I have recently registered for a professional development workshop that will mean the clinic will be closed this upcoming weekend, the 19-20/3.
The workshop is a Load Management Symposium weekend with some of the leaders in the field from various high-performance sport programs across the country. It will go into the strategies they use to monitor their athlete’s workloads and injury risk. I am hopeful that I will also get some takeaways for additional injury management options back at the clinic.
I am sure there will be some interesting information coming out of the weekend based purely on the pre-reading for it alone, and I am hopeful that time will permit, and I can put together a short blog post with the highlights after the weekend is complete.
After getting back into work at the clinic in South Melbourne and helping some patients out with their final preparations to get their bodies right ahead of the Melbourne Marathon, Hawaii Ironman & Duathlon World Championships in Adelaide. So I thought I would take a brief moment of respite to put together a quick blog recap on my recent tour to Vietnam with the Joey’s.
After getting back from Cambodia with the team the previous month, it was good to get the call up again to join the team once again for the next tour to Vietnam, which was the important one for the year and the one that would set the team up for the next two years and start the boys on the road to the world cup.
The tour started with me, the team doctor and all the players flying into Sydney to meet up before departing the next day for Bangkok to get our connecting flight and meeting the remainder of the staff in Vietnam who had come across from France a couple of days prior where they had been working with the older age group of players. We had the same make-up in the Sports Medicine team as the previous tour to Cambodia with myself, Physiotherapist Deane Stephens from Adelaide and Sports Physician Ross Cairns from Newcastle.
The tournament structure would run slightly differently this time around, with only three games to be played in a one day on one day off format against Guam, Myanmar and then expected to finish with the most challenging match against the home team Vietnam.
The first few days involved some lighter training sessions and mobility work to ensure the boys were all back to normal after the flight over and setting themselves up for some quality training before the games kicked off. Our daily routine before the games started involved wellness monitoring of the players in the morning, breakfast, training, active recovery session’s in the pool at the hotel, lunch, treatment as required, dinner and bed. One of the days also included a double training session day for the players.
After the last tour to Cambodia, which was also the first time many boys travelled internationally, it was pretty impressive for the team to be set up in the Crowne Plaza in West Hanoi. There would be no shortage of options for the boys (or staff) to load up on the carbs with the buffet selection on offer each day.
The team all got through the lead in training relatively well and dominated the first game 14 – 0 against Guam. So it was good for the boys to have an easier game to start with and get some time on the pitch that would be used for the remainder of the games. Luckily, the weather held on for most of the games, so the pitch didn’t get torn up as much as expected.
The routine stayed pretty stock standard between matches, with the only difference being some easier training on the off days, the inclusion of some ice baths for recovery and more treatment time to ensure that all the player’s who played the previous day got some time on the treatment table.
The next game against Myanmar was slightly tougher, with a final score of 3 – 1 with some missed opportunities throughout the game. Nevertheless, it was a good wake up for the team before the last match against Vietnam in 2 days.
In the final game against Vietnam, it was a do or die battle for the win. Get through, and the world cup is still on the cards in 2 years, lose the game and risk missing out on qualifying for the next stage in India via a countback system and have it out of the team’s control. So a win was a must.
The game was intense from the sidelines throughout the game, and I was relieved briefly when we went 1 – 0 up after a header from Mersim Memeti. For the remainder of the game, it was back and forth, and both teams had several opportunities that were missed. Our keeper Jacob Botic made some cracking saves to keep the game in our favour. The pressure was released at the end of the game when the whistle blew, and the scoreline read 1 – 0.
One of the personal highlights for this tour was the Aussie, Aussie, Aussie chants in the change rooms post-game, a great change in emotion post-tournament compared to the 3rd place in Cambodia a month earlier.
There wasn’t too much time for celebration back at the hotel on the Sunday night after our win over Vietnam with a 5:30 am departure from the hotel the following day to start the journey back home to Melbourne.
Overall it was a quality tour to be involved with and a team that I hope to follow as they transition into the senior programs.
In 2015, I have had the opportunity to work with a group of young male road cyclists with strong aspirations to make it in the professional ranks of the UCI World Tour. Pat’s Veg Cycling is a team in the Subaru National Road Series conducted by Cycling Australia. They work to provide a holistic environment by nurturing the foundations of sustainable success. Providing youth cyclists with a holistic development platform that integrates sporting and academic achievement as well as long term wellbeing. So in short the winning is important but it’s not all about the bike. I really enjoy supporting these guys and helping them achieve their athletic goals.
Double victory salute – Athlete and staff!
When I am away with the team my day is full speed from the minute I slip out of bed and until the moment I put my head back on the pillow. My key skill set I bring to the team is my ability to help the athletes prepare and recover during multiple day events. Events may be anything between 3 to 6 days in duration, with some days having two races on a single day. Recovery is the key to our athletes being able to perform at their very best. That means a number of things but principally it involves my managing pre and/or post-race treatment for up to 7 riders each day. Activities covering a wide range of aspects for each individual, including massage treatment, rider weight, hydration and wellbeing monitoring, nutrition and hydration management, plus team logistics.
The team bikes lined up pre race.
Each day commences with weighing our athletes, prior to breakfast, to ensure we are managing their day to day hydration. Hydration during racing is vitally important to ensure muscle systems continue to operate as optimally as possible, but also to ensure our riders are able to maintain full concentration and clear decision making while under the stress of racing. Nutrition is very similar. Ensuring our athletes are eating the right foods at the right time to fuel their bodies appropriately to the day’s races as well as preparing for races in the days to come. Our recovery commences within minutes of our athletes crossing the finish line of each race as the body battles to prepare for another race that day or be ready for another race tomorrow.
Lastly, and as my key skill set, treatment of our athlete’s bodies to recover from that day’s racing. While each of the athletes do spend time on my massage table receiving treatment, I also ensure each athlete preforms foam rolling and stretching to ensure they are ready for the next day’s race. Additionally I ensure each of our athletes spend a period of time relaxing in a pair of compression boots to assist with their recovery.
It is a huge daily effort to get these athletes up to an optimal status for their next race, however that always fades into the background when they perform a personal best or cross the line victorious.
After settling back into work back in Melbourne, I thought I would take the opportunity to put together a quick blog post on my recent trip over to Cambodia for the AFF U/16 Football Tournament with the Joey’s.
Joey’s pre match team photo.
Overall I had a great time on the trip. Although it didn’t all go to plan, it was great to get some behind the scenes exposure into another high-performance program. I always find it interesting to see the different training approaches, methods for monitoring training loads, treatment protocols and group dynamics within the sports medicine team and team in general when working with different high-performance programs.
My role for the trip was to include treatment (with the majority of this being recovery-focused sports massage the day following games), setting up the hydration for training, post-training and recovery needs & helping set up ice baths for the boys.
The first couple of days of the trip was reasonably busy, with the whole team meeting in Sydney on Friday before flying out on Saturday to Ho Chi Minh before getting our connecting flight through to Pnom Penh, Cambodia.
Our first day of training was an eye-opener for everyone with a very interesting first training pitch (our first pitch at the navy base had 4-5 cows at the back of the pitch and had potholes and gravel in patches and was nowhere near the usual standards).
Training at Olympic stadium, Pnom Penh.
The first couple of days were essentially morning weigh-ins and hydration testing, team breakfast, depart for training on the bus, active recovery session at the Olympic pool before heading back to the hotel for lunch. Then treatment’s throughout the afternoon before having tea and then setting up for the next day.
Unfortunately, I went down with some sickness after picking up a nasty infection, most likely from the food, which resulted in the next three days in Pnom Penh hospital. So after three days with some very average memory apart from being spoilt on the hospital food of bacon and eggs, it was back to the rice and chicken at the hotel x 3 meals per day.
One of the few things i remember from the hospital stay. The quality food on offer!
As a result of the hospital admission, it meant that I had missed the first couple of our games. However, once getting the all-clear from our Doc it was good to get back amongst the team and pick up where I had left off before the stint in hospital.
The team was expected to do quite well on this tour. Unfortunately, in the semi’s, we went down to Thailand 3 – 2 after a late attempt to get back from 3 – 0 to get put in the 3rd/4th playoff against Laos. However, the team bounced back strong in the 3rd/4th playoff with a final score of 10 – 2 to pick up the Bronze medal.
The Olympic pool which we utilised for post training and game active recovery sessions.
The final morning before leaving, the boys got some free time at the shop’s to have a look around with their families and pick up some more authentic rolex watches before getting on the bus for departure to the airport and making the journey home via Ho Chi Minh again back into Sydney.
All in all, it was still a great learning experience for me. If I take out the brief hospital stint, I will now go away and have some time to work out better tactics for the sports medicine team evening up and down the river card game championships, so I don’t disgrace myself as much next time!
I wanted to put together a quick blog post after conducting some running analysis sessions at the start of April with some SportsMyo patients and talk about some of the common findings as well as the strategies that we have used following the analysis sessions to try to correct any biomechanical faults that we picked up.
I will focus on the 3 most common area’s that my patient’s showed area’s of sub optimal function and the area’s that we have now targeted going forward.
1. Cadence
Cadence or leg turnover, in general, was slightly below what is considered optimal. In saying this, it was a broad spectrum, with some patient’s being at the lower end of this spectrum and other’s being close to the ideal. When taking into consideration the running pace that we undertook the video analysis at (the speed was what the runner would do the majority of their weekly mileage at), about 1/3 of the patients left with this as a key area of focus to work on in their training. Increasing cadence will generally allow the runner to decrease the impact forces and, as a result, will enable the athlete to handle their current training load with more ease, as with any training change. However, there will still be an adaptation phase where the athlete will have to adjust to the new stimulus on their musculoskeletal system.
When making the change to a higher cadence, start with a gradual change and progressively increase from there. It is important to monitor your speed when playing around with your cadence, as commonly when an athlete attempts to increase their cadence, they will just run faster instead of increasing their leg turnover. So initially, the goal is just to increase the cadence while maintaining the same training speed. Focussing on your cadence on easier training day’s is recommended as a starting point. It is possible to get different metronome devices to help you gauge your cadence while running. However, this wouldn’t usually be needed, and just focussing on a slight increase in your typical cadence will be enough initially.
2. Hip stability
About half of the patients who undertook the running analysis session, whether on the treadmill or outdoors, showed poor hip stability. Once again, there were various degrees of this. To some extent, this was an expected finding of the gait analysis prior to the testing as it is very common for all sorts of different athletes and the general public to have poor hip stability.
Essentially, the testing showed us that when the runners were landing, they found it very difficult to keep a ‘neutral’ pelvis. They would ‘collapse’ onto the hip on that side when landing. This has the potential to lead to different lower limb problems in the future at the hip, knee, ankle and occasionally through the lower back.
As well as setting the individual up for different lower limb pathologies and biomechanical overload, it would be common sense to think that this also would be a less than efficient way for the human body to move.
Three images highlighting likely weakness through the left Glute Medius. As the body weight is transferred onto the left leg, the pelvis progressively drops towards the right indicating weakness.
For these patients, a strengthening program was given with specific exercises depending on what their gait analysis and assessment were showing us. In general, we used quite a lot of Glute focussed exercises primarily aimed at helping the patient build more strength in the landing position. Hence, they are better able to handle the landing forces of running. Some patients were very weak in this area. Therefore, we had to start the exercises at a very basic level. Others were able to go straight into some single leg work using additional resistance bands to encourage further muscle activation and resistance.
3. Hip extension
A limited hip extension was the last area that some patients are now focusing on due to their running analysis session. Again, this was more common to those patient’s that were triathletes or had desk-bound jobs during the day. Both of these activities require a large amount of time with the hip flexors in a shortened position. As a result, they don’t tend to like being lengthened as much and can adapt to that shortened position.
We have tackled this with Myotherapy treatment at the clinic at SportsMyo and focussed on stretching of the hip flexors as well as providing hands-on treatment techniques and dry needling when it has been indicated and followed this up with take home stretches aimed at both the Illiopsoas and Rectus Femoris the two main hip flexor muscles that will be in a shortened position in this case.
Craig Alexander demonstrating good hip extension after coming off the bike at the 2015 Geelong 70.3
To summarise, the majority of patients that have attended a running analysis session have gone away with something to focus on with their body that should now allow them to adapt to their training loads easier. However, there was a couple of patients that were very good from a biomechanical perspective. They will now go away and focus on the structure of their training plans with their coach or work out a recovery plan around their training and racing schedule with me at the clinic in the lead into their next lot of racing/competition.
A real highlight for some of these patients was the ability to get the feedback and actually see on the video footage what was actually happening with their body while they were running and under stress.
A real highlight for some of these patients was getting the feedback and seeing on the video footage what was happening with their bodies while they were running and under stress.
If you are experiencing pain, coming back from an injury or looking to have your running technique analysed and given direction as to what you need going forward, then feel free to book online here or get in contact at toby@sportsmyo.com.au to discuss your needs.
We now have an online booking system available at the clinic.
We hope that you find this a helpful way to make future appointments at the clinic. We have made this option available as it has become increasingly challenging to respond to appointment inquiries in a timely manner, with it being a busy time of year at the clinic.
You are more than welcome to book your appointment’s as you have previously via phone or email, and this is just an addition to the current booking process.
For online bookings, please go to the following link.
If you have any questions, then please feel free to get in contact.
Now that I am back in Melbourne and have had a chance to defrost, I thought I would take the time to write a wrap-up of my last week in Germany.
The last week had a bit more happening than the first two weeks, with a few more athletes arriving in Cologne. So I was now working with a good spread of athletes, including 110m hurdles, 200m, 400m, 800m, 1500m, long jump, triple jump, and pole vault.
The good thing with working with these athletes is how well they know the ins and outs of their bodies and what is required for them to continue pushing their bodies to the limit and ensure continuous improvement.
At this level of sport, it does not take much for someone to overdo it or under recover and be in trouble.
For full-time elite athletes, the following list is a brief insight into just a couple of the things they do weekly to recover from training and competition and remain injury-free and on track.
Manual therapy (e.g. Myotherapy, Physio, Sports Massage) 2-3 x week.
Ice baths – after most track sessions
Self-treatment – (e.g. Foam roller, self trigger point work or using other treatment tools)
Active recovery – additional low-intensity sessions in the afternoon with the focus of assisting the body to recover.
The above recovery strategies are typical for most athletes at an elite level; however, these athletes tend to use the ice baths more than athletes like road cyclists at the elite level who might do more active recovery following long stages on tour.
I managed to get out and see most of the local tourist sites on a couple of the mornings in the last week, which was good, so I definitely felt like I was starting to know my way around the place by the time I left.
Looking back on the three weeks away now and trying to think of the trip’s highlights, it is a little hard to pinpoint it to one specific event or day as the whole lot was an enjoyable experience. I was fortunate enough to work with some great athletes and coaches that I will be taking a lot from and implementing at the clinic at SportsMyo now that I am back. Still, I think watching Jeff Riseley take a new Australian record while racing in the Czech Republic while I was eating tea with his coach and training partners was up the top of the list. His time over the 1km was 2.16.09!!!
Hopefully, there could be another Australian record on the cards in the coming month from the Cologne group, with Alex Rowe going close overnight in Belgium missing out by .34 of a second in the 800m but recording a cracking PB and getting closer to the current record set at the 1968 Olympics!
It is good to be back home now, apart from the weather, which has been pure filth. Still, I am looking forward to the upcoming month getting back into it at the clinic again. A full month of action-packed sports viewing with the world cup final, Tour de France and then seeing some cracking performances from the Cologne crew in Glasgow at the Commonwealth Games!
I thought I would take some time out and do up a quick blog post about my work trip to Cologne with the Australia Athletics team to date.
I am at the end of my second week here now and feel the last week will go very quickly. However, I think the workload will ramp up a bit more as a few of the athletes here will be upping their training loads as they go through some high volume weeks and need additional soft tissue management, and the number of athletes is due to increase.
The first two weeks had gone relatively smoothly with a slowish start with only a couple of athletes here when I arrived and gradually building by the end of the first week. I mostly treated runners during the first week ranging from specialists in the 400m up to the 1500m. I always enjoy learning on the job. The different training backgrounds and rehab protocols from previous injuries etc., that these athletes have completed made for some good conversation in the treatment room (or hotel room in this case). I will definitely be heading home with some new corrective exercise progressions to implement at the clinic with my patients.
The treatments haven’t varied too much from the typical treatment sessions back home at the clinic at SportsMyo, but I would have to say that there has been a bit more focussed work on treatment through the abdominals and obliques than usual. This is because these muscles play such a huge role for the runners while stabilising their torso when running at speed and can cop a beating at the track, so management and controlling the muscle tone through this area is critical in preventing a couple of running specific injuries.
I have also managed to get out and look around the town here in Cologne on a few different morning’s. There are some very impressive buildings around, including the main cathedral in the city ‘The Dom’, which stands out from a long way away. I am yet to have a look inside, but I will definitely try to get back and have a look inside before I leave next Sunday. I also had the opportunity to have a short river cruise down the Rhine river and look through the Ludwig museum and Olympic museum. I have also been over the track for a few training sessions, seeing what the athletes are putting themselves through.
The second week was good, with a few more athletes and their coaches arriving in town. Mostly jumpers, so good to get some different body types and issues to work with on the treatment table. The good thing about working within athletics is that you get so many different sports within the ‘athletics’ umbrella and many different personalities. Most of the athletes will train in the morning’s at the local university nearby, so the treatments will usually start around 12ish and go through till dinner.
The soccer world cup is huge over here, so I managed to head into town last night with the rest of the Aussie’s to check out the 2nd Germany game. There was people everywhere and plenty of atmosphere. With most athletes completing training sessions the following day, we headed back to the hotel to watch the second half from the lobby downstairs. It was a crazy second half, with the game ending 2 – 2. Hopefully, not too booked up tomorrow night so we can watch the Aus vs Spain match.
For my last week here, I will be primarily treating from the hotel room and, hopefully, get out a couple of mornings where I can have a bit more of a look around at the remainder of the tourist sites and try to get to a few more training sessions.
I will leave my next post for once I touch back down in Australia.
I caught up with Jody Gilchrist after her PB performance at Ironman Melbourne recently.
First of all, Jody, I’d like to say well done on such a cracking race and qualifying for the 2nd time in 2 years for the World Championships in Kona in October (in the 50-54 year age group). You must be ecstatic?
Thank you. Ecstatic for sure, but mostly relieved. This preparation started 16 months ago under the guidance of Xavier Coppock of TEAM Tri Coaching and it has been quite a roller coaster ride of emotions. After my surprise qualification last year in Cairns I really felt the weight of expectation to back it up here in Melbourne.
What did you expect going into the race at Melbourne? Did you feel like you had such a strong performance in you in the lead-up to the event?
My expectation was to have the race we had worked hard for and hopefully I would qualify for Kona again. About 2 weeks before race day Coach Xavier gave me my race plan which always includes splits. The goal for the day was 10 hours 30 minutes (Swim 1:15/Bike 5:30/Run 3:40). He knows my capability better than anybody (including myself). I really wanted these times but to achieve this it would be 30 minutes faster than I have ever gone. And hopefully quick enough on the day to qualify. I had a lead in race at Auckland 70.3 late January which I did 5.25 with a puncture. This was a PB so I knew I was in good shape and if everything went to plan it was possible. I did 10:33 (Swim 1:09/Bike 5:29/ Run 3:45) I need to work on my transitions!
What were the main changes you made in training this time around that you felt paid off come race day?
I have always been a consistent trainer so I knew I had to make small changes to many things to get a faster time. As the cliché goes it’s the 1% improvements that equal success.
1. My swim is my weakness and I had fallen into the classic Ironman mindset of it’s the smallest part of the race just get through it so you can get on the bike and start racing. I had one on one sessions with Team Tri Coaching’s swim guru Michael Harvey. I have a habit of over thinking so he had me concentrating weekly on just 1-2 small changes. This way I could focus on them for the week and make them a habit. And it worked, 6 min pb swim and out of the water in 6th place in my age group.
2. My bike has gradually been improving and as you know quality time in the saddle is key. This preparation Xavier had me doing a lot more cycling and it was paid back to me on race day with a 23 min improvement. I also got off the roadie and onto a TT bike 6 weeks before race day.
3. Preventative treatments also played a very important role. I embarked on weekly Myotherapy treatments with yourself. I also included Pilates once a week and a couple of daily strength exercises for my calf’s and hamstring’s.
Now you had a calf strain take you out of racing to the line at Kona (the world champs) last year, and this year have recovered well to handle such a high training load. Do you think this is because of some tweaks to your training schedule or more preventative treatment or a combination of all of the above?
Definitely all of the above. The weekly treatments from you kept the niggles under control and injuries at bay. Running has always been my strength so Xavier and I didn’t want it compromised again. My Sports Doctor had me on a greatly reduced running program that took me 4 weeks to get to 20 minutes of running continuously. No double run days, never 2 days in a row, no hills, no speed work and plenty of deep water running. This took a lot of discipline and faith but guaranteed me getting to the start line in one piece and able to race. Xavier embraced the changes and my double run days turned into double ride days.
Now that you are done with Melbourne Ironman and have until October for the World Champs, what will be your focus for the next couple of months?
I will have a few weeks off to let the mind and body recover. A holiday with my partner then start the Kona campaign in earnest. The body maintenance will continue, so save me a spot on the massage table each week, please. I’m also really excited to be part of TEAM Tri Coaching and about to embark on a Coaching role. I have learnt so much from Xavier, Michael and Justin and can’t wait to share that and my own experience and knowledge to the next generation of triathletes.
Thanks for catching up with me for a quick chat post-Ironman. I look forward to hearing more of your journey leading into the big one in October, which I’m sure will be a completely different race for you this year.
Thanks again Toby. Look forward to seeing you weekly and keeping me in tip top shape.
For those of you wanting to follow Jody’s progress in her training and lead up to the world championships, feel free to follow her on Twitter @gilly30jan
