Kent Sport health and fitness instructor Sarah Black describes some of the most common injuries and what can be done about them.
How many of us experience aches and pains? Just like every choice we make has a consequence, every exercise we perform has a risk. Occasionally we have the misfortune to suffer from an injury. Unless we can diagnose the problem and manage it effectively, we end up making it worse through neglect, or we allow it to mentally weaken us through worry and concern.
The way we handle injuries is a personal process and often similar occurrences help us cope with them, at times we need to reach out and seek advice to help fix and look after ourselves.
Firstly you need to diagnose an injury and differentiate between strains, tears, damages or just general overuse and fatigue. General aches and pains are just signs of muscle tiredness and are nothing to be concerned about, as long as they do not persist.
There are two types of injuries in sport- overuse injuries and traumatic injuries.
Overuse injuries occur when we do not allow adequate recovery time or perform exercise with incorrect technique. Traumatic injuries come on suddenly with immediate pain resulting in damage, swelling, loss of function and restricted range of movement; for example – a sudden turn of direction or a point-of-impact injury.
Common overuse injuries can include – muscle strains, shin splints, sore heels and tight calves. Symptoms include stiffness, some tingling, numbness, maybe some slight swelling but yet should not impede your ability to move. Often the pain will ease within a few days following some stretching and general rest. Your range of motion should not be so restricted that you feel tension to the join or muscle in question. Traumatic injuries will restrict movement and cause considerable pain and discomfort even at rest. Swelling will be present and sometimes bruising to the associated area and surrounding skin.
Once diagnosis of the injury is made your next task is to manage your injury. The acronym PRICE (Protection, Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation) should be your mantra in this situation. Ensure adequate treatment is prescribed or you will pay the PRICE for not addressing any issues.
Remember that exercising without pain is your ultimate objective; therefore avoid anything that will cause strain or discomfort to the area. Maintaining fitness throughout an injury is highly important, as you do not want to lose mobility and tone of the muscles. However, ensure the sport performed is in line with your fitness goals and limitations and will not cause imbalance and overcompensation with opposing muscles. Our natural reaction will be to protect the injured area, causing dominant muscles to work harder, which may then result in further injury. Body alignment is the key focus, adequate equipment and proper recovery is essential to prevent and manage any injury.
Compression often eases symptoms and supports the area in questionable pain.
Applying ice to the affected area reduces swelling and offers relief. Ensure you do not apply ice directly to the skin as this may cause burning. Elevate the injury and apply ice every few hours for 10-15 minutes at a time. Once the swelling has reduced then applying heat may be a beneficial idea.
Your final task is rest. I know how hard it is to avoid this when all your energy is driven towards continuing as per normal and the frustration of being lethargic irritates and frustrates you. But don’t be too quick to work through an injury. Offering it the support needed will result in quicker recovery time and it will also benefit your comeback to exercise and mobility making sure that you do not become victim to the same injury or simply another injury linked to the original.
Prepare to strengthen, prepare to offer attention and prepare to dedicate time towards prevention of injury.
Kent Sport has a team of expert health and fitness professionals who can provide consultations, wellbeing programmes and physiotherapy – just enquire at reception in the Sports Centre or visit our website for further information.