What is physical therapy for sports injuries?
Whether you play a sport competitively or enjoy going out for a leisurely run or round of golf, you will always be at risk of a sports injury. These injuries can happen at any stage of your life whether you’re playing little league sports or retired and participating in a sport for fun. There are many people who will endure their injury and heal at home without any medical assistance. For those who seek help from a physical therapist after an injury, they are more likely to heal faster and get back to the sport they enjoy most.
Similar to the cause of the injury, the types of injuries seen and treated by our physical therapists vary between all patients.
- Sprained ligaments or muscles
- Low back pain or injury
- Knee injuries
- Shin splints
- Rotator cuff injuries
- Plantar fasciitis
What causes sports injuries?
Every sport or running injury that is seen in physical therapy will likely have a different cause. It could be anything from a tackle gone wrong in football to a pulled hamstring from casually playing pickleball. Below are a few common causes for injuries that our physical therapists see:
- Improper warm-up
- Jumping into a new sport with no guidance
- Improper form or body mechanics
- No cool down/stretching routine
How are sports injuries treated?
No two injuries are the same. Because of this, our physical therapy team treats every injury with a personalized approach. Your treatment plan may include hands-on manual treatment, education on proper form, therapeutic exercises to assist in range of motion, posture and coordination, and the list doesn’t stop there. Your physical therapist will need to perform a full injury assessment prior to providing next steps.
Once you have completed your recommended physical therapy sessions (the suggested number of sessions will vary between each patient) it will likely be recommended that you ease back into physical activity. The overall goal of PT after a sports injury is to quickly and safely get you back doing what you love and prevent any future injuries.