Get
Back to Exercising After An Injury with These 5 Tips!
Injuring ourselves is often a
devastating blow to our exercise regime. Many people are told by doctors,
family or friends, or even Google,
that they are not to continue with their fitness program, to stop doing the
activities they love, and to rest the injured area until its better. The truth
is, it doesn’t have to be this way! We understand how important exercise
is to you, and that’s why we’re giving you 5 tips on how to get back to the
activities and workouts you love in no time!
When we hurt ourselves, we often feel
that the best thing to do is to rest the injured muscle or joint. And while
this may sound like good advice, the truth is that taking a “rest time” might
actually be setting you back even more!
That’s right. Take, for example, an
avid runner who accidentally sprains his ankle and is unable to run for over 2
months. He decides that resting the ankle is the best thing for it. Yet, while
he puts it up on the sofa, his muscles stiffen, the ligaments tighten, he loses
movement in the ankle, AND his fitness level drops considerably. Now, after two
months of rest, his recovery period has doubled while his endurance has halved.
All too often we see patients going
through the same problems as the example above. Why? Take a look.
Here are some of the most common
mistakes people make when they injure themselves:
1. They
rest the area for too long, thus causing their recovery time to increase
significantly whilst their fitness levels drop accordingly.
2. They take prescription medication to mask the pain rather than address the root cause of the problem. In this case, the pain endures and is often aggravated as a result.
2. They take prescription medication to mask the pain rather than address the root cause of the problem. In this case, the pain endures and is often aggravated as a result.
3. They
ignore the issue: back problems, ankle problems, and even neck problems are
often swept to the side, thereby aggravating the issue and actually delaying
the recovery process.
If you see yourself in any of the
above three scenarios, you already know that nothing has worked and your still
not out there running your marathon. This really isn’t the ideal situation,
right? In fact, resting the area of injury for prolonged periods of time can,
more often than not, have adverse effects. Now, that’s not to say that we want
you up and running the day after you injure your ankle; we just know that there
are ways to overcome your injury WITHOUT decreasing your activity levels or
effecting your fitness regime. We’ll give you tips that actually help you get
back to the exercise you love IN THE SHORTEST AMOUNT OF TIME. Take a look:
1. Just because you’ve inured your ankle, it
doesn’t mean you can’t exercise at all! While you may not be able to move your
ankle much, you can still do Pilates, core work, or yoga in order to maintain
your core strength and overall fitness. Movement equates recovery. We
don’t want you to make your injury worse… we want you to hit the ground running
once you’ve recovered!
3. Mind
what you eat. Remember the saying “food is medicine, and medicine is
food?”. Well, it’s as true now as it ever was.
Hydrate and feed your body properly by drinking enough water and making
sure that you get enough protein, iron, carbs, and vitamins. Keep your joints
lubricated and energized by changing your diet accordingly!
4. Anti-inflammatory
foods can help you recover faster. Food high in anti-inflammatories, such a
blueberries, dark leafy greens, and coconut milk can help you recover faster by
reducing the inflammation in the affected area. Another wonderful
anti-inflammatory is turmeric; this spice can be eaten in delicious curries,
warm honeyed milk, and even in ice cream! Why not give it a go?
5. See
a specialist to speed up your recovery. Without a doubt one of the FASTEST ways
to get back to the exercise you love is to visit a qualified, professional
physical therapist. Physical therapy allows you to heal the core issue,
thereby speeding up your recovery time and allowing you to maintain a pain free
workout and lifestyle.
You see, pain and injury all too often
take a hold of our lives; it’s time to change that. UTILIZING recovery time is
the key to fast-tracking the healing process. Avoiding painkillers, seeing a physical
therapist, eating well, and maintaining movement, exercise, and a fitness
regime ALL contribute to rapid recovery. We want to see you get back to
running, cycling, swimming, playing golf, or even fishing as fast as possible,
and we’re confident these 5 tips will get you there sooner rather than later.
Don’t let ankle, neck, back, or shoulder pain keep you from doing
the things you love. And don’t delay your recovery process by masking the pain,
believing it will disappear, or resting the area for long durations of time.
There is a much easier, more effective way. Fast-track your road to recovery by
clicking here and filling out a simple form to speak to a physical
therapist (for free!) today.
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