Injury Prevention: General Conditioning

One of the best injury prevention techniques is making sure that an athlete is in top shape when their sport begins¹. This is something that does not happen just in the offseason, but is a year round continual program. This type of program focuses on the six major health components: aerobic fitness, muscle strength, muscle endurance, flexibility, nutrition, and body composition¹. If these health components are addressed, it gives the athlete a better chance of injury prevention.



Aerobic fitness is improved by exercises such as jogging, biking, and swimming. Exercises to help build muscle strength include lifting weights. Muscle Endurance is built up over a period of time and includes varying the resistance level, progressive overload, and increased training time. Flexibility is improved by stretching. Nutrition is focusing on what the athletes are putting into their body. Athletes must be informed of the types of foods they should be eating in order to better their performance and body. Even if someone’s weight is “normal” it is important to maintain a healthy body composition number.  This can prevent future health problems for athletes.

Each of the six health components are important, and making sure each athlete follows a general conditioning program is imperative to their future success. These fitness programs must be tailored for each athlete in order to make sure that they are in top physical shape¹. Each athlete is at a different performance level, which must be taken into consideration when planning their conditioning routine. If 20 athletes are in a program, the aerobic fitness levels will all be different. This will be the same for each individual athlete. Coaches must take this into consideration and make sure they take the time to individualize each program in order to get the absolute best and prevent injury in each athlete.

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¹Pfeiffer, R. P., & Mangus, B. C. (2012). Concepts of athletic training. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.