Problems Aplenty

[uprise]

Hello,

I have quite a few issues from the past in need of rehabilitation/strengthening and was hoping someone out there had similar experiences or some knowledge of the situation.

First, my past: I am a 25 year old male with a track record of small injuries. I have been using kettlebells for about 1.5 years now, and will be purchasing a pair of clubbells next week. As for my issues, I have what has been diagnosed by a sports doctor as Neural Ganglion Cysts in my wrists. I had lost all mobility in my wrists for about a one month period last year, but they have full mobility once again with only occasional pain at extreme flexion/extension. Not too long after the wrists went, my rotator cuffs both started to have pain. Doing kettlebell swings appears to hurt the cuffs on occasion as well as just on odd pain here and there when I am not doing anything in particular. Last, but not least, I fractured my foot playing racquetball about 3 months ago. There appears to be some soft tissue damage as well. My arch was almost flat for the first three months and is still not back to normal. I was never able to give it the rest that it required due to the fact that I still had to work and work required standing on my feet for 10 hours a day.

As for my plan to remedy these situations, I will be purchasing clubbells as I previously noted and the Warrior Wellness videos. If anyone has any other suggestions, please let me know because it is time to heal these issues and get ready for summer.

Thanks in advance to anyone who actually read this far...

[bob_stra]

I have *heard* (meaning: not really looked into) good things said about massage in relation to ganglion cysts, esp: lymphatic style massage (as per Vodder). Obviously, you'd need to look into that and compare it to the standard approaches (aspiration IIRC)

It might also prove useful in relation to the rotator cuff injury. Check the rotator cuff injury threads on this board for more.

As for the foot injury, what did your podiatrist say?

In any case, please do consult your health care practitioner before you put stock into the words of some anonymous net stranger ;-)

[James Boelter]

You may be interested in a burgeoning new bodywork modality called "Body Rolling", created by a yoga teacher and body worker by the name of Yamuna Zake. This is one of the 'specialities' I plan to investigate once I get out of MT school. It uses cleverly designed routines employing specially designed balls (like stabililty balls, only smaller) to apply sustained, deep pressure along the various planes/tissues of your body. Essentially you drape yourself (or the appropriate body part) over the ball and let the weight of your body provide the pressure as you gradually move the ball from muscle origins to insertions. This is meant to provide deep release of chronic tension, trigger points, etc.

The first book. "Body Rolling" is a bit dense and abtruse, and is meant for would-be instructors and teachers of the method. The second, newer book,(whose title escapes me at the moment) is meant for the general public as more of a 'self help' book, with the photographs and routines following a more user-friendly format.

The website now features a full array of balls with various sizes and densities (for beginners, for advanced students who can 'release' better), for feet, for calves, etc., and a series of videos/DVDs with routines showing how best to use them.

The exciting part, to me, is that you can make a visit to an instructor in the method, they can show you what to do and guide you through the appropriate routine, and you can spend $10 on the appropriate ball, go home, and practice as long and as often as you need to solve your problem. This appeals to the part of me that wants to actually 'fix' the problem for the client, not force them into a dependent relationship where they have to come see me once a week for the next 40 years in order to stay pain free.

My background isn't deep or broad enough at this point to judge if the method is actually valid or not, or is just old wine in new bottles, but I plan to attend one of the beginning level seminars in the near future and try it out for myself.

The current website is www.yamunabodyrolling.com

Hope this is of some use to you.