Australians have a love for the outdoors and their sports.  While this generally results in a healthier lifestyle, it also results in the occasional musculoskeletal injury.  Common injuries include:

 

       > Muscle strains

       > Contusion injuries (“corks”)

       > Ligament sprains

       > Joint injuries

       > Over-use injuries

 

There are a number of ways you can minimise the risk of sustaining injuries.  These include:

 

       > Perform warm-up and cool down exercises

       > Learn correct technique for your sport, e.g. swimming stroke

       > Use protective equipment specific to your sport, e.g. shin pads in soccer

       > Wear braces or strapping

       > Maintain good fitness, strength and flexibility

 

Remember, you should not play sport to get fit, you should get fit to play sport.

 

As physiotherapists, we specialise in sports injury management and rehabilitation, however there are a few simple steps you can perform to minimise your recovery time.

 

The initial management of soft tissue injuries, i.e. the first 3 days, includes:

 

DO:                  Rest: minimise movement of the injured area

                        Ice: for 20 minutes every 2 hours

       Compression: wrap injured area with an elastic bandage

       Elevation: injured area to above the level of your heart

(These minimise swelling and bleeding)

 

DO NOT:          Heat: including heat rubs, hot baths etc

                        Alcohol: of any kind

      Running: or any unnecessary activity

      Massage: not even a “light” rub

 

(These increase swelling and bleeding)