How to avoid sports injuries and stay in the game.

As people have been returning to the gym, the field, or the track, following their enforced break, we’ve noticed an increase in the number of injuries being suffered. Because most of these injuries can be avoided, and prevention is always better than cure, I thought I’d run through some strategies to help you get the basics right and keep you in the game.

Some of the most common exercise-related problems we see in our clinics are sprains which are injuries to ligaments, the tissues that connect our bones to each other, strains, which are injuries to the muscles and the tendons that attach the muscles to the bones, and tendinitis, which is an inflamed, painful tendon, usually due to overuse. We are also seeing some more traumatic injuries like ACL and meniscus tears, which are rips in a stabilizing knee ligament or the cartilage that cushions the knee joint.

These can all be minimized by following some sensible steps, before, during and after your training session. Let’s take a look.

1.   Choose your workout carefully. For example, I tend not to run, instead favoring the cross trainer or a bicycle. That’s just me; I’ve learned my lesson having suffered many knee problems due to wear and tear during my rugby days. Talk to your chiropractor or PT if you aren’t sure what you should avoid.

2.   Whatever your sport, make sure you use correct technique and wear the right gear, supporting shoes with arch support and breathable loose clothes that won’t be restrictive.

3.   Start small and build gradually – we want gradual adaption of the muscles, blood flow and controlling nerve reflexes. Be aware, listen to your body – know when to back off or take a rest.

4.   Stretch warm, never cold – Maybe start with a light jog or even have a bounce on an exercise ball. Mobilize the blood to provide nutrition and warm the muscles that are soon to be stretched and stressed. 

5.   Make your warm-up ‘exercise specific.’ Especially with things like weight lifting. Target the muscles and joints to be used. Prime the brain-body connections. Get those reflexes tuned in; all those stabilizing muscles. You are going to be able train harder without danger, so do perform a warm-up set.

6.   Never sacrifice technique to get in that extra rep! This is when you can really do some damage as fatigue and instability has weakened the structure. Don’t ignore the signals. Exercise with caution. Play the long game.

7.   Engage the core to support the spine. If your back is tight then your abs tend to be weak. Strengthening the core musculature is as fundamental as it gets in preventing injury.

8.   You are only as strong as your weakest link. Especially joints that have many ranges of motion. They must be protected by fast, highly reactive protective reflexes. Ankles are easily rolled, shoulders are easily strained (pushing or pulling). That’s why I’m a huge proponent for instability training, using exercise balls, wobble boards or a balance disk. Try standing on one leg. Activate the proprioception, those tiny receptors around our joints that report our position and movement to the brain. 

To protect the shoulder always stabilize them by bringing them back – strengthen the muscles between the shoulder blades.

9.   Post workout cool down exercise and stretch is vital – clears the lactic acid so you don’t feel sore over the next couple of days. Your exercise has shortened the muscles, so use the blood and heat in the immediate workout period to stretch them out. It’ll help you recover faster and more completely and help prevent future injuries. Of course we like to feel ‘pumped’, but we really don’t want to keep our muscles in that shortened state, otherwise it will become permanent and this WILL cause future injuries. Think of athletes who are always pulling hamstrings or groin muscles.

10.  Stay hydrated - especially here in Singapore. This means water (keep taking sips) and electrolytes. Fluids and electrolytes are both essential for our cells, organs and body systems to work properly. They help maintain the body’s correct pH, allow muscle contraction (including your heart), transmit nerve signals around the body, help clot the blood if necessary and help repair and build new tissue.

11.  Vary your workouts - Even if you love your yoga, do alternate with other forms of exercise. This variation will work different muscle groups, prevent boredom, and give your body a chance to recover between sessions.

12. Optimise your spinal mobility and alignment. Your spinal column should be considered your sixth vital organ. It allows for structure, strength and stability, protects the central nervous system within, yet provides us with an amazing capacity for movement. If anything is going to take you out of the game it is a bad back.

Whilst we are effectively columns designed to carry loads by being straight and strong, our spine must have curves to absorb the forces, cushioning the repetitive thumping motion of jogging or the vertical loading across the shoulders and arms from lifting weights. Of course, if the column has any misalignments then these will become weaknesses. If your weight is distributed unevenly, just think about it. Taking one step with your pelvis misaligned will probably be OK, but imagine running 10,000 steps or even a marathon. Something is going to break! Remember, damage bioaccumulates…it builds up. Just ask my right knee ;)

Make sure you keep your spine flexible to avoid injury. Much of the movement occurs in the low back and the neck, so stretching these regions to maintain full range of motion is vital. If you are stiffening and losing some movement then chiropractic adjustments will quickly restore function before further deterioration occurs. In this sedentary world of computers, flexibility of the midback becomes quickly compromised, affecting breathing and causing postural problems.

By following the above simple 12 steps to avoid injury you will minimize your chances of being injured. But of course, no preventative strategy is foolproof. 

If you are suffering pain and you’ve tried icing and resting and these don’t seem to be helping, do contact us to set up an evaluation with a chiropractor or rehab specialist (follow this link for our latest promo).

Dr Tim is a published author and in-demand public speaker. He is the owner and founder of Total Health Chiropractic, a chain of wellness clinics looking after the spines and postures of the hard working people of Singapore.