Perform Tractions for Joint Health

Decrease Joint pain Whilst Promoting Movement and Tissue Quality

Regardless of your current phase of athletic development, joint health is vital. A healthy joint is formed by two articulating surfaces, that slide and glide along each other in a natural, pain-free motion, They have the ability to move through a full range of motion and in some cases, multiple planes of motion. However, through high intensity training and/or injury, joints can lose these properties, hindering performance and limiting recovery. A joint that cannot function through a full range of motion whether its due to pain or restriction will over time begin to degenerate.

 Whether it’s from microtears in muscle tissue through progressive overload training, or through soft tissue damage from trauma or overuse, a joint will always suffer with a reduction of motion. This decrease in motion Is believed to be caused by pathological factors such as ligaments and joint capsules contracting and/or greater resistance from muscles, tendons and fascia in order to protect the joint from further damage during a recovery period.

Unfortunately, a lack of movement further worsens the condition of a joint which if left un-treated can be a predisposing factor for complete ligament, muscle or tendon tears as the damaged, restricted tissue is less efficient at distributing load. One commonly used technique to treat such musculoskeletal pathologies is known as a traction mobilisation.

What is a Traction?

Traction is a form of joint mobilisation which aims to decrease pain and reduce hypomobility (opposite to hypermobile) joints. Unlike other mobilisation techniques where force is applied in parallel to the joint line, during tractions force is applied perpendicular. A traction involves a force pulling one segment of an articulating joint in order to produce some separation between joint surfaces. Thus, loosening surrounding soft tissues which in turn allow for greater non-restricted movement.

Through increased space between joint surfaces, synovial fluid is able to lubricate our joints more efficiently protecting surfaces from shearing (wearing away) as well as allowing for better shock absorption from external forces. Optimising synovial fluid movement within a joint will also further alleviate joint dysfunction and improves quality of movement.

Decompression

Traction relieves symptoms of pathologies related to ‘compressed’ joints and are performed in close-packed positions where the ligaments are most lax. A traction applied to spinal joints tends to be known as a decompression treatment. Treatment outcomes of a decompression are similar to tractions but are also used to relieve pressure upon nerves stemming from the spinal cord into the peripherals. 

Placing decompressive forces upon the spine encourages reabsorption of nutrients, oxygen and water into the disc, allowing them to re-hydrate. Through loading of the spine from long periods of sitting, additional weight loading activities and even gravity, our discs lose water becoming dehydrated, which subsequently reduces space between the vertebrae, leading to pinching of nerves and/or disc degeneration. If left untreated vertebrae can rub together causing large amounts of pain; slowly making an individual become more disabled with time along with permeant damage to the spine.

Application of decompressive forces is even more important for those who partake it actives which place the body under great loads often seen in strength sports. A common injury is a budging disc or herniated disc which can be avoided from regular decompression.   

How You Can Start Doing Tractions

Tractions or decompressions are usually performed by a form of manual therapist or specialised equipment but there are exercises that you can incorporate into your training to do it yourself. For peripheral joints think of the angle of which the selected joint is most open and relaxed. This position allows optimises separation of the joint surfaces and better load distribution upon surrounding soft tissues.

An easy way to perform tractions to yourself is via a strong resistance or pull up band wrapped around a stable post or rack and linked to the desired extremity. If limbs are straight them the shoulder or the hip will be the one undergoing the most decompressive force, whereas if the limb is slightly bent roughly 25° flexion more empathises would be placed on the knee or elbow if the hip and shoulder are in a close packed position.

The benefit of using a resistance band is that you can relax in the position, a great intervention to add to warm up or to your mobility routine. The band eliminates any issues with sustaining grip of an object or withstanding strenuous positions, optimising the benefits of this static traction as there isn’t any muscular contraction pulling upon bones editing the alignment. 

As for the spine, some of the pre-existing strength training exercise you perform have decompressive alternatives which allow you to train but also promote spinal health. Below are examples of exercises along with their alternatives enabling you to optimise your training quality and prevention of disc denervation.

Implementing them into Your Training Programme

From the list above some will look at the alternatives and already rule them out. “I must squat heavy for my training”, “I need to do the 3 main lifts in order to continue to improve”, “those exercises are not in my training plan”. Although, these alternatives may not be the most optimal for building absolute strength you don’t have to sacrifice your main lifts to incorporate decompressive exercises.  

These alternatives are also well known and utilised accessory lifts (supplement exercises to improve your main lifts) suggesting to perform these after the main lift and with a more submaximal load and higher volume. Performing them is this manner allows for you to still perform your core lifts and the higher repetition range allows for more time under tension and therefore results in a greater level of rehydration. These alternatives could also be considered when progress has plateaued and current assessor exercises are not as effective in their translation to your main lifts.

Another possible way to incorporate decompression exercises into your training is on active recovery days or deload phases within your training. These periods of lower loading to optimise the mutation from strength training into athletic performance are also an ideal time to regenerate possible compression of the spine. The change from your usual go-to exercises will allow for a more dynamic, multi-lateral set of movement patterns whilst keeping your disc hydrated and lowering risk of injury and time away from your sport.

Those who are worried about sacrificing potential performance gains remember the law of accommodation; over time the same exercise becomes less stimulating. Consider these alternatives as a new stimulus, ones which can mix things up whilst taxing your tissues is a new different way plus reduce the chance of you sacrificing the longevity of your training. 

Implementing into Your Mobility Sessions

Those of us partaking is regular strenuous sport know the importance of maintaining good tissue quality and being supple. Performing mobility exercises and drills on a regular basis to help regenerate and recover from the stresses of training is key in reducing potential injuries. Those of you who don’t perform mobility drill and exercises regularly SHOULD! It’s only a matter of time before any underlying issues develops into a dysfunction or injury.

As mentioned mobility sessions are a great opportunity to introduce tractions into your routines. Using a resistance band wrapped around a post and then your wrist or ankle for 30-120 seconds each side will help influence muscle inhibition (relaxation) allowing for easier progression of full joint ranges such as full depth squats or full overhead extension without over-arching. Similar to how self-myofascial release aims to supplement and restore the natural sliding and gliding of tissues during movement, tractions aim to achieve the same benefits but to the surrounding soft tissues of a joint. As all athletes will want to maintain full functioning muscles and joints, it’s obvious to cover all basis within your allocated mobility session.  

Mobility sessions are normally performed separate to workouts however, mobility drills prior to training can reduce injury risk and promote more natural movement, thus better performance. Mobility as part of a warm up can help facilitate better joint alignment and lubrication as well as potentially resulting in greater muscle activation and reduced joint shearing

Final Words

It’s important to assess your own level of mobility in order to know what to prioritise. More limited areas aim to hit often, 3-7 days a week whilst none troublesome areas 1-2 a week for maintenance. Many people find tractions relaxing but if it is uncomfortable start with multiple bouts of 10 seconds and gradually increasing the time.

Although decompression drills won’t make you hypermobile a small group of people can become hypermobile from tractions through potentially lengthening tissues greater than needed. Those of you who are hypermobile or are worried regarding this should understand that there is another factor to consider, stabilisation.

Stabilisation of a joint is just as important as the pliability of the surrounding tissues and one without the other results in injury. Many of athletes who partake in regular strength training are more prone to joint range limitations from tissues becoming more rigid in order to hold a position whilst sustaining large external loads. They become very stable in a short joint range. Increasing the available joint range will need to be supplemented with stabilisation exercises. Regular strength training will help stabilise new joint ranges to an extent but if the new range is obtained quickly it can lead to unstable, low control movements. With tractions introduce and progress with them slowly, you may notice your form of an exercises improve but always make sure to listen to your body and keep an eye out for movement breakdown.