Spring training is over and baseball season has begun. And while most sports injuries are as unexpected as the Cubs leading the American League at the beginning of June, there are a few things that parents and coaches — and baseball players — should know about preventing injuries during the sport.
Mark Salandra educates and trains athletes young and old in strength and conditioning, with the goals of better fitness and lower rates of injury. A certified strength and conditioning specialist, and the founder of StrengthCondition.com, a Physiquality partner program, he points out five common injuries and conditions that players should be aware of.
- Shoulder pain and rotator cuff tears
If an athlete has chronic pain in his shoulder that will not go away after applying ice and heat, he needs to see a doctor or physical therapist. Chronic shoulder pain may not mean that the athlete has torn his rotator cuff, but if the tendon has been torn, further activity can make the injury worse.
- Lateral epicondylitis, also known as tennis elbow
Epicondylitis often presents with pain in the elbow joint from repeated throwing motions. In most cases, says Mark, the triceps muscles are not strong enough to slow down the arm once the ball has been thrown, which in turn puts extra pressure on the elbow joint. If the player has chronic elbow pain, rest with ice and heat should resolve this issue in several days. If the pain doesn’t resolve, then it’s time for a visit with the physical therapist or doctor.
- Lower extremity muscle strains and knee injuries
Baseball happens in quick spurts of action, like hitting the ball and then running the bases, or reacting to a base hit by running to catch the ball. The rapid acceleration and just-as-quick deceleration can strain the muscles in the upper leg, particularly the quadriceps and hamstrings, which are used when running sprints. Many athletes are also at risk for such knee injuries as meniscus tears and ACL tears. If the knee pain doesn’t go away after a few days of rest and ice, you’ll need to see your doctor or physical therapist for a more thorough examination.
- Head injuries and concussions
For baseball players, head injuries are difficult to prevent, because they usually happen spontaneously, like from a stray ball or a collision on the field. Mark reminds players to wear a helmet at all times and to stay alert.
- Heat exhaustion
As with any sport, particularly those that are played outside on hot days, hydration is vital. Athletes must stay hydrated and drink plenty of water before, during and after each game. Don’t wait until your player starts to feel lightheaded or has a rapid pulse; it will be too late. Coaches should require that all baseball players bring water to each game and drink during rest periods.
After many years of strength training young baseball players, Mark says that in most cases, injuries come down to two factors: Either the child is not strong enough to perform the motions/actions being asked of him, or the child is injured from overuse.
Players can reduce the risk of some of the above injuries through conditioning.Strengthening the rotator cuff muscles (the set of four muscles that controls the joint) and increasing the range of motion in the joint can minimize rotator cuff tears. Strengthening both the biceps and triceps muscles, particularly for pitchers, should help to reduce the risk for epicondylitis. And knee injuries can be reduced by stretching the knee joint and strengthening the leg muscles around the knee — the stronger your legs are, the more force the muscles can handle around the knee joint. A proper strength training program, combined with teaching the proper technique for throwing, batting and running, will help reduce these injuries.
As for overuse, it comes in different forms, but it’s most commonly seen in pitchers and catchers who throw too many pitches and then have shoulder and elbow pain. Mark points to children playing two, three, even four baseball games in a day. As a trainer for the Detroit Tigers told Bleacher Report in 2014, teen pitchers are throwing “too hard, too fast, too much, too soon.” These athletes are not only running the risk of injury, but mental and physical burnout.
As noted in the descriptions above, and as we’ve mentioned plenty of times in the past,rest is an essential part of being an athlete. “It is only after your workout, when you are resting and replenishing your body with protein and other nutrients, when the body heals and gets stronger,” Mark says. It’s why he lives by the motto, “Train hard, but rest harder.”
Whether you just started hitting the links or have been playing golf for years, understanding the variety of injuries that can result from playing golf will help your game, as well as your overall wellness.
For beginners, says Chris Wickel, a physical therapist at Conshohocken Physical Therapy (a Physiquality member in Pennsylvania), injuries can often happen because of poor body mechanics. While many people may think it’s simple to pick up a set of clubs and hit the links, a bad golf swing can lead to years of bad habits (and bad scores).
If you’re new to the sport, consider taking some lessons with a teaching pro — the PGA certifies teachers who can ensure that you learn the game with proper form. If you’ve tried playing and have felt pain during your swing, consider consulting with a physical therapist, whose musculoskeletal expertise can reduce pain and improve your game. As a Titleist Performance Institute Certified medical professional, Chris is an expert in evaluating a player’s golf swing and pinpointing where an error occurs in its mechanics.
More seasoned players can experience a variety of pain and problems. Brandon Brackeen, a physical therapist at Moreau Physical Therapy in Louisiana, points to a Harvard Medical School study that underscored overuse as the key reason golfers have back, shoulder and elbow problems, unsurprising when you consider how many times a golfer swings his clubs during a round of 18.
Brandon points out that many golfers experience back pain due to a lack of mobility in the hips and lower back, and weakness in the lower back and core muscles. He cautions golfers to seek help from a physical therapist if they experience back pain, especially with bending or twisting; excessive back stiffness during or after playing golf; muscle spasms; or pain or weakness in the legs. “A physical therapist can address such pain, then assess the person’s movement patterns and golf swing to determine the probable cause of the pain,” Brandon says. What Every Golfer Should Know About Injuries
Tags: Golf, Golf Swing, Golfer's Elbow
Aging isn’t fun for anyone. Your memory starts to fade, your body slows down and gains weight, and your joints start to stiffen. And while no one can reverse or stop the aging process, one of the best ways to reduce the speed at which your body is changing is to be more active.
“As the years go by, staying active becomes one of the key factors in staying independent, pain-free and feeling good,” says Randy Gustafson, a physical therapist and the owner of Physiquality member Mesa Physical Therapy in San Diego, California. Exercise is known to help prevent and reduce such problems as heart disease, diabetes, and stroke, along with its more obvious benefits of increasing strength and reducing — or at least maintaining — weight. And, Randy points out, better health from increased activity often allows patients to reduce their reliance on some medications, allowing patients to take them less frequently or sometimes quit them altogether.
If you want to exercise more but haven’t done so in a while, walking is an easy activity to begin with. It’s low-impact and has been shown to reduce the risk of heart attacks. It doesn’t require training or special equipment, just a good pair of shoes. And it’s easy to measure your progress with a pedometer, or even simply timing your walks.
Mika Yoshida, a certified strength and conditioning specialist, recommends the Arthritis Foundation’s Walk With Ease program as a way to measure progress. As a fitness instructor at the Take Charge Fitness Program at Clinton Physical Therapy Center, a Physiquality member in Clinton, Tennessee, she often works with patients who are uneasy about returning to exercise after an injury or chronic illness. The Walk With Ease program offers local groups, where patients can walk with others hoping to improve their health, and guidelines if people prefer to create their own program. Read More
Tags: Aging, Arthritis Exercise, Seniors
Many people think of physical therapy clinics as a place to recover from injury, or a place to do rehabilitation after an operation. But many physical therapy clinics are now offering a broader range of services, shifting their attention to both prevention of and recovery from injury and illness.
Clinton Physical Therapy Center, a Physiquality member in Clinton, Tennessee, launched their wellness program, now known as the Take Charge Fitness Program, 20 years ago in 1995. It was originally intended as a bridge program for clients who had reached the end of physical therapy, but weren’t quite ready to exercise on their own. “Many of the people who come here need supervision that they can’t get at a health club,” says co-owner Joyce Klee. “We can cater their exercise programs to specific health issues, whether they are orthopedic or neurological problems, or other issues, like obesity.”
Now they often have clients who have never been through physical therapy, which is why anyone who joins the Take Charge Fitness Program gets a thorough evaluation. “During this screening,” explains Anna Dark, the Fitness Director at TCFP, “we look for any potential musculoskeletal dysfunctions or imbalances that can lead to injury if not addressed.” The staff at TCFP then incorporates specific exercises to improve and correct such problems, as a part of the member’s exercise regimen. Read more
Last summer, yet another fitness fad/trend received some attention. It was first published in the American College of Sports Medicine’s Health & Fitness Journal, and then it received coverage in a variety of newspapers and websites, including the New York Times. While high-intensity circuit training (HICT) is not new, the specific circuit training cycle discussed in the article received attention because the circuit duration lasted approximately 7 minutes. In addition, the authors theorized that it could also benefit “the masses.”
It is important to understand that this article was a case report on how the two authors manage limited training schedules and environments for their elite-level athletes: using body-weight resistance without any other equipment, in a seven-minute workout cycle, and repeated as many as 1-3 times based on time availability. For their purposes, the authors felt that this training tool was an effective way to help their athletes manage their workouts while maintaining intensity and improving aerobic conditioning in the presence of busy lives.
Read More
Hopefully those New Years’ resolutions have paid off. You’re eating healthier and working out more, and maybe your clothes are a little bit looser. But have you thought about what could be holding you back or putting you at risk of an injury? Here are some common errors you might be making at the gym.
- You walked in without a plan.
Many people — especially those that are going for the first time (or the first time in a long time) — walk into the gym and wing it, with no sense of how they are going to structure their workouts. But if you walk in without a plan, how can you expect to make progress, asks Mark Salandra, the founder of StrengthCondition.com (one of Physiquality’s partner programs). Mark advises, “Write down a workout plan: Map out all your workouts to the set. Figure out your goals and set a plan to get there.” (Need a workout journal? Check out Physiquality partner fitbook™ journals for tracking your workouts and diet.)
There are many ways to set such goals. Mark suggests reading books, doing research on the internet, or even taking advantage of the trainers the gym makes available. He points out that they can advise you on proper form, the right machines for you, the frequency of your workouts and — most importantly — creating a workout plan.
Read More
