January 2005
12 ways you can prevent sports injuries
STARTING UP
1. Stretch. Stretching may not directly reduce injury. But it makes exercise more tolerable and less painful by increasing your range of motion. Besides, stretching feels good. Use a slow, sustained stretch for each muscle group you're working. Hold for a count of 30. Try to stretch before the exercise and definitely after.
2. Warm up, cool down. Warm muscles are more pliant and less prone to tear. Five minutes of warm-up at a fairly easy intensity should be adequate. Do a little more in the morning or on cold days. After a workout, walk or continue your activity at a low intensity until your heart rate drops to 10 to 15 beats per minute above your resting rate. Never stop exercising suddenly--doing so can trigger a potentially dangerous drop in your blood pressure.
3. Progress gradually. "Our bodies really are remarkable at adapting if we give them the opportunity," says Russell Pate, Ph.D., past president of the American College of Sports Medicine. "But when we impose too much activity and physical stress too soon, we can easily exceed our capacity to adapt." To progress safely, increase workout duration, intensity, or distance by no more than 10 percent per week; if you've taken a break from exercising, restart at 50 to 75 percent of your previous level.
WHEN YOU'RE IN THE ZONE
4. Use exercise as prevention. "You have to train to train," Pate says. That means using exercise to prepare your body for a new or harder activity, or a return to a sport you haven't done in a while. Get ready for a ski trip with, say, jogging, weight training, and stretching.
5. Stay hydrated… Drinking plenty of liquids--especially in hot, humid weather--will prevent cramps, weakness, and dehydration. Sports-medicine experts recommend 2 to 3 cups two to three hours before you exercise and smaller amounts during the workout. Also plan to weigh yourself before and after vigorous activity to gauge fluid loss. Replace any weight you've lost with an equal amount of liquid, plus half.
6. …But not too hydrated. If you drink too much water or other low-sodium drinks during a long-duration activity such as a marathon or a grueling set of singles tennis, you can put yourself at risk for hyponatremia (low blood sodium), a potentially life-threatening condition. When you're sweating profusely, it's important to replace not only fluids but also the electrolytes sodium and chloride. Try tomato juice or sports drinks, which contain sodium.
7. Stand and breathe properly. Stand up straight for weight-bearing activities like treadmill walking, elliptical training, and aerobics. Leaning forward puts undue strain on the lower back. For strength training, keep the neck relaxed and head turned frontward. Avoid locking your joints or bending them more than 90 degrees during squats, leg presses, and dips. Avoid moving parts of the body that aren't being exercised, especially the back. For weight lifting, abdominal exercises, and other strength training, exhale when you exert yourself and inhale when returning to the original relaxed position. Never hold your breath; that can drive up your blood pressure.
8. Avoid excessive reps. Unless you're a bodybuilder or serious athlete, doing one set of a strength exercise twice a week may be all you need. Extra sets increase the risk of injury and provide little added benefit. The American College of Sports Medicine defines a set as 8 to 12 repetitions at a resistance level that's challenging but lets you complete the set. If you're frail or over 65, substitute 10 to 15 reps at a slightly lower resistance.
GET THE RIGHT GEAR
9. Buy good shoes. Choose footwear designed for the activity you're doing--running shoes for running, tennis shoes for tennis--as well as specific brands and styles suited to your feet and gait. Older, overweight, or tender-footed people may need extra cushioning; a person whose feet roll inward should look for a shoe with a firm sole and back, while one whose feet roll outward may need extra cushioning or padding.
10. Wear a helmet when biking or skating. It should sit flat across your head, with the front edge about an inch above the eyebrows. A properly adjusted helmet should stay in place when pushed upward from the front.
MONITOR CONDITIONS
11. Avoid pollution. Exercising in air polluted with carbon monoxide, smoke, or other particles increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. Move workouts indoors on hazy, polluted days, particularly if you're being treated for cardiovascular disease. When you do exercise outside, avoid busy roads and other exhaust-heavy settings. To assess conditions in your area, check The Weather Channel's local air-quality forecast at www.weather.com/activities/health/airquality.
12. Let old injuries heal. Old injuries increase the risk of a new injury to the same muscle or joint. After a sprain, wait for pain and swelling to subside. Then use daily exercises and stretches, following your doctor's advice, to rehabilitate the joint. Sports-medicine experts we consulted advise wearing a brace when you exercise for six months to reduce the risk of reinjury. Opt for a splint, available at sporting-goods stores or online. A plain elastic bandage from the pharmacy generally won't provide adequate support, and taping a joint is a job for a pro.
STARTING UP
1. Stretch. Stretching may not directly reduce injury. But it makes exercise more tolerable and less painful by increasing your range of motion. Besides, stretching feels good. Use a slow, sustained stretch for each muscle group you're working. Hold for a count of 30. Try to stretch before the exercise and definitely after.
2. Warm up, cool down. Warm muscles are more pliant and less prone to tear. Five minutes of warm-up at a fairly easy intensity should be adequate. Do a little more in the morning or on cold days. After a workout, walk or continue your activity at a low intensity until your heart rate drops to 10 to 15 beats per minute above your resting rate. Never stop exercising suddenly--doing so can trigger a potentially dangerous drop in your blood pressure.
3. Progress gradually. "Our bodies really are remarkable at adapting if we give them the opportunity," says Russell Pate, Ph.D., past president of the American College of Sports Medicine. "But when we impose too much activity and physical stress too soon, we can easily exceed our capacity to adapt." To progress safely, increase workout duration, intensity, or distance by no more than 10 percent per week; if you've taken a break from exercising, restart at 50 to 75 percent of your previous level.
WHEN YOU'RE IN THE ZONE
4. Use exercise as prevention. "You have to train to train," Pate says. That means using exercise to prepare your body for a new or harder activity, or a return to a sport you haven't done in a while. Get ready for a ski trip with, say, jogging, weight training, and stretching.
5. Stay hydrated… Drinking plenty of liquids--especially in hot, humid weather--will prevent cramps, weakness, and dehydration. Sports-medicine experts recommend 2 to 3 cups two to three hours before you exercise and smaller amounts during the workout. Also plan to weigh yourself before and after vigorous activity to gauge fluid loss. Replace any weight you've lost with an equal amount of liquid, plus half.
6. …But not too hydrated. If you drink too much water or other low-sodium drinks during a long-duration activity such as a marathon or a grueling set of singles tennis, you can put yourself at risk for hyponatremia (low blood sodium), a potentially life-threatening condition. When you're sweating profusely, it's important to replace not only fluids but also the electrolytes sodium and chloride. Try tomato juice or sports drinks, which contain sodium.
7. Stand and breathe properly. Stand up straight for weight-bearing activities like treadmill walking, elliptical training, and aerobics. Leaning forward puts undue strain on the lower back. For strength training, keep the neck relaxed and head turned frontward. Avoid locking your joints or bending them more than 90 degrees during squats, leg presses, and dips. Avoid moving parts of the body that aren't being exercised, especially the back. For weight lifting, abdominal exercises, and other strength training, exhale when you exert yourself and inhale when returning to the original relaxed position. Never hold your breath; that can drive up your blood pressure.
8. Avoid excessive reps. Unless you're a bodybuilder or serious athlete, doing one set of a strength exercise twice a week may be all you need. Extra sets increase the risk of injury and provide little added benefit. The American College of Sports Medicine defines a set as 8 to 12 repetitions at a resistance level that's challenging but lets you complete the set. If you're frail or over 65, substitute 10 to 15 reps at a slightly lower resistance.
GET THE RIGHT GEAR
9. Buy good shoes. Choose footwear designed for the activity you're doing--running shoes for running, tennis shoes for tennis--as well as specific brands and styles suited to your feet and gait. Older, overweight, or tender-footed people may need extra cushioning; a person whose feet roll inward should look for a shoe with a firm sole and back, while one whose feet roll outward may need extra cushioning or padding.
10. Wear a helmet when biking or skating. It should sit flat across your head, with the front edge about an inch above the eyebrows. A properly adjusted helmet should stay in place when pushed upward from the front.
MONITOR CONDITIONS
11. Avoid pollution. Exercising in air polluted with carbon monoxide, smoke, or other particles increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. Move workouts indoors on hazy, polluted days, particularly if you're being treated for cardiovascular disease. When you do exercise outside, avoid busy roads and other exhaust-heavy settings. To assess conditions in your area, check The Weather Channel's local air-quality forecast at www.weather.com/activities/health/airquality.
12. Let old injuries heal. Old injuries increase the risk of a new injury to the same muscle or joint. After a sprain, wait for pain and swelling to subside. Then use daily exercises and stretches, following your doctor's advice, to rehabilitate the joint. Sports-medicine experts we consulted advise wearing a brace when you exercise for six months to reduce the risk of reinjury. Opt for a splint, available at sporting-goods stores or online. A plain elastic bandage from the pharmacy generally won't provide adequate support, and taping a joint is a job for a pro.
