Tips for Sports Injury Recovery
As always, greetings from our chiropractic, cold laser, and wellness blog here at Hackettstown's Village Family Clinic. Those that follow us know that we author blog posts that are intended to promote general physical and mental wellbeing. Some of our most professionally rewarding moments are when we get feedback that the advice provided here in our blog made a difference in the quality of life from both our patients and the general public alike. So, in keeping with our commitment to wellness education, today we’re going to talk about recovering from sports injury.
The fastest way to get back on the field, on the court, back to your kids or grandkids performance events, or swinging those clubs (OK, come spring that is) without wincing is pain is to address the injury strategically and systematically. The longer you wait to address an injury, the longer the recovery.
Here are five tips to help you rapidly recover from sports injury:
1- RICE
While we’re sure you’re familiar with this practice, we are bringing this up because it is important! RICE stands for Rest-Ice-Compress-Elevate. These four actions help reduce the natural swelling in the injured area.
2- Know when to seek professional help
If you’ve been utilizing the RICE method for 24-48 hours and are seeing no improvement or worsening of your injury, it is time to seek professional help. Here at Village Family Clinic, we specialize in advanced services like cold laser therapy and spinal decompression which can all drastically speed the rate of recovery to get you back on the field.
3- Stay Hydrated
While consuming electrolytes is not a necessity while recovering from an injury, drinking plenty of water is! Proper hydration helps nutrients necessary for healing flood into the cells to help your healing process.
4- Why protein is important
Protein is essential for helping your muscles rebuild. When you’re recovering from a sports injury, be sure to eat plenty of lean, grass-fed/free-range meat. This will fuel your body with the proper protein building blocks to get you back on your feet, strong.
5- Mental Health
Getting injured can be a huge bummer. Typically, it prevents you from doing the things you love. If you find yourself “benched”, especially for an extended period of time, make some lifestyle changes to give you something to focus on that lifts your spirits. While we don’t often recommend being a lazy person, go easy on yourself if you binge on a new TV series. However, do keep in mind that your mental health is just as important as your physical health. Get outside as much as possible, see friends or family, and find something to laugh about each day.
If you find yourself benched for any activity that you cherish, please get in touch with us. We’d love to help you get back on track. You’ll be amazed at what chiropractic treatment and/or other wellness services delivered here at Village Family Clinic can do for you!
