Ultimate Soccer Training » Uncategorized

Kobe Bryant: A Soccer Fan of FC Barcelona and Ronaldinho

CoachZ — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 15:33:04 +0000

Share and Enjoy:

Pacino: Any Given Sunday! The master talks life, masquerading as football (American)

CoachZ — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 07:11:00 +0000

Share and Enjoy:

The Collateral (MCL & LCL) and Cruciate ( ACL & PCL) Ligament Injuries

CoachZ — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 05:55:20 +0000

COLLATERAL LIGAMENT INJURIES (MCL & LCL)

In order to better understand medial collateral ligament (MCL) and lateral collateral ligament (LCL) injuries, it is important to understand basic knee anatomy and the function of the MCL and the LCL. Please review the section on knee anatomy before reading this section.

Ligaments are like strong ropes that help connect bones together and provide stability to joints. In the knee, there are four main ligaments. On the inner (medial) aspect of the knee is the medial collateral ligament (MCL) and on the outer (lateral) aspect of the knee is the lateral collateral ligament (LCL). The other two main ligaments are found in the center of the knee. These paired ligaments are called the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL). They are called cruciate ligaments because the ACL “crosses” in front of the PCL.

The MCL and the LCL work together with ACL and the PCL to keep the knee joint stable during movement. The MCL and LCL provide support at the inner and outer aspects of the knee while the ACL and the PCL lend support at the center of the knee. Tears of the MCL or LCL may be mild (grade I), moderate (grade II) or severe (grade III). MCL and LCL injuries differ from ACL and PCL injuries in that mild to moderate tears have the ability to heal following injury. Grade III injuries to the MCL or LCL are more serious and are often associated with other knee injuries.

The MCL is usually injured by a “blow” to the outer side of the leg (valgus force). A “blow” to the inner side of the leg (varus force) may injure the LCL. MCL injuries are far more common than LCL injuries and are often seen in contact sports. At the time of the injury there is often immediate pain and sometimes swelling can occur. A “pop” or “snap” may be felt or heard and the knee may feel “unstable” during certain movements.

As mentioned previously MCL or LCL injuries can vary in severity. Tears may be partial (grades I and II) or complete (grade III). Larger tears result in greater instability of the knee joint. Injuries to other structures inside the knee can occur when either the MCL or LCL are injured. The cartilage (menisci) inside the knee can be injured as can the ACL or PCL (the cruciate ligaments). Injuries to other structures are more likely if there was a significant force or if there was a rotational component at the time of injury. A bone injury or fracture can occur, particularly, in young growing athletes.

Examination techniques that detect side to side (valgus-varus) looseness in the knee are effective in detecting collateral ligament tears. Tests that detect forward-backward (anterior-posterior) or rotational looseness can help detect other ligament injuries. X-rays are often done at the time of injury to make sure the bones of the knee are not broken. Tests such as Magnetic Resonance Images (MRI) are rarely required for collateral ligament injuries but are occasionally used to rule out other injuries to the knee.

The treatment of MCL and LCL injuries depends on the severity of the injury and other associated injuries. Each treatment plan should be individualized. Initially protection (by use of crutches and/or a rehabilitation brace), rest, ice, compression and elevation (PRICE) of the injury will help reduce pain and/or swelling.

After an MCL or LCL injury, the long term goal is to return the individual back to their previous level of activity. A general knee rehabilitation program which includes strengthening exercises, flexibility exercises, aerobic conditioning, technique refinement and proprioceptive (biofeedback) retraining is the most important factor in achieving this goal. Some people with MCL or LCL injuries report an improved sense of stability when wearing a collateral ligament brace.

Even with the most ideal treatment the knee may never be as “normal” as the uninjured knee and modification of activity may be required. However, doctors and physiotherapists trained in treating MCL and LCL injuries can outline an individualized treatment plan which will maximize the long-term function and stability of the knee.

Note: To read more about collateral and cruciate ligament braces click the link on the sidebar relating to knee braces. Please watch for upcoming blog postings for additional information on ACL and PCL, MCL and LCL injuries. Links will be provided to other websites as well as online medical journals (www.sciencedaily.com is an excellent website for sports medicine medical journals) and brace suppliers. Other knee injury topics should be accessed by your sports medicine practioner, usually and orthopedic surgeon.

PLEASE REMEMBER! THE CONTENTS OF KNEE PAIN INFO, JOINT PAIN INFO AND THEIR LINKS ARE FOR INFORMATION ONLY AND ARE NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL ADVICE. PLEASE SEE THE WEBSITE DISCLAIMERS.

More to follow! Thanks for looking in. CoachZ 216-712-6526, coachz@ultimatesoccertraining.com, ultimateathletictraining@gmail.com.

Share and Enjoy:

Looking Forward to the Women’s Professional Soccer League

CoachZ — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 06:37:33 +0000

http://fancorner.womensprosoccer.com

http://www.womensprosoccer.com

About WPS

WPS is the highest level women’s professional soccer league in North America. Formed in September 2007 as the result of the efforts of the Women’s Soccer Initiative, Inc., WPS, which will begin play in April 2009 consists of seven teams across the country.

The markets for the 2009 season are Bay Area, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New Jersey/New York, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C. WPS expects to expand to Atlanta and Philadelphia in 2010 and continues to explore additional potential franchises for 2010 and beyond. The WPS team planned for Dallas is now slated to begin play in 2010 as the League continues to work on securing a facility, with the intention that the Team will start play in the League’s second season. More markets will be announced as they are added to the League.

Franchises are individually owned and operated by a group of investors in each market. These include AEG-L.A. Women’s Soccer LLC, Bay Area Women’s Soccer LLC, Boston Women’s Soccer LLC, Chicago Professional Women’s Soccer LLC, Hendricks Investment Holdings LLC (Washington D.C.), St. Louis United Soccer LLC and Sky Blue Women’s Soccer, Inc. (New Jersey/New York).

In addition, two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash and former Yahoo! President and COO Jeff Mallett are investors and part owners in the league.

Among the firms retained by WPS to provide professional services are:

The inaugural WPS season will kick off in April 2009. At the conclusion of the regular season, a pair of semifinal playoff matches will be held with winners advancing to the WPS Championship Match. A mid-season or post-season All-Star Game will also be staged.

Further updates on the WPS schedule and competition format will be available soon.

WPS History

September 2003: Following the suspension of operations of the Women’s United Soccer Association (WUSA), the WUSA Reorganization Committee is formed to determine the best method to re-launch a women’s professional soccer league in the United States.

July 2004: The WUSA Reorganization Committee, the Women’s Sports Foundation, and business executives Bob Greenberg and Chris Markgraf (both of whom go on to create WSII with Julie Foudy and Tonya Antonucci), hold a Summit in New York City to identify and examine the lessons learned from the WUSA’s failure and to determine the best path forward toward the launch of a viable new league.

November 2004: As a result of the Summit, the not-for-profit Women’s Soccer Initiative, Inc. (WSII) is formed with the support of the WUSA Players Association to promote and support all aspects of women’s soccer in the United States chiefly by encouraging and enabling the creation of a world-class professional women’s soccer league

February 2005: The U.S. Soccer Federation and U.S. Soccer Foundation each provide operational grants to WSII to assist in supporting WSII’s efforts to develop a viable business model and bring back women’s professional soccer.

Feb. 27, 2007: WSII CEO Tonya Antonucci announces that AEG; John Hendricks of Freedom Soccer LLC; Jeff Cooper of St. Louis United Soccer LLC; Soccer Initiative, LLC; Jack Hanks and Brent Coralli of the Dallas Franchise Group and WGLSI, LLC have signed letters of intent to become charter members of the new women’s professional league.

April 18, 2007: WSII CEO Tonya Antonucci announces that Sky Blue Soccer and Boston Women’s Soccer LLC have agreed to join the previously announced groups as charter members of the new women’s professional league.

Sept. 4, 2007: A new North American women’s professional soccer league, under the temporary working title of Women’s Soccer LLC, is formally established in the United States by seven investor groups, with play beginning in the spring of 2009. Initial teams will be based in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New Jersey/New York, St. Louis, and Washington D.C. Tonya Antonucci is named the league’s commissioner. Soccer United Marketing (SUM), the commercial arm of MLS, is named the league’s representative for national sponsorship sales and licensing.

Oct. 15, 2008: The League sets up temporary offices in downtown San Francisco, Calif. and hires Aaron Burch as League Relationships/Development Manager.

Jan. 17, 2008: The League’s brand name, logo and website are launched at the National Soccer Coaches Association Convention in Baltimore, Md. Joe Cummings is named Senior COO Consultant and Vicki Veenker is named General Counsel.

Feb. 5, 2008: Two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash and former Yahoo! President and Chief Operating Officer Jeff Mallett become investors and part owners of the league.

Feb. 15, 2008: WPS receives provisional Division 1 status at U.S. Soccer’s Annual General Meeting (AGM). The league will receive full Division 1 status just prior to its inaugural season at the 2009 U.S. Soccer AGM in Orlando, Fla.

Feb. 28, 2008: The League moves into its permanent offices at 1000 Brannan St., San Francisco, Calif.

May 27, 2008: Philadelphia investors sign a letter of intent with the League regarding an expansion team for the 2010 season.

July 8, 2008: Women’s Professional Soccer announces the post-Olympics timeline for National Team player allocation, drafts and team tryouts.

Aug. 11, 2008: Atlanta investors sign a letter of intent with the League regarding an expansion team for the 2010 sseason.

Sept. 3, 2008: A group of Bay Area investors join the League for the 2009 inaugural season. The League also announces that the team planned for Dallas is now slated to begin play in 2010 pending the securing of a stadium.

Sept. 16, 2008: In an announcement co-hosted by WPS Commissioner Tonya Antonucci and WPS Part-Owner and two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash in New York City, members of the U.S. Women’s National Team player pool are allocated to WPS teams.

Sept. 24, 2008: Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) announced the results of its WPS Initial International Draft, officially assigning the WPS-playing rights of those selected by the individual teams.

Oct. 6, 2008: Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) and Fox Soccer Channel announced a multi-year partnership to televise a live national Sunday night WPS game of the week on America’s premier soccer network beginning in 2009, the inaugural season for WPS.

Oct. 6, 2008: The WPS General Draft was conducted and consisted of four rounds of selections of international and domestic players for all seven WPS teams.

Dec. 15, 2008: Global sportlifestyle brand PUMA and Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) announced an exclusive partnership making PUMA an official founding partner of WPS and an official sponsor of all WPS franchises.

Dec. 16, 2008: Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) today announced its opening game and slate of home openers for the inaugural 2009 WPS Season. Headlining the list of games is the “WPS Inaugural Match” featuring the Los Angeles Sol against the Washington Freedom at The Home Depot Center in Carson, CA.

From “About WPS”: http://fancorner.womensprosoccer.com

Share and Enjoy:

Male sex-specific, soccer-related injury coverage to follow

CoachZ — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 01:48:36 +0000

I realize I have been covering the female side of soccer-related injuries with little or no attention paid to the male side of the equation. The reason for this will become apparent in the weeks to come. I hope you will bear with me as we explore injury, rehabilitation, and prevention in both male and female soccer athletes; to include youth and adult soccer participants, coaches, trainers, administrators, parents, fans, etc.

There are pronounced differences between youth and adult participants, and between male and female athletes. Regarding sex-specific, soccer-related injuries, it is important to keep in mind that many of these differences can be avoided, or at least allayed (alleviated), to a significant degree through proper training, before and after injury.

More to follow tomorrow.

Coach Z

Share and Enjoy:

Alternative Strategies to Injury Repair in Soccer-Related Injuries-Male & Female

CoachZ — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 03:03:07 +0000

Getting Knee Injury Tears To Heal Themselves

ScienceDaily (Mar. 29, 2006) — A surgeon at Children’s Hospital Boston may have found a better way to repair tears to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), a knee injury suffered by more than 100,000 Americans each year, particularly teenage girls. In the April Journal of Orthopaedic Research, orthopedic surgeon Martha Murray, MD reports that a collagen gel, enriched with blood platelets, can stimulate natural healing of a partial ACL tear, encouraging the body’s cells to fill in the defect and restore mechanical strength to the ligament.

“This is a first important step in showing that the ACL can heal if we give it the right conditions,” Murray says. “That’s an important shift from thinking that the ACL has to be completely replaced after an injury.”

ACL injuries are notorious for not healing well. Epidemic among teenage girls — who are five times likelier than boys to tear the ligament — they typically occur during sports that involve jumping and pivoting, like soccer or basketball. ACLs are currently reconstructed by replacing the torn ligament with a tendon graft. This painful operation allows patients to return to sports after significant rehabilitation, but it does not fully restore knee mechanics, and does not prevent arthritis from developing years later.

Working with an animal model of a partial ACL tear, Murray’s team inserted a collagen gel, mixed with platelet-rich blood plasma, into the wound. The gel provided a physical “bridge” between the torn ligament ends, while the platelets churned out a variety of growth factors. Compared with untreated knees, knees treated with the gel showed greater defect filling at 6 weeks (43 percent versus 23 percent). The gel-treated ACL defects also had a 40 percent increase in mechanical strength at 6 weeks, compared with just 14 percent for untreated defects.

Although she cautions that these results are preliminary and that more work needs to be done, Murray hopes to eventually extend her ACL regeneration technique to human patients, using platelets from their own blood plasma to create a less invasive ACL repair that would decrease recovery time and give athletes a knee with more normal function. With funding from the NIH, the National Football League, the Orthopedic Research and Education Foundation and the Center for Minimally Invasive Technology (Cambridge, Mass.), she is developing an arthroscopic approach that would squirt the gel into the wound via two small incisions in the knee. Her team is also trying to enhance the gel to speed the healing process.

Until the 1970s, surgeons tried to repair ACL tears by sewing the ligament ends back together, but the sutures nearly always failed. Murray, who became interested in ACL healing while pursuing a doctorate in materials science, wondered why this was so, and eventually went to medical school to pursue the problem. Ligaments should, in theory, heal easily–they’re made of fibroblast cells, which are workhorses in the body and easy to grow.

Examining torn ACLs at the microscopic level, Murray and colleagues were surprised to find that the ligament tries valiantly to heal itself–cells migrate to the wound, growth factors are secreted and blood vessels grow to nourish the new tissue. But the ligament ends never join. What’s missing, Murray realized, is something to bridge the gap.

In most torn ligaments, a blood clot forms and acts as a temporary scaffold or bridge. Cells migrate onto this bridge and begin fusing the ligament ends together. But in ACL injuries, fluid inside the knee joint dissolves the clot, so a bridge never forms. Most other ligaments, like the knee’s medial collateral ligament (MCL), are outside the joint and don’t have this problem.

“Even though ACL cells are happy to participate in the repair process, there’s no place for them to do it,” Murray says. “Our big finding was recognizing that the cells are fine–they just need a bridge that they like.”

After trying various materials, her team found that the collagen hydrogel, mixed with platelet-rich blood plasma, was firm enough to be used as a bridge and wasn’t readily dissolved by joint fluid.

In the future, Murray hopes to extend her technique to other injuries like meniscus and rotator-cuff tears. Her ultimate dream is cartilage regeneration to repair joints damaged by osteoarthritis. No one has yet been able to repair cartilage, but Murray has discovered that even in bad osteoarthritis, cartilage has active, proliferating cells. She hopes to find another scaffolding material that would coat the pitted surface of damaged cartilage and recreate a smooth, nearly friction-free surface–like filling in potholes in a road.

“The cells are trying to find structure, but they just don’t have it,” Murray says. “They need a thing to move into; a place to live.”

The current study was funded by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, the National Football League, the Orthopedic Research and Education Foundation and the Orthopaedic Foundation of Children’s Hospital Boston.

Adapted from materials provided by Children’s Hospital Boston, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Email or share this story:

Share and Enjoy:

Why Female Athletes Suffer More Knee Injuries (cont.)

CoachZ — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 04:35:58 +0000

Study Affirms Differences Between Sexes – At Least When It Comes To Knees

ScienceDaily (Mar. 2, 2001) — San Francisco – Knee injuries are a common hazard for athletes – especially those who play basketball, volleyball, soccer or other sports where knees are subjected to turning, twisting and jerking.

But a University of Michigan Health System study, presented today at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons here, shows that female athletes may be at an even greater risk for a certain type of knee injury than their male counterparts due to the differences in the muscle structure around the knee. [The Cleveland Clinic study focused more on fatigue and landing reaction when tired...above. Comments and bold type added.]

“Knee muscles are capable of protecting ligaments and preventing injury,” says Edward M. Wojtys M.D., professor of orthopaedic surgery, U-M Medical School, and Director of Sports Medicine at UMHS.

“Female athletes are two to eight times more likely to tear their anterior cruciate ligament because they may not able to achieve the same muscle stiffness across the knee joint.” [emphasis added]

Wojtys calls the U-M study “one piece of the puzzle” in determining the differences between female and male athletes and, consequently, providing for the training and conditioning needs of female athletes in a safe and effective way.

[Training needs to be different..."safe and effective." added]

Injury to the anterior cruciate ligament – the ligament behind the kneecap that connects the thigh bone to the shin bone and is responsible for knee stability – is common in athletes. The U-M study measured the muscle protection, or rotational knee stiffness, present in size- and sport-matched young males and females, to determine if females are more susceptible to anterior cruciate ligament injury.

In addition to gender differences, the study looked at whether the types of sports the athletes played made a difference in knee stiffness. [emphasis added]

In the study, researchers examined 24 NCAA Division I athletes – 12 males and 12 females – who compete in basketball, volleyball and soccer [added]. All three are “pivot” sports that, because of turning, twisting and jerking, put players at high risk for injury to the anterior cruciate ligament. Another 28 collegiate athletes – 14 males and 14 females – who participated in the “non-pivot” sports of cycling, running and crew also were examined.

Male-female pairs were matched for age, height, weight, body mass index, shoe size and activity level – making them all but equal except for gender.

Researchers used a device specifically designed for this study to measure the rotational motion of the knee [added] when it was bent at 30 degrees and 60 degrees, both when the muscles were relaxed and when the muscles were contracted, or tensed. Knee stiffness, a gauge of joint stability and resistance to injury, was measured as a function of muscle contraction.

In both the pivoting and non-pivoting sports, males were shown to produce more knee stiffness and therefore, better protection against anterior cruciate ligament injury. [emphasis added]

Results showed that, when an athlete’s muscles went from a relaxed to a tensed state, knee stiffness increased by 258 percent for male athletes in pivoting sports and 171 percent for female athletes involved in pivoting sports. Male athletes in non-pivoting sports had an increase of 207 percent versus 198 percent for their female counterparts.

Wojtys expected the higher knee stiffness for males in pivoting sports compared to males in non-pivoting sports.

“The thought is, if you play jumping, turning, twisting sports, that you should be better prepared to protect your knee against rotational forces,” Wojtys says. [emphasis added]

That’s why the measurements for the females involved in non-pivoting sports were surprising when compared to females in the pivoting sports.

Females in non-pivoting sports had an increase in knee stiffness of 198 percent – 27 percent higher than the females in pivoting sports. ”Women who played jumping, turning, twisting sports actually had the poorest ability to protect themselves against rotational strains,” Wojtys says. Wojtys says that male and female athletes are generally trained the same way. [READ THAT AGAIN!] But based on his recent research and that of other researchers, that could be a big mistake. [EXACTLY!]

“We may need to train female athletes differently,” Wojtys says. “The long term scenario is to try to find rehabilitation and training tools that will specifically help female athletes because they seem to be more susceptible to this type of injury.”[YES! YES! YES! emphasis added]

Co-authors on the study were James Ashton-Miller, Ph.D., distinguished research scientist, U-M Department of Engineering; Laura J. Huston, M.S., senior health science research associate, U-M Section of Orthopaedic Surgery; James P. Boylan, B.S.; and Harold J. Schock, B.S.

Adapted from materials provided by University Of Michigan Health System.

University Of Michigan Health System (2001, March 2). Study Affirms Differences Between Sexes – At Least When It Comes To Knees.

Coach Z:

My apologies to the authors for the editorial comment but it has been 8 years since this article; and, it has been much longer than that since we recognized that there is a real problem with female soccer athletes and the ACL. Recognizing this fact, many still train female athletes, particularly at the youth through collegiate levels, LIKE THEIR MALE COUNTERPARTS!

While it seems, at least at the US Regional and National Team levels, there is a concerted effort and indeed a real movement toward gender specific training, many youth, secondary, and collegiate coaches are still training female athletes like their male counterparts. This seems to be particularly true with male coaches training female athletes. Sorry guys! That being said, once again, there does seem to be movement to break the inertia of the last quarter of a century. Unfortunately for many female soccer athletes, this shift in philosophy, driven by sports medicine and kinesiology, comes too late, the damage has been done.

Tomorrow we will discuss ACL surgery, the effect surgery has generally and specifically, and the increased incidence of other competition-related injuries after ACL surgery.

An aside: Please do not get discouraged or quit playing as a result of this series. Or worse yet, pull your daughter out of competitive play because of what you’ve read here. Patience! There is light at the end of the tunnel and we will get there soon enough. There is method to my madness, or so they say, so please have patience and read on. The point I am making is an important one, and one that should already be apparent to most. We will get there.

And by all means: PLAY ON!

Share and Enjoy:

A New Year’s Message!

CoachZ — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 10:18:11 +0000

A Reputation To Live Up To:

For years, I have listened to athletes, students, clients, friends, and associates complain about the people in their life. They sound like this: “Charlie never spends time just connecting with me,” “Sarah is overweight and won’t lose it,” “My kid never does what I ask,” “My employees can’t do it right and they’re too slow.” Or, “She costs us more matches than she is worth, when is the coach going to wake up!” “His touch stinks, he can’t receive a ball to save his life, maybe if he could I would pass it to him. Why does the coach put up with him?” And finally, “This is her third knee surgery in as many years. I’m healthy! Why doesn’t the coach see that she’s had it? I should be the one playing, not her!” Often when I hear the same complaint in myriad forms, I throw out all the strategies of dealing with this person I usually employ and ask one of my favorite inquiries, “Are you giving them a reputation to live up or down to?”

I can feel the wheels starting to turn in the critic’s head after that question. I then go on to explain that what we expect of people is what we get. Another way of putting that is whatever you give your attention to, you get more of. This is a wonderful experience when you are noticing fabulous traits about the people around you, but when you’re noticing everything you don’t like, it’s a nightmare. I know it’s hard to sometimes not be reactive when your teammate or friend keeps doing the same thing you’ve asked them not to do. But make it your focus to concentrate on the things you DO like about that person, their positive characteristics.

We tend to be title experts. We call Sally, next door, “The Smoker Lady.” Hank is a “Weirdo.” Charlie is a “Freak!” Jessica is a “Ball-Hog!” Jason is a “Glory-Hound!” Guess what? We will constantly experience them this way when we see them. We will always attract proof to support our hypothesis, our pre-conceived notion. This goes for everything we decide about the world and the people in it. Some people believe the economy is down and repel business to prove their point. Others thrive during that same time, space, and reality because they believe they are always prosperous. We are not consciously trying to prove our negative titles. You simply get what you project. The old saying about life being 1% perspiration and 99% inspiration holds true. It might not seem like that in pre-season workouts but, to paraphrase Sun Tzu, “The match is won before the cleats hit the pitch!” How about that one sports fans!

We should get back to the point. Conversely, someone else may consider Charlie,”The Freak,” is the most sensible person they’ve ever met. Now, you have a different perspective of him. Next time you interact with Charlie he seems less “freaky.” Hmmm … what if you started expecting good things from those people who have frustrated you in the past? Or focusing only on the things that you can truly respect about them? What if you gave them reputations to live up to?

This same principle goes for the nasty things we privately say about ourselves. Some of the most famous lines about myself are, “I’m a slow learner when it comes to technical stuff,” “I should be better than this,” and “I’m not going to get my way.” And surprise! I prove myself right. The self-fulfilling prophecy! I told myself that going on to graduate school was going to be too hard and not worth the trouble. The first month of classes I experienced the worst case of self-doubt and uncertainty I have ever experienced. I was totally lost. Then I stopped having that conversation about it being hard and all. I changed my focus, as Tony Robbins is fond of saying! I came to understand concepts, formulas, and subject material faster than many of the other students. I titled myself, “Intuitively smart, persistent, and determined.” Now, I’ve been gathering lots of proof about that! Again, the self-fulfilling prophecy. It will work for you too!

What about throwing out titles like Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)? Many times, it is associated with children who are “hyper-active” (ADHD) and then they’re seen as having a learning disability (LD). In adults it’s seen as being scattered, unable to focus, unorganized. Several years ago I was diagnosed with depression, just like Mike Wallace and a whole slew of people from virtually every walk of life. They said, “You have an extreme case and you need to be on medication.” “What?!” I said, “Well, I’m not going on medication! That’s a superficial fix, I can pull myself out of it…by my bootstraps if I have to!” I decided that I was going to be a “grounded, organized, focused, and happy person.” I also let go of all the pressure to do 100 things in a day so that I would be “successful.” That was the year I cut my workload down to a minimum and finished my degree summa cum laude. That was the kind of proof I like! Want to know a secret, I would never have done it without the help of others, including medical professionals and a bit of medication. You see, sometimes we have to look outside of ourselves for solutions to our biggest challenges, sometimes we need a coach or a mentor.

The secret? We need someone besides ourself to get outside of ourself. What? Have you ever heard the expression, “”He/She can’t see the forest for the trees?” Of course you have, we all have! Well, often when working towards a goal, in this case becoming a better soccer player or even a better coach, we are so close to the result seek we cannot see just how close we really are. It takes someone else, someone objective yet someone who has our best interests at heart. In this case, we need a coach, a mentor or trainer; and, sometimes we need all three!

Back to our perspective. In conclusion, our judgement and our treatment of others is crucial to our personal happiness and well-being. In fact, it is vital to our own success. Consider for a moment someone who forgets about time. They are usually people who get so focused on what they are doing they are simply not focused on time. Are they spacey? NO! Quite the opposite. If you think someone is an idiot, I promise you, you will always experience him or her that way. Why would you want to be right about something like that? Be right about the “greatness” in people. Be right about their true value, their true worth. Give them a reputation to live up to! Do you have a teammate you think will never measure up? Do you consider them a liability to be criticized, avoided, even ostracized? What do you think your relationship with that individual is going to yield? Can you now ask yourself the question you know is coming: “What can I do to improve my focus and thus my relationship with that individual?” Try it! In 2009 give it your best effort and I assure you, people will live up, or down, to the reputation you assign them.

Good luck and best wishes to all in this New Year, 2009!

Share and Enjoy:

ACL Injuries & Female Soccer Athletes-Research & Findings

CoachZ — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 06:56:37 +0000

“Why Women Suffer More Knee Injuries”

Female athletes are up to eight times more likely to suffer knee injuries during their careers than males, and now researchers may be closer to understanding why….A recent study of 10 female and 10 male NCAA athletes completed within the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Cleveland Clinic found that female athletes tend to land from a jump with a more flexed ankle, the foot rolling outward with an elevated arch, and more knee abduction and knee internal rotation compared to male athletes. When fatigued, differences between women and men in these movements and loads were even larger, possibly explaining why females may be at greater risk of non-contact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury during landing. The study’s lead researcher, Scott McLean, was previously at Cleveland Clinic and is now an assistant professor with the Division of Kinesiology at the University of Michigan. The study will be published in the March issue of Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. The abstract of the article by McLean et. al., can be viewed below and may be accessed in its entirety at www.lww.com.

To continue: “According to the NCAA, female athletes are at least twice as likely to suffer an ACL injury as male athletes and in some cases up to eight times more likely. Research shows that one in 10 female athletes will experience an ACL injury at some point in their career. ”Before we can even consider trying to successfully prevent ACL injuries in both men and women, we need to clearly identify their underlying causes or mechanisms,” McLean said. “This study presents an important step in achieving these ultimate research goals. It seems that when fatigued, the potential for an athlete to execute poor decisions, reactions and thus movement responses is greatly increased. Our next step is to determine how we can effectively combat these effects. Fatigue affects individuals differently. As we begin to pinpoint how fatigue relates to joint motion during sports movements, we hope to gain a better understanding of how ACL injuries occur and how to prevent them.” said Dr. Susan Joy, director of Woman’s Sports Health at Cleveland Clinic and study co-author.” Doctor Joy has worked on many female soccer athletes from Northern Ohio. In fact, Dr. Joy has worked on variety of athletes from throughout the Midwest, including Coach Z’s daughter. “During the study, athletes were observed drop-jumping in the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Center’s Biomechanics lab. The athletes had their movement recorded using three dimensional high-speed motion analysis techniques to examine lower-limb-joint kinematics and kinetics during 10 drop jumps, both before and after fatigue. Gary Calabrese, director, Cleveland Clinic Sports Health Rehabilitation and the study’s co-author said the findings open the door for further research and clinical application.

“Understanding when and why athletes suffer debilitating knee injuries helps us develop more successful and personalized treatment and prevention programs for at-risk individuals,” Calabrese said. This article was adapted, in part, from materials provided by the University of Michigan, via EurekAlet!, a service of Advanced Science, Serving Society (AAAS).

Additional research into landing strategies was inspired and conducted as a result of the Cleveland Clinic studies, those studies and their explanations will be discussed in the future, as not everyone agrees with the methodology or the findings. Several research studies focus on why there is such a pronounced difference from an anatomical point of view.

The abstract for the scientific publication of the Cleveland Clinic study follows:

Impact of Fatigue on Gender-Based High-Risk Landing Strategies. Applied Sciences. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 39(3):502-514, March 2007. MCLEAN, SCOTT G. 1,2,3; FELIN, REBECCA E. 1; SUEDEKUM, NATALIE 2; CALABRESE, GARY 2; PASSERALLO, ALLEN 2; JOY, SUSAN 2

Abstract: Purpose: Noncontact anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries carry significant short- and long-term morbidity, particularly in females. To combat this epidemic, neuromuscular training has evolved aimed at modifying high-risk lower-limb biomechanics. However, injury rates and the gender disparity in these rates remain, suggesting that key components of the injury mechanism continue to be ignored. This study examined the potential contributions of neuromuscular fatigue to noncontact ACL injuries. Methods: Ten male and 10 female NCAA athletes had 3D lower-limb-joint kinematics and kinetics recorded during 10 drop jumps, both before and after fatigue. Mean subject-based initial-contact (N = 9) and peak stance-phase kinematic (N = 9) and normalized (mass x height) kinetic (N = 9) parameters were quantified before and after fatigue and submitted to a three-way ANOVA to determine for the main effects of leg, gender, and fatigue. A Bonferroni corrected alpha level of 0.002 was adopted for all statistical comparisons.

Results: Females landed with more initial ankle plantar flexion and peak-stance ankle supination, knee abduction, and knee internal rotation compared with men. They also had larger knee adduction, abduction, and internal rotation, and smaller ankle dorsiflexion moments. Fatigue increased initial and peak knee abduction and internal rotation motions and peak knee internal rotation, adduction, and abduction moments, with the latter being more pronounced in females.

Conclusions: Fatigue-induced modifications in lower-limb control may increase the risk of noncontact ACL injury during landings. Gender dimorphic abduction loading in the presence of fatigue also may explain the increased injury risk in women. Understanding fatigue effects at both the central and peripheral levels will further afford elucidation of the ACL injury mechanism and, hence, more successful prevention strategies.

In other words, as female athletes grow tired during the course of training or during match play, they land differently, their ankles tend to roll outward and and as they do, the knee’ abduction and internal rotation is more pronounced. As one basketball player was heard saying, “I knew it was gone as soon as I heard that dreaded POP!” Anyone who has experienced or witnessed an ACL injury knows that POP! all to well.

So why did I spend so much time and take up so much space on medical research and a very technical abstract? Because it brings home the whole point of this blog. It’s all about the training! Yes, there are anatomical differences. And yes, the disparity between male and female athletes remains and, while several theories are considered, the bottom line is that fatigue, and thus training, are vital in at least attempting to offset the likelihood of a catastrophic ACL injury during competition when fatigue is at its most pronounced level.

We will go into a little more depth as far as the etiology or cause of this injury because it is so important to what we are trying to achieve here. In order to completely understand the dominant points of view concerning this injury we must consider anatomy, neuromuscular interaction, physiology, kinesiology, and biomechanics. While beyond the scope of this blog, we will at least summarize next time and then start to get in to training strategies.

I hope you weren’t all bored to tears and will stay with me. There really is a method to my madness. And, anyone who has had an ACL injury or knows someone who has had one, will understand where it is I am coming from even if it is not entirely clear where I am going with this yet.

Stay with me and see you next time!

Share and Enjoy: