Athletic Trainers & Treatment

                                                                                                                                                    In blog  7 , (http://tsukinegradprogram.blogspot.com/2016/06/weight-training-for-injury-prevention.html), I talked about the role weight training plays in injury prevention. Though weight training is a large part of injury prevention while competing in sports and/or participating in physical activity, weight lifting can also be the cause of moderate to severe injury. When you lift weights, muscle fibers tear and swell up. If this small issue is not taken care of in a timely fashion, it can turn into a big issue. In this blog, I will explain how this issue can be resolved.

The most efficient way to keep small tears (grade one sprains or strains) from becoming serious injuries, is treatment. Treatment may include all or most of the following:

- Heat

-Stretch

-Stim Treatment

- Ultrasound

- Ice Wraps

- Whirlpool (Hot Water)

- Whirlpool (Cold Water)

- Deep Tissue massage

- Muscle roller

- Ice massage

- Stretching

- Taping

- Ankle rollers

There are always Athletic Trainers in the Athletic training (ATR) room to perform these procedures for athletes. If you are not an athlete, you will either have to do this yourself or pay a physical therapist to do it for you. Some of these procedures are to be done before engaging in physical activity, and some are meant to be performed afterwards. For example: If you are receiving treatment in the whirlpool, it’s best to fill the tub with hot water before practice to warm up the muscles, and it is best to fill the tub up with cold water and ice before practice.

The sooner we realize how important our Athletic Trainers and treatment are, the sooner we will reach our goals. I learned how important they both are, when I competed in my 3rd season as a Track & Field athlete. I had been training on my own during the fall. While not being a part of the team, I was unable to receive treatment. My body started giving in to the fatigue and I ended up with multiple injuries. When I got back on the team, I witnessed how important treatment is.

The day I got back on the team, I started treatment. Every day I would warm up on the cycle, get stretched out by a trainer and use the heated whirlpool. This allowed me to finish my season without aggravating my injury.

                                                        References


1. Summary. (n.d.). Retrieved June 20, 2016, from http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Healthcare/Athletic-trainers.htm

2. Athletic Trainer. (n.d.). Retrieved June 20, 2016, from http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-engineering-careers/life-sciences/athletic-trainer