What’s This Research About? The prone plank is often used to improve core strength, stability, and endurance. Previous research has shown the prone plank activates a variety of core muscles, including the internal oblique, rectus abdominis, external oblique, and the erector spinae. To correctly perform the prone plank requires keeping the spine [...]
What’s This Research About? Musculoskeletal pain (MP) and musculoskeletal disorders are highly prevalent and costly on a global scale, with back pain and neck pain being two of the most pervasive kinds of MP. It’s been estimated that 25% of the population in the United Kingdom alone, develops chronic MP. Previously, most [...]
What’s This Research About? The primary goal of this research was to determine if isotonic or isometric exercise was effective at inducing an analgesic effect within a physical therapy protocol. The secondary goal was determining changes to cortical motor function in the CNS directly following an acute bout of exercise. Tendinopathy can [...]
What’s This Research About? This paper looks at the research surrounding stretching and how it fits into a well-rounded physical activity program and/or in a rehabilitation setting. TITLE: Current Concepts in Muscle Stretching for Exercise and Rehabilitation ORIGINAL LINK PUBLICATION: International Journal of Sports and Physical Therapy DATE: 2012 AUTHORS : Phil Page Active muscle tension: [...]
What’s This Research About? Is eccentric training better for building strength? Previous research suggests eccentric muscle actions differ from concentric muscle actions. Mechanically, eccentric muscle contraction leads to greater force production when compared to concentric muscle contractions. This preliminary research has lead researchers to speculate that eccentric resistance training could stimulate greater [...]
What’s This Research About? Dr. Schleip is interested in the molecular, biomechanical, and neurophysiological traits of fascia. The authors review the foundational makeup of fascia and recommend practical exercises to train strong and resilient tissue. Dr. Schleip believes that training fascia in these ways will make it less prone to injury. TITLE: Training [...]
What’s This Research About? What’s the best hamstring stretch? It’s never that easy! Even though we believe flexibility is beneficial for athletic performance and for general well-being, there isn’t much research that proves its effectiveness. In addition, knowing which stretching technique is the best to improve flexibility is up for debate. This study [...]
What’s This Research About? While passive stretching interventions increase flexibility for short periods of time (about 30 minutes), they do not appear to decrease risk of injury. Lower limb injuries are common in athletes. A few of the contributing factors can’t be changed, such as age, gender and previous injury history. However, [...]
What’s This Research About? This study examines whether or not a progressive eccentric strengthening program is effective for hamstring strain rehabilitation. Was isometric knee flexion strength restored (compared to the other side)? Was the angle-torque relationship restored relative to the other side or did it cause a rightward shift in the length-tension relationship? [...]
What’s This Research About? Does hip strengthening affect ground reactions forces (GRFs) when landing a jump? In other words, how does proximal stability affect distal mobility? This study examines how hip strength affects the knees and ankles in female athletes with a history of ankle injury. Why focus on female athletes? Because [...]