Woodhine Heights, MO

Woodhine Heights, MO

Don't let the fear of reinjury prevent you from participating in the activities you love.

Injury Prevention in Woodhine Heights, MO. Whether you’re an athlete hoping for a shot at the next level, or are entering your golden years and want to spend more time camping, don’t let the fear of reinjury keep you from the happy, healthy lifestyle you deserve. While our professional Woodhine Heights, MO physical therapists spend much of their time helping athletes and others 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 guide you through measures that are proven to prevent injury. Make an appointment at Axes Physical Therapy today or call the location most convenient for you.

Being physically active is an essential part of many Woodhine Heights, MO people’s lives. Many of us participate in activities like playing sports, playing golf, and more. Furthermore, keeping an active lifestyle reduces the risk of chronic conditions including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, eurodegenerative disease, mental health issues, and certain cancers. Not only can physical therapy with one of Axes’ licensed Woodhine Heights, MO physical therapists allow you to return to action and perform even better than before, but our injury prevention professionals can help you reduce the risk of further injury by improving your overall strength, flexibility, and posture. All of our treatment plans, for both healing from and preventing injury, are based on evidence-backed techniques and are personalized to each client and the lifestyle they desire.

If you’ve recently sustained an injury, or have a lingering injury that won’t heal on its own, contact the Axes Physical Therapy location nearest you in Woodhine Heights, MO for a complimentary injury screening. To take preventative measures and ensure that you can continue with your active lifestyle, read on below or call to speak to a physical therapist at your earliest convenience.

Types of Injuries We Prevent Prevent in Woodhine Heights, MO

Most injuries happen for one of two reasons:

  1. Chronic injuries are injuries that occur when a part of the body repeats the same motion time and time again. In sports, we see them the most in in overhead athletes such as baseball or volleyball players, with joint pain usually being the first symptom.
  2. Acute injuries are sudden and spontaneous. Examples include falling or receiving a blow. These can result in bruises, sprains and strains, fractures, and dislocations.

Some of the injuries we see most frequently, for example rotator cuff tears, can either develop over time or occur suddenly. Other injuries, for example ACL tears, are almost always the result of trauma, such as receiving a direct blow to the knee.

Injury Prevention Woodhine Heights, MO | Sports Therapy | Physical Therapy Near Woodhine Heights

Why Do Injuries Happen? | Injury Prevention in Woodhine Heights, MO

While anyone can suffer an injury almost at any time and for numerous different reasons, they generally occur because of dysfunction or instability and your body and between body parts. There are three common dysfunctions that lead to injury:

Muscle Imbalance

Muscle balance is essential to supporting joints and preventing injury. Imbalance can lead to an overreliance on one set of muscles, 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 tired faster, 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 chest and weak back, or in the same muscle group, such as an imbalance between the four muscles of the rotator cuff. Muscle imbalance can cause injury through:

Tailored injury prevention with our licensed physical therapists in Woodhine Heights, 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, increasing your risk of injury. It can be caused by a variety of musculoskeletal issues. Symptoms include:

  • Joint mobility restrictions
  • Muscle imbalance
  • Coordination deficits
  • Reduced balance

When you first see our injury prevention professionals in Woodhine Heights, MO, we’ll evaluate your medical history and perform a base evaluation to identify the root causes of your movement dysfunction. Then, in tandem with with your doctor or any other providers involved in your treatment, we’ll develop a tailored plan of attack been proven to work by research and studies to get your movement health to the level you need it to to do what you love.

Posture Dysfunction

Bad posture doesn’t just affect people who sit a lot. Athletes and other physically active people can have postural dysfunction when lying down, driving, or in specific body positions necessary for their sport. Correct posture refers to proper alignments when both static and moving in a way that encourages our spine to stay in its natural curves. Poor posture can compress the bones of the spine, which disrupts communication between your brain and body and makes it harder to attain the strength and range of motion you need to achieve. It can also lead to:

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

Good posture is an important part of injury prevention because it ensures you are using your muscles equally, your flexibility is not jeopardized, and your nervous system can communicate as its intended to.



Injury Prevention Methods in Woodhine Heights, MO

You can still suffer an injury even if you did everything you could to prevent one. No one technique is guaranteed to be effective in injury prevention. However, there are things you can do to make sure your body is prepared for your intended activity:

  • Take a rest — Injuries are more common when you do not give your body time to restore itself. If you have a very high activity level, one or two rest days a week will allow 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 muscles, tendons, ligaments, and joints become too fatigued.
  • Wear protective equipment — Helmets, chin straps, safety pads and guards, and other equipment necessary in sports and other activities helps you avoid injuries like cuts or concussions. If you’ve already suffered an injury to a joint or muscle, tendon, or ligament, your Woodhine Heights, MO doctor or physical therapist may advise stabilizing braces or Kinesio Taping®. Other measures like tying your cleats tightly can further help injury prevention by stabilizing your joints.
  • Improve muscle strength — Strengthening soft tissue helps it withstand the force and torque of heavy activity. In your customized injury prevention program with our professional Woodhine Heights, MO physical therapists, we’ll work to achieve optimal muscle balance and strengthen the often forgotten muscles needed to be able to avoid injury in the activities you want to participate in.
  • Boost flexibility — Increasing your flexibility accomplishes three critical things for injury prevention:
    1. It enhances your range of motion, which lets for the tendons and ligaments connecting your muscles to your bones to adjust to more drastic movements.
    2. It improves blood flow, which allows for nutrient-rich blood to flow to your soft tissue, eliminating waste byproduct and encouraging the muscles to heal.
    3. It encourages good posture, which we already know is an an important part of injury prevention.

    According to research, sports like football that include dynamic movements require muscles and tendons with sufficient flexibility to incorporate and exert the high levels of energy required. Stretching and warm up exercises before activities further helps prevent injuries.

  • Use correct technique — Through the years, each sport and physical activity develops a consensus of the best ways to position and move your body. These techniques not only help you perform better but help reduce the risk of injury. Football players learn to tackle a certain way to reduce the risk of a concussion, and rotational athletes like golfers and baseball players learn how to best rotate their body. We use DorsaVi video motion analysis to capture how you move and evaluate how to both be a better athlete and reduce your risk of injury.
  • Don’t ignore what your body is telling you — If you feel pain in a muscle or joint, that means that body part is telling your brain that something isn’t right. If you feel something suddenly that doesn’t feel right, stop immediately and seek proportional medical care. If your body isn’t holing up well in a particularly rigorous workout, don’t force it.
  • Don’t play through an injury — Even though gritting through pain is often viewed as a courageous act among competitors, playing with soft tissue or structural damage could make that injury worse and leave you off the field or court for much longer than you would have been sitting out. Depending on the severity of your injury, you may use methods like the R.I.C.E. method, seeing an emergency room, and scheduling appointments with a physical therapist to ensure your body heals naturally and can withstand a return to physical activity.
  • Follow the rules — Depending on the sport or activity and age level of the participants, it likely has special rules to reduce the risk of injury. Penalties for targeting in football, rules against coming from behind in soccer, and even the existence of special lanes on the street and sidewalk for bikers are examples of rules that leagues enacted to prevent injuries to ourselves and others. Those are in place for a reason, and there’s a reason that there are penalties for them.
  • Speak a professional physical therapist — It’s in your best interest to have a medical evaluation before another season begins or committing yourself to any strenuous activity or training regimen. While there, inquire with your doctor if injury prevention with a knowledgeable physical therapist in Woodhine Heights, MO is right for you. All of our techniques have been demonstrated to help athletes remain healthy, and we’ll personalize your program to your age, any previous injuries, and how physically active you wish to be.

Injury Prevention Woodhine Heights, MO | Sports Therapy | Physical Therapy Near Woodhine Heights

Injury Prevention for Older Woodhine Heights, MO Adults

Falls in senior citizens were responsible for over 3 million urgent care visits and over 34,000 fatalities. Research demonstrates that physical activity is invaluable in reducing the risk of falls. Other conditions like arthritis that develop over the course of several years can be slowed down by physical therapy exercises that keep your muscles, tendons, ligaments, and joints active. While the physical demands for older adults may not be as high as an athlete, the same principles of strength, balance, flexibility, and good posture are great agents in injury prevention.

Other services we offer in Woodhine Heights, MO include:

Woodhine Heights, MO Injury Prevention | Axes Physical Therapy

Suffering in injury in in an activity you prepare and train for and love can lead to a mental block that won’t allow us to experience the same exultation. The professional Woodhine Heights, MO physical therapists at Axes are here to design for you a personalized injury prevention program that will keep your body strong and flexible, and your mind confident that you do not have to fear going back to what you love doing most. You deserve to feel the physical and mental health benefits of doing what you do best. Make an appointment online or call the location nearest you to start your program with one of our injury prevention professionals in Woodhine Heights, MO.

Services Offered

Services Offered
  • Physical Therapy
  • Pre/Post Surgical Rehabilitation
  • Acute Injury Management
  • Chronic Injury Management
  • Work Conditioning/Hardening
  • Functional Capacity Evaluations
  • Sports Physical Therapy
  • Pediatric Orthopedic Physical Therapy
  • Geriatric Physical Therapy
  • Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization
  • DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis
  • Vestibular Therapy and Post-Concussion Rehabilitation
  • Trigger Point Dry Needling
  • Free Injury Screenings
  • Kinesio Taping®
  • Blood Flow Restriction Therapy

Locations

Begin Your Recovery Today

Injuries and pain shouldn’t keep you from moving and doing the things you love.