Picked up this book due to my recent knee issues. Author is a personal trainer and orthopaedic exercise specialist.
The book argues that healing and recovery from injury is not complete, leading to re-injury.
Book begins by laying out the science of collagen. Collagen is the primary structural molecule in the body. Different forms in tendons and ligaments, in the skin, in cartilege and bones, and within the muscles and other organs.
When an injury happens, a tear in the collagen fibres is “patched” by a clump of collagen (my wording :-). To fully recover, the clump needs to be reformed into the correct structure. Complete rest of the injury is a bad idea for recovery. Need to continue to exercise the joint or muscle in its normal range of motion. But also need to avoid over-working and re-injury. A balancing act.
Book then discusses science around synovial fluid, the liquid within joints.
Book then discusses strategies for addressing the most common injury areas — knees, lower back, shoulder, etc.
Book has a large section describing specific exercises. Book finishes with a “maintenance” exercise program — a suite of stretches and exercises for the long term.
In my case, I saw a lot of overlap with his recommendations and the exercises the physiotherapist had me doing. Also interesting to see that the exercise program I got from the gym trainer uses many of the same exercises. I guess the key point is that natural body movements are the basis for any exercise-related training of any sort.
Intention: I should try his suite of exercises some time.
TODO. Finish this write-up.