Facilitating Long Term Freedom From Pain
Orthopedic Testing is the first step, muscular therapy is the second, but to really find long term relief and freedom from pain a little at home mainainance is the solution. These are only called "exercises", the point is not to build either strength or flexability but to engage the muscles and tends of the injurery site so that healthy scar tissue will form correctly. The exercises are to be done until fatigue and no more. It is a slow process but well worth it.
Neck Movement
Lie on your back with the neck supported by a pillow and slowly rotate the head so that the cheek moves towards the shoulder. Be sure to rotate the neck slowly without force. Twenty-five rotations should be performed, right and left, two to three times a day. This movement is a combination of rotation, flexion and side bending. These combine to stretch the lower neck stimulating the fibers to increase range of motion while preventing adhesive tissue to form. If there is pain while doing the exercise, it would be discontinued until recovery is sufficient to do it without pain.
Knee Movement
1. Warm up: Either after walking on the leg for a while or by swinging the leg back and forth at the knee for several minutes.
2. Stretch the tendon five times for thirty seconds each time by lying on your stomach and drawing the heel towards the hip. Reaching back to the heel with your hand can be helpful to deepen the stretch. Resist the temptation to bounce the foot, use only gentle pressure. Be sure to keep the legs behind you with the knees close to each other. Rest between stretches.
3. For this exercises program be effective, if only the third set of 10 should cause some discomfort or stress. If there is no discomfort, not enough weight is being used. Wearing an ankle weight, sit on a table with the legs dangling, Slowly straighten the leg, hold it a moment, then lower it again. Repeat this ten times before resting and starting again. Do three sets of ten using enough weight to feel stressing the last set of ten. For the first few days do these exercises slowly, after you know the effects of the exercise increase the speed.
4. Stretch the knee joint again.
Elbow Movement
Tennis Elbow
Warm up: Wave your hand up and down, as if you were saying goodbye, for 2 minutes.
Stretch: stand beside a table and rest the back of the hand on the table with your elbow straight. Keeping the hand relaxed, apply a downward force until you feel a stretch through the forearm. Hold it for 30 seconds and repeat five times.
Exercise: Extend your arm in front of you supporting your elbow. Holding a weight in your hand with your palm facing the floor. Lift your wrist up as far as it will go, then slowly bring it back to its original position. Repeat 3 sets of 10.
Golfer's Elbow
Warm up: Wave your hand up and down, as if you were saying goodbye for 2 minutes.
Stretch: Stand beside a table and rest the palm of your hand on the table with your elbow straight. Keeping the hand relaxed, apply a downward force until you feel a stretch through the forearm.
Exercise: Extend your arm in front of you, using your opposite hand to support your injured elbow. Hold a weight in your hand with your palm facing the ceiling. Lift your wrist up as far as it will easily go, then slowly bring it back to its original position. Repeat 3 sets of 10.
Shoulder Movement
Subscapularis
Stretch: Lie on a table or bed with the injured arm toward the edge. Keep the upper arm in close to the body with the elbow bent at 90 degrees. Now, grip a two to five pound weight. Let the forearm lower toward the floor and relax there, stretching the front of the shoulder. Each stretch is held for 20 to 30 seconds.
Exercise: Beginning in the same position as above and holding the appropriate weight, raise the arm from the stretched position so that the forearm comes to a vertical position. Then lower the arm again out to the stretched position. Repeat 3 sets of 10. Feeling stress in the last set.
Supraspinatus
Stretch: Stand near a door knob, facing away from it. First, grip the door knob: then, move into a lunge position away from the door. As you bend your knee more and the arm goes up in back, the stretch increases. Each stretch is held for 30 seconds.
Exercise: Lie on your side with the injured arm toward the ceiling. Holding a light weight in your hand with the elbow straight, slowly lift the arm away from the body toward the ceiling for about 20* only. Then, return the arm to your side without resting it on your body. Do 3 sets of 10. Feeling stress in the last set.