Preventing Gymnastics Injuries

Most people would be surprised to learn that there are more than 86,000 gymnastics-related injuries seen by hospitals, doctors, clinics and ambulatory surgery centers each year. These injuries are usually in the ankles, feet, lower back, knees, wrists and hands and are usually due to overuse or stress, although they are also from falls.

In order to protect yourself during gymnastics, it is important to follow certain safety tips. Wear all of the proper safety gear including pads and braces as needed. Don’t continue to just play through the pain that you experience. If you have hurt yourself, you should consult with a doctor and get the treatment that you need.

Inspect all equipment before going on it to make sure that it is in good condition and that it includes the proper padded floors, secured mats and safety harnesses that you need.

Finally, make sure to warm up your muscles before you start your training or before you jump into new activities.

Dealing with Shin Splints

Athletes and others often get shin splints and don’t even know that this is the pain they are experiencing. Shin splints are due to a change in activity level, such as running or walking for much longer than a person is used to. They are often found in the military, from military training and can also be found with people with flat feet. They are pain that is located along the inside edge of the tibia, which is the large bone in the lower part of the leg.

The pain is actually caused by the swelling or inflammation of the muscles, tendons and the thin layer of tissue that covers the shin bone.

Most of the time, shin splints simply require rest at home. The athlete should rest completely for at least two weeks and then, if the pain is gone, they can go back to their activities but do so slowly. It is also important to warm up and stretch before and after doing exercise.

Shin splints are rarely serious; however, you should call a medical professional if the pain continues even after you’ve rested, if you’re not clear that the pain is from shin splints, if you have a stress fracture and if you’re simply not getting better.

Sports Injury Prevention Video for Girls

Learn about important stretches that can help girls to keep their injuries on the field to a minimum and keep them ready for the game.  Doing the right stretches and exercises before engaging in athletic activities can make all the difference.

Overtraining with Weights

Today, almost all athletes are encouraged to train with weights.  Many athletes don’t know, however, exactly how much weight training they should do. This can result in a situation where they are overtraining and straining their muscles.

Overtraining occurs when either training volume or training intensity is excessive. It is vitally important to understand that these two variables are inversely related; when your training volume is the highest, your training intensity needs to be low and vice versa. 

Many athletes, believing that more is better, will push both their training volume and their training intensity to levels that are not healthy.  Athletes, therefore, should consult with a trained weight trainer who can tailor make a program based on the athletes individual needs, weight, muscle mass and more.

Risks When Running on Sand and Grass

While many runners think that running on sand or grass can decrease their risk of injury – they are actually increasing their risk.  Sports medicine experts actually report more sprains, strains and even tendonitis because runners who are using these surfaces are actually running on uneven and inconsistent locations.

In addition, these surfaces often have slopes, creating off-center forces on the ankles and feet.  With time, if runners consistently run on sand or grass, they may experience tendonitis, inflammation of joints and tendons and fractures.

While this information is important to keep in mind, it doesn’t mean that you should never run on grass or sand.  Soft surfaces are helpful for reducing stress and impact. Experts advise that runners who want to use soft surfaces such as dirt roads, smooth fields, sand and running tracks, should build up slowly and pay careful attention to the surface. They should also wear the right type of footwear to minimize the chance of injury.