HOW TO USE HYDROTHERAPY TO TRAIN YOUR ATHLETES Find out how water can help athletes condition and remain healthy.
5 WAYS THAT HYDROTHERAPY IS EFFECTIVE FOR TRAINING AND CONDITIONING HEALTHY ATHLETES You may be familiar with the benefits of hydrotherapy for injury treatment and rehabilitation. But did you also know that water can be used for healthy athletes, too? From enhanced workouts to optimized active recovery, it can prove to be fruitful in a variety of ways. Read through this guide to find out how water can help athletes condition and remain healthy.
1 REDUCING OVERUSE INJURIES With the rise of sport specialization and decline in recreational play, overuse injuries have started to affect athletes of all ages and across multiple sports. According to the American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine, these injuries are the result of repetitive micro-trauma to the tendons, bones and joints. They can occur when the body is not given enough time or ability to recover between training sessions or when technique is not performed correctly. The elite performance specialists at Michael Johnson Performance (MJP) in McKinney, Texas, have found that using aquatic therapy can help to reduce some of these injuries. In this video, MJP s Lucas Odergard, Youth Coordinator; Lindsey Anderson, CSCS, International Performance Specialist; and Lance Walker, MS, PT, Global Performance Director, discuss how they use an underwater treadmill to prevent overuse injuries:
2 SUPPLEMENT LAND TRAINING Elite athletes, weekend warriors and average runners looking to stay in shape should be supplementing their land workouts with underwater running at least a few days a week. Because of the buoyancy, while running on an underwater treadmill, there is less pounding or shock placed on the joints, tendons, ligaments and muscles. When combined with the resistance of the water, this allows athletes to achieve a productive workout without feeling tired or beat up. For instance, Galen Rupp, a long-distance runner and twotime Olympic medalist from the Nike Oregon Project, has utilized a Hydroworx underwater treadmill since high school to increase his weekly mileage and decrease his risk of injury. He also uses underwater running nearly every day after his land training sessions as a way to recover. Depending on the season, Rupp will run upwards of 115 miles per week on land and another 30 miles per week on an underwater treadmill.
SUPPLEMENT LAND TRAINING SUPPLEMENT LAND TRAINING Alberto Salazar, Head Coach of the Oregon Project and himself an accomplished long-distance runner, believes in the benefits of underwater treadmill running for all of his athletes. According to Salazar, he uses it for his athletes because it allows them to train at a higher level without the risk of injury, which they could experience from adding mileage at full weight on land. We don t consider it an alternative to running outside, he says. We consider it as important as running outside. It helps us become stronger by running against the resistance of the water, and it helps us recover from our dry land training. In this video, Oregon Project coaches discuss why underwater treadmill running has been vital to their success:
3 INCREASED MUSCLE STRENGTH A study at Texas A&M University has shown that resistance training plus aquatic treadmill training can elicit greater gains in lean muscle mass than resistance training alone or even resistance training combined with land training. While it is often thought that cardiovascular training and resistance training cannot be accomplished simultaneously, the study shows it is possible. The research showed that by doing a normal range of motion and mimicking sport activity in the pool, athletes actually worked harder to push through the water. This had a positive effect on the athletes entire bodies. This study, performed at Texas A&M University, has shown that running in the water leads to increased muscle strength in the legs, feet, hip flexors and extensors, core, and even stabilizing muscles throughout the body.
INCREASED MUSCLE INCREASED MUSCLE STRENGTH I believe that running against the resistance of the water buys an extra sort of strength building exercise, Salazar says. You re also going to get these muscle-strengthening effects by running underwater versus outside. Salazar also encourages his athletes to run barefoot on the underwater treadmill to strengthen muscles in their feet. He has seen the effect it s had on the stride of Galen Rupp and feels it is an important part of his runners training. Watch Salazar and Rupp discuss how they see underwater running increasing strength:
4 SPEED AND STRENGTH TRAINING Because athletes using an underwater treadmill during training are running in an unloading environment, the pressure on their joints and muscles is reduced. Therefore, coaches are able to be more aggressive with other aspects of the athletes training, such as speed and strength work. For starters, hydrotherapy can be great for a dynamic warm-up and to increase flexibility. These are just some of the drills coaches can use in the pool to target improved flexibility: SLOW WALKING LATERAL SHUFFLE JOGGING LATERAL SKIP AND LATERAL SKIP WITH CROSSOVER A SKIPS B SKIPS CARIOCA BACKWARDS JOGGING KNEE HUGS BUTT KICKS QUAD STRETCH STRAIGHT LEG MARCH HIGH KNEES To cater training more to building speed and acceleration, have athletes do the following drills on the underwater treadmill while moving against the resistance of the jet: HIGH SPEED CARIOCA, HIP TURN AND ACCELERATE HIGH SPEED BACKWARDS RUN, HIP TURN AND ACCELERATE ONE LEG HOP AND ACCELERATE HIGH SPEED RUN WITH MEDICINE BALL OVERHEAD AND ACCELERATE
SPEED AND STRENGTH SPEED AND STRENGTH TRAINING It s also possible to improve strength and power with aquatic exercises. Using kettlebells, Hydrotone dumbbells and medicine balls, athletes can complete the following exercises: KETTLEBELL SQUAT VARIATIONS SQUAT ROTATION AND PRESS DECLINE PRESS CURL VARIATIONS SPLIT LEG ALTERNATING PRESS BOX MOVEMENT SPLIT LEG DECLINE PRESS WOOD CHOP FLY S CHEST PRESS MEDICINE BALL THROW INTO THE JET STREAM SQUAT AND PRESS ROTATIONAL MEDICINE BALL THROW INTO THE JET STREAM BACKWARDS LUNGE AND PRESS Other types of athletes have seen conditioning and speed training benefits using the underwater treadmill as well. Devonte Wilson, former football player and wrestler turned Instagram fitness sensation, uses the underwater treadmill for strength and conditioning benefits. With full mobility, Devonte can run on an underwater treadmill at 10 mph against the resistance jets to get an extremely challenging workout without the impact on his joints that would occur on land. Here, Murphy Grant, MS, LAT, PES, Associate Athletic Director for Sports Medicine at the University of Kansas, describes how he trains baseballspecific movements and exercises for speed and strength in the pool:
5 POST-WORKOUT RECOVERY Active recovery is a very valuable tool that can be used to improve performance. Sports medicine and performance specialists are starting to find that keeping muscles and joints moving after intense training days keeps athletes better equipped to handle subsequent workouts. Hydrotherapy can be used as an effective and efficient active recovery technique. Performance specialists at MJP use an underwater treadmill for active recovery with many of their athletes. Here are four benefits they have found: 1. The combination of hydrostatic pressure and active motion in the water leaves athletes feeling refreshed and rested, while at the same time feeling like they got an effective workout. 2. The use of the massage hose in the water can work to strip out lactic acid that has built up in the muscles after difficult workouts. 3. Athletes are ready for their next hard workout faster than if they just rested for a full day. In the words of the staff at MJP, Motion is lotion. 4. While recovering in the water, an athlete can efficiently rest muscles while also strengthening them and maintaining cardiovascular fitness.
POST-WORKOUT RECOVERY POST-WORKOUT RECOVERY Watch MJP s Lance Walker, Global Performance Director, and Lindsey Anderson, International Performance Specialist, talk about why they use underwater treadmill workouts for recovery days:
ATHLETE FEEDBACK Another reason to incorporate an underwater treadmill into training regimens is that athletes love it! Mentally and psychologically, it is refreshing. People feel rejuvenated and relaxed when they re in the water, and it has a soothing, calming effect. Therefore, you do not have to beg athletes to get into the water for a workout or for hot and cold therapy pre- and post-workout. It is something they look forward to because they know it works. From thousands of responses after thermal and cold contrast therapy, as well as active aquatic recovery, athletes responses have been overwhelmingly positive.
ATHLETE FEEDBACKATHLETE FEEDBACK While being in the water I was able to move like I was on the football field again without any pain compared to when I was on land where I felt the sharp pain with every step I was taking. - Division I Football player who used HydroWorx at the Cleveland Clinic in Avon, OH.