Controlled movement is the careful exercising of your soft tissues.

Controlled Movement For a Recent Injury

In the case of a recent soft tissues injury, the injured area needs to be exercised carefully over three to six weeks to ensure a full recovery.

Two days following the injury careful exercising may be commenced. At this stage your injury will be stabilizing. Gentle controlled movement that does not produce or increase pain at your injury site, stimulates the healing process without causing further damage.

Depending on your progress, four days following the injury the exercises are increased in strength and duration. By the fourth day the healing process will have started. Controlled movement that produces a gentle stretch but no pain at your injury site, exercises the newly developing scar tissue. This forms the basis for quality healing.

Again, depending on your progress, nine days following the injury the exercises are further increased in strength and duration. By the ninth day the healing process will be well established. Controlled movement that produces a firm stretch but no pain leads to a strong and flexible repair.

Twenty-two days following the injury your progress is reviewed and injury prevention is discussed. By the twenty-second day your injury site will have a much improved flexibility, strength and function. Depending on the extent of your recovery it may be necessary to continue the treatment program for up to a further three weeks to regain normal function.

Controlled Movement For a Long Standing Injury

In the case of a long-standing injury, the actual soft tissue damage has healed. Lack of appropriate exercise at the time of healing has resulted in a loss of normal flexibility, strength and function. Generally, long standing injuries take longer to fully recover than recent injuries but they respond equally well to the progressions of controlled movement.

Guidelines for Exercising

1. When commencing an exercise, perform the exercise once, gently and with care, to test the soft tissue involved. The movement may cause discomfort but should not produce or increase pain.

2. Carefully perform the exercises a further three times and evaluate the amount of discomfort caused by these movements.

3. If, on repetition, the exercise only causes discomfort at the extremes of movement, it is safe to continue exercising.

4. If, on repetition, the exercise is painful or constant pain is still felt half an hour after exercising, movement has been applied too early or too vigorously. Continuation of the exercise will disrupt the repair process. Stop exercising and apply RICE. Rest for 24 hours, then begin the exercising again. Perform the exercise more gently but just as often.

When performing the exercise described in the treatment program for your injury, you may feel than one exercise appears to stretch your injury site more than the other exercises. It is necessary to perform every exercise to ensure that all of the soft tissues around your injury site regain and maintain their normal flexibility, strength and function.

Appropriate controlled movement leads to a strong and flexible repair.

If you have specific training questions please send email to trainer@activeankle.com