Frappier Acceleration training system

Service report Here’s how the Frappier rehabilitation system works

If you happen to subscribe to our sister publication Peak Performance, you may recall reading about the Frappier Acceleration training system (see PP August 2002). Developed by the American John Frappier in the 1980s, its first UK base was established at SportDimensions in Chiswick, London, in the spring of 2001, and is run by Mike Antoniades. As well as guaranteeing improved sports speed by way of its systematic use of high-speed super treadmills and other specialised equipment and drills, the system has also developed a reputation for bringing about equally quick recovery from injury. Employing the same techniques that the system uses for performance, it has successfully treated thousands of people with various sports injuries and has even had success with patients suffering from the aftermath of cancer surgery.

A proactive system

The Frappier system for rehab (like speed) is based on established progressions using detailed protocols. These take a patient through a week-by-week, block-by-block series of programmes. These are developed from an extensive body of research that has been generated in the main from the 50 specialist Frappier rehab centres that are allied to the orthopaedic departments of hospitals in the US. This has produced an enormous amount of practical data that Antoniades and his colleagues are able to use. Nevertheless, despite this highly promising starting position, Antoniades was a little unsure as to how the system would be taken to in the UK. As far as he was aware nothing similar existed this side of the Atlantic. His initial caution was also increased by the nature of the system, which is very proactive. He believes it reflects an American attitude to rehab and injury treatment that is 10-15 years in advance of the UK. Antoniades explains that, basically, as soon as the all-clear is given by a doctor/physio, the patient is encouraged to be as active as they possibly and safely can under Frappier tutelage. In cases where one limb has been injured, the other is exercised as much as is possible and a great deal of proprioception work is carried out. Biomechanical analysis is also a key feature of the system. Antoniades spends a great deal of time making sure that an athlete’s movement is as efficient as it possibly can be and that all the relevant muscles, ligaments and tendons are strengthened and mobile enough to cope. Obviously, Antoniades is very keen to stress that the Frappier system is not gung-ho – all athletes under his charge are carefully monitored and taken through the programmes only when they are ready, and physiotherapists, surgeons and club doctors are always involved.

Despite initial reservations, the Chiswick clinic soon added a rehabilitation dimension to its speed development one, and began to be used by numerous injured international and professional sportsmen and women. Antoniades provides some examples – these will also exemplify some of the system’s key rehab techniques:

Case study 1 – Post-operative cancer patient

One client had her pelvis and hip smashed because she had a tumour. She was on crutches for 18 months and doctors told her that there was no way that she would walk again without a limp , let alone run. Using the Frappier system, Antoniades began to work with exercises designed to develop her bone density and her walking ability. Twelve weeks later she was able to run at 9mph on the treadmill and now walks without a limp. Not surprisingly, her surgeons are amazed

One of the keys to the above cure and a major feature of Frappier rehab is the extensive use of the ‘back pedal’ (backward running/walking on the treadmill) on an incline, decline or on the flat. Antoniades explains that this works ligaments and muscles in a way that aids recovery and places less stress on them and other areas of the body than forward movements. He added that this approach is particularly successfully with ankle injuries and ACL rehab.

Case study 2 – Tim Henman’s shoulder injury

Tim Henman had a shoulder injury which had bothered him for quite some time. He wanted to play in the Davis Cup in September 2002 and came to Chiswick in desperation. Antoniades got him fit in 10 days and Henman was able to play in the Cup. Unfortunately the player then reinjured his shoulder. Henman had an exploratory operation on his shoulder in November 2002 and on coming back to the clinic, this time with longer-term treatment, the player’s shoulder was specifically strengthened and mobilised back to full fitness. Antoniades used a variety of strength exercises, to stabilise and strengthen the joint and then made extensive use of a specially developed elasticised ‘shoulder power cord’ to load the shoulder from different directions for mobility and power.

Antoniades spends a long time analysing the way power is generated for different sports, and crucially by each sports performer attending the clinic – not everyone hits a serve or performs a similar sports skill the same way. Using Henman as an example, Antoniades identified that the shoulder problem was being caused by the way the player was serving. Most of the power for the serve comes from the legs and through the trunk, so Antoniades worked on these areas and advised Henman’s coach and physios on how to keep the player’s biomechanics as sound as possible in future.

Case study 3 – Colin Bryce – Olympic bobsleigher and his dislocated ankle

On 31 August 2001 Bryce broke and dislocated his ankle and had a 12-inch pin with 16 screws put into his leg. The Olympic trials were just four months away and the athlete was told that there was no way that he would be walking, let alone running, by then. But, under the guidance of Antoniades, the minute Bryce was out of hospital, he was put on a strength-training programme while still in plaster. Two months later at the end of October the athlete began learning how to walk again, first by using the back pedal. He was progressed gradually with forward walking, then jogging, and then increased forward speed-running sessions were introduced. Such was Bryce’s progress that on Christmas Eve he was able to run at 21mph on the treadmill. He made the Olympic trials, was third fastest and gained a place in the team. Antoniades puts this down to the Frappier system and, particularly in this case, Bryce’s guts and determination. Bryce pushed himself through the pain barrier, but not at the risk of further injury. Antoniades explains that pain is used as a guide to progression – to him successful active rehab is all about trying to find ways that will allow the patient to work to a high level without discomfort.

The Frappier system is very much pro-athlete, and approaches rehab from this perspective. Antoniades reckons that it’s crucial for an injured sportsperson to hang on to as much condition as possible. The system recognises this and strives to incorporate as much safe exercise as possible into its rehab programme. There is also a very important psychological reason for doing this: it reduces the chances of an athlete getting depressed because of his inactivity. For further details phone: 020 8563 0007.

John Shepherd