Physical Therapists, A Tailored Approach & Sports Injury A Detailed Look
Factors such as • Inadequate warming up session • Unscientific training method • Lack of muscle conditioning
Play their share in causing sports injuries
• Muscle fatigue • muscle overuse • muscle weakness.
Also stand as major contributors to sports injury
There is no one size all approach when it comes to the point of dealing with sports injury
STILL
physical
therapy stands as a tried and tested way of dealing with such injuries
Physical therapy helps
• In rebuilding muscle strength • In the movement of the body parts after an injury • In preventing permanent damage • In managing pain in a holistic and absolutely non-invasive way
Certified professionals usually examine the patient to figure out inflexible, rigid or weak muscles in the body, which may make them more prone towards an injury
Sports injuries are case specific as each sport carries a specific type of risk of injury
According to NIH (National Institute of Health) • • • • • • •
Strains Sprains swollen muscles knee injury Fractures shin splints Dislocations
Fall under the most common type of sports injury
A closer look at the common sports injuries
The healing process follows a pattern of three phases such as – • Acute • Subacute • Chronic phase
Sports injuries are time dependent
Acute Phase: Acute phase typically involves the ‘Rest – IceCompression- Elevation’ principle. This helps in healing and also in controlling inflammation. Subacute Phase: This on the other hand is typically the control motion phase. In this phase the physical therapist performs motion and strengthening exercises. Chronic Phase: This is typically the return to function phase. During this phase the athlete gradually returns to the ‘pre-injury’ routine.
The phases in detail
Best action is to reduce the inflammation as soon as possible and a tailored physical therapy program may help Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation’ – that’s the ideal way to recover from the injury
• • • •
Rest Ice Compression Elevation
Are the ideal way to recover from
SPORTS injury
Rest: You have to take rest for 1-3 days completely. A trained physical therapist will help you to take part in the active recovery session. Ice: You may use ice packs for 20 minutes at the generalized areas or you may also perform a 5-minutes ice massage for localized areas. Compression: Supporting the injured muscle with compression may help in decreasing inflammation and also in decreasing workload of the injured area Elevation: Yes; elevation also provides relief at the day’s end
Minor sports injuries & training errors may heal within a week or two
Physical therapists are the movement specialists
They are trained to look at
• Muscle fatigue • Balance • Neuromuscular control and more
Physical therapists are not for surgical recovery anymore A trained and certified therapist can help get you back to pain-free movement quickly
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