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The Calf Muscle Pump-Light Manual Muscle Relaxation as an aid to lower leg circulationCopyright 2009 Michael Gillan 1 ultra marathon recovery specialisthttp://aching-legs.org/medical_students_fatigued_legs.html
Medical Students Aching Legs
To support my research into muscle recovery, I work as a hospital porter (or orderly)-at the hospitalwhere I work, we have medical students from all countries coming for training-many of them are fromthird world countries and they are basically just living on a daily basisThey are also spending many hours on their feet both around the wards and in the operating theatreTowards the end of a shift they can barely put one foot in front of another, and yet in their few hoursoff they some how have to recover in time for the next shift to go out and do it all again, and of course,not only our med students have to do this, but all other students around the world do tooLuckily I am a massage therapist who has practical experience in recovery of ultra marathon athletes(anyone who runs or walks over marathon distance), of hospital caused aching legs, and fixing them,and medical students, and a recovery system the med student can use during their breaks? ? ? ? ?during a long shift at the hospital
These runners who have just spent 3 days on the running track represent how the med student feels after a heavyroster at the hospital
Other than having aching legs why do they need to be relieved?
Other than simple tiredness and fatigue brought on by being on duty for too many hours and notenough sleep, fatigue can be brought on by being on the legs for too long-for short periods of time, thelegs will recover quite quickly with restOver the longer term, there is simply not enough time to recover because the med student has to get upand get back out onto the hospital floors again-the long term effect on the lower legs and circulationmay lead to health problems(For more on this seewww.hazards.org/standing)If the poor circulationis medically related there isnot much to be done except get them dealt with bythe medical profession-but if the lack of circulation it is related to not moving enough then it may behelped by restarting the calf muscle pump using
Light Manual Muscle Relaxation-a self help massage-lite recovery system
The Calf Muscle Pump-Light Manual Muscle Relaxation as an aid to lower leg circulationCopyright 2009 Michael Gillan 2 ultra marathon recovery specialisthttp://aching-legs.org/medical_students_fatigued_legs.html
The Calf Muscle Pump
The calf muscle pump is a very important part of the circulatory system-the purpose of the calf musclepump is to force used blood against gravity up the legs back to the body for recycling
(p.209) Physiology: a regulatory systems approach. Fleur L. Strand. Macmillan Publishing Co. Inc.ISBN 0-020979860-4
The muscle pump is made up of all the leg muscles-the main motors for the pumping system are thecalf muscles, the soleus which is used for standing and walking and the gastrocnemius used for runningand jumping, and together they work to move blood up the legs by alternately putting pressure on theveins and releasing it
(p.209)Physiology: a regulatory systems approach. Fleur L. Strand. Macmillan Publishing Co. Inc.ISBN 0-020979860-4
The veins have one-way valves in them-as the muscles squeeze, they open the valves, letting bloodpass through them; when the tension is released they close, stopping it flowing back down towards thefeet, but if someone has a job that involves standing for long periods and the calf muscle pump is notworking, the weight of fluid in the body can put pressure on the veins
The veins which take blood back to the body have one-way valves in them-as the muscles squeeze,they open the valves, letting blood pass through them; when the tension is released, they close stoppingthe blood flowing back down towards the feetIf the pump is not working properly, the weight of the used blood can remain on the valves causing theveins to widen and gaps in the valves to allow leakage of fluid back into the lower legs
“Venous valve incompetence and varicose veins”
‘Guyton-Textbook of Medical Physiology eighth edition-1991 W.B. Saunders Company-ISBN 0-726-3994-0
Effect of “Hydrostatic” Pressure on Venous Pressure
(
P.165)
‘Guyton-Textbook of Medical Physiology eighth edition-1991 W.B. Saunders Company-ISBN 0-726-3994-0
Effect of Hydrostatic Factors on Arterial and Other Pressures
(P.167)‘Guyton-Textbook of Medical Physiology eighth edition-1991 W.B. Saunders Company-ISBN 0-726-3994-0
Lack of movement reduces the veins ability to open and close by keeping constant tension on them, thisis called calf muscle pump inefficiency
‘Guyton-Textbook of Medical Physiology eighth edition-1991 W.B. Saunders Company-ISBN 0-726-3994-0
gastrocnemius
soleus
The Calf Muscle Pump-Light Manual Muscle Relaxation as an aid to lower leg circulationCopyright 2009 Michael Gillan 3 ultra marathon recovery specialisthttp://aching-legs.org/medical_students_fatigued_legs.html Calf muscle pump inefficiency also affects the Lymphatic System through a reduction of lymph fluidflow
’ (P.177) ‘Guyton-Textbook of Medical Physiology eighth edition-1991 W.B. Saunders Company-ISBN 0-726-3994-0
Problems caused by calf muscle pump inefficiency include
•
Poor circulation
•
Lymph system inactivity
•
Venous return reduced
The Blood Circulatory System
(P.150) ‘Guyton-Textbook of Medical Physiology eighth edition-1991 W.B. Saunders Company-ISBN 0-726-3994-0
This can lead to long term leg health problems
(See www.hazards.org/standing)
(P.150) ‘Guyton-Textbook of Medical Physiology eighth edition-1991 W.B. Saunders Company-ISBN 0-726-3994-0
To maintain the supply of fresh blood to the lower legs a balance between what goes into the musclesand what comes out of them is important-fresh blood can't enter the muscle tissues if nothing iscoming out of them
Here is an image of a leg of a swollen lower leg and ankle-it shows how lack of movement and exercisecan affect lower leg circulation and make it more difficult for the exchange of warm blood for cold
(P.150) Guyton-Textbook of Medical Physiology eighth edition-1991 W.B. Saunders Company-ISBN 0-726-3994-0
“The Lymphatic System
(P.180) ‘Guyton-Textbook of Medical Physiology eighth edition-1991 W.B. Saunders Company-ISBN 0-726-3994-0
I work with ultra marathon runners and walkers (people who walk or run any distance over marathon)on recovery during and after their event-I work at events that range from 6 hours to around the world
(www.worldrun.org)
My knowledge off ers a simple self help-system developed on and for ultra marathon runners andwalkers that works
with
the muscles-this makes it easy to do and it does not need equipment or anycomplicated hands on training to doUnless you know what you are doing most modern massage techniques are not only too technical-theycan be too rough on tissues, arteries, and veins in the legs from
uncontrolled finger force
and untrainedhands working
on
and
into
the muscles causing damage
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