by Peter Mellow.
Many common musculoskeletal injuries are the result of sports. The correct
primary treatment of any injury is very important and while most of us are well
versed in the treatment of soft tissue injuries with RICE ( Rest - Ice - Compression
-Elevation ), we should remember that prevention is better than cure.
Achieving a good level of fitness is the first step in reducing the effect of
sports injuries when they happen. And having specific fitness for each individual
sport can even stop simple accidents happening. In sports that involve a lot of
lateral movement, skill training that involves side-stepping should improve the
neuromuscular proprioception in the ankles and reduce the chance of ankle sprains.
Having good muscular strength over joints aids the stability of the joint and
once again may reduce the risk of injury. A well balanced muscular strengthening
programme carried out in a gym or doing exercises will do this, but getting advice
from a fitness professional can make the difference.
Many sports overuse one set of muscles and the antagonists often get neglected.
This muscular imbalance has been cited as a cause of injury. Go along to a gym
and work the opposite muscles that you use in your sport you'll be amazed at the
difference in your performance.
Getting fit and undergoing a specific strengthening programme are the start of
a good prevention routine. But it is what we do before and after the sporting
event that is important as well. Before getting into a game, its very wise to
do a gradual warm-up, to get the body ready for the more intense exercise to come.
Weekend warriors who jump into a game without warming up are asking for an injury.
Start with a brisk walk, moving the intensity up to a light jog. The warm-up should
get you to a light sweat, which shows the core temperature of the body is raised.
After warming up, slow static stretches should be carried out on the muscles that
are going to be worked out. These stretches should be held for at least 15 seconds.
If you know PNF stretching, you may want to try this as well, but as with all
stretching, it should be carried out slowly and never pushed to the point of pain.
Pain is natures way of saying stop, so if you feel pain when playing sport, you
should not play on, you should stop and rest.
After the workout, while you are tired, it is very important to do a gentle cool-down
to let the body return to normal. After this cool-down you should perform some
more stretches to lengthen the muscles that have been shortened through constant
contractions.
Even with a good prevention plan, injuries still happen. If they do, and self
treatment doesn't help, go and see a health professional. They know what to do.
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Peter