Active isolated stretching

[Guest guest]

As for Mattes background he is a kinesiologist

http://www.stretchingusa.com/aaron_mattes.htm

Mattes received his Bachelor of Science Degree from Wisconsin State

University-Superior, 1970 majoring in Physical Education. Mattes received

his Master of Science Degree from the University of Illinois,

Urbana-Champaign, 1972, with special emphasis in Kinesiology and

Kinesiotherapy. Mattes served as pitching coach for the University of

Illinois baseball team. Mattes directed Kinesiotherapy Clinics at the

University of Illinois (1972-1976) and the University of Toledo (1976-

1979). Mattes experience encompasses over 175,000 hours in instruction,

rehabilitation, athletic training, adapted physical education, sports

medicine, training and prevention programs. He is a registered

Kinesiotherapist and a certified member of the American Kinesiotherapy

Association. He is a licensed Massage Therapist and a member of the

Florida State Massage Therapy Association and the American Massage Therapy

Association. Mattes is a member of the Association of Medical Rehabilitation

Administrators, and the National Rehabilitation Association. Mattes

lectures internationally at sports medicine clinics, medical seminars,

massage therapy conventions and continuing education to personal trainers.

nurses, strength trainers, athletic trainers, physical therapists, massage

therapists, coaches and athletes. Mattes serves as a consultant to sports

clubs, high school, college and professional athletes and teams. He has

rehabilitated thousands of subjects including famous politicians,

entertainers, and hundreds of olympic and professional athletes. Mattes is

currently Director of Sports Medicine & Rehabilitation International,

Palmetto, Florida.

[That's what they all like to say! I am now waiting for some therapists to

raise the dead in their marketing blurbs. The Maharishi is getting close

with " levitating " his well-paying clients (I would also hit the roof if I had

to pay that much for that sort of nonsense!). Mel Siff]

For more info on Active Isolated Stretching refer to:

http://www.stretchingusa.com/Default.htm

Another site of interest:

http://www.softtissuerelease.com/

This is Stuart Taws' site -- he and Mattes have worked closely together.

Stuart Taws is a Sports Rehabilitation Therapist from England, now living in

California, the developer and innovator of a dynamic training called Soft

Tissue Release.

[Ah well, yet another one who has used work by Janet Travell and other

therapists to create something " original " ! Why is there this insatiable

desire to be the creator or to create the impression that one is the creator?

Rememeber the Wieder Principles which show that Joe Wieder definitely

discovered every strength training principle in the galaxy? Mel Siff]

Stuart traveled with the British Track Team and was the

therapist with Carl ' track team, the Santa Track Club, prior to

the last Olympics. After several years working in a pain clinic in

California he applied this sports therapy to chronic low back pain, whiplash

and carpal tunnel, providing the same fast and permanent relief obtained by

the world's fastest sprinters. This training is so powerful that Stuart has

been invited to train emergency room doctors in the Los Angeles area.

They wanted something that they could use in triage to tell in a few minutes

if it was a soft tissue problem or something more serious. Kaiser Permanente

is a doctor owned HMO in California with very 'deep pockets', but they are

losing so much on failed back surgeries that they are a planning a follow up

clinic to the emergency room admissions for low back pain with Stuart as a

consultant, and they know he is a massage therapist. This says something

about the change going on in the medical profession and the need for us to

have techniques that meet the demands of this new millennium. Many articles

on this dynamic approach to healing have been printed in the Massage

Journals over the last ten years. He is currently conducting training

sessions throughout the United States and Canada and has a private practice

in Garden Grove, California.

[Really!! This person is claiming that he can diagnose serious medical problems

better than experienced medical staff - that is medically outrageous, since it

could lead to serious medical and legal consequences if superficial methods like

that

were used as method for distinguishing between serious and less serious

problems.

I hope that this is merely a silly, exaggerated claim and not fact.

If this is what some emergency room doctors really rely on for diagnosing

potentially critical

conditions, remind me to remain with my local shamans! This sort of anecdotal

hype does little to enhance anyone's reputation or that of any accredited

clinic. One of our triage unit staff here learned some excellent emergency

methods from

her maternal grandmother who saved hundreds of lives on the Oregon Trail

in last century with her buffalo deep tissue releases and I would prefer to rely

on them - it has worked for me and my clan for many years and our results

speak for themselves. Mel Siff]

The technique involves precise pressure through a specific stretch done in a

harmonic fashion.

[Nothing new - read Janet Travell's books (especially the series with Dr Simon)

to learn this sort of release from nearer the original source. Even then, this

type of technique has been used in traditional Eastern medicine long before

it became trendy in more First World cultures. Mel Siff]

The goal is to appeal to the autonomic nervous system in a way that you get

a spontaneous release and obtain original resting length of the previously

injured muscle. Muscle memory is the goal rather than physical interference

with injury. These concepts are based on the new science of Quantum Physics

as they apply to accelerated healing and the release that can be obtained by

quickly reprogramming the nervous system.

[The " new " science of quantum physics was even fairly old when I studied it

at university more than 40 years ago. This " new science " has never been shown

to relate to accelerated healing and release - it seems as if the Maharishi

Mahesh Yogi and his little disciple, Deepak Chopra, really have marketed this

idea of " quantum healing " very well (see our archives for long discussions on

these two opportunistic marketeers). It would be interesting to see how

Stuart Taws without any formal education in higher level physics manages to

show how " quantum physics " relates directly to tissue healing. Mel Siff]

The speed of the release obtained defies some of the mechanistic theories we

have

been taught in school as to the nature of injury and the rate of recovery. The

concepts

are challenging and are for the open minded. The results are consistent,

extraordinary and

well documented. Time is spent describing how you can use these skills in

the corporate world of RSI's and the new opportunity of this decade. Not

only will you learn a new skill but you will be taught how to quickly use

that skill to generate new income. This will change the way you work

forever. Specific attention is given to self help, minimizing fatigue while

maximizing results.

[He forgot to mention that those with even more open minds now swear that

general relativity, black hole cosmology, string theory, quantum

electrodynamics,

and fractal singularities control soft tissue injuries and healing to even a far

greater extent than pure quantum mechanics. Then again, to learn about these

unique methods, you have to sign up for our advanced courses at the very special

introductory price of $5000 a day (stellar prices for stellar results!) Mel

Siff]

Anyone on the list had any experience with these techniques?

Comments welcome.

Tom Green

St. Louis, MO

------------

It was written:

> I am a second year Physical Therapy student. I am also a long distance

>runner and novice mountain biker...... I recently heard about a stretching

>technique called the active isolated stretch. I think you basically hold the

>stretch for a couple of seconds, let off, than stretch again. I would really

>like to know more about this technique, but so far have had little luck with

>my search. If any of you have heard of this stretch, or know where I can find

>out more about it, please let me know. Your help is greatly appreciated. >>

Mel Siff:

>Since you are a PT student, you will readily be able to locate resources

>on this allegedly 'novel' form of stretching. It is really a very old >system

>of stretching derived and given a new name by a father and son team (the

>Whartons) who work in the fitness world, which seems inordinately impressed

>by novel names, wonderful claims and mystique. Apparently they had learned

>and commercialised this method from a chiropractor, Matthes, who, in

>turn, had become aware of it from its original sources.

>

>This method, which is no better or worse than other stretching approaches, is

>simply taken from one of several methods (hold-relax, contract-relax, etc)

>that have been widely used in PNF (Proprioceptive Neuromuscular

>Facilitation), a system that was first devised by Knott & Voss some 50 years

>ago. Knott & Voss wrote the book " Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation "

>to describe their methods in great detail. Alter wrote " Facilitated

>Stretching " , which also covered some similar territory in less technical

>form; I have also summarised all the main stretching methods in my book

> " Supertraining " Ch 3. As a PT student, you should be learning a great deal

>about PNF methods very soon in your university course - if you are impatient

>to learn more sooner, why not ask one of your lecturers about PNF?

>

>Note that one should distinguish between " stretching " exercises and

> " flexibility " exercises, because stretching really refers to the mechanical

>deformation of tissue, whereas flexibility refers to increase of Range of

>Movement (ROM), which includes contributions from neural changes

>( " facilitation " ) and from prolonged lengthening of connective tissue

>( " Supertraining " Ch 3). Neuromuscular facilitation can be effective even if

>applied for a brief period, whereas tissue deformation/lengthening methods

>require many minutes or hours for any lasting effects to occur (because

>collagenous tissue cannot be permanently lengthenend by a few seconds of

>static, 'active isolation' or yogic stretches).

>

>Dr Mel C Siff

*Don't forget to sign all letters with full name and city of residence if you

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[Guest guest]

Hi everyone,

I'm currently designing my dissertation for my degree in strength and

conditioning and was wondering if anybody could point me in the direction of any

research done on active isolated stretching? Anything right now would be good

but especially its effects on increase of flexibility or force production,

thanks in advance.

Ben Richens

London

UK