Fall is right around the corner and the kids are back at school, so that means parents can get back to their workout routines and children are diving back into team sports and training. Now, this is a great time in many ways—exercise is great for your mood and your body. However, if you don’t take the right precautions, ramping up your physical activity could lead to unwelcome foot and ankle injuries.
Want to train hard and get fit without the pain this fall? It’s entirely possible. Just check out (and follow) Powder Springs podiatrist Dr. Alvin Cowans’ athletic training tips. They’re all about preventing sports injuries and keeping you safe! But first, let’s take a closer look at factors that can increase your risk for injury.
Common Sports Injuries and Their Causes ![little boy playing baseball]()
Whether you’re a student athlete or an adult ramping up your training routine, common sports injuries include foot and ankle sprains or strains; shin splints; Achilles tendon pain and inflammation; stress fractures; and ankle or foot fractures.
There are many reasons why you may develop these injuries. Often, we see patients who got hurt after suddenly increasing the intensity or duration of their training habits. Skipping out on warm-ups, cool downs and stretching before and after a workout can also contribute to sports injuries. Wearing worn-out or non-supportive foot gear increases your risk for injury. And, in some cases, your foot shape or structure, or even your body’s biomechanics, directly contributes to your injury risk. Luckily, with careful training techniques, the right foot wear, and the occasional addition of supportive devices such as custom orthotics, we are usually successful at preventing sports injuries.
Top Tips for Preventing Sports Injuries
The first step to preventing sports injuries is to train wisely. Make sure that you or your child is engaging in cross training, balancing workouts between strength training, cardio and stretching. Avoid doing the same workout every day to reduce the risk of overuse injuries. And, whenever possible, build rest days into your training schedule in order to allow your muscles and bones a chance to recover from the impact of your workouts.
Similarly, try to focus on training different muscle groups on different days, giving each area at least one day of rest between workouts. Again, this will support your body’s natural recovery processes and help prevent sports injuries related to overuse.
Before and after any workout, make sure to engage in comprehensive warm-ups and cool-downs. These periods should incorporate stretching in order to help prepare your muscles and tendons for activity prior to exercise and to help release tension in those areas after a workout, helping prevent pain, inflammation and injury. Dynamic stretches, performed while you’re in motion, are the best choice as they help warm up muscles for activity. You can also incorporate movements such as butt kicks, jumping jacks, and arm circles before starting a workout.
Also, make sure that you’re wearing supportive footwear designed for the specific activity in which you’re engaging. And make sure you’re regularly replacing your athletic shoes, since their built-in supports will lose effectiveness over time, increasing your injury risk.
If you have flat feet or high arches, simply wearing supportive foot gear may not provide enough support to prevent injuries. In such cases, you may need to get fitted for custom orthotics that you’ll wear every time you train. Unlike over-the-counter shoe inserts, orthotics are made to fit your feet, providing support exactly where you need it the most. As such, they are extremely effective at preventing sports injuries, and may even improve your athletic performance when you train while wearing these devices.
Never train through pain. When you feel discomfort, that’s a warning sign that something isn’t right in your body. Listen and rest when necessary; then, if the pain doesn’t resolve in a day or two, come see Dr. Cowans in our Powder Springs podiatry practice to rule out any injury.
Now, if we do diagnose you with a sports injury of any kind, this is the most important rule for preventing sports injuries down the road: allow yourself to heal fully before resuming any kind of physical activity. In our office, if we diagnose a foot or ankle injury of any kind, we will carefully explain what kind of physical activity will be permitted during your recovery period, and what you need to avoid in order to allow yourself to heal. We can also advise you on physical therapy to support your recovery and provide you with a general timeline for returning to training.
Of course, even if you’ve followed our guidelines for preventing sports injuries, you could still end up with a problem. And, if that happens, we’re here to help—but we cant support you if we don’ see you. So, if there’s one rule to take away from today, it’s this: if you or your child feels any pain during exercise, stop training right away and request a consultation in the office. We can assess and treat any injuries to get you back into action as soon as possible!
