Playing a sport can place stress on the legs and they may become non-functional and you need them to become functional again as quickly as you can. You can work on them or work with them to achieve this. Wholistic Light Manual Muscle Relaxation uses structured movement to work with the body

1. Non-functional legs to functional legs after sport
©2017 Michael Gillan www.running-repairs.international
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Non-Functional to Functional for runners/walkers/players
Wholistic Light Manual Muscle Relaxation is a do it yourself running repairs
option to keep the legs functional while the muscles self repair
A major problem for many people in sport whether they are professional or
amateur is after the event getting their legs functioning again so they can get
back to training or normal life as quickly as possible.
A problem for many athletes is that there is a gap between being non-functional after an
event when movement is restricted because of soreness and stiffness in the muscles and
getting functional or free movement again.

2. Non-functional legs to functional legs after sport
©2017 Michael Gillan www.running-repairs.international
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Most athletes consider sore legs after their sport and Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness which
can happen about 24 hours after the event finishes is something that is to be suffered
through but it while it is there, the legs are non-functional.
Many people have no idea on how to start to approach the problem of painful stiff legs, so
they just suffer through them for weeks until the body has finished the repair and the legs
have free movement again.
Meanwhile the quality of life in private, work and pleasure has dropped off and the pain and
muscle stiffness continues making it difficult to get the pants on and off, climb stairs, sit
down, stand up, walk, lie down, get out of bed, drive, play with the children if you have
them, go dancing, and trying to have your friends stop laughing at your distress and
discomfort.
There are many people involved in sport in one way or another and they all suffer for their
involvement, overuse or pushing the legs too far is acceptable, or they wouldn’t be doing it.
Seeing people suffer from muscle soreness and stiffness is not a good thing I know that it
compounds over time and can affect their performance in their sport.
For those people who can afford it the manual therapies is the most common option, but
there are things that can go badly wrong if an inappropriate method is used

3. Non-functional legs to functional legs after sport
©2017 Michael Gillan www.running-repairs.international
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The Brutal Way
There are many ways to approach dealing with sore legs after sport but the way
demonstrated in this video is extreme, and the pity is that the no pain no gain way is still
widely held amongst a lot of practitioners who are called on to deal with muscle soreness
and stiffness.
The young people involved in this video were not aware that what was going on was not
necessary and could have injured him and finished what may have been a sporting career.
https://youtu.be/m-hCuYjvw2I
To illustrate the problems that can be caused when a heavier type of massage is used below
is a quote from Sandra Brown taken from her advice sheet for the Surrey Walking Club.
“The second tear (at least I have matching legs with old tears on both sides) was caused, to
my great annoyance at the time, by an overenthusiastic physio who was supposed to be
helping me to warm up gently before a 24 hour race and got carried away.
I am now more wary of having physio at any time, and make sure that I stay in control, by
saying at the outset what I want and don’t want to be done to me. Having never had a
persistent injury (my varied training pattern means that any niggles have the chance to heal
quickly, rather than get hammered and go critical,)
I have never had regular physio or a steady relationship of trust with any physiotherapist who
knew me and my needs. The closest I have come to this was receiving massage from Michael
Gillan during the Nanango (Queensland) 1000-mile race in 1996. I had no hesitation in
having a massage from Michael again at the end of the Melbourne 100 miles walk in 1999.
Michael’s approach is very gentle at all times, and always works with the athlete and puts the
athlete in control, thus minimising the risk of harm and maximising the benefit.
Very occasionally I will feel tightness in one or other hamstring, but I am lucky that neither
tear has become a real problem. These days I stretch pretty diligently after exercise and am
convinced of its value, and my cross-training approach plays a part; I am sure, in keeping me
free of overuse injuries. More on stretching another time.”
(Source:http://www.surreywalkingclub.org.uk/Training?Advice/Articles/training_for_ultras_
by_sandra_br.htm#Training/forUltras_SB)
The alternative at the other end of the scale is not much better and comes with its own
problems
Resting the legs is not going to work to get you going again because it is too passive, to get
things functional again the body and legs need to be pro-active.

4. Non-functional legs to functional legs after sport
©2017 Michael Gillan www.running-repairs.international
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Anyone who has been in hospital for an operation in recent years
knows they do not allow you to lie in bed recuperating all day, the
minute you are over the first day, no matter the pain you are
feeling, they want to get you up and start to walk as quickly as
possible.
This is not being deliberately cruel but if you rest longer than necessary everything starts to
close down and you will start to vegetate as the rest of your body becomes weaker and you
gradually lose use of the muscles.
You may also get dizzy and disoriented or light headed on standing and on moving nothing
works together and it is easy to fall.
Do you really have nothing else to do with your time other than lying around all day while
you wait for your legs to move freely again?
You are not going to move any easier by just lying down!
A third alternative
Is all about being Pro-active to regaining fitness and functionality faster
There is a problem only considering the legs as something separate.
Getting them from dysfunction (or non-functioning) to functional use again needs the
mind, brain, nervous system and other systems involved in walking/running.
Conventional work is inappropriate because it is relies on the therapist’s skills working on
the legs rather than the whole body, the athlete usually just lies on the table having work
done ON them, they are not involved unless the need to do stretching if it is going to be
done.

5. Non-functional legs to functional legs after sport
©2017 Michael Gillan www.running-repairs.international
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It’s in your hands!
Structured Movement
Changing the approach to the way of working with the body and treating it as one unit to
deal with leg fatigue, soreness and stiffness can make a difference to performance because
it doesn’t break into the body’s own repair systems which adds to the work it has to do as it
has to repair the injury that may have been caused by too much finger pressure into the
muscles.
The chart below shows how the change affected the runners and walkers of the Colac 6 day
event in 1995 as Wholistic Light Manual Muscle Relaxation was developed.

6. Non-functional legs to functional legs after sport
©2017 Michael Gillan www.running-repairs.international
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Michael Gillan Wholistic Legs Maintenance Practitioner
(Extreme running and walking)
This is Wholistic Light Manual Muscle
Relaxation in development at the 1995
Colac Australia 6 Day event
Notice the lack of equipment except for the table to
work on and and blanket to keep the athlete warm along
with his pants, shoes, socks, all I had was my hands and
developing the knowledge of how to use them.
Michael has been involved in extreme running and walking since 1993 starting at the Colac
6 Day event in Victoria Australia.
In 1995 he developed Wholistic Light Manual Muscle Relaxation which cut back on
massage table time from 1 ½ hours of non productive distance to 20 minutes and back on
the track for more productive distance because of the reduced downtine.
Light Manual Muscle Relaxation the system is different from conventional legs
maintenance because it uses structured movement and works with the legs and not on
them.
This makes it more effective to use for people who don’t have the knowledge and skills
needed for conventional massage systems. It doesn’t rely on the hand skills and strokes as
does massage so needs no oil to prevent skin friction, it needs no undressing which means
that it is appropriate to use in conditions where conventional massage is too restrictive.
Michael does workshops on Wholistic Light Michael was also involved in a run across
America in 2011 for Natural Medicine from San Francisco to Bridgeport Conn.
www.therun.org
With Jesper Olsen Of Denmark on his first run around the world in Victoria
www.worldrun.org
With Tony Mangan of Ireland on the Australian leg from Melbourne to Darwin
www.theworldjog.com
With Tony Mangan of Ireland on the Australian leg of his walk around the world from
Perth to Sydney
www.myworldwalk.com Tony Mangan’s walk across Australia

7. Non-functional legs to functional legs after sport
©2017 Michael Gillan www.running-repairs.international
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It has also been tested on and by runners at events around It doesn’t rely on the
hand skills and strokes as does massage so needs no oil website at www.running-
repairs.international
1995 Colac 6 Day race (Light Manual Muscle Relaxation developed, used from here on)
1996 Nanango 1000 Mile 16 day (1600 kilometer) Footrace
Coburg 24 Hour race (official masseur) in the following years
1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011,
2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017,2018
Australian Centurion Race walkers’ 100-mile event (official masseur) in the following years
1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011,
201 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2016, 2017,2018
1999 Sri Chinmoy 24 hour race with Cliff Young (official masseur)
2000 Cliffies Dream 16-day event as masseur (7 days)
2000 Sri Chinmoy Adelaide 24 hour Event (official masseur)
2003 National 24 Hour Championships Self Transcendence Footrace (official masseur)
2004 Round the World Run 1 (3 weeks official masseur and support crew)
2005 Cliff Young 6 day event (3 days with Indian National record holder)
2007 Antibes (France) 6 jour event (official masseur)
2007 Mors world run 2 training camp (14 days)
2007 Mors 100 Mile event
2007 World Distance 24 Hour Championships Montreal with the Danish National Distance
Running Team
2011 Run across America for health and Natural Medicine San Francisco to Bridgeport Conn.
2013 joined Tony Mangan’s run around the world from Melbourne (Victoria to Darwin
Australia)
2014 With Tony Mangan around Southern Ireland and finish of his 50,000 kilometer around
the world run at the Dublin Marathon
2015 Fort Lauderdale Icarus 6 Day Event
2015 Raw Runners around Australia (Nullabor Plain to Melbourne)
2017 joined Tony Mangan on the Australian leg of his around the world walk from Perth to
Sydney

8. Non-functional legs to functional legs after sport
©2017 Michael Gillan www.running-repairs.international
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Numerous 6 hour events and marathons around the world Various Anti cancer Council 24
hour relay for life events plus Duathlons and Triathlons
If anyone was planning to walk or run around the world or across continents Michael would
be the one that you would want to have with you because of his extensive experience being
out there in the wild country and helping to keep the runners and walkers on track as
smoothly as possible.
But due to factors of age and health I have to be very selective which events I attend so
putting up on line workshops to pass on some of this knowledge.
In conclusion
You can’t fight it the best you can hope for is to work within the limitations it
imposes.
To know more about Wholistic Light Manual Muscle Relaxation a different approach
check
http://www.running-repairs.international