Summer Injury Prevention For Fun In The Sun
Summer is a time to have fun and spend time outdoors. It is an opportunity to enjoy the sunshine. It’s a time when you can go out for a walk and take in everything that nature has to offer. The weather encourages you to be active and venture outside.
The only cautioning factor with outdoor activities is the risk of injuries due to twists, turns, and falls, among other reasons. The good news is that these injuries can be easily prevented.
A Safe, Fun Summer
Here are some tips that to ensure a safe, fun and injury-free summer:
1. Wear Protective Gear
When participating in contact sports, it is essential to wear protective gear appropriate to that activity.
For example:
– wearing helmets, gloves, properly fitting shoes and shin pads (depending on the sport or activity) can prevent injury. Children are undoubtedly more prone to sustaining injuries such as scrapes, bruises, ligament tears, and even broken bones.
2. Stretching Exercises
Summer presents a tempting opportunity to jump into several activities. If your muscles are preconditioned from the long winter, it’s important to plan ahead. You want to eliminate muscle tears and joint injuries, all of which form a part of the “weekend warrior syndrome”. Stretching the muscles and warming them up adequately before and after exercising can help prevent muscle aches and joint pains. Ask us at ALRC if you need guidelines about stretching exercises.
3. Proper Body Mechanics
It’s important to be careful when using equipment.
For example:
-Gardening tends to be a popular activity during the summer. Using a wheelbarrow to carry heavy objects is highly advisable.
-Renovations, at this time of the year we tend to do a lot of renovations or some carpentry around our house. Lifting heavy loads could cause major back injuries or even shoulder injuries. Proper lifting techniques could save you from not hurting yourself.
Bending your hips and knees to be in a squat position, lift the object as close as to your body and avoid twisting and turning while carrying a heavy object. And you can always use “Team Lift”.
4. Strengthen the Core
The core muscles refer to the abdominal and lower back. Exercises such as leg raises, crunches, and simple rotational movements can help strengthen the muscles of the back and abdomen. This can help in preventing injuries. To be on the safe side, ask your physician if it’s safe for you to exercise. Ask us at ALRC if you need guidelines about these exercises.
Sometimes Injury can’t be prevented
When Injuries occur via accidents sometimes it is not something we can control. But you could get help to speed up the healing process. A new and innovated way of healing most injuries is through Photobiomodulation or simply called Laser Therapy, this technology offers an invasive-free alternative to surgery or drugs. At ALRC we can help muscular and joint problems to heal by using one of the most effective laser therapy units which is the BIOFLEX laser.
Do NOT hesitate to apply the proper amount and kind of sunblock when you are out there! And lastly, drink lots of water, HYDRATE HYDRATE!!!
