SKIING CONDITIONING

with pelvic malalignment and therefore a client should be assessed for it. Some cor- rective hold/relax exercises followed by some key stretches can help to remedy it (Figs. 5a and 5b).

Figure 5a: 6x6 corrective exercises Figure 3: One legged squat

There are a number of simple alignment checks that can indicate malalignment. While these are effective tools to help find the root of the problem they should not be looked at in isolation. A therapist can put together all the signs and symptoms to come up with a clinical picture.

Quick self check: a one leg squat A one-leg squat can be used, first with one leg and then the other (Fig.3). The person should go down to a 60º bend in the knee and can view themselves in a mirror to compare. A closer look at pelvic biomechanics is needed if: ■ Balance is harder on one side ■ One side seems weaker ■ One side seems tighter or stiffer ■ One side is more painful ■ One side is less coordinated.

Effects Vancouver-based physical medicine spe-

Figure 5b: 6x6 corrective exercises

These two exercises help correct the most common malalignment syndrome seen in our clinics and on the hill. This is a right anterior torsional displace- ment and a left posterior torsional displacement.

cialist, Dr Wolfgang Schamberger, has stated that athletes who have pelvic malalignment could have difficulty pro- gressing in their sport and sometimes have to abandon their efforts altogether. He believes that malalignment also puts athletes at increased risk of injury and, once injured, they are likely to take longer to recover or may even fail to do so at all (1). Pelvic malalignment is strongly asso- ciated with the overuse injuries listed with the photo below (Fig.4).

TREATMENT AND PREVENTION Lower back, sacro-iliac joint or hip pain, tightness or discomfort are all associated

Regain and maintain muscle length Performing static and facilitated stretches optimises muscle and tendon length post skiing. Hold relax and contract relax PNF techniques have been shown to be more effective than just static stretching (3,4). PNF techniques may be more relaxing as skiers can lie down and relax while the therapist stretches them passively. Therapists should assess the clients’ rela- tive muscle length and employ some facil- itated stretches using both hold relax and contract relax methods (Figs.6-8). Hartig and Henderson (5) found that static stretches prior to exercise did not prevent lower extremity overuse injuries but addi-

Figure 6: Spinal roll. Helps in re-aligning the pelvis by stretching the low back muscles

Figure 7: Pretzel stretch. Increased tension on one side will indicate tighter hip rotators and potential malalignment

Figure 4: Potential skiing injuries 10

Figure 8: Hip flexor stretch www.sportex.net