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Getting ready to compete
Sports Injury Appointment Line can put you in touch with a local Osteopath, Chiropractor or Physiotherapist to help you overcome an injury and go onto achieving higher levels of performance.
With so many people taking part in leisure or sporting activities such as golf, skiing, tennis or running it comes as no surprise that sports injuries are increasing due both to poor preparation (or an excess of enthusiasm over capability) as well as to incidents whilst taking part.
Whilst most Physiotherapists, Chiropractors and Osteopaths have the experience to diagnose and treat a wide variety of sports injuries, it is now increasingly common to find practitioners or clinics specialising in sports injury treatment.
As a result an increasing amount of work has been done across the three professions to develop sport-specific exercise programs, focused either at preventive conditioning or the effective treatment of common - but painful and frustrating - injuries. Increasingly practitioners are involved in enhancing the performance of amateur and professional sportspeople through applying their deep understanding of the musculo-skeletal system and the specific biomechanical processes associated with particular sports.
Some of these initiatives are described as "Screening Services" and look to analyse an individual's physiological and biomechanical characteristics in order to better condition them for their chosen sport. They often comprise a package of analysis, assessment and advisory services geared to the specific demands of the sport and the typical problems participants encounter.
Screening programs provide an "MOT" for athletes - ensuring you're not carrying an injury or are affected by a limitation that could make you more susceptible to picking up an injury in the future. This is done through assessing flexibility and fitness, reviewing history and lifestyle, and frequently conducting video or computer analysis.
Injury tends to be a constant companion for many sportspeople and athletes, be they a weekend golfer who always ends up with a sore shoulder and stiff back the day after playing or an elite sprinter with a recurrent hamstring complaint. Avoiding injury in the first place through improved conditioning and better technique is best, but important too is going about your treatment and recovery in the right way.
Top Tips to avoid sports injuries
The following tips come from respected distance running coach and former European champion Bruce Tulloh and appear in Sports Injury Bulletin:
An athlete's greatest strength is often their greatest weakness, and this is particularly noticeable when considering serious or elite sportspeople. The compulsive streak in their character which drives them to practise hour after hour, day after day, is their worst enemy when it comes to handling injuries. The only way around this is to put 'avoidance of injury' high on the list of priorities. When I am making out a training plan I always start with the objective - such things as improving aerobic fitness, practising changes of pace or maintaining flexibility. Including 'avoidance of injury' in this list brings it into the reckoning when planning a week's training. These are my guidelines:
- Never train hard when stiff from the previous effort
- Introduce new activities very gradually
- Allow lots of time for warming up and cooling off
- Familiarise yourself with a new venue beforehand
- Train on different surfaces, using the right footwear
- Shower and change immediately after the cool-down
- Aim for the maximum comfort when travelling
- Stay away from infectious areas when training or competing very hard
- Be extremely fussy about hygiene in hot weather
- Monitor yourself daily for signs of fatigue. If in doubt, ease off
Unfortunately, as we are well aware from our own experiences, the best possible preparation can't guarantee sports injuries won't happen - and for most of us sport and leisure activities are just something we expect to be able to turn-up and do.
When you get injured the most important thing to do is to seek prompt treatment from a qualified professional - such as the specialists referred through the Sports Injury Appointment Line. In the meantime don't forget the basics… Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation - and Treatment!