Metcon Magazine Preview - 5 Joint Restrictions Jun. 2016 | Page 4

5 Joint Restrictions HINDERING Your FUNCTIONAL TRAINING By Jeremy McCann I n exercise and sports science, achieving triple extension has been the goal of many common athletic movements. Triple extension is a position in which the ankle, knee, and hip are extended. In functional fitness programming, there is revolution in the way coaches and trainers look at movement. Most function- Big Toe Lack of extension in the big toe prevents our foot from creating an arch when our heel hits the ground. This is referred to as the windlass mechanism. As the heel strikes the ground during gait, our foot rolls into pronation (collapse of the arch). The contact “ “ The sport of fitness is incredibly dynamic and requires explosiveness, coordination, flexibility, and stamina. Often overlooked is the importance of maintaining a center of mass. al exercises and workouts emphasize what I call global quadruple extension. This means the athlete extends the foot/ankle, knee, hip, and the thoracic spine. The inability to get to this position results in poor performance and pain. The following is a list of joints that I find are routinely restricted and prevent athletes from moving efficiently into this globally extended position. Keep in mind that dysfunction at one joint leads to dysfunction throughout the entire body. 4 METCON | June 2016 of our toe with the ground slows pronation and pulls on the plantar fascia to form the arch of the foot. The inability to slow pronation leads the athlete to overpronation, or pushing off almost completely from the big and second toes. This forces compensation from other joints to slow the knee as weight is transferred. How this impacts an athlete’s performance: Many functional workouts have exercises that involve transferring weight from