Anyone who’s ever played sports long enough will tell you that injuries are a part of the game. That’s certainly true to an extent, but proper prevention measures can help greatly reduce injury risk. The experienced sports medicine doctors in Kansas City at Kansas City Orthopedic Alliance have some helpful tips for preventing youth sports injuries. Read on to learn more!
Tip #1: Get a preseason physical
Getting a physical before the start of any school year or sports season is a great way to catch certain issues before your athlete begins your sport. The truth is, not all youth athletes might be fit to play contact sports because of a specific health issue. Your physician can use a preseason physical to determine if your athlete has a condition that may prevent or limit them from participating.
Tip #2: Get the proper equipment
This is important both in mitigating traumatic injury risks and injuries from overuse. If your athlete is a football player, a hockey player, or a wrestler, three sports with consistent physical contact, it’s important to always wear proper fitting headgear and a mouth guard to avoid concussions. For sports like football and hockey specifically, having ill-fitting shoulder or knee pads can also increase your exposure to a contact injury.
Tip #3: Take time to rest
This applies both during the season and after the season. Practice is important to becoming a better player, but it’s important for your athlete to not overextend themselves. Rest and recovery are important to avoid fatigue both mentally and physically.
Resting doesn’t mean stopping activities completely, however. It may simply mean taking time to recover by modifying a strength training program or integrating stretching into a training regimen to allow your muscles, ligament and joints time to heal and recover.
Additionally, with year-round specialization becoming increasingly common for athletes across all sports, it’s important to know the benefits of taking time away. Even the top professional athletes in the world have an offseason! In fact, even top experts recommend taking at least one month off between sports seasons.
Tip # 4: Don’t rush back from injury
Many athletes are hyper-competitive and want to prove their toughness. Culturally, we tend to glorify athletes who play through injury or come back quicker than expected, describing them as “gritty” or “warriors”.
However, rushing back too quickly from an injury greatly increases the risk of re-injury, or an injury to a different area of the body. No parent or provider wants to see a young player sitting on the sideline due to re-injury.
Before getting back in the game, your athlete should get complete clearance from their sports medicine provider in Kansas City, who will ensure they have no pain, swelling, and a complete range of motion.
Need a Youth Sports Medicine Doctor in Kansas City? – Contact Kansas City Orthopedic Alliance Today!
At Kansas City Orthopedic Alliance, we’re dedicated to creating a superior patient experience for all. Regardless of the location or severity of your young athlete’s injury, our team will work with you to ensure the best possible outcomes.
Scheduling an appointment with one of our providers allows us to find the best treatment option for your needs. If your athlete suffers an injury that requires youth sports medicine in Kansas City, it’s important to turn to a highly qualified team of expert providers.
Using the highest quality technology, we can pinpoint the exact underlying issue of their pain and develop a personalized treatment plan that gets them back in the game like they never left. Additionally, we can provide information on how to avoid re-injury or other common injuries in the future.
For a thorough evaluation, call us at (913) 319-7600 or use our symptom tracker tool.
