If you love playing sport – be it at school level, socially, competitively or professionally – you’ll know how frustrating it is when you pick up an injury. Sometimes, even a seemingly small injury can keep you out of action for a couple of weeks. This is why preventing sports injuries is so important. Although trauma-based injuries are harder to avoid – particularly if you play a contact sport – there are a few things you can to do to minimise overuse injuries.
Top Tips For Preventing Sports Injuries
Warm Up
It may seem obvious, but it’s something a lot of social sportspeople simply overlook. Warming up, is, however, absolutely essential. Scientific research shows that warm muscles are less susceptible to injury. Light jogging, or even walking, before you start your sport, is all you need to do – but make sure you do it for at least five to 10 minutes. Once your muscles are warm, you can do some stretching – never stretch cold muscles! Repeat this routine after your sport, to help your muscles cool down and prevent stiffness.
Use The Right Technique
Many sports have a right and wrong way to do things, and using the correct technique for your chosen sport is important for preventing sports injuries. This is also important when you’re working out in the gym – if you don’t use the weights and equipment correctly, injuries can easily occur.
Don’t Overdo It
Your body knows better than you what your physical limits are. When you first start a new exercise programme or sport, start slowly and build up gradually. As your fitness levels, stamina and muscle strength increase, you can up the intensity of your activity. But keep your goals realistic and attainable. And listen to your body – short-lived, mild muscle ache is actually the kind of “good” pain you want after exercise. Anything more severe than that – or any pain in your joints – is your body’s way of telling you you’re overdoing it.
We Won’t Add Insult To Injury!
If you do incur an injury through playing sport, we know how you get you back in the game as quickly as possible. Make an appointment with Dr Baba, Health In Motion’s well-known and respected orthopaedic surgeon and sports medicine physician. He consults and operates from three convenient locations and will give you a thorough assessment and diagnosis.
