Written by 'Physio Inverness' Physiotherapist, Aileen Thom.
During ‘lockdown’ how many people have changed their exercise patterns? Whether you are mourning the gyms being shut and turned to pounding the pavements, joined in on the Joe Wicks PE sessions long after the kids got bored, or even found morning yoga could replace the morning commute. Many of our bodies have faced new challenges.
This attitude to increase exercise, adapt and try new sports is great. However for the few unlucky ones hit with lockdown injuries it can be frustrating. It is important to remember the activity you have been doing itself is not bad or harmful however the sudden jump to a new sport can put different strains on your body. Even having a break from your normal training and returning full throttle can have negative effects. All elite athletes go through an extensive pre season training programme to get them ready for their specific sport. If it is good enough for them then maybe it could help us all.
I often hear phrases such as “running is bad for knees” or “I’ve got bad ankles from playing football”. These are often inaccurate and worse than that they normalise injuries in certain sports. If the body is strong enough, flexible enough and stable enough, injury should be the abnormal.
That is where PREHAB comes in (or preventative rehabilitation). It simply means to prevent injury in a proactive way. And it doesn’t always have to be before starting a sport, it is just as effective to do alongside your training to prevent injury.
The three main components we look at are:
STRENGTH - Are your muscles strong enough to perform the task in hand?
FLEXIBILITY - Is joint stiffness or muscle tightness going to result in an increased load to the surrounding tissue?
STABILITY - Can my body react to the pressures this sport puts on it such as high impacts or quick direction changes?
With these key points we can easily identify weaknesses and develop a targeted sports specific exercise programme and advice to address these.
If you have any questions regarding this please get in contact for further information on how we can help you proactively prevent injury.
Book your appointment to see physiotherapist Aileen below