Athletes at all levels—be it at the frontiers of professional sports or participating in weekend pastimes—encounter the rigors of the sport that can and often do lead to injuries. They withstand the ups and downs that any performer must undergo. These things make the specialized field of sports physical therapy a key player in the physical health and performance of the athlete.
Understanding the role of sports physical therapy is a step toward enhancing athlete’s performance and ensuring a speedy recovery when injuries occur.
What is Sports Physical Therapy?
Sports therapy in Aurora is concerned with the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of injuries that occur in sports. The key distinction here is “injuries that occur in sports.” Now, that may seem like a no-brainer since therapists treat injuries that people have in the various sports that they play. But understanding what it is that makes a certain activity a “sport” is crucial to knowing how to treat the injuries that occur when people engage in those activities.
What Type of Injuries Do Athletes Commonly Have?
Athletes often get hurt, and being injured can greatly impact their performance and wellbeing. Some of the most common injuries sustained by those who practice sports are:
- Sprains and strains: Ligament or muscle injuries can happen during intense physical activity.
- Fractures: Broken bones are not uncommon in high-impact sports.
- Tendonitis: Repeated actions can cause tendon inflammation.
- Shin splints: Pain in the shin that’s common in dancers and runners.
How Does Sports Physical Therapy Help in Injury Prevention?
One of the principal aims of sports physical therapy is to prevent injuries from happening. Sports physical therapists undoubtedly work with the athletic population and help improve performance.
Sports physical therapists are also trained to analyze biomechanics, study human movement, and identify potential injury risk factors.
These therapists also create an exercise regimen that can help build up weak muscles and maintain their strength. They can also teach stretching routines that can help in warm-ups and cooling down after sports.
How Does Sports Physical Therapy Help in Rehabilitation?
If you sustain an injury, sports physical therapy can be a crucial component of your recovery. Your journey back to wellness starts with an in-depth assessment performed by a sports physical therapist. After this assessment, the sports physical therapist will develop a customized rehabilitation program. This program generally has three parts:
- Strengthening Exercises: The therapist will reintroduce you gradually to activities that restore your strength. Depending on your injury, you may not have to do exactly the sorts of things you would do if you were training for your sport, but most likely you will be doing some kind of sport-related drills.
- Flexibility and Range of Motion Exercises: Sometimes, the crazy part of your reconditioning or rehabilitation involves the therapist either hanging you up in a sling (to work on your shoulder) or having you lie down with your leg secured to a table (to work on your hamstring). Your sports physical therapist will generally use techniques that stretch your muscle groups to improve your range of motion.
- Functional Training: This step happens when you, the patient, have made significant progress on the road to recovering your normal function. The training includes drills to help athletes return to their sports safely.
How Does Sports Physical Therapy Enhance Performance?
In addition to keeping athletes healthy, physical therapy in Aurora, IL, plays a crucial role in helping them perform at their best and reap the benefits of their training. Therapists accomplish this through a number of methods.
One is using sport-specific drills that are really not much different from what a coach would instruct an athlete to do. The other is using conditioning routines that are almost like working with a personal trainer. These drills and routines aim to make the athlete sturdier or more physically capable of performing at the right kind of intensity and for the right amount of time to do their sport.
How Does Sports Physical Therapy Help Athletes Psychologically?
An athlete’s mental health significantly impacts their performance. When a competitor faces setbacks like an injury, the potential toll on their psyche can be severe. A therapist’s work in this arena is critical and complements what physical therapists do.
Sports physical therapists can help athletes manage stress and anxiety through techniques like mindfulness and goal setting.
Conclusion
All athletes, on any level, can benefit from sports physical therapy services at Physical Therapy Advantage. It is a resource that offers vital support in maintaining high levels of physical health, during both competitive and non-competitive times, and serves to optimize performance while also substantially reducing the risk of injury.
