One of the frustrating elements of
coaching for me is the lack of interest by athletes and other coaches in the seemingly “simple”
factors that are critical to athletic (and life-skills performance)
performance; such as SLEEP AND POSTURE.
Whether I am voicing the importance of
SLEEP or POSTURE to athletes I work with or posting it on my blog, it seems to
evoke little or no motivation to seriously adopt a proper approach for positive
changes to Sleep or Posture behavior.
This raises multiple questions. If a
person was made aware that the tires on their car were “out of balance” would
they allow them to remain that way and risk damage to the tires well before the
expiration of their mileage guarantee? If so, would they make sure to keep
their new “replacement” tires in proper balance to prevent the new tires from
early damage?
I thought that perhaps reading actual statements from World Renowned
Coaches and Experts in Sport Performance might go a long way towards pointing
out the IMPORTANCE OF POSTURE in the development of athletes IN ALL SPORTS.
One of the biggest misconceptions I have found, and still find, is the notion that core strength involves the
development of “six-pack abs”. I want to emphasize that true CORE
STRENGTH development for athletic performance
skills involves movements in a mix of
all three planes that “specifically” strengthen the muscles that stabilize the
pelvis, the shoulder girdle and all areas in-between the two. Rotation,
flexion, extention and combinations of all three NEED to be emphasized .
BUT POSTURAL INTEGRITY throughout all life activities during the day MUST
BE DEVELOPED in order to successfully develop the postural strength necessary
to prevent injuries in and out of athletics. Postural strength is best
developed through sound education in the home, at school and in athletic
practice sessions. It is a 24/7 endeavor.
First, I will refer you to a section of
the highly acclaimed Sports Performance book by Dan Lewindon and David Joyce in
regards to POSTURE and it’s importance to successful movement performance for
all sport activities through POSTURAL/ CORE STRENGTH.
>>>>>>>>>
“High Performance Training For Sports”; Chap. 4;
Stabilizing and Strengthening the Core/ A. Barr & D. Lewindon
The core needs to provide the dose-appropriate
platform to stabilize and modulate POSTURE in LOW AND HIGH LOAD
situations to allow force to be delivered efficiently by the upper and lower
limbs.
It is common for athletes with and
without a history of back pain to have a POOR AWARENESS of good posture.
An athlete’s ability to maintain the neutral
zone when the system is challenged is an indication of the athlete’s level
of stability and control. If the spine cannot be kept in the neutral
zone when challenged at either end of the load spectrum, this INDICATES a lack
of control.
It is crucial that postural awareness is
targeted and reinforced in all assessment and training drills to optimize
sensory input in the system and minimize unwanted stresses. Often termed the
NEUTRAL ZONE, good posture can be found in the lumbar spine simply by maximally
extending and flexing the lumbar spine until the MIDPOINT is found. This point,
where a gentle curve of the lower back exists is termed Neutral.
*Having correct posture and habitual
movement awareness in all activities may provide the greatest protection
against injury.
All strength and conditioning programs
present opportunities to groove optimal neuromuscular patterns under influence
of fatigue and external load to ensure maximal efficiency is achieved and
maintained. One of the primary roles of the spine is to create a stable
platform to enable maximal force production. Therefore, CORRECT POSTURE should
be reinforced in ALL LIFTING AND ATHLETIC MOVEMENTS.
Educating athletes regarding the importance
of optimizing posture and movement awareness throughout their daily life
IS THE BEST guarantee that this awareness will transfer into the athletic
practice and weight training environments.
If the athlete spends the majority of
his/her day engaged in activities with poor posture it is unlikely that 1-2
hours of sport activity or training will be done with correct posture.
Practicing correct posture throughout the daily activities CAN BE a
meaningful addition to the athlete’s training without increasing athletic
activity volume or load.
____________THE
STATEMENTS FROM SELECTED EXPERTS IN THE COACHING WORLD ARE MEANT TO PROVIDE PRACTICAL INFORMATION ON
THE “IMPORTANCE OF POSTURE” TO VARIOUS ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE
SKILLS>>>>>
Noted Jumps/Sprint Coach> B. Schexnayder
“The body is connected throughout and
this informs all we do.”
“Maintaining postural integrity is key
in all exercises.”
“The key is defining posture. It really
IS plural, POSTURES are necessary to produce and reduce forces”.
Elite Coach of World Class T&F Athletes >D. Pfaff
“Proper mechanics must be
constantly reinforced—poor mechanics is a primary injury contributor.”
“Proper movement and
lifestyle factors all work together to better the health of the athlete.”
"Simple posture
analysis can be a highly effective method to determine rest intervals"
“This generation can
struggle w/reporting on their body awareness and feeling relative to movement
performance.”
“We demand high accountablity and awareness of
the arms—they talk directly to the legs in sprinting.”
“If posture breaks and the head to heel
vector is not aligned then excessive rotation is inevitable.”
Renowned Experts in Sport
Mechanics, Strength/Power/Speed & Therapy
“Proper
posture allows us to better take advantage of reflexive processes already
ingrained in the nervous system.” --Dr. G.Ramogida
“The first and most important aspect of
speed is posture.”—Tom Tellez
“Good technique increases likelihood of
a positive transfer of training.”
Dr. Michael Stone
World Renowned Biomechanics/Sprinting Expert---Frans
Bosch
#1 of four key elements needed to
develop elastic strength in sprinters and jumpers IS MAINTENANCE
OF AN ERECT POSTURE at moment of
ground contact at jump or maximum velocity zone in sprinting.
“Key Mechanical areas of observation all
start with Posture—1) Pelvic Orientation both Horizontally and Vertically, 2)
Overall Posture, 3) Ankle Dorsiflexion, 4) Tibial Position, 5) Knee Drive
(position), 6) Thoracolumbar Junction and counter rotation, 7) Scapular Girdle
/ Upper Extremities and their relationship to the Hips/Pelvis.
Benefits of correct mechanics relate to
anatomy…Body is in a position to produce large amounts of force in addition to
accepting, absorbing and returning elastic energy.
Alignment is optimal allowing for
stresses to be dissipated throughout the body.
Good mechanics allow joints to manage
stresses in their neutral position. Greater mechanical and biochemical
efficiency are keys to reducing the energetic demands on the body systems which
allows for greater power output without rise in energy demands, which means
increases in work without increases in energy demand. “
Author:“Applied Sprint Training”, World Renowned Coach>James Smith
The athlete should always make a point
to maintain the anatomical position of the spine regardless of where they are
in a sprint (starting, acceleration, transition, upright..). Extending the neck
to look forward will prematurely cause the athlete to become upright; thereby
diminishing acceleration.
The position/ angle of the back, in
relation to the ground, is what must dictate head/neck position; not the other
way around. Thus, regardless if the athlete is taking off, accelerating, or in
the upright position the position of the head/ neck must be consistent with
the position of the back throughout.
It should be apparent that Posture is ESSENTIAL to
primary athletic skills such as sprinting, jumping, stopping, cutting,
resisting, etc. It should also be more evident that Posture Awareness
throughout the daily activities of athletes is vital to successful development
of Postural Integrity necessary to prevent many overuse injuries; such as
carpal tunnel syndrome, neck and low back pain and shoulder joint pain.
Keep in mind that Postural Integrity can only be
developed through postural control that develops the ability to stack the
joints (knee over foot, hip over knee,, level & stable pelvis over hip) so
as to prevent imbalances in knee, hip or ankle force application or absorption
that can cause muscular imbalances, compensations or tightness of
connective tissues which invariably end up causing pain and/or injury.
In my next post I will outline some very simple
activities that can be used to develop correct postural integrity, in
conjunction with specific sport movement-skill development.
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