Injury prevention!

Preventing sports injuries is not always possible, but more common sports injuries are caused by lack of proper protective equipment, overtraining, or improper execution of a movement or exercise. As a result, taking some extra precautions can go a long way in preventing injuries.

It is most important that athletes know and use methods to effectively prevent sports injuries and to ensure the best possible treatment should a sports-related injury occur.

Here are 10 sports injury prevention tips to help you exercise safely.

1. Remember to warm up and warm up

One of the most important things you can do to prevent sports injuries is to warm up and cool down properly before and after physical activity.
Warming up with simple movements such as aerobic cycling (cycling, walking, running on a cross trainer) helps increase your heart rate and body temperature, making your muscles more flexible and less likely to be injured. Warming up after exercise allows your body to slowly return to a resting state, which helps prevent blood pooling in an area of the body and reduces or completely prevents cramping.

2. Stretch regularly
Regular stretching helps increase range of motion, flexibility and blood flow to the muscles. It is important to stretch all major muscle groups at least 2-3 times a week. Dynamic stretching exercises (active movement within a comfortable range of motion) are best for warming up muscles before activity, while static stretching exercises (holding a stretch for 20-30 seconds) are better after exercise.

3. A healthy and well-balanced diet
A healthy diet for an athlete must be designed so that he receives all the nutrients the body needs to produce energy and create new muscle tissue, enzymes and other cellular structures involved in metabolism. Proper nutrition supports the optimal functioning of the muscles, bones, joints, tendons and organs of the body and helps in quality recovery after training.

4. Hydrate well
It is important for all athletes to be properly hydrated, especially in hot weather. The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends that athletes drink 500-600ml. water 2-3 hours before training, 200-250 ml. water every 10-20 minutes during exercise and 1.5 liters of water for every kilogram lost after exercise. It is important to know that for proper hydration it is extremely important to take electrolytes as well.

5. Don't skip strength training
Having strong muscles helps support the joints and can prevent injuries. The American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine (AOSSM) recommends strength training 2-3 times per week for all muscles of the body, focusing on exercises that target the body's core.

6. Avoid overtraining
Some of the most common injuries in sports occur as a result of overtraining. When you train your body too hard, too often, you're more likely to suffer a more serious injury, including overuse injuries such as:

Achilles tendinitis
Fractures
Inflammation of joint surfaces and tendons
Plantar fasciitis
To avoid these conditions, it is important to gradually increase the intensity and duration of your workouts. If you're just starting a new exercise regimen, aim for 20-30 minutes of moderate activity 3-5 times a week.

7. Use proper technique
Using proper technique during physical activity is key to preventing sports injuries because it encourages you to put less stress on your joints. When lifting weights, for example, be sure to use a weight that you can lift with proper form while maintaining good muscle stimulation. If you're not sure how to do an exercise correctly, work with a certified trainer.

8. Take care of your joints
Joint pain is a common complaint among athletes, especially as they age. To prevent injuries to your knees, shoulders, ankles, and more, it's important to take care of your joints before and after exercise. This includes:

-Wear comfortable and appropriate shoes that fit correctly for the sport in question.
-Using proper execution of exercises during physical activity.
- Regular stretching
-Strengthening of the muscles around the joint
-If you have ever suffered a previous joint injury, be sure to take extra care to avoid re-injury.

9. Listen to your body
Giving your body enough time to rest and recover is essential to preventing injury. When you're training for a big race, it's important to plan regular rest days into your training program. This gives your muscles and nervous system time to recover from the stress of exercise, allows previous injuries to heal, and helps prevent overtraining.

It's also important to listen to your body and be aware of any pain or discomfort you may feel. If you are in pain, stop what you are doing and seek medical attention immediately.

10. Train the deep and small muscles in your body

It's amazing how in 2024, people still don't realize the need to train all the muscles in the body!
It's strange how, with more than 600 muscles, no more than 15-20 muscles are trained massively, consciously. We often read about programs built by the large muscle groups - legs, back, chest, biceps, triceps, shoulder, trapezius, calf. Their training is absolutely mandatory, but for health and prevention of injuries, distortions and proper exploitation of the body, it is also necessary to train the deep and also small muscles.
Deep muscles include all your muscles that allow you to adjust and maintain good posture and keep your body upright because they are fixative and postural. They are very close to the skeleton and not very large, unlike the superficial muscles, which are further away from the joints and are more visible. The deep muscles are necessary for good joint stability. They are very durable muscles that work well to keep your tendons healthy but also to achieve better physical performance.

HOW TO TRAIN THE DEEP MUSCLES?
Pilates and yoga are the two most suitable training methods for active loading of the deep muscles.

Yoga and Pilates are very similar in that they encourage better posture in your body. Regardless of the method, the exercises aim to release muscle tension and improve flexibility through a postural method. That is, the focus is on the posture taken during the practice. The main difference between the two is that Pilates aims to work all the muscle groups of the body, while yoga will also focus on working the mind with a more spiritual approach.