Focus on football!

Former NFL great Jerry Rice credits chiropractic care with helping him bounce back from the many hits he took on the field: "Chiropractic care was key to keeping me in the game"

That’s right--summer may be winding down, the days becoming a bit shorter and the weather cooperating a little less than it used to, but one thing’s for sure: football season is right around the corner! With just a week to go until the NFL kicks off, why not take some time to learn about some common sports injuries and the ways to facilitate their healing and overall prevention?

Like many sports, football puts a great deal of exertion on the spine, especially for our most active athletes: between warm-ups, practices, conditioning exercises and games, the essential back muscles get quite a workout! In many cases this is a good thing; after all, building lower back muscle endurance now can help avoid injury later on. Sometimes, however, too much is simply too much, and this kind of stress can result in overuse injuries. These injuries often affect not just the lower back but the shoulders, elbows, and legs as well. Luckily, they can be treated and prevented with chiropractic care.

But overuse is not the only concern. Football, like all contact sports, carries the risk of traumatic injury resulting from hits, throws, and kicks that go awry. These injuries can affect the head and neck as well as the shoulders, elbows, and legs. If and when they occur, treatment will usually necessitate some time off as well as light rehabilitation exercises. Go about these exercises slowly, however, as the body needs time and recovers at its own pace! Regular chiropractic visits can help you determine how far along you are and what else needs to be done, and it has even been proven to speed up the recovery process!

Treatment and rehabilitation are essential tools for today’s athletes, but the best way to deal with injury is obviously to prevent it from happening in the first place. Observing proper safety guidelines and wearing the correct equipment is the most important way to ensure that this season will be injury-free. While heavy safety gear can sometimes seem like it increases muscle stress, it is absolutely essential to preventing the kinds of traumatic injury that can occur in football.

Beyond the basics, however, athletes need to remain tuned into their bodies and careful not to push themselves too far. For example: it’s still summer and the temperatures are high, so proper hydration is more important than ever. Keep an eye out for muscle cramping, as it may be a sign that the body is overheating. In addition to this, always be sure to keep up a good stretching routine! You can check out our post on stretching to get a good idea of places to start.

Though it can get rough out there, there is no reason that football season can’t be safe and fun, not to mention a great way to get some exercise. Athletes should be sure to observe safety guidelines, avoid overuse and muscle stress, and of course wear proper and well-fitting equipment. And above all, athletes should be aware that regular chiropractic care offers a major boost in preventing injury and facilitating rehabilitation—just ask Jerry Rice!