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Archive for August, 2010

Why Did You Hit My Leg?

August 18th, 2010 by David Hawkins

Calf (Gastroc/Soleus) muscle strains and Achilles tears can be devastating, leading to surgery and months of rehabilitation. It certainly can put the brakes on any active lifestyle. Many patients that I have seen with this injury describe it as feeling like someone hit them in the back of the leg. My brother tore his achilles while playing a game of  football. He was playing receiver and went to push off at the sound of the snap.  Suddenly, he felt like the football hit him in the back of the leg. He looked up to see why the QB had thrown the ball, maybe as a joke, and found the QB dropping back to pass with the ball still in hand. After surgery and months of recovery he was able to get back to playing sports and his active lifestyle. The recovery from an Achilles tear is not an easy road, so try this little activity to help prevent minor aches and pains from becoming months of recovery. Take a look:

Try doing this while you are watching TV and make your TV time a productive time. Take active control of your health today! Good luck on your journey to “Health Freedom”.

P.S. Feel Free to share this information with your friends and family that you think it might help and definitely leave comments if you find this information helpful. Thanks!

Do My Hamstrings Make Me Look Tight?

August 16th, 2010 by David Hawkins

Just wanted to share a short video on how to use the foam roller to loosen up tight hamstrings. Your hamstrings attach to the bottom of your pelvis. So tightness in the hamstrings can lead to a posterior rotation or pulling on the pelvis and put undue strain on the back, setting you up for injury in the future.

Many people have worked on hamstring stretching only to become discourage when they don’t immediately become more flexible. I have certainly been there. It is important to make hamstring stretching a part of your exercise routine particularly if you sit at a desk for any length of time throughout the day. Consistency in your stretch will definitely lead to benefits over a period of time.

If you have been stretching and aren’t making progress or if you are just starting out, you may want to add a foam roller to your routine. Using the foam roller can help work out some of the muscle spasms that can keep you from improving your flexibility. Use this technique as part of your stretch routine and you will find your flexibility increasing much faster than by just stretching alone. Take a look:

Improving hamstring flexibility is essential to helping prevent low back problems in the future and using the foam roller is a great tool to assist you in that goal.

Thanks for watching,

P.S. Stay tuned for more ways to use the foam roller to help prevent injury.

P.S.S. Please feel free to share this information with your friends and family to help them on their journey to “Health Freedom”