What is the Osteopathic Sports Energy Technique?

Answer 1

Osteopathic Sports Energy Technique (SET), founded by Dr Shahin Pourgol, president of National University of Medical Sciences & the National Academy of Osteopathy, is a form of advanced osteopathic technique designed to improve athletic performance by increasing speed. This is achieved by working on the fast twitch type IIb skeletal muscle fibres.

Athletes can achieve dramatic increase in speed often after the first session. They can run, kick, jump or punch faster often after doing the first set of S.E.T. techniques.

Muscle tissue consists of fibres (cells) that are highly specialized for the active generation of force for contraction. Because of this characteristic, muscle tissue provides motion, maintenance of posture, and heat production. Based on certain structural and functional characteristics, muscle tissue is classified into three types: cardiac, smooth and skeletal. Based on various structural and functional characteristics, skeletal muscle fibres are classified into three types: Type I fibres, Type II b fibres and type II a fibres.

Type IIb fibres, also called fast twitch or fast glycolytic fibres; contain a low content of myoglobin, relatively few mitochondria, relatively few blood capillaries and large amounts glycogen. Type II b fibres are white, geared to generate ATP by anaerobic metabolic processes, not able to supply skeletal muscle fibres continuously with sufficient ATP, fatigue easily, split ATP at a fast rate and have a fast contraction velocity. Generally people are born with an average of 50% slow and 50% fast twitch fibres. Sprinters with proper training change this ratio to 80% fast twitch fibres in the leg muscles while marathon runners change the ratio with advanced training to 80% slow twitch fibres in the lower limbs muscles.

Because fast twitch fibers use anaerobic metabolism to create fuel, they are much better at generating short bursts of strength and speed than slow muscles. However, they fatigue more quickly. Fast twitch fibers generally produce the same amount of force per contraction as slow muscles, but they get their name because they are able to fire more rapidly. Having more fast twitch fibers can be an asset to athletes since they need to quickly generate a lot of force.