Article 1: Posterior Segment Training for the Female Athlete
The incidence of Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) tears has always been a major problem in female athletes due to a number of documented physiological and biomechanical differences between males and their female counterparts. These differences include: muscle firing patterns, electromechanical delay of hamstrings, hormonal differences, bony geometry and interchondular notch width, among others.
I am finding that many female athletes come to F.O.R.C.E. Performance Training predisposed to tearing their ACL due to a lack of training or incorrect training which results in significant muscle strength differences in both the posterior and anterior chain. At F.O.R.C.E. we see an abundance of females with excessively strong quadriceps lacking strength in the posterior chain. I believe that this disparity is the result of females neglecting the importance of weight training in their training regimen. All too often I will see deceleration mechanics compromised due to weaknesses in the glutes, hamstrings, and lower back – the major muscle groups involved during deceleration. Coincidently, many of these females are suffering non-contact ACL tears while decelerating.
So how do we train the posterior chain in a manner to prevent ACL tears in these female athletes? The first step toward decreasing the likelihood of an ACL tear is to incorporate the glutes, hamstrings and gastrocnemius (gastrocs) muscles into a training regimen. The gastrocs, as well as the hamstrings, are biarticulate, meaning they cross two joints, the knee and the ankle. Electromyographic analyses (EMG) studies show that the gastrocs play a vital role in joint stability of the knee. Weight training protocols with exercises selectively targeting these muscle groups should be staple components of your training regimen.
Dead Lift:
I will often have females athletes perform dead lifts standing with their heels elevated on a weight or board. This ensures that they are not excessively activating the quadriceps and therefore overriding the hamstring musculature, a common problem with females who have just been introduced to the dead lift. These athletes begin the lift with a forward push off their center of gravity during the decent because they simply do not have the glute and hamstring strength or flexibility to sit back on the lift. Furthermore, I like to tell female athletes to decelerate the weight on the eccentric phase. This ensures that they are maximally activating the hamstrings during the eccentric phases.
Squat:
The Squat is one of the best-known lower extremity exercises because it allows for co-contraction of muscles (simultaneous firing of hamstrings and quadriceps), one of the keys to preserving joint integrity. Additionally, the squat is a very versatile exercise, offering many variations that target different muscle groups within the range of motion. For jumping sports, deeper squats can be used to activate more of the vastus lateralis to compensate for an overly developed vastus lateralis oblique.
Glute Ham:
As discussed earlier, the simultaneous training of the gastrocs, hamstrings and glutes is very important to preventing injury in athletes. The glute ham can be one of the best exercises used to activate all three muscle groups. Additionally, this exercise can be performed with a kettle ball to allow for simultaneous activation of the decelerating muscles of the posterior chain during kinematics of sport.
Sled Pull:
The sled can be one of the best and most versatile training tools. It can help to develop a variety of different muscle groups through a number of different exercises. To develop the posterior chain athletes can perform a forward sled pull, a pull through, or pull to exercise. Additionally, the sled can be setup at games, the park or a training facility, giving trainers, coaches and athletes the ability to train in a number of locations.
Reverse Hyper:
Athletes can perform a number of variations of the reverse hyper to train the posterior chain. I believe that one of the best variations was patented by Louis Simmons, a strength coach at Westside Barbell. His version of the reverse hyper brings the hip and pelvis beyond 90 degrees which can maximally activate the lower back and glute muscles of the posterior chain. I recommend finishing a training session that includes heavy squats with reverse hypers because they offer some traction of the lumbar vertebrae.
While browsing the F.O.R.C.E. website you will see pictures of many of the exercises described above. Due to a number of physiological and biomechanical differences between males and females, female athletes should always remember to train the posterior chain.