Injury Recovery & Prevention
Written by Danielle Bararuk | Dec 12, 2018
Did you know that consulting with a physiotherapist is a great way to help you recover from a sport injury and get back in the game? Physiotherapists can also help you to prevent future injuries as well as improve your current athletic techniques!
Working with a physiotherapist when you begin a new sport or activity is a great way to look after your physical well-being. A physiotherapist can help you better understand proper body alignment and movement, how your breathing effects functional movement, and how your pelvic floor plays a supportive role in the stabilization of the body. A physiotherapist can identify areas to work on that can enhance your performance, assist in a safe return to activity, and prevent future injuries.
Proper body alignment and movement: If your body’s alignment is out of place or if your movement patterns are not trained properly, it can result in excessive stress to a muscle or ligament. This stress can result in an injury such as a sprain or strain. Common sports injuries include ankle sprains, shin splits, groin strains, ACL tears, hamstring strains, patello-femoral pain syndrome, and tennis elbow. Understanding proper body alignment and movement during your sport or activity can remove unwanted stress and help to prevent injury so you can enjoy your activities without interruption.
Breathing: Proper breathing mechanics play an important role in stabilizing the spine and in postural alignment. Improper breathing mechanics could result in imbalanced muscle development and physiological adaptations that can modify your movement. Learning how to breath properly may sound simple, but it can change your movement game!
Pelvic floor function: The pelvic floor has many functions including support and stability. It supports your organs, holding everything up with a hammock of muscles. It works together with your breathing during functional movement, and if one is compromised then the others may also be affected. For example, if the pelvic floor is not functioning properly, the spine may not be supported properly.1 This can lead to increased activity of certain muscles that then in turn alters pelvic floor muscle activity, which can cause symptoms such as dysfunctional movement or urinary incontinence. Furthermore, the presence of incontinence and breathing disorders increase the odds for development of low back pain. By ensuring the pelvic floor muscles are functioning optimally it can enhance the stability and overall strength of the core. One of the best ways to ensure this is to consult with a pelvic health physiotherapist.
Some injuries are beyond our control but many times they can be preventable. There are many ways to prevent injury and speaking with a physiotherapist to help identify ways to prevent injury in your activity or sport will keep you in the game longer.
1. Bradley, H., & Esformes, J. (2014). Breathing pattern disorders and functional movement. International journal of sports physical therapy, 9(1), 28-39.
Danielle Bararuk
Physiotherapist
Pelvic Health Physiotherapist
Paediatric Physiotherapist
