Sports and Training Injuries

Now that spring is finally here, we can get back to being active. Unfortunately, being active can often result in injuries. There are many ways to help avoid injury, such as using proper equipment and shoes, playing and training properly, and not training too much. If you do get injured, it’s not the end of the world!

There are two kinds of injuries that you can suffer during activity:

• ·Acute traumatic injuries, such as a fracture, sprain, or concussion. These will usually come from getting hit or falling.
  

• Chronic, or overuse injuries are things like stress fractures and tendonitis. They happen over time from repetitive training, and may not seem serious at first.

Pain is your body’s way of telling you that something isn’t right. If you are experiencing severe pain, limping, a limited range of motion, or swelling, you should stop your activity immediately. After an injury it is always best to follow professional advice about when you can begin activity again, and in the meantime a physical therapist will have suggestions on how to stay fit.

Once you are healed, preventing re-injury is just as important as the healing process was! Be sure to warm up before and after your activity, and if necessary, use extra protective gear on the injured body part. Take it slow at first and know your limits. Before you know it you’ll be back out there feeling great!