Contralateral Limb Raises

Contralateral limb raises is a at-home work out exercise that targets glutes & hip flexors and upper back & lower traps and also involves lower back and shoulders. If exercises are performed to increase muscle strength on one side of the body, voluntary strength can increase on the contralateral side. This effect, termed the contralateral strength training effect, is usually measured in homologous muscles. Although known for over a century, most studies have not been designed well enough to show a definitive transfer of strength that could not be explained by factors such as familiarity with the testing. There appears to be an increase in the number of below-knee amputees in our population due to ageing, accidents, and surgery related to peripheral vascular disease. This increase in the amputee population warrants research that attempts to address issues relevant to prosthetic management. This estimate is similar to results of a large, randomized controlled study of training for the elbow flexors [contralateral effect of 7% initial strength or one-quarter of the effect on the trained side]. Although the size of the effect is small and may not be clinically significant, study of the phenomenon provides insight into neural mechanisms associated with exercise and training.

Very little quantitative biomechanical research has been carried out evaluating issues relevant to prosthetic management. The literature available suggests that amputees may demonstrate an asymmetrical gait pattern. Furthermore, studies suggest that the forces occurring during amputee gait may be unequally distributed between the contralateral and prosthetic lower limbs. The phenomenon whereby training one side of the body increases the strength of muscles on the other side of the body has become known as the contralateral strength training effect. The same effect is sometimes termed cross-education or cross-training, although these terms have a broader use. After your workout, cool down by following any of the above activities, again for five minutes. This is also a great time to stretch your muscles holding each stretch for 20-30 seconds. Make sure you hold at a point where you can feel the stretch but you shouldn’t feel discomfort or pain. Don’t bounce through these, just slow steady movements. Contralateral training effects have been extensively investigated because they provide important insights into physiological determinants of muscle strength. The forces acting across the joints of the contralateral limb were not significantly higher than that of the non-amputee. This suggests that, providing the adult amputee has a good prosthetic fit, there will not be increased forces across the joints of the contralateral limb and consequently no predisposition for the long-term wearer to develop premature degenerative arthritis.  19가이드03