Prehab with Chris Stirling

As triathletes we all love training, the longer and harder the session, the better. Triple workout days, bricks, max effort time trials and the list could go on. I certainly enjoy my hardest sessions the most and always look forward to pushing the boundaries in training.

But what about stretching, strength and conditioning, prehab/rehab and recovery?? Not so exciting?? Boring?? Struggle to find the time?? Me too! However…

The bottom line is that without it, all those hard sessions will not mean a thing if we become injured, struggle with niggles and fail to make the start line of our A races. Having experienced this in the past and looking at it in this way it seems a little less boring to me.

If my body is functioning correctly, moving freely, strong and balanced all those tough training sessions are so much more effective. There is no better feeling than standing on the start line with confidence in this. The more mobile you are the more power and speed you can generate efficiently. Interested?? Read on.

Here a few things I do and I have definatly found to be very effective. Any amount of time spent on this stuff is never wasted, make time for it. 10 minutes a day is better than none. Be consistent, get into a routine and visualise the benefits.

Stretching

After sessions I always spend 10-20mins stretching the main muscle groups I have been using. Keep it simple, I have 5 stretches I use for the lower body including the back and 5 for the upper body, they are easy to do anywhere and some even involve lying down. There are loads of stretches on YouTube, but here are a few I find really effective-

The Couch stretch

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JawPBvtf7Qs

4 Point ITB stretch

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0e8FPL787E

10-15secs is enough for maintenance, 30secs will improve flexibility.

The Foam Roller

For me this simple bit of kit has been a revelation. I now have 3 rollers, a golf, tennis, hurling ball and a mini rolling pin! The idea is MyoFascial release or unsticking and freeing up the fascia between the skin and muscle to increase and maintain mobility. Other benefits include increasing blood flow to the area, flushing out and promoting recovery. Best thing is it’s all done lying down, you can watch tv, talk to your partner and once perfected you can even drink a cup of tea. It can be a little uncomfortable to start with but should never hurt. Work on key muscle areas as with stretching.

Try -

Hard race? To promote recovery after a race, use a soft foam roller, lightly roll calf’s, hamstring, glutes, quads, lower and upper back. Keep the pressure very light, working towards the feet. 10-15 rolls per group is all that’s needed. This helps increase blood flow to the area, flushing out the toxins built up through racing.

Tight spot? If you have a tight spot (calves are often a culprit for me), Take the roller and start to lightly roll around the tight area, gradually increasing the pressure. Once warmed up, roll over the tight spot, gradually working deeper and increasing the pressure. When you have located the tight spot (you will feel it!), apply a constant downwards pressure. I sometimes find a little side to side movement over the area can be very effective at this point. Repeat the process a couple of times. Sometimes you will feel it instantly releasing, but the benefits keep going for a few hours after.

Check out this guy’s site, Kelly Starrat, a living legend, king of the foam roller and gold dust if you want to be more mobile, flexible and injury free

http://www.youtube.com/user/sanfranciscocrossfit

Since really deciding to invest more time on these two key areas, I have been niggle free, recovered quicker and am seeing and feeling the benefits of this in my training and racing. Remember that without it it’s probably only a matter of time till the next missed session, niggle or worse still injury. Make some time, become more mobile, faster, stronger and stand on that start line with full confidence! Train smart.