IT Band PT - 11/20

Just a quick recap of the past couple weeks with regards to PT:

- It turns out that the 3:30 leg raises shouldn't go up and back quite as much as I had been doing them. The motion is 90% vertical.
- Weights for the 3:30 and 10:30 leg raises has gone up to 5 lbs, and I've started doing them on both sides.
- The knee spread exercises are called clamshells.
- New balance exercise: the lean forward toe touch. In this exercise, you bend the knees slightly, and raise one foot off the floor, balancing on one foot. While continuing the balance (and making sure to keep the knee from buckling inwards), lean forward while extending the leg back, touch the floor, and then come back up. Three sets of 15.
- New strength exercise - side walking. In this exercise, an exercise band is looped around the ankles (while standing), and the feet are spread just enough to get some tension on the exercise band. Then, walk sideways 10 steps, being sure to keep control of movement and not letting the band snap your feet back together too quickly. Always keep tension on the band. Once you have gone 10 steps, go back the other direction. Repeat 3x.
- New strength exercise - leg press with exercise band. This is a standard leg press on a leg press machine, but with the exercise band just above the knee. The band is supposed to keep some of the hip muscles engaged, but so far I have not really been able to feel anything during this exercise other than on the quads. Since it requires a leg press machine, I am unable to do this one at home.

For about 1.5-2 weeks, I had been doing all the exercises that can be done at home (3:30 leg raises, 10:30 leg raises, clamshells, dips (up to 6" in height), lean forward toe touches, side walking, quad flexor stretching, and a total of around 10 minutes on the foam roller per side) on a daily basis.

Today's PT session had a few new exercises to begin integrating into a rotation of 5-6 exercises per day:
- Leg extensions: 120 lbs (three sets of 10). This is done on an exercise machine.
- Plank hold: 30 seconds x 2 per side. In this exercise, lie on your side, propped by on your elbow. Lift your hips off the ground to maintain a straight body. Hold for 30 seconds, rest, repeat, and do other side.
- Side toe touches. Similar to the lean forward toe touches, but instead of keeping the planted leg fixed in its starting position, bend at the knee to get downward motion. Two sets of five touches on each side. This exercise works the quads a bit.
- Side lunge squats: Step to the side, squat down on the knee, and back up. Two sets of 10 on each side.
- hamstring curls. This one requires a pilates ball (one of those three foot diameter inflatable balls). Lie on your back, legs raised, and the ball placed under your feet - tallest point of the ball about in line with the ankles. Place arms out to the side for stability, raise butt off floor and pull feet toward you, which rolls the ball towards you. This works the hamstrings (surprisingly well), as well as helps with building control and stability in the hip and core muscles. Two sets of 10.