How to prevent 4 common injury set backs

How to prevent 4 common injury set backs.

As we get older, our tendons and ligaments grow weaker making it harder to stay physically active. If you are prone to injury there are certain precautions you must take in order to prevent training injuries and a set back in your work out schedule. Shin splints, knee injuries, blisters and lower back pains are among the most frequent injuries. If you have already experienced an injury in a joint or muscle remember to rest, ice, compress and elevate. Otherwise, here are a few tips that will minimize training injuries or keep you injury free and in the gym.

Depending on how terrible the case may be shin splints, one of the more common training injuries, may be reduced with certain measures. Strengthening the front of your lower leg, with your heel on the ground, attempt lifting the side of a weight plate with your toes, this should prevent shin splints. You may also try this walking around on your heels followed by stretching your calves. A sign of mild shin splints may mean you need to cut back on your running, or that your shoes are worn out and you need to run to the mall and get a new pair. If your shin splints are so bad you can’t run it’s probably best you see a doctor.

Knee injuries often occur in people involved in sports. Unsuitable contact forces upon the knee may cause injuries to the knee through poor lower body posture. You may have to check your posture for this one. There are a few ways to prevent knee injuries; it goes as far back as before exercising. It is suggested to warm up by walking, bicycling or some form of low-impact activity. To alleviate pressure on your knees, stretch your quadriceps and hamstrings. Once again, make sure that your shoes are in good condition and fit properly and you may be able to avoid this type of training injuries.

Blisters may seem like an insignificant set back, however they have been acknowledged to keep people out of the gym. A day away, is a day lost. Blisters are generally caused by friction to the skin. Often found on the heels, soles of the feet, and palms of the hands the top layer of the skin separates from the second layer resulting in a little bubble. To prevent pain, infection, or blisters all together ensure that the shoes, socks and athletic equipment you are using is all fit to your body structure. If you have a blister-prone area, try taping it with duct tape, and make sure the area is as dry as possible at all times.

A rounded back not only has its disadvantage of giving you lower back pains but it also makes you appear as a hunchback. If you do not see that arch feature that makes your butt stick out, chances are your lower back is rounding during exercises. When exercising, your lower back should never be rounded. I repeat should never be rounded to avoid training injuries. Keeping an arch avoids stressing the discs in your spine allowing it to function properly. As long as the shape of your spine looks like a thin ‘S’ shape, you’re in the clear.

You can avoid training injuries to the body by understanding what causes them, taking precautions, and focusing on prevention. From a scrape when you were five years old to a knee injury in your 30’s, treatment is always necessary. If you do not treat an injury properly it may put you out of physical activity on a permanent basis.