Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 112, November 2018 | Page 35

COACHING
BODY SCIENCE
Problem
in the
Pelvis
You may not even be aware that you have a lateral pelvic
drop, but it may be the cause of your recurring injury
problems. – BY ERNEST HOBBES
O
veruse injuries plague many runners, with up to half of all dedicated
runners experiencing an injury each year. With previous injury being the
greatest risk factor for future injury, runners are often forced to drastically
reduce or stop training all together due to injury recurrence. Thus in previous
publications I have discussed various faults in running technique that may result
in injury, and pointed out that no single issue is always responsible for any
particular injury. In other words, knee injuries do not necessarily arise from knee
complications. Instead, various mechanisms may cause injury to a particular
structure.
A recent study investigated the association of common running injuries with
common running gait errors, by analysing the running technique of 108 runners
(72 injured and 36 uninjured). The injured runners were subdivided into four groups
according to their injuries (patellofemoral pain, iliotibial band syndrome, medial
tibial stress syndrome and Achilles tendinopathy), while both injured and uninjured
BEING BEER SENSIBLE
With seven calories per gram, alcohol has almost the same calorie content as
fat. Alcohol has no nutritional value, and despite the calorie content, may make
you feel hungry, as it lowers your blood sugar. Some people think beer is a good
source of nutrients for post-exercise recovery, but if you compare it to a glass
of orange juice, beer unfortunately does not even come close. A glass of OJ
supplies four times the amount of potassium and almost three times the amount
of carbs. It would take 11 beers to obtain the B-vitamins you need on a daily
basis.
It’s about timing, too. Training or competing after drinking is never recommended,
as dehydration can lead to reduced athletic performance, and while alcohol is a
diuretic, meaning it makes your kidneys produce more urine, exercising straight
after drinking can make dehydration worse because you sweat as your body
temperature rises. You need to stay hydrated when you exercise to maintain a flow
of blood through your body, which is essential for circulating oxygen and nutrients
to your muscles.
Alcohol can also make you more prone to injury in a variety of ways, such as
altering your sleep cycles, which reduces your body’s ability to store glycogen.
Alcohol also increases the level of the stress hormone cortisol, which slows
runners had common gait abnormalities measured. These included forwards
and sideways trunk lean, forwards pelvic tilt, lateral (sideways) pelvic drop, knee
flexion at contact, ankle dorsiflexion (toe-up) at contact, hip adduction and internal
rotation, and ankle eversion (associated with pronation).
The study found that the injured runners had a tendency to land with a straighter
knee and greater toe-up position. At mid-stance the injured runners were also
found to have greater lateral pelvic drop, forwards trunk lean, and hip adduction.
These were all values suggesting greater risk of injury. In other words, their results
generally exceeded normal ranges, while the uninjured runners generally had
results deemed within normal ranges.
It is important to note that these risk factors were present regardless of whether a
runner was a heel-striker or a forefoot-striker. Instead, the variable most commonly
found among all the injured running sub-groups was lateral pelvic drop, which has
previously been linked to various running injuries, making it a global contributor
and risk factor. For example, increased lateral pelvic drop has been found to
increase iliotibial band tension, leading to increased strain and risk of iliotibial band
syndrome.
Similarly, increased lateral pelvic drop shifts the ground reaction force away from
the middle of the knee joint, leading to increased bending forces on the tibia, and
altered pressure distribution through the foot, increasing the risk of medial tibial
stress syndrome and/or Achilles tendinopathy. In fact, it is estimated that for every
one-degree increase in lateral pelvic drop, there was an 80% increase in the odds
of a runner being classified as injured rather than uninjured in the study.
Final thoughts
•
•
•
Reduced strength or inhibited muscular function around the hip may reduce
the ability to stabilise the hip.
Poor hip stability has been associated with increased lateral pelvic drop.
This may also present itself as greater forwards lean while running, which
may signify reduced pelvic stability and increased risk of injury.
About the Author:
Ernest is a biomechanical, video, and running gait analyst at the High
Performance Centre (HPC) of the University of Pretoria.
Pre-event: Avoid alcohol beyond low-volume social drinking for 48 hours.
Post-event: Rehydrate first and consume food to retard any alcohol absorption.
down healing. Furthermore, drinking has an enormous impact on muscle protein
synthesis, the process where muscles generate new proteins, which are necessary
for skeletal muscles to benefit from training by recovery, growing and adapting.
Alcohol can reduce muscle protein synthesis by a third, leaving you unable to
improve and build strength.
Beer Benefits
But it’s not all bad news! Moderate beer drinking as part of a healthy lifestyle, may
be linked to lower risk of cardiovascular disease, kidney stones, type 2 diabetes
and high blood pressure, and can also boost your immune system and help fight
infection. Moderate intake is loosely defined as no more than three standard
drinks per day for a man and two for a woman. So when it comes to the benefits
of drinking beer, it really comes down to the amount consumed: If you’re eating
healthily and exercising, don’t worry about one or two beers. Just keep your
consumption moderate, and look at your beer-drinking as a training tool.
About the Author:
Christine is a registered dietician in the Johannesburg area.
35