Health & Wellness The Newsletter About Your Health And Caring For Your Body
Inside: • How Can I Prevent These Injuries? • Exercise Essentials • Patient Success Spotlight • Seasonal Recipe: Orange Cranberry Bread
TIPS FOR PREVENTING AVOIDABLE INJURIES WITH PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
No matter what type of physical activity you partake in, it is possible for injuries to occur. Whether you enjoy taking walks at night, playing sports on theweekends,or training forathletic trials throughout theweek, it is important to make sure you are always being as safe as possible. Perhaps the most common injury that people endure from physical activity is an overall feeling of soreness, caused by overusing the muscles, tendons, and ligaments. When the muscles, tendons, or ligaments are over-stretched, the tissues experience minor damage in the form of microscopic tears. This typically occurs when completing an exercise that the body is not used to, or exercising for the first time after a prolonged period of rest. The soreness may linger for a few days but usually goes away on its own. However, the severity of the damage determines how long the body will need to recover. For more information on how you can prevent severe injuries, contact Total Care Physical Therapy today. What are some common injuries? At Total Care Physical Therapy, our licensedphysical therapistscanguideyou throughproperexercises,stretches, movements,andbodycontrol, inordertopreventfuture injuriesfromoccurring. Many injuries occur due to improper techniques or overexerting your body. Some of the most commonly sustained injuries include sprains, strains, and tendinitis. Manypeople think “sprains”and “strains”aresynonymous;however, theyhave onedistinctdifference.Sprainsoccurwhena ligament isstretchedbeyond its
limitsor torn, whilestrainsoccurwhen a tendon is stretchedbeyond its limits or torn. Tendons are tissues that connect muscles to bones, and ligaments are tissues that connect bones to one another. Sprains and strains can both range from mild to severe, and even mild ones may take up to 6 weeks to heal. When they become more severe, braces or surgical correction may be necessary. This will require a longer recovery time, up to 8 weeks or longer, and physical therapy treatments will likely be prescribed. It is important tonote that it is inyourbest interest tohaveaphysical therapist make sure a sprain or strain is fully healed before returning to your normal levelofphysicalactivity,as it iscommon foroldsprainsandstrains todevelop again in the future if they have not been properly rehabilitated. Tendinitis is an overuse injury that causes the tendons to become inflamed. There are several reasons why tendinitis may occur, but whatever the case may be, we know that it has developed as a result of unnecessary amounts of strain. For example, some people may develop tendinitis in their shoulders or elbows because of improper posture. If the neck and back are not properly aligned,unnecessarystress isplacedonotherpartsof thebody.Movements in theshouldersandarmsarealteredasaway tocompensate,causing increased strain on the tendons. Tendinitis can be corrected with physical therapy treatments, since PTs are trained in relieving pain, decreasing inflammation, and restoring you to your normal posture, motion, and function.
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