Contents
Your Achilles tendon and connective tissues are internal cogs for your body, let’s strengthen them now
”A tendon is a cord of strong, flexible tissue, similar to a rope. Tendons connect your muscles to your bones. Tendons let us move our limbs. They also help prevent muscle injury by absorbing some of the impacts your muscles take when you run, jump or do other movements.” – Cleveland Clinic, 2021.
So, you want to move? You’ll need your tendons. But it’s not like a game of chess where making moves is down to strategy and intellect… we’re talking about physical strength. And if you want to move well, then you better learn about tendon strength.
Thankfully, your learning shouldn’t take you far beyond this post. From strength benefits in an athletic function sense to connective tissue health in a prevention sense, combating tendon stiffness, for example, we’ll break down the ins and outs of the best ways to strengthen tendons and reinforce your fitness lifestyle.
So if you’ll want tendon strength, then you’ll need the strength to read this post too.
Let’s do it!
Maintenance first
Before you’ve even moved your feet, there are a lot of things you can do to prevent tendon stiffness, tendon injuries and potential physical therapy.
Let’s break down dietary aspects into 3 main areas.
Vitamin C – Vit C acts as an integral fuel for collagen development, promoting healthy muscle integrity and mobility. Collagen production can be aided by vegetables and fruits.
Protein – Healthy tendons and ligaments also rely on protein. Protein promotes muscle strength and elasticity. It also produces collagen. You can find protein in obvious food sources like eggs, fish, meats and yoghurts.
Vitamin A – Collagen renewal is the result of Vitamin A intake. If you don’t get enough of Vit A you will be prone to tendon injury and tendon pain due to muscle stiffness and a lack of mobility.
Exercise
Now let’s glance over some ways that training tendons and ligaments in an approach towards exercising can help. Common tendon injuries come from a lack of strength and overuse, I mean, walking is a pretty common activity, so you need to make sure they can withstand that sort of motion.
Weight training methods are naturally brilliant for strengthening tendons. Tendon elasticity, durability, mobility and support can all be bolstered through strength training. Try heavy, slow resistance exercises, training for quicker increases in muscle mass and strength. You can do calf raises with weights, for example.
Conclusion
Muscle tissue and tendon health rely heavily on repeated, healthy movements and actions. Tendon strengthening is an absolute must. It shouldn’t be done via one channel, both should be considered in conjunction, not exclusively.
FAQs
What if resistance training isn’t helping to reduce injury risk?
Generally speaking, resistance training will help, even if it doesn’t feel like it.
