Preventing & Treating Sports Injuries

I have played a lot of sport over the years and know the importance of that, as well as doing general regular exercise. They are good for you in a variety of ways but particularly for your health, both mental and physical. However, you can get injured from time to time.

Sports injuries can be caused by:

• an accident – like a fall or heavy blow
• not warming up properly before exercising
• using inappropriate equipment or poor technique
• pushing yourself too hard for your ability

Basically, almost any part of the body can be injured, including the muscles, bones, joints and tendons and ligaments.

What To Do If You Get an Injury

If you have developed an injury, you will notice pain, tenderness, swelling, bruising, and possibly restricted movement or stiffness in the affected area.

First thing is first and you need to stop exercising if you feel pain, regardless of whether your injury happened suddenly or you’ve had the pain for a while. Continuing to exercise, at least at the same intensity, while you’re injured, may cause further damage and slow down your recovery.

If the injury is minor, you can most likely treat it yourself at home using the RICE technique and over-the-counter medicines such as ibuprofen..

R- REST

I – ICE

C- COMPRESSION

E- ELEVATION

If your symptoms are severe or the symptoms don’t start to get better within a few days or weeks, you may want to see a specialist for further treatment and support.

Specialist Options

• Physiotherapy
  • This specialist treatment that can involve techniques such as massage, manipulation and exercises to improve the range of motion, strengthen the surrounding muscles, and return the normal function of injured area. A physiotherapist can also develop an exercise programme to help strengthen the affected body part and reduce the risk of the injury recurring.
• Chiropractic
  • A chiropractor treats issues with bones, muscles and joints, mainly using their hands. They will also use a range of techniques, with an emphasis on manipulation of the spine. They may also offer advice on diet, exercise and lifestyle, and rehabilitation that involve exercises to do in your own time. You can learn more about this therapy at ML Chiropractic.
• Acupuncture
  • This treatment, using needles and pressure points on the skin, can be used to treat a wide range of health conditions. It is often used to treat pain related conditions such as lower back pain and osteoarthritis, but is also sometimes used in an attempt to help people holistically with conditions such as asthma and infertility.

Preventing Sports Injuries

You can reduce your risk of causing an injury by:

• warming up properly before you exercise
• don’t push your body beyond your current fitness level, build up your activity level gradually
• using the proper equipment for specific sports, like having proper running or walking shoes
• get instruction to learn proper techniques of an exercise, particularly if you are new to exercise or haven’t done a certain activity before.

Have you suffered much with injuries before?