What is the purpose of dry land? Does it really make you a better skier?
Dryland has been incorporated into the fitness development of alpine racers throughout the world for over 50 years. It is essential not only for performance but also for safety given the dangers of alpine racing. How you train and what is required for dryland training is evolving. Advances in strength and conditioning, sports medicine, biomechanics, nutrition, biochemical support, rest and recovery techniques, and methods to determine responses to training are being used to improve sport performance. In this article we will explore new and emerging methods to maximize dryland training, which is more critical for Ontario alpine racers given access to ski terrain. We will explain the direction of the Alpine Ontario’s Dry Land program developed by Dr. Lam, FITS TORONTO and how our goal is to produce the best Alpine Development program in the world. This is a process and we believe we’re on the right track. We have the talent, now it’s time to work.
I CAN MAKE YOU INJURY PROOF
If I said I could make you injury proof would you believe me? Obviously the answer is no, because there are many factors outside of our control, especially in Alpine racing. However, correct movements and the development of our abilities to handle forces during skiing gives us the best prevention against injury and the best opportunity to perform our best. Armed with this approach and combined with research we have conducted with the University of Waterloo we have developed our INJURY PROOF Paradigm – Figure 1: Injury Proof Paradigm. In this approach developing proper movements is pivotal to prevent injury and performance.
Figure 1: Injury Proof Paradigm
With Alpine Ontario and with various other sport organizations we are capturing and analyzing how athletes move in our Injury Proof screen that uses tests that have been researched with hundred’s of thousands of athletes around the world in addition to tests we have developed based on the demands placed on Alpine Ski Racers. It is our hope that we can predict injury risk, based on identifying significant movement dysfunctions with injury data. The thought is, if we correct identify movement dysfunction(s) we should be able to reduce injury risk – hence INJURY PROOF.
Factors that effect movement are numerous we examine are classified into four key factors – Posture, mobility, output and capacity. See figure 1 to explore how each factor influences movement. For more information visit www.fitstoronto.com and go to the education section to download the Essential Guide to Athletic Development. To assess these factors we have developed the Injury Proof Screen to determine how each factor impacts movement. This screen uses cutting edge video motion analysis with our proprietary method to assess the body called 5-Site Integrity. All Alpine Ontario athletes have undergone this screening process and where applicable specific orthopaedic tests, manual testing, advanced imaging, and other diagnostic procedures have been used to help us arrive at a plan to improve the athletes movements.
MOVEMENT IS THE KEY
The movements we test make up physical literacy, a term developed and used in the Long Term Athletic Development Model. Physical literacy forms the bases for all athletic movements, as basic movements form the foundation for more complex and sport specific movements. For example performing a parallel squat, a lunge, and a parallel single leg squat are movement skills that make up physical literacy. These movements are important in alpine racing because these skills are essential in proper turn mechanics; determining race line; and most importantly for safety. Incorrect movements will lead to buckling, shearing and torsion forces that will eventually lead to injury. As a result we have developed movement standards that we use with Alpine Ontario’s Provincial and Development Team. An example of a movement standard series is our single leg strength movement standard outlined in Table 1:” Single Leg Movement Standards.” These standards are extremely important considering the prevalence of non-contact ACL injuries (NCACLI) in ski racing.
| Movement Standards For Single Leg Movement Qualities | ||||
| PHASE | Evaluation Test | Diagnostic | Movement Criteria | Evaluation Standard |
| Orthopaedic MSK evaluation of the knee | ||||
| 1 | Squat | Movement Assessment | Parallel Squat | Range of Motion Quality of Movement (5-Site Integrity) Smoothness Neutral Spine and Pelvic Control |
| 1 | Single Legged Squat | Displacement Ground contact time Movement |
Perfect Parrallel Squat position | Range of Motion Quality of Movement (5-Site Integrity) Smoothness Neutral Spine and Pelvic Control |
| 3 | Drop Jump | Displacement Ground contact time Movement |
Perfect movement during: Pre-Landing Landing Take-off |
24″ Female 36″ Male Reactive abilty Displacement / Power |
| 3 | Hop and Stick (Vetical and Horizontal) | Displacement Ground contact time Movement |
Perfect take-off and land in a flexed knee position (minimum 30 degrees) | Range of Motion Quality of Movement (5-Site Integrity) Smoothness Neutral Spine and Pelvic Control |
| 3 | Single Leg Box Jump | Displacement Movement |
Perfect take-off and land in a flexed knee position. | Minimum Tibial Height |
| 4 | Single Leg Pent Jump | Displacement Ground contact time Movement Ability to Stick Landing |
Perfect movement mechanics during:Pre-Landing Landing Take-off |
equal distance or time within 5% of each leg no movement dysfunction during any phase of jump |
| 4 | Lateral Hop Multiple Hops (Trail and Lead) |
Displacement Ground contact time Movement |
Jump over hurdle at mid thigh height with perfect mechanics. | Range of Motion Quality of Movement (5-Site Integrity) Smoothness Neutral Spine and Pelvic Control |
| 4 | Timed 6m Hop test | Ground contact time Movement |
Perfect mechanics | Legs are within 5% of each other. |
| 5 | Loaded Single Legged Squat | Displacement Movement |
Perfect Parrallel Squat position | Add 50% of body weight Range of Motion Quality of Movement (5-Site Integrity) Smoothness Neutral Spine and Pelvic Control |
| 6 | Single Leg Drop Jump | Height Displacement Ground contact time Movement |
Perfect movement during: Pre-Landing Landing Take-off |
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Table 1: Single Leg Movement Standards
It is accepted that the principle mechanism of NCACI is dynamic valgus, or inward movement of the knee in response to movement or a load. The expert consensus is dynamic valgus occurs primarily because of neuromuscular factors – see Figure 3: “Neuromuscular Factors Effecting Dynamic Valgus .” The great news is we can greatly improve our abilities to control against dynamic valgus. The approach we use at FITS is outline in Table 2: Methods to Develop Single Leg Strength
| Neuromuscular Factors effecting dynamic valgus | |
| The knee is one part of the kinetic chain, and other anatomical sites other than the knee, including the trunk, hip, and ankle may contribute to ACL injury | |
| Uncontrolled or awkward body movements, motor control (balance and proprioception) | |
| Hamstring strength, power, and activation when controlling deceleration, during cuts, changes of direction, and landing from jumping | |
| Strong quadriceps activation during eccentric contraction | |
| Foot and ankle position and control | |
| The knee is one part of the kinetic chain, and other anatomical sites other than the knee, including the trunk, hip, and ankle may contribute to ACL injury |
Figure 3: Neuromuscular Factors Effecting Dynamic Valgus
| Movement Based Approach: Single Leg Movement Qualities | |||
| PHASES | THERAPIES | GOAL | |
| Address Soft Tissue Adhesions Pain and Inflammation Control MOBILITY and MOVEMENT |
MOBILITY QUALITIES: Hip Mobility Ankle Mobility |
Integrated Active and Passive Therapeutic Approaches | DEVELOP MOBILITY with Stability Deal with Symptoms |
| SYMPTOM CONTROL: Unload Inflammation Control Recovery / Healing Augmentation |
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| MOBILITY: Planar Movements to Spiral (integrated) Foam Roller – Structural / Capsular |
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| ACTIVATION CO-ACTIVATION |
PHASE ONE – HIP HINGE: Activate Hamstrings and Glutes (Max and hip abductors), Teach coactivation Low load single leg movements (Technique dictates load) Hip Abductor Activation (very remedial – X-band) |
ATHLETIC DEVELOPMENT | DEVELOP AWARENESS, ACTIVATION, MOVEMENT |
| DEVELOPING STRENGTH AND ANKLE AWARENESS | PHASE TWO: Engrain proper movement patterns Basic movements and Strength Endurance of Single Leg Strength Exercises |
ENGRAIN MOVEMENT | |
| PHASE TWO A: Ankle and intrinsic foot muscle development. Integration with other leg and basic sport movements “Stairs, hops, agility drills” |
ANKLE and Foot Development | ||
| FORCE ABSORPTION leading to REACTIVE ABILITIES | PHASE THREE: Force Development. Controlled bottom to full extension technique to a raised surface | CONCENTRIC FORCE DEVELOPMENT | |
| PHASE THREE A: Low Load Force Absorption in multiple planes – Single response (Stick Technique) | FORCE ABSORPTION “Stick” Technique |
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| PHASE FOUR: Force Absorption approach with mutiple response in multiple planes | REACTIVE ABILITIES Multiple Response | ||
| DEVELOPING MAX STRENGTH | PHASE FIVE: Strength approach for basic movements | MAXIMUM FORCE | |
| HIGH POWER CONTROL AND HIGH POWER REACTIVE ABILITIES |
PHASE FIVE A: Closed Movements Explosive single limb COD |
HIGH POWER ABSORPTION | |
| PHASE SIX: Drop from a greater height to elicit greater eccentric load | |||
| PHASE SEVEN: High power amoritization phase | HIGH REACTIVE ABILITIES | ||
Table 2: Methods to Develop Single Leg Strength
At FITS we have also developed standards for work capacity, neutral spine endurance, thoracic control standards and others to develop efficient and sustainable movement patterns. To support this we track sleep, injuries, nutrition, workouts, and responses to training (both dryland and on-hill) within a log book. In the near future data will be tracked digitally to ease data collection and to facilitate more in-depth analysis.
To date no athlete has met all our standards. This is expected. Consider it takes 10 years or 10,000 hours to become a master in any field. Therefore can we expect our young Provincial athletes to be masters? Our standards take a minimum of 4 to 5 years to accomplish. After standards are achieved our goal is to further increase the athletes’ output ability, which is weighed against the risk vs. reward between injury and fatigue vs. performance and safety.
MOVEMENT ISN’T THE ONLY THING
It should be clear that movement forms the basis of sport skill. However the acquisition of performance is much more than strength and conditioning. We need to understand how to develop our nervous system to become more explosive, how nutrient intake effects our adaption to training, and how stress and fatigue effects our young athletes ability to cope and perform. We must also appreciate the phases of normal development, because there are key windows of opportunity that if accessed properly encode opportunities for greatness. Finally, we must appreciate how rest and recovery are important and how mental toughness, mental preparation and sport psychology are key factors that determine performance, particularly at the highest levels.
It is our hope that all our athletes are first safe and through the program win at the highest level representing our country.
