Injury Prevention in Holstein, MO. Whether you’re an athlete and want to improve your performance, or are entering your golden years and want to dedicate your time to bike riding, don’t let the fear of reinjury keep you from the activities you love. While our certified Holstein, MO physical therapists work extensively with athletes and others to heal after an injury, we are experts in the entire musculoskeletal system who can evaluate your body’s current condition and how you move to show you measures that are proven to reduce the risk of injury by preparing your body for the stressors of your desired activity. Schedule an appointment at Axes Physical Therapy today or contact the location nearest you.

Being physically active is an essential part of many Holstein, MO people’s lives. We love activities like playing sports, swimming, or other physical activities. Additionally, keeping an active lifestyle reduces the risk of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, eurodegenerative disease, mental health issues, and many types of cancers. Not only can physical therapy with one of Axes’ licensed Holstein, MO physical therapists allow you to return to action even stronger after an injury, but our injury prevention experts can help preserve your active lifestyle by improving your overall strength, flexibility, and posture. All of our treatment plans, for both healing from and preventing injury, have been prove to work and are developed uniquely for each client and the lifestyle they desire.

If you’ve recently suffered an injury, or have a persistent injury that won’t heal on its own, contact the Axes Physical Therapy location nearest you in Holstein, MO for a no-risk, no-obligation injury screening. To take preventative measures and protect your sport or hobby, read on below or inquire about an appointment today.

Types of Injuries We Prevent Prevent in Holstein, MO

Injuries typically happen for one of two reasons:

1. Repetitive demand injuries are injuries that are caused by repetitive movements over time. They are common in overhead athletes athletes who are required to repeat throwing or striking motions and typically reveal themselves with joint pain.
2. Acute injuries are injuries that happen in an instant. Examples include landing on uneven ground or a sudden impact by an object or another person. These can result in bruises, twisting joints, broken bones, and dislocations.

Some common injuries, such as rotator cuff tears, can either develop over time or occur suddenly. Other injuries, for example ACL tears, almost always occur spontaneously, with a sudden impact to the knee.

Why Do Injuries Happen? | Injury Prevention in Holstein, MO

While anyone can suffer an injury almost at any time and for numerous different reasons, they generally happen because your soft tissue, bones, and joints cannot hold up under the force, torque, or stretching that they are subjected to in a given movement or collision. There are three main causes of why your body cannot handle an activity:

Muscle Imbalance

Muscle balance is key to maintaining healthy joints and staving off injury. Imbalance can lead to an overreliance on one muscle group, which may cause your body to use it in a way it shouldn’t. It can also lead to poor posture, and one set of muscles becoming fatigued more quickly, making them more susceptible to injuries. Injuries can be caused by poor muscle balance in relation to other muscle groups, such as having a strong bicep and weak tricep, or within muscle groups, such as the four muscles in the rotator cuff having different levels of strength. Muscle imbalance can result in:

• Muscle weakness
• Muscle inflexibility
• Poor muscle recruitment
• Poor coordination

Customized injury prevention with our certified physical therapists in Holstein, MO will bring balance to your muscles.

Movement Dysfunction

Movement dysfunction can result in poor balance and lead to your body moving in ways it is not designed to, causing injury. Problems in your nervous system, swelling, previous injuries, and muscle imbalance call all contribute to movement dysfunction. Symptoms include:

• Joint mobility restrictions
• Muscle imbalance
• Poor coordination
• Lessened balance

When you first see our injury prevention professionals in Holstein, MO, we’ll evaluate your medical records and analyze your current movement health, strength, and flexibility. Then, in tandem with with your doctor or any additional providers treating you, we’ll come up with a tailored plan of attack been proven to work by research and studies to get your movement health to reach its potential.

Posture Dysfunction

Bad posture is not just an issue for people who sit a lot. People who play sports and other physically active people can be affected by postural dysfunction when at lest, sitting, or in specific positions related to their sport. Optimal posture means correct positioning of your body from your head to your toes in a way that encourages our spine to stay in its natural curves. Poor posture can bring the vertebrae closer together, which disrupts communication between your brain and body and makes it difficult to reach the strength and range of motion you need to achieve. It can also lead to:

• Muscle weakness
• Muscle imbalance
• Poor positioning
• Joint mobility restrictions
• Poor muscle recruitment

By helping you understand correct posture, we’ll aid in your injury prevention by ensuring you are using your muscles equally, your flexibility is not jeopardized, and your spine is in its natural position.

Injury Prevention Methods in Holstein, MO

All sports and physical activities carry an inherent risk of injury. We cannot promise that our injury prevention program completely negates the risk of injury. However, there are things you can do to make sure your body is strong and flexible enough for your intended activity:

• Take a rest — Injuries are more common when you do not give your body time to restore itself. If you’re heavily active, one or two rest days a week will signal to your body to engage in its natural healing processes. If you have a more moderate activity level, relax for the rest of the day after an activity so your body doesn’t become too fatigued.
• Use protective equipment — Helmets, chest guards, safety pads and guards, and other required equipment in many sports helps you avoid injuries like bruises or concussions. If you’ve already suffered an injury to a joint or muscle, tendon, or ligament, your Holstein, MO physician or physical therapist may suggest braces or Kinesio Taping® to stabilize the affected area. Other methods like tying your shoes tightly offers further stabilization.
• Strengthen muscles — Strengthening soft tissue helps it stand up to the force and torque of heavy activity. Our Holstein, MO injury prevention specialists will work to achieve ideal muscle balance and strengthen the smaller muscles needed to be able to stay healthy in the activities you want to participate in.
• Improve flexibility — Increasing your flexibility contributes to injury prevention in three way:
  1. It enhances your range of motion, which allows for your tendons and ligaments to adjust to more pronounced positions.
  2. It boosts circulation, which carries nourishing blood to your muscles, eliminating waste byproduct and encouraging the muscles to recover.
  3. It encourages good posture, which, as we’ve discussed, is an essential part of injury prevention.

  According to a peer-reviewed sports medicine paper, sports like basketball that necessitate bouncing and jumping require soft tissue with sufficient flexibility to perform those movements. Also, don’t forget to stretch and warm up before any physical activity to further reduce the risk of injury.

• Use accepted technique — Through the years, each sport and physical activity develops a consensus of the best techniques to use. These techniques not only help you perform better but help prevent injuries by not forcing your body into unnatural positions and movements. Football players are taught to tackle a certain way to avoid brain damage, and rotational athletes like golfers and baseball players learn how to best apply torque to your body. We utilize DorsaVi video motion analysis to capture how you move and educate you on how to both be a better athlete and reduce your risk of injury.
• Listen to your body — If you feel pain in a muscle or joint, your body is trying to send you a message. If you feel something suddenly that doesn’t feel right, stop immediately and get the appropriate medical treatment. If your body does not feel well enough for an intense workout, don’t force it.
• Don’t play through an injury — Even though teammates, competitors, and fans appreciate a player that guts it out through pain, forcing your body to perform with an injury to a muscle, joint, tendon, or ligament could make that injury worse and leave you off the field or court for much longer than if you had sat out at the time of the injury. Depending on the nature of your injury, recommended actions may be using R.I.C.E. method, visiting an emergency room, and a series of physical therapy sessions to make sure your recovery and return to action go as well as possible.
• Follow the rules — Most sports have special rules at different levels in the interest of safety. Penalties for helmet to helmet hits in football, rules against slide-tackling in soccer, and even the presence of bike lanes are examples of rules that were adopted to keep participants safe. Those were enacted for a reason, and there’s a reason that violations of those rules are punished.
• Speak a professional physical therapist — It’s a good idea to get a physical before starting another season or starting up a new physical activity. During your appointment, ask your doctor if injury prevention with a knowledgeable physical therapist in Holstein, MO is right for you. Every treatment plan we employ has been proven to prevent injury, and we’ll personalize your program to how old you are, any previous injuries, and which activities you want to participate in.

Injury Prevention for Senior Citizens in Holstein, MO

Falls in senior citizens were responsible for over 3 million emergency room visits and over 34,000 fatalities. Studies show that physical activity can go a long way in reducing the risk of falls. Other conditions that cause pain such as arthritis that develop over the course of several years can be effectively managed with physical therapy exercises that keep your muscles, tendons, ligaments, and joints healthy. While the physical demands for older adults may not be as high as an athlete, the same principles of strength, balance, flexibility, and proper posture can greatly aid in injury prevention.

Other services we offer in Holstein, MO include:

• Physical Therapy Clinic
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment
• Sciatica Treatment
• Sports Medicine
• Hand Pain Physical Therapy
• Foot & Ankle Pain Treatment
• Hip Pain Treatment
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment
• Stroke Rehabilitation
• Hip Replacement Physical Therapy

Holstein, MO Injury Prevention | Axes Physical Therapy

Being injured in something you love doing can lead to a mental block that won’t allow us to experience the same euphoria. The experienced Holstein, MO physical therapists at Axes are here to develop your personalized injury prevention program that will keep your body as safe and healthy as can be, and your mind confident that you can safely return to the activities you love. We will aid you in feeling the physical and mental health benefits that you once valued so much. Schedule an appointment online or call the location nearest you to learn more about what our Holstein, MO injury prevention professionals can do for you.