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The intention is to create accessory and physiological movement at the ankle
Equipment needed: a semi-circular foam roller or soft balance beam plus a stick for balancing. Dosage: no specific duration, but 10 repetitions should be enough. Special Recommendation: do NOT press so hard that pain is created; move the knee laterally to the ankle.
Purpose:
A whole body movement exploration for pre-training and pre-competition. Description: In standing, flex on hip, grab it and pull it high, maintaining tall posture. Step out into a lunge with the right foot. Grab the right foot by right hand, place the left hand alongside it, shoulder-width apart. On exhalation, lunge further into a stretch. Keep the back knee off the ground. Take the right hand off the foot and twist the trunk towards the front foot, raising the right hand towards the ceiling, reaching vertically. Return to the ground with both hands down, then shift weight backwards to create a stretch on the front leg, then step up to the start position and repeat on the other side. Correcting split squat drills is best done at a subconscious level, since stability is reflex driven, no conscious driven.
The use of a FMT (Functional Movement Tubing) or kettlebell, introduces destabilising force in planes of movement (coronal and transverse) that is perturbing the main plane of movement - sagittal. In the presence of minimum, or improved, mobility, to get into the start and finish position, the FMT creates reactive neuromuscular training to the pattern, improving the pattern for other training events that require power in a split squat, like the Bulgarian Split Squat. Linear and lateral movement drills can be used as knee rehab drills. My athlete is a Shanghai Womens Handball Professional with clinical lateral meniscus lesion of the right knee which did not clearly appear on MRI. The Chinese MRI report included femoral and tibial bone bruising, although I couldn't see it on the MRI, so she's being rehabilitated and treated based on clinical signs and symptoms. (Background song - Art vs Science "Friend in the field" & Ben Harper's "Fight for your mind" - they kind of sum up being a sports physiotherapist in China.
Ankle grab whilst walking is a test of dynamic single leg stance control with contralateral hip extension, knee flexion & tibial rotation. Ideally you'd already clear the ankle mobility, split kneeling hip/core control, hip extension, knee flexion and tibial rotation. Then this drill brings together the whole pattern with ankle & knee stability & motor control.
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