Injuries – and how to avoid them!

Nearly all athletes and sports people get injured at some point in time. We tend to push our bodies to the limit and in the end something has to give. Often it is not the injury itself that causes us a problem but the inconvenience of it. We have to stop training or competing and even the smallest muscle strain can have you out of action for months.

Anyone who lifts weights, or does aerobic work can end up with tendinitis, strains, pulls, sprains or even worse! A lot of injuries can be avoided if you follow very simple advice. Always make sure you warm up first, stretch and don’t jump right in and try to pick up the heaviest weight possible, sprint down the road as fast as you can or undertake the toughest aerobic workout.

Warming up is an important part of any training schedule. When weight training always make sure you pick out a weight that will allow you to complete up to 20 reps fairly easily. Make sure you get blood flowing into the muscle you want to train, warm up the area and also avoid jerking or heaving the weight – it should be a nice slow continuous movement.

Avoid starting your program with an exercise like the barbell curl – it can have a tendency to ‘lock’ your elbow joint leaving the biceps prone to injury.

Another important point to bear in mind is the ‘training groove’. Every exercise that you perform follows a certain angle of raising and returning – a type of ‘groove’. Our bodies get used to this ‘groove’ and as we grow stronger, we improve our technique. The thing to remember is that by suddenly altering the angle in which you undertake a movement, you will bring into play new muscle fibres, ligaments and tendons.

The sudden stresses on these can result in injury. If, you want to try a different approach to an exercise you have to start at the beginning again and get your body used to this new ‘groove’. You need to work your way up until your body is strong enough and has adapted to the new stress.

Lapses in concentration when training can also lead to injuries. Talking to your friends, watching TV or staring out of the window can distract you from what you are doing and in a second you could suffer a painful injury.

Keep your mind on what you are doing!

Ouch!

Generally this is the noise you make when your body responds to a pain signal. Pain is a defense mechanism warning you that an injury is about to occur or has already occurred.

Latic acid build up in a muscle is an acceptable pain as you push yourself to your limits. Sharp, searing pain is not acceptable as it means you must stop what you are doing immediately, try to assess the extent of the injury and what action you need to take.

Applying an ice pack or freezing spray to an injury can reduce the swelling and inflammation. If, you cannot move the joint in any one direction, seek medical advice as soon as possible. Sometimes the smallest of injuries can worsen and affect you for the rest of your life.

I injured my lower back many years ago lifting wooden logs that weighed up to 200lbs each. I was wearing a good quality belt but I was lifting the logs up onto a truck and the awkward movement soon caused an injury. I ignored the signs and kept on with the job till it was finished.

Later that day my lower back started to stiffen and I soon found myself unable to stand up. I subsequently found I had damaged some ligaments and had to be bedridden for some time. It’s no fun crawling around on all fours day after day.

My mistake was that I should have stopped what I was doing and treated the injury, my bravado kept me going and I paid the price. Ever since then I have found it difficult to train my legs with heavy squats and it has affected my training.

Be warned – prevention is better than trying to find a cure!

Injuries