A new injury-prevention method is being implemented by the No. 4 UCLA women’s volleyball team this season, a method that follows the credo freedom from pain.
A volleyball player’s body goes through a lot of wear and tear, forcing many athletes to undergo off-season surgery. Last season, senior opposite hitter Kaitlin Sather was the team leader in kills per game.
This season, Sather is recovering from surgery for a right biceps injury and is on the disabled list for an indefinite amount of time. That is part of the reason why the No. 4 UCLA women’s volleyball team is going the extra mile to prevent athlete injury with a new program called Egoscue.
“We are concerned with the athletes coming in with overuse on their bodies,” coach Andy Banachowski said. “We’re seeing if it is something that will help them handle the rigors of athletics on their bodies and maybe correct some of the peculiarities of their bodies.”
Egoscue involves a series of stretches and gentle exercises aimed at treating musculoskeletal pain without any medication or surgery. It does not only cater to athletes but to anyone involved in any form of physical activity. The program was founded by the program’s namesake Pete Egoscue, who used the program after being badly injured while he was in the U.S. Marine Corps.
Last week, an Egoscue specialist attended the volleyball team’s practices to videotape the Bruins’ movement as they ran, jumped and played. The specialist used the recorded videotapes to assess what parts of the body each player needed to protect and to give individualized feedback.
“They made personalized warm-ups for each of us,” senior libero Jessica Fine said. “They give us personalized stretches that we should be doing every day to work on our alignment and posture.”
Each Bruin was given a packet of information about the stretches that would best suit her body and style of play. Fine’s packet includes about eight stretches, while sophomore outside hitter Dicey McGraw’s packet includes 11. The players are supposed to do their personalized stretches during their own time, which acts as a sort of homework for the athletes.
Egoscue is just one part of the Bruins’ injury prevention program. The team’s strength and conditioning coach Karl Jordan gives the Bruins a dynamic warm-up to use everyday before practice. UCLA has also included yoga into its training regime.
Egoscue is not widely used by other UCLA athletic teams, even though other college volleyball teams have been known to use it. John Cook, the head coach of No. 2 Nebraska, has used Egoscue for his teams for years.
After the coaching staff researched Egoscue, the Bruins started using the new method this week and are hoping to cut down on how many injuries need to be taken care of in the offseason.
“Egoscue is brand new,” McGraw said. “We are all bouncing back from the spring injuries.”