and reduce or remove these adhesions. Mobility can be helpful to improve movement restrictions, but there is often more to the story. It is important to understand that mobility of tissues goes hand in hand with stability.

To truly move and perform at your best, you can’t neglect neuromotor control and stability. Stability is the body’s ability to regulate muscular (and therefore joint) control and tension via the nervous system.

Have you ever felt like you can stretch or massage a muscle repeatedly, without it ever having a lasting effect? The common misconception, here, is that a ‘tight muscle’ needs to be stretched. However, what if this ‘tight’ muscle is like that because the body is trying to stablise that particular area by up-regulating neuromotor tone? This means the body is keeping that muscle ‘tight’ for a reason.

Chiropractors are trained identify the root cause of problems. Here at Chiro Connect, we combine a thorough chiropractic neurological screening with functional movement assessments in order to identify any movement dysfunctions and/or pain. In this way, we help to differentiate between a true soft tissue cause of a problem, a biomechanical cause of a problem, or a neuromotor control cause.

By utilizing Chiropractic Care as a part of your overall training program, you give yourself the chance to maximize your potential athletic performance by optimizing your mobility, having sound biomechanics, and balanced neuromotor control (muscular stability).

Better alignment and posture means better and more efficient movement and nervous system function. For fitness and playing sports, better nervous system function can mean better co-ordination, enhanced reaction times, faster speed, increased muscular output of strength and force, more efficient use of body energy, and less chance of incurring injuries.

 

Are there certain sports that benefit more from chiropractic care?

Any type of sporting person can benefit from chiropractic care, whether you are learning a new sport, improving your fitness levels, or training for high grade competitions. Because Chiropractic Care may enhance your speed and co-ordination, many different sports can be enhanced, such as:

  • Rock Climbing
  • Mountain Biking
  • Rugby and other ball sports
  • Skiing and Snowboarding
  • Martial Arts
  • Walking
  • Running

To determine if your nervous system is connecting well with the rest of your body, see our Contact Us page to organise your appointment with Chiro Connect today.

What can I do at home?


Self-care makes up a big part of your overall health and movement care. Keeping yourself supple and flexible is just as important keeping yourself strong and stable. We've already covered how Chiropractic Care can help you with this, so following are some videos to help you on your way with stretching and moving.

Videos are courtesy of Dr Scott A. Mills, and American Chiropractor and Athlete at Plexus Performance Care, NJ, USA.

2 Minute Fix Hamstring Mobility

The 2 Minute Fix: Hamstring Mobility from http://drscottamills.com Here I teach you how to utilize reciprocal inhibition to effectively lengthen the hamstring by contracting the quad using three variations. Please check out my video on Sciatic Nerve Flossing FIRST https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFKwNffX8zw - These stretches will be more effective after releasing any preexisting nerve tension.

2 Minute Fix- Hip Flexor Mobility

The 2 Minute Fix for Hip Flexor Release from http://drscottamills.com In this video I demonstrate both a standard hip flexor stretch and a banded technique to decompress the spine while mobilizing the muscle. Find the whole post at http://drscottamills.com/2014/11/the-2-minute-fix-hip-flexor-release/ The Problem: The hip flexors are a group of muscles (iliacus, psoas & rectus femoris) whose primary action is raising the leg.

 

2 Minute Fix- Hip Mobility

3 ways to mobilize the hip to improve a deep squat and help keep your chest vertical at the bottom from http://www.drscottamills.com Please refer to parts 1 & 2 for squat help. Part 1: Thoracic Extension http://youtu.be/NCtvNSQCBaM Part 2: Ankle Mobility http://youtu.be/IbSpUcgtIgQ

 

Ankle Mobility

Fix your deep squat position with these tips from http://drscottamills.com I update and tweak a classic calf stretch and demo a banded ankle joint mobility technique to help you get low! Make sure to watch Part 1: Thoracic Extension http://youtu.be/NCtvNSQCBaM