Muscle-Facts.com

Whether a person is recuperating from an athletic injury (sprain, Charley horse, stiffness) or from illness and accidents (pneumonia, major operation, broken arm), the principles underlying recovery exercises must be understood.

Whether the problem is that of a person annoyed by a mild stiffness or that of a sedentary executive on the way back from a serious coronary attack, recovery has several implications. First, return to normalcy, not improvement, is the goal. Second, this must be accomplished safely and without risk of recurrence or, worse, aggravation of the disability. And finally, the extent of rehabilitation, although under the direction of the physician, lies almost entirely with the well-informed, well-instructed patient, who is allowed increasing latitude in accordance with how he feels. The person thus may be encouraged to use his gimped-up leg provided there is no pain. Or the post coronary increasing activity unless shortness of breath or chest constriction should begin. In both cases, stop.

Recovery programs are based on the principle of “progressive resistance exercises” or PRE. PRE applies equally to the injured person striving to regain his usual state of health and to the man who is trying to improve performance.
PRE requires gradual, steady, and sub maximal efforts to benefit a particular area, be it organ or muscle. Two years ago, a forty-six-year-old executive suffered a serious coronary attack, not while exercising, but while at a board meeting. Six months later he was up and around, going outdoors only two hours a day. The poor chap was desperate—nothing to do, no challenges, no physical or mental activities.

Careful examination revealed satisfactory recovery from his coronary attack. Accordingly he was started on PRE. He was given explicit instructions on how much he could do, how he should feel if all were going well, and what early signs should be read as “Go Slow” or “Stop” signals. Through gradual yet persistent training, he now does pushups, pull-ups, and jogs two miles a day—activities that very few non coronary patients his age could survive or even accomplish.

PRE for the sportsman insures safe and speedy recovery from injury—a guarantee of early return to the sports arena of thrill and fun. No one desires injury. A bum elbow or a trick knee may portend to the non sportsman difficulty in writing or in driving a car—inconveniences at most. To the fitness enthusiast, these same injuries prevent workouts— avenues to release, freedom and fun. PRE is necessary to recovery.
PRE starts out with the realization that a certain muscle

is subpar due to injury, that it lags behind the rest of the body for this reason, and that it must catch up so that the body as a whole can rely equally on all of its parts. The principles of PRE are simple. First, the affected area is allowed rest until it feels OK. In the case of a sore shoulder, it is not exercised, yet is used normally in daily activities. When routine use of the shoulder at work and at home causes no discomfort, it is time to move up.

Next, now resistance or flexibility exercises are begun. As a general rule for most injuries, swimming is ideal at this stage. Water replaces the effects of gravity on dry land, permitting maximum range of motion with minimum strain. Flexing, tensing, and massaging in a tub of warm bath water are also recommended.

Third, the shoulder works against mild resistance, but does this repetitively. For example, with arms akimbo and hands on hip, press gently against the sides 20 times. Press hands together in front of chest gently 20 times. And pull hands apart gently 20 times. Finally, at each workout these exercises are continued with more repetitions and with greater vigor until the injured area has resumed its normal function.
An inordinate amount of patience is required. Often the sportsman tries to rush or push things a bit in order to hasten recovery—and winds up with a recurrence of the original injury. Or, worse, he says, “The heck with it,” and gives up any and all physical activity for a period of weeks or months.