El Gancho
I first heard about 'El Gancho' from my Spanish brother-in- law who came with me to Chipping Norton Rugby Club .
I sponsor the club and work for them every Thursday evening dealing with all the current weeks sports injuries.
As a keen football player in Spain he was interested in how we deal with sports injuries, healing / recovery time, techniques etc here in the UK. He introduced me to' El gancho' which literally means 'hooked', he explained that he had suffered problems with his calf muscle and the team physio in Zaragoza had used this hook to pull around the muscle with great success. Within a week he had no further pain or problems.
I sponsor the club and work for them every Thursday evening dealing with all the current weeks sports injuries.
As a keen football player in Spain he was interested in how we deal with sports injuries, healing / recovery time, techniques etc here in the UK. He introduced me to' El gancho' which literally means 'hooked', he explained that he had suffered problems with his calf muscle and the team physio in Zaragoza had used this hook to pull around the muscle with great success. Within a week he had no further pain or problems.
A few months later I saw 'El gancho' being used by a sports massage therapist at mountain bike race called the Calcenada, a 104 Km hard endurance ride over huge mountains.
The technique used was to pull and stretch the muscle tissue, as an observer it really looked as though it would be quite uncomfortable but the recipient made no signs of discomfort
and was grateful of the treatment.
I ran & swam each day over the Xmas holidays in Zaragoza so I decided to treat myself and go for a sports massage and try some Spanish treatment style. During the session the sports therapist used 'El gancho' on my calf and hamstrings and it was surprisingly good at loosening soft tissue & stretching the myofacia ( clear wrapping which surrounds or encapsulate a muscle) without the need to dig in with the thumb really deeply as the calf muscle can be a painful area to treat.
Myofacial adhesions are responsible localized pain and low range of movement leading to muscle fatigue imbalance and pain. The 'El gancho' technique is definitely another useful tool in the bag to assist in soft tissue release, restricted movement, trigger point therapy and Myofacial pain.
Myofacial adhesions are responsible localized pain and low range of movement leading to muscle fatigue imbalance and pain. The 'El gancho' technique is definitely another useful tool in the bag to assist in soft tissue release, restricted movement, trigger point therapy and Myofacial pain.
I will be looking for a (CPD)* 'EL gancho' course this summer and bring it back to the UK.
Paul
If you want more info on 'El gancho'
drop me a line>>
*CPD- Continual professional development - Annual requirement of the ISRM & REPS to work in professional sports
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