I relocated to the Atlantic coast in south west England 10 days ago which has opened up a whole new fitness requirement, walking the south west coastal path. I hope to walk the length of the South West Coastal path (630 miles) in stages in spring and autumn over the next couple of years, God willing.
Walking sections and increasing distance is the best training as the function (walking) is the best functional training, providing, of course, that your biomechanical function is authentic. It’s a big proviso!
You will recall from my previous post that my right foot subtalar joint had long been an undetected problem and the demands of my tennis play and coaching resulted in damage to my right knee and left hip. Having been introduced to, and subsequently studying, Applied Functional Science with the Gray Institute over 12 years ago I have been managing these dysfunctions with the mobility and stability chain reaction matrix exercises in their 3DMAPS training process.
I am making the point in this vlog that an authentic functioning foot/ankle/ subtalar complex is foundational to all upright function in human activity and is key to tennis as a game played from the ground up. Stifle that yawn and consider whether Jannik Sinner’s achievement at the Australian owed anything to his pre-eminence as a junior in slalom skiing. He was second in his country’s national junior ranking at under 12 when he decided to make tennis his career.
Picture a downhill skier with feet and hips operating at high speed to control the forces of gravity, ground reaction, mass and momentum. What would those skills do for his tennis footwork in terms of movement and power generation up the chain. See my opening vlog .
An Introduction to Human Movement in upright function
As an aside, though deeply worrying, have you seen some adverts for shoes which promise relief from foot pain by holding your feet in non functional positions with orthotics and padded flat soles. Your foot dysfunction (which podiatrists claim that 70% of their clients have) which you might have for a number of reasons needs correcting not cushioning. There is also a company claiming that their slip on shoes are great for people on the go but not having to bend down to put on your shoes is removing, probably, the only authentic glute work out most people get.
Have another look at these six mobility chain matrices and pay particular attention to the motion of the standing foot(not lunging) to see authentic triplanar movement
Some stills for clarity.
Vaughan Ebrahim
LTA level 4
Gray Institute. CAFS 2013, 3DMAPS 2017, FGS 2023.