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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 specialistwww.aching-legs.org/teachers_fatigued_legs.html
Aching Legs are a Health Hazard
Teachers who stand in front of a class all day get tired aching legs, and varicose veins, and whateverelse they develop (seewww.hazards.org/standing
) for more problems that can affect the health of theteacher over the long termOccupational health and safety issues with aching legs are a constant problem for teachers, and one thatis difficult to deal with-usually the best advice that can be given for them is to wear a good pair of shoes and when you go home, lie down with the legs elevated to allow the fluid that has built up in thefeet and ankles to drain back to the bodyHere is an image of a leg of a swollen lower leg and ankle-it shows how lack of movement can affectlower leg circulation and make the feet uncomfortable in the shoes at the end of the day
These runners who have just spent 3 days on the running track represent how the teacher feels after a heavy dayat school-unfortunately, they do not have time for laying around like this when they get home, there is markingto do, and planning for the next day, and family commitments to fulfil
Lying down with the legs in the air is the last thing the teacher needs at the end of the dayit is too passive
The Calf Muscle Pump-Light Manual Muscle Relaxation as an aid to lower leg circulationCopyright 2009 Michael Gillan 2 ultra marathon recovery specialistwww.aching-legs.org/teachers_fatigued_legs.html
Other than having aching legs why do they need to be relieved?
Over the longer term, aching legs can affect the health of the teacher and they can contribute to teacherstress-has to get up and get back out-the long term effect on the lower legs and circulation may lead tohealth problems(For more on this seewww.hazards.org/standing)If the poor circulation is medically related there is not 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
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 recyclingThe 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 itThe 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 closeWhen the one-way valves are closed blood and fluid can’t go back down the legs until they open againletting blood pass through them on its way up the legsIf someone has a job that involves standing for long periods the weight of fluid in the body can putpressure on the on one-way valves causing the veins to widen and gaps in the valves to allow leakageof fluid back into the lower legsLack of movement reduces the veins ability to open and close by keeping constant tension on them, thisis called calf muscle pump inefficiency-it also affects the Lymphatic System through a reduction of lymph fluid flow
gastrocnemius
soleus
The Calf Muscle Pump-Light Manual Muscle Relaxation as an aid to lower leg circulationCopyright 2009 Michael Gillan 3 ultra marathon recovery specialistwww.aching-legs.org/teachers_fatigued_legs.html
Problems caused by calf muscle pump inefficiency include
•
Poor circulation
•
Lymph system inactivity
•
Venous return reduced
This can lead to long term leg health problems
(See www.hazards.org/standing)
Muscle health is based on having a constant supply of oxygen and nutrients to them
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
Unless 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
Why is working
with
the muscles more important than working
on
them?
The circulation is already challenged and the muscle tissues already struggling for fresh blood-working
on
the muscles entails using the hands and fingers to encourage circulation and this means usinguncontrolled finger force into the tissuesDealing with the muscles in an appropriate way is important if using manual therapies-to help increaselower leg circulation it is important to make a choice that is not going to make things worseThis the integrity of the venous and arterial systems is compromised by breaking the fine capillariesand venules that run throughout the circulatory network of blood carrying vesselsI 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 of fers 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 do
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