South Downs Osteopathy

It's the Brighton Half Marathon this weekend, Sunday 22nd February, and the Brighton Marathon is not far behind, on Sunday 16th April. So, for the current issue of Inside Magazine, my health column looks at how a strong, flexible back is crucial for an efficient running style and give some tips on improving low back flexibility.

You can read the article in the embedded copy of the magazine below, via the Inside Magazine website or you can pick up a copy at various outlets throughout Brighton, Hove and Worthing.

Want some tips on leg stretches to combat those post-run aches? Read my previous blog post, which offers advice on combating stiff, achy legs.

The April/May 2013 issue of the excellent Inside Magazine is available now for free, throughout Brighton and Hove.

In this issue I address a question about stretching, from someone training for the Brighton Marathon on Sunday 14th April. If you are training for the marathon, or a keen runner generally, it is likely you already have your own stretching regime to maintain flexibility and combat those post-training muscle aches. But do you know the secret to performing those stretches effectively? Why not pick up a copy of Inside Magazine and check out my article on page 30? Alternatively, you can view an online version on the Inside Magazine website or via the embedded copy, below.

Back in December I posted a link to my article in Inside Brighton & Hove Magazine that gave some hints on some simple changes we can make to increase our daily activity. For those of you who have found this achievable and would like to push yourselves a little further, NHS Choices have a series of podcasts on iTunes that get you from couch potato to 5k runner in just 9 weeks.

Here's what NHS Choices have to say about their running plan, "NHS Couch to 5K":

If you are not used to exercising regularly, you might feel you have achy muscles a day or two after training, usually in the thighs, calves and shins; these are normal and should soon ease off as your body gets used to the activity. Listen to your body - if you have any pains that do not feel like the normal ache of exercised muscles, speak to a doctor or osteopath for advice or further investigation.

If you complete the 5k challenge and decide you want to pursue improving your fitness further, you might want to consider consulting a personal trainer for a personalised fitness plan. For Brighton & Hove residents, I highly recommend Tegan Simmonds of FitAz Personal Training.

You can call Tegan on 07786 546063 or email tegan.simmonds@fitaz.co.uk for further information.

It has been a great pleasure to contribute to the last couple of issues of Inside Brighton & Hove Magazine. Following my editorial feature in the August/September issue, I was asked to write a "Health and Wellbeing" column for the October/November issue, which is hopefully going to be a regular feature of the magazine.

The first article (on page 26) is a guide to setting up your bicycle to optimise the power with which your legs can drive the pedals, as well as reducing any discomfort you may be feeling during or after cycling. I am already working on ideas for the next issue but please do contact me via my website or leave a comment at the end of this post if there are any specific health issues or questions that you would like me to address. I'd like the column to be as relevant as possible to regular readers of the magazine!

If you haven't already checked out this great little magazine, grab yourself a free copy or view it online now! Inside Brighton and Hove is available for free at locations throughout the city. You can read an electronic version of the latest issue via the magazine's website or via the embedded version below. 

This time last week I was sat in a seminar at City College Brighton, hearing a very experienced physiotherapist (Barry Spencer) extolling the virtues of kinesiology tape (the RockTape brand) in reducing pain and swelling, normalising muscle tone and activation, improving recovery rates and controlling posture.

We spent a good amount of time going over the theory behind kinesiology taping, its application and how it differs from conventional taping. It certainly made a lot of sense. To summarise in very basic terms, by applying the tape in various configurations over specific muscles, joints or kinetic chains (groups of muscles linked by a connective covering called fascia) you can provide varying degrees of support or restoration of normal function while allowing the body to still move through it's normal ranges of motion; furthermore pain and swelling can be reduced by the lifting effect the tape exerts on the skin, pulling it away from the underlying tissues and easing congestion. It can even be used to support physical changes during pregnancy.

The theory is all well and good but does it work in practice? I was selected as the guinea pig for a demonstration of restoring kinetic chain function. A good way to assess this is to get the subject doing squats and to carefully observe for asymmetry or compensatory movements when completing the squat. Barry quickly noted that my right leg and foot tended to roll in slightly as I went down into the squat: this was a result of altered ankle proprioception (the brain's awareness of where the body is in space, relative to its other parts - an example of this is the ability to touch the tips of your index fingers together when your eyes are closed) following a bad sprain 15 years ago. Barry applied RockTape to the sole of my foot, up around the outside of my ankle, calf and thigh, and all the way up to just below my armpit. I was then asked to repeat the squat and, amazingly, there was an obvious improvement in function despite the age of my injury!

This principle of restoring/improving kinetic chain function is described as power taping and is becoming more and more popular with athletes and keen sportspeople - you may have seen a few tennis players with bright strips of tape on their arms or legs, without any obvious sign of injury, during Wimbledon recently. However, kinesiology tape can also be used for injury rehabilitation and reduction of pain and swelling. I didn't have any current injuries to test the tape on but I did happen to have a very tight muscle in my lower back so thought I would see if RockTape could ease this. A combination of support and decompression application techniques were used and the area instantly felt "lighter" as the tape gently lifted my skin away from the tight muscle. I imagine for a genuine muscle strain or joint sprain it would have felt far more beneficial but it took a bit of good old-fashioned deep massage from one of the other delegates to relax the muscle. I am trialling RockTape as an aid to reducing pain and swelling on selected patients in my clinic so will hopefully have a more informed opinion on this soon.

Another application that I was keen to try was taping for posture control. I'm fairly tall so it's not uncommon for me to stoop when interacting with people - I can really get into the habit of slouching my back and rolling my shoulders forward. I know that repeatedly adopting this posture will eventually lead to backache but it's surprisingly hard to break a habit and I rarely even realise I'm doing it. Some wider sections of RockTape across my upper back, designed to be neutral and barely noticeable when standing properly, but to become taut when I slouched, soon made me realise when my posture was becoming lazy and encouraged me to keep myself more upright. The tape doesn't actually hold you upright or correct your posture for you - it still allowed me to bend fully forward without limitation or painful pulling on the skin, which meant I could comfortably wear it whilst working.

RockTape say that their kinesiology tape is set apart from other brands in terms of the quality of the adhesive as well as the fabric tape itself. The adhesive is latex-free so is less likely to cause skin reactions, it is also heat-activated, meaning it can be applied loosely at its anchor point and be repositioned if necessary before applying the rest of the tape. It also means it sticks really well to skin after a few minutes of exposure to body heat (it is claimed to stick better and longer than other brands, lasting up to 5 to 7 days). And, for the fashion-conscious, it is available in a variety of colours and designs. 

It's a week later, so how was it wearing the RockTape during my everyday activities? Let's start with the posture control taping. For the first 4 days, I barely noticed it was there unless I was slouching, when the gentle pull on my skin reminded me to stand up straight. By day 5 I think the adhesive may have been starting to fail slightly and was causing a sharper pulling sensation in places, a bit like when you slowly remove a sticking plaster. By the evening of day 6 I decided to remove it as it was coming away at the edges and I was becoming more and more aware of having something stuck to my skin. It was actually still stuck pretty firmly in most places, leading to a small amount of discomfort when removing but nothing that would put me off using it again. The power taping down my side lasted less well. After a few hours of playing tennis (and sweating profusely) it had peeled away from my foot, although it was still well stuck above the ankle. RockTape sell an extra-sticky "H2O" tape, designed for use in water, so I might try that if I repeat that application in future!

I've not tried other brands of kinesiology tape to see how they compare on quality, comfort or price but I imagine they all work on the same basic principles.

At this current time, although I'm now a certified RockDoc I'm not planning to offer a stand-alone kinesiology taping service, largely because I think that if someone has an injury or dysfunction that would benefit from taping, they would most definitely benefit from an osteopathic assessment first and maybe have taping as part of their overall treatment. I will be supplying tape for my patients to purchase and will set time aside for applying the tape at the end of their appointment if necessary.

If you live in the Brighton and Hove area and are suffering from muscle/joint pain, injury or postural problems, why not contact me for a consultation or to discuss how osteopathy could help you; if you're keen to try out kinesiology tape we can incorporate this into your management plan.

South downs Osteopathy will be waiting at the finish of the Martlets Midnight walk on Friday 15th June, ready to treat the dedicated women who have signed up to take part.

The Midnight Walk will be the Martlets' biggest fundraising night out of the year. Martlets Hospice relies on fundraising to provide its services; the target for this year's walk is to raise £120,000 which will go directly to fund their patient and family support team.

There is a 6-mile and 13-mile walk to choose from, so women of a range of abilities and fitness levels can take part. Since The Martlets' first midnight walk over 4,000 women have taken part to show their support for those amongst us who need the care offered by the Hospice. Between them they have raised over three quarters of a million pounds! If you are interested in joining in, visit the Midnight Walk web page or Facebook page for more information. You still have until Friday 8th June to register!

I will be onsite at the start/finish area at Brighton Racecourse, ready to provide free treatment anyone in discomfort after the walk, whether it's a stiff back, achy muscles, sore knees or painful feet - just look out for the man in the "South Downs Osteopathy" T-shirt!

Good luck to everyone taking part!

Here's a link to an interview on the Time Smart Cycling blog providing some top nutritional tips for improving cycling performance. The interviewee, Nathalie Patey of New Leaf Nutrition, is based in Hove and is part of our network of recommended practitioners. 

http://www.project4cycling.com/2012/05/interview-nathalie-patey-new-leaf.html