Joint Laxity... Are you bent out of shape? - Nicole Robson (Paladin Biokineticists)

Ligaments connect bone to bone and therefore play an important role in joint stability. When ligaments are lax, there is less stability and the ligaments are termed “loose.” When this affects more than one joint in the body it is termed hypermobility and is often the cause of chronic pain. Causes are either genetic or as a result of an injury (torn ligament). Individuals with lax ligaments are more pre-disposed to injury and resultant joint degeneration with increasing age.

Common symptoms include

•  pain and stiffness in the joints and muscles
• clicking joints
• pre-disposition to dislocation.
• fatigue (extreme tiredness)
• recurrent injuries – such as sprains

Exercise is a great way to help manage pain and create stability around the joints. As a biokineticsist we can determine which joints are more hypermobile than others and therefore can determine which muscles are compensating. It is important to have specific exercise prescribed so that strength can develop and assist with stabilisation. It is also important to learn what normal range of motion is for each joint, in order to avoid hyperextension.

It is important to concentrate on both isometric and concentric strengthening exercises. In isometric exercise, the joint doesn't actually move, but the muscles around it are contracting. This enables the joint to remain stable whist gaining strength. With concentric exercises, muscles shorten as they contract (i.e. when you lift a weight in a bicep curl).

Emphasis should focus on the most susceptible joints such as your shoulders, elbows, knees and ankles. Core strengthening surrounding joints in your lower back, pelvis and hips is also of vital importance. A strong core assists with overall stability and therefore less chance of injury.

Do's and don'ts of running, the common misconceptions - Natasha Eekhout (Paladin Biokineticists)

How hard can running really be? You’ve stretched out, trained your core and finally ready to put your fancy kit on with your ultimate running shoes and hit the road, voila! However has all your training leading up to your run really made a huge difference on your performance?

Stretching and flexibility

We’ve all seen that one runner stretching out those tight biltong strips we call hamstrings but how much does that really help. Initially stretching was seen as a performance enhancer however, recent research shows that it may just hinder it. This all has to do with neuromuscular factors nevertheless, this also depends on the types of stretches performed, static or dynamic. (Have a read through our blog discussing these two). This goes hand in hand with flexibility. The more flexible you are the lower your running economy, due to negative impacts on the stretch shortening cycle.

Distance running strengthens your legs

Actually this isn’t the case. In general, running will either decrease your absolute strength or just keep it, there have been no noted increases as of yet.

Lactate causes fatigue

Lactic acid is produced when the muscles break down glucose during strenuous muscular activity. It is commonly seen as a waste product. Although lactate may correspond with fatigue, it is not the cause and is actually present to delay the onset of fatigue and provide your body with a source of energy.

How important is core strength for running?

It’s good to have a strong core to help with general stability and decrease back pain, however its effects on running performance haven’t really hit the research books, as many runners haven’t really noticed major differences.

You shouldn’t be crashing on the floor after a race?

Nope this one ain’t correct either. So instead of standing around with your hands on your head, like you’ve been advised to, to try ‘recuperate and gather your energy,’ listen to your tired body and give into those jelly legs. Your body needs a break and is battling to pump blood against gravity.

With all of the above stated, it’s up to you and how your body feels. If you’re keen on sticking to your routine or happy to change it up, that’s completely up to you. The main focus is to improve your economy and overall training performance for a great healthy running stride.

Biokinetics to master your pirouettes - Melissa Biffi (Paladin Biokineticists)

Just like any other sport, dancing is very taxing on the body, because of the long hours of training and we are constantly pushing our bodies to achieve more and more every time. Although pushing your body can certainly provide you with results, at the same time it may result in injuries. Therefore it is extremely important to find a balance and identify weaknesses that can be strengthened, enabling you to work harder and push yourself without obtaining injuries.

Often with dances they realise their weaknesses too late, which will result in long term rehabilitation in order to correct these injuries. Therefore it is of vital importance that individuals address their weaknesses before the injuries occur. It is believed that supervised training and focusing on key areas can allow a dancer to build the strength needed and still allow their bodies to recover from a strenuous dance class, without the risk of developing overuse or repetitive injuries. This is done by using different physical activity in order to rest dance-specific muscles which will allow the body to adapt, as it gives the nervous system a rest from the usual dance specific movements.

The use of Biokinetics is a great way to help professional and aspiring dancers to improve fitness, flexibility, and strength and help with injury recovery. That being said, no amount of Biokinetics can replace your dancing classes, the only way to master pirouettes is to practice them. However this needs to be done with the right combination of supervised training, resulting in increases in strength and control, thus your improvements should be progressively more noticeable from class to class setting you apart from the rest.

A Biokineticist can identify weaknesses and risk factors that could result in dance injuries and give you tailor-made physical training as well as education on conditioning principles, which could be applied directly to improve your dance technique. While not being strictly ‘exercise’, if your budget and schedule allows, you’d be good to make time for some additional therapies to improve your body’s recovery such as Sports massage, Yoga and Pilates depending on the specific needs of your body.

Sports massage can help maintain the body in a number of specific ways. General conditioning, preventing injuries and loss of mobility, restore mobility to injured muscle tissue, boost performance and extend the overall life of your sporting career.

Yoga is perfect for building core muscle and general flexibility too. Having to focus on your balance whilst barefoot also helps to awaken and strengthen the intrinsic foot muscles which are so important for strong feet.

Weight training is essential for all dances. For dancing boy a strength training program is beneficial as it helps in preparing for partnering. For ballet girls, you’d need specific advice on weight training, as you want to maintain long, lean muscles and not build bulk like a bodybuilder ,also keeping  in mind there may be some forms of exercise that could be great for you and not-so-great for others.

Finding your personal recipe for dancing success might take some experimental research, but a combination of dancing and other forms of exercise is highly recommended if you want to take your dancing to the next level. 

Melissa Biffi obtained her BCom Sports Management Degree at the University of Johannesburg and completed her Honours in Biokinetics at the University of Witwatersrand.

She has a special interest in dancing and other sports such as soccer and hockey, which lead to her interest in orthopaedic rehabilitation, particularly knee rehabilitation.

Melissa is also very passionate about working with children in specific areas such as rehabilitation and development of individuals from very young ages all the way through to adolescents.

Melissa can be contacted on 082 822 9677 or melissabiffi@kinetics.co.za