Sports Training and Injury Prevention

Spring Training for all Athletes

It's that time of year again! The winter blues are behind us, and athletes of all ages look to the spring season to trim down, shape up, and get ahead for the coming competition season. Read on to find training tips by Kern & Associates Physical Therapy focusing on issues to address before young (and old!) athletes actually hit the field, pool, or road. During the last five months I've had the pleasure of teaching "sports injury prevention" classes to West side high school and middle school students. Thanks to Wildwood, Brentwood, Crossroads, Palisades High School, Paul Revere Middle School and Notre Dame High School for their inspiration. Hope to see you and your parents again soon in my classes here at Kern!

Seeking Balance

Early on in a season, most athletes are motivated to participate in their particular sport, especially if they've had some time off. The following should be kept in mind for those early season injuries that can delay play early on:

Trunk, abdominal and core musculature: many people lay off of this throughout the off' season. By starting back without the proper base of stability in this region, back and neck problems (as well as others) can surface.

Proprioceptive training (how your joints know exactly what's going on) is crucial for all main joints that an athlete uses. For example, runners need hip, ankle and knee joints to be super-refined for optimal performance. Swimmers and overhead athletes, on the other hand, need proper shoulder blade and shoulder control to prevent impingement and soft tissue overuse injuries.

High mileage, long duration of workouts with muscles that may have decreased endurance can lead to overuse injuries that can impede more aggressive training mid-season.

Activities to promote BALANCE can include any of the following:

• Single leg balancing in proper alignment with partial squats, upper extremity reaching, or tossing a ball.
• Multi-directional lunges to promote equality amongst the hip and abdominal musculature.
• Swiss ball activities with the body in push-up position can really 'turn on' stabilizing muscles in the shoulders and the abdominals.

For athletes with recurrent or chronic injuries, oftentimes it takes a little detective work to determine the proper course of action. Take Andy, for example. He is an active triathlete who usually races in the top 20% of his age group; however, the past three seasons have brought lateral knee pain, presumably from the dreaded ‘ITB,' or the iliotibial band (tight connective tissue along the outside of the thigh and leg). He's tried massage, stretching, and rest, but it always seems to come back midseason when he really increases his mileage on the trails to run. What should he be doing early season?

• Continue previous course of stretching, massage, and rest (though it hasn't helped, it hasn't hurt!)

• BIOMECHANICAL evaluation of his running technique. Numerous research supports the idea that hip musculature doesn't turn on properly, especially when fatigued. Over time, this motor learning deficit leads to over-stressing the ITB. Video analysis can point out simple deficiencies that may have been missed previously.

• Functional exercise assessment: by loading and applying principles of the three planes of motion, a keen physical therapist can appropriately determine which muscles ‘aren't doing their job.'

This particular patient was given very specific hip and abdominal exercises to retrain their timing, which was indicated from his video analysis. He returned to a full season of running and racing virtually pain free!

New Beginnings

For those athletes delving into a new activity, there is oftentimes both excitement and anxiety. Here are some ideas to help:
Carefully research the approach and theories of any new coach. How does he or she give feedback to children? Do they appear patient? Are they willing to communicate and problem solve both with the athlete and the parent?

In our high-tech world, many younger student athletes have conditions throughout the day that can pre-set them for injury. For example, using a cell phone primarily on one side, carrying a heavy backpack improperly, or using a laptop computer with poor posture can all lead to sensitized tissue that gets irritated with activity. Examine your child's readiness for a new activity. Stress in school, being overweight, or peer pressure can all conflict and detract from a child's experience. Be ready to discuss any of these concepts and some coping strategies with them.

Understand appropriate responses to training or new activities. Fatigue, muscle soreness, and irritability may occur following strenuous activities. Pain that awakens the athlete, severe ‘shooting' pains that do not subside within a day, or signs that they are overly stressed (significant irritability, crying, anger) may indicate a good time to rest. This is also a good time to communicate with both the athlete and coach regarding source of the stress and coping strategies that can be consistent at both home and on the field.

Problem Areas

Don't let those early season pains develop into something worse! At Kern & Associates Physical Therapy, Wellness & Yoga we are dedicated to serving the needs of our athletes. We regularly provide video analysis for current patients, and can coordinate with coaches or parents for group or team screenings to help pinpoint potential problems at reasonable rates. Please call for more information.