Phases

We notice the transitions during daily movement more than anything else. If you are walking through the park at a constant speed enjoying the scenery, nothing really grabs your attention. However, if you notice a crack in the sidewalk or trip over a rock, now you’ve noticed something. It is the things within the environment that are unexpected that we pay attention to. This is also usually the case with injuries and/or pain. We tend to go about our daily life not noticing particular body parts, until they hurt, then they have a captive audience.

Movement is a continuum of events that occur to allow for a given activity to be performed. That continuum has been simplified by many to include distinct parts, phase transitions, with specific criteria. A mentor of mine, Bill Hartman, helped me to see the movement spectrum as three primary events. The early, middle and late phases. The transition between these phases is usually when we notice issues. If each state is achieved relatively smoothly we go about our day as usual, if not, we feel the glitch and notice something isn’t quite right.

The initial stage, early, requires tissues be elastic and moldable around the energy being put into the body by the ground. Our foot strikes the ground, and it eventually returns the energy to aid in propelling us forward. We need to absorb that energy via connective tissues that can harness it first. Should we reduce that phase in duration, we may miss out on some of that energy, and we could be required to make it up elsewhere. A compensation may develop.

The middle phase is where the greatest degree of phase shifting occurs. Joints move relative to one another and maximize energy absorption before delivery. This requires the greatest degree of adaptability and capacity. Should we be lacking in a knee joint for instance, that lack must be made up somewhere else, and maybe back pain develops as a result. Finally, in the late phase of movement, elastic recoil occurs in connective tissues and the energy that was absorbed gets returned. If elastic mechanisms are disturbed, this process becomes more focal and less distributed.

Movement is complex, but we are all capable of achieving this process in some form or fashion. Developing a vocabulary for understanding this process, finding the right exercises, and consistently doing the work make for a higher probability of moving and feeling better.

Austin Ulrich, Physical Therapist