Category: Athletes

Sports Chiropractic for Concussions – Brain Injury Awareness Month

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Sports concussions are a growing concern for athletes of all ages, particularly as research continues to reveal the long-term affects of this class of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Although they fall on the less severe end of the TBI spectrum, mild traumatic brain injuries or concussions from sports activities affect as many as 3.8 million Americans each year, with only half of them being reported to a health care professional.

Lack of reporting is believed to be due to the fact that closed-head injuries often have no bleeding or loss of consciousness, so symptoms are not always obvious. In fact, they may not appear until hours or days after impact. But failing to seek treatment or take the proper time to heal before returning to activity puts an athlete at risk for future concussions and potentially life-long complications.

Because March is Traumatic Brain Injury Awareness Month, it’s a great time to focus on concussions and how chiropractic can help in recovery.

Concussions result from a direct blow or impact to the head or another bodily injury with enough force to cause the brain to rapidly move back and forth within the skull. Often the impact is great enough to cause a misalignment in the cervical spine, which adds to pain and symptoms and complicates recovery.

For this reason chiropractors can be a valuable resource in the evaluation and diagnosis of sports-related concussions and other mild traumatic brain injuries.

Chiropractors helping patients with sports-related head and neck pain are trained to notice signs of brain injury even when a patient is unsure if they’ve suffered a concussion, allowing them to begin immediate concussion protocol.

Common symptoms of a concussion include:

* Headache
* Cognitive Impairment (memory loss, confusion, focus issues)
* Dizziness, loss of balance
* Nausea and/or vomiting
* Drowsiness/changes in sleeping patterns
* Depression, emotional lability
* Sensory difficulties (trouble with noise and light)
* Neck Pain
* Others

Depending on the severity of injury, some of these symptoms will go away on their own with time, rest, and limited exposure to screens and other harsh sensory stimulation. However, many people with mild TBI have difficulty returning to daily activities for weeks or even months. Repeat concussions can lengthen the recovery even further.

Through manipulation of the cervical spine, chiropractic can often offer immediate relief for headaches, neck pain, and associated discomfort in the extremities due to spinal misalignment from concussions. It’s low risk, safe for all ages, and effective in the treatment of sports related concussions and head trauma.

If you participate in a sport or other activity where concussions are a risk, talk to us about how chiropractic can help you both prevent and manage head trauma.

How Sports Chiropractic Care Prevents Injuries and Enhances Performance

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Playing sports at any level offers a great many benefits. Unfortunately, it also increases the chance for injury. Over time, the wear and tear that physical activity puts on an athlete’s body makes them more susceptible to sprains and strains, pulled muscles and torn ligaments, and regular joint pain and stiffness, particularly the more (or longer) you play.

But the answer is not to cease physical activity, rather it’s to try to prevent injuries in the first place through sports injury prevention tips.  Learning proper technique for your sport, warming up adequately and stretching frequently, as well as including regular sports chiropractic care as part of your training program all help.

Sports chiropractic care has proven beneficial in the treatment of some types of sports injuries and the prevention of many others.

Why Chiropractic Care?

Chiropractors are known for performing spinal and other musculoskeletal adjustments when patients are in pain, but many don’t realize just how critical spinal health is to the proper functioning of the entire body every day.  Bones, muscles and nerves are all intertwined, so the functionality of one system drastically affects that of the others. By ensuring that spines are properly aligned, chiropractors allow athletes to experience more optimal body function in the form of more flexibility, better range of motion and better communication to the nerve center. This prevents not only many acute sports injuries, but a whole host of compensation injuries that come from playing with distorted technique due to nagging aches and pains.

And sports chiropractor care is safe for athletes of all ages!  Professionals and other competitive athletes, weekend warriors and those in youth sports all can experience improvement in agility and overall sports performance.

For children, the focus is on protecting a still-growing skeletal system and preparing young bodies for a lifetime of physical fitness. For the older athlete, sports chiropractic care may address issues related to body alignment and posture to prevent injury since their muscles and bones can take longer to heal.

Sports chiropractic care utilizes skeletal adjustment and alignment, along with a variety of other non-invasive therapies in the prevention and treatment of sport injuries. Therapeutic stretching exercises, targeted massage and soft tissue manipulation, acupuncture, training tips, lifestyle and nutritional counseling are all sports injury prevention tips and ways sports chiropractic care can help you achieve your athletic goals. 

Of course, sports injuries can occur at any time even in the best-conditioned athlete.  If you should suffer a sidelining injury, sports chiropractic care can help you heal quickly and completely. In fact, studies show that the use of sports chiropractic care, alone or in combination with other protocols, can greatly reduce healing time for strain injuries, knee injuries and lower back pain while offering the added benefit of overall improvement in health and well-being.

Come see us to discover why sports chiropractic care is an essential part of any athletic training program.

Sport Chiropractic Care for Youth Sports Injuries

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Prompt Treatment is Key

Young athletes today, particularly those in high school, are pushed harder than ever to compete at elite levels, leading many of them to condition, train and play club sports all summer long. With school back in session, it should be a whole new ball game, but year ‘round play means many young athletes are heading onto high school fields and courts with bodies that never got the chance to rest and recover from previous seasons. 

As a result, some are beginning their Fall seasons with youth sports injuries.

Rather than risk being sidelined, many young athletes choose to play through that pain, but this is a big mistake.  The body uses pain signals as a message that something is wrong, and not addressing the pain can affect an athlete’s ability to perform at his or her best, or worse, leading to further damage.

Seeking sports chiropractic intervention as soon as possible after pain begins can not only keep minor injuries from advancing, but restore functional integrity and stability to the affected area making it even stronger than before.

The five most common youth sports injuries are sprains, strains, contusions, fractures and concussions. Sports chiropractors routinely treat cranial, spinal, and extremity contusions, subluxations, dislocations, and soft tissue trauma, providing prompt referrals when needed.

Concussions and fractures almost always require emergency care, while sprains, strains and contusions generally respond well to rest, ice, compression and elevation (RICE.)  Following up both treatment scenarios with chiropractic sports rehab can reduce pain and speed healing, and can often coincide with sports play.

Our specialized knowledge of injury management allows us to use sports-specific biomechanics analyses to reveal deficits in an athlete’s range of motion, muscle strength and flexibility that may have contributed to the injury in the first place.  Addressing these weaknesses, along with any possible misalignment issues helps get an athlete back in the game faster and reduces the likelihood of re-injury, especially with overuse/repetitive motion injuries.

Even when a treatment plan points to time off the field, everyone is better served when injuries are treated promptly and properly, allowing the athlete to recover before irreparable damage is done.  Contact Dynamic Sports Medicine to discuss youth performance care for your young athlete. We are Austin’s best first choice to evaluate and treat youth sport injuries.

Certified Sports Chiropractor

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Eventually, any athlete that trains long enough or hard enough is bound to experience pain or injury. Those who prefer a drug-free and non-surgical approach to sports medicine are increasingly adding regular sports chiropractic care to their training programs to manage pain from a variety of common athletic injuries.

Sports-related injuries generally happen in one of two ways: Overuse or sudden trauma. Golf and tennis elbow, many back and shoulder injuries, and painful joint issues are overuse injuries — the result of repetitive motion over time. Acute injuries, on the other hand, happen all of a sudden through a fall, tackle, or especially quick movement at an odd angle or through constricted muscles or tissues, resulting in misalignment, strain, or other stress on the spine, joints, muscles, ligaments and/or nerves.

Certified sports chiropractors work to keep you balanced and aligned throughout your training so you can train more effectively and be ready to go on game or race day. They specialize in identifying postural imbalances and skeletal misalignments, as well as strength, balance and flexibility deficiencies, and then address them early utilizing a variety of non-invasive clinical interventions designed for injury prevention and faster recovery times than conventional methods. These can include:

  1. Hands-on adjustments to the spine and extremities to correct the damage done during workouts and to relieve associated pain.
  2. Myofascial massage to free up constricted fascia and allow for a greater range of motion.
  3. Dry needling, cupping, and acupuncture to relax affected muscles and release deep muscle tension allowing for more effective hands-on manipulation.
  4. Electrical stimulation to release surface tension of the muscle and aid in muscle recovery.
  5. A host of handheld devices designed to assist in targeted adjustments to the back and lower extremities, soft tissue manipulation, and other patient rehabs.
  6. Specific stretching exercises designed to increase strength, flexibility, and range of motion in the area surrounding the pain or injury.
  7. Chiropractic care for athletes is about more than diagnosing an injury and referring you to a physical therapist for cookie cutter rehab.  It is a hands-on approach to total body alignment with any needed corrective therapy done in the office. 

Studies show that using a sports chiropractor is not only better at reducing healing time for existing pain in athletes than other more traditional approaches, it is also a valuable tool for preventing injuries and boosting athletic performance.  Yes, it can actually make you a better athlete! That’s because sports chiropractic care isn’t just for treating injured athletes, it is for achieving optimal total body functionality.

Like athletic training methods, sports medicine is constantly evolving. See why more professional and amateur athletes alike are relying on regular sports chiropractic care.  Call Dynamic Sports Medicine for a consultation. 

Using Chiropractic Care to Address Shoulder Pain

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Most people associate chiropractic care with adjustments of the neck and spine, consequently visiting a chiropractor’s office only when seeking relief from acute or chronic neck and back pain.  Those familiar with the many benefits of this therapy, however, know that chiropractors are trained to identify and adjust issues in the extremities as well, including knees, elbows, and shoulders.

In fact, shoulder injuries are one of the more common issues we see in patients. That’s because even though the shoulder is the most flexible joint in the human body, it is also one of the most unstable and most prone to injury, sustaining more injuries on average than almost all other parts of the body.

Comprised of multiple joints and various soft tissues, the muscles, tendons, and ligaments of the shoulder are especially susceptible to injury. Athletes and other individuals who frequently use their arms and shoulders in a repetitive overhead motion tend to put increased stress on the joint.  Overuse injuries, especially when combined with excessive strain and improper technique or motion are common.  Falls and other accidents are a major cause of traumatic shoulder pain.

Strains and tears in the tendons, muscles, and ligaments around the shoulder joint can lead to muscle spasms, inflammation and nagging discomfort, or more serious issues that cause debilitating pain, affect strength and dramatically limit mobility.

The most common reasons for shoulder pain are:

  • Bursitis/Tendinitis
  • Rotator Cuff Injuries
  • Shoulder Dislocations
  • Frozen Shoulder
  • Strains & Sprains

When surgery is not needed but the patient wants to take a more proactive approach to healing, relief can often be found through chiropractic manipulation and other therapies like dry needling, massage, electrical pulse stimulation and exercises designed to strengthen the tissues surrounding the injury. 

Whatever the cause of your intermittent or chronic shoulder pain, chiropractic can help relieve discomfort, speed healing and identify ways to prevent future injuries.  Call Dynamic Sports Medicine to discover a variety of options to give you relief from shoulder pain. 

Youth Sports Concussion Management

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More Than Football Players at Risk

Recent research conducted by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons shows that in spite of football being the sport most commonly associated with concussions, it actually falls fourth on the list of sports resulting in concussions as a percentage of total injuries.  Girls’ soccer, volleyball and basketball rank higher.

And while concussions continue to plague male-dominated sports, those among female athletes have risen dramatically, due to both a lack of protective equipment available for girls-only sports and an increased emphasis on physical play. 

Make no mistake, football still results in a high number of concussive events, however, girls and boys’ high school soccer is responsible for more of the serious concussions, based on recovery times being longer — often more than 22 days. The repeated striking of the player’s head against a hard ball along with player collisions among athletes wearing no head protection is thought to be to blame.

Ice Hockey, rising in popularity in our area, has also become a sport of growing concern surrounding concussions.

Snow Sports

Off the playing field, Texans routinely travel this time of year to take advantage of a wintry mix of cold-weather sporting opportunities. Athlete or not, snow skiing and snowboarding pose a fairly high risk of concussions and other injuries. On-slope collisions with skiers and other objects, as well as hard falls against packed ice account for many trips to mountainside ERs.

Helmet use in snow sports has increased over the last decade, but while research confirms that they do offer skiers and snowboarders added protection from head injury, helmets are more successful at preventing skull fractures, gashes, and bruises than concussions.

This information isn’t to discourage participating in wintertime youth sports since staying active during the colder months can prevent unwanted weight gain and help fight depression and anxiety.  Just remember that the risk of sports-related concussions and other head injuries has no off-season.

Proactive concussion management includes having a baseline concussion test. As with other baseline tests, this computerized assessment of player response and brain function gives doctors a point of comparison following a head injury and helps them establish a more personalized treatment plan.

If you suspect your young athlete may have suffered a concussion, immediate treatment is best.  Contact us for concussion management and to discuss ways to prevent concussion in your young athlete.

Sports Nutrition: Endurance Training

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What to Eat When Training for an Endurance Event

Whether it’s your first attempt or your 50th, preparing your body for a major athletic event such as a marathon, century bike rally or triathlon goes well beyond “eating healthy.”  It requires a complementary combination of exercise and sports nutrition designed to fuel your body through vigorous training sessions and aid in muscle recovery afterwards. 

While most dedicated athletes eat fairly well, as a rule, they often have different fitness goals. Some want to lose weight as they train while others just need to change their body composition and work on endurance, so nutrition for athletes should be individualized to both body type and desired outcomes. 

Proper sports nutrition requires the right ratio of carbs, protein, and fat for adequate dietary support to ensure your body will perform at optimal levels during training sessions and, ultimately, on the big day/s.  Because everyone is different, it may take some experimentation to determine how you perform in training after various food and supplement combinations, so focusing on sports nutrition early in the training process will allow you to fully understand how your body adapts to certain foods and plan accordingly for event day.

Individual goals lead to variations in sports training diets, but there are some general guidelines that can assist you in preparing your body to compete.

Carbohydrates serve as your main source of fuel as well as the body’s means for replenishing and maintaining glycogen stores. While simple carbs can be useful for providing fast energy right before a workout or other high-activity period, complex carbs are better before endurance activities or a particularly intense training session, and should comprise at least 60% of total calories. Whole grains and foods are always better than their processed or enriched counterparts.

Protein, needed for muscle growth and repair, should make up approximately 15% of your daily calories. Without it, instead of building and maintaining muscle, the body will break it down to use as fuel. Eggs, oats, nuts, and seeds, along with lean meats and fish are all good sources of protein.

The consumption of healthy fats is known to increase endurance. While you should aim to keep consumption of fats to 25-30%, the inclusion of plenty of positive fats such as avocados, oils, nuts, and seeds, will allow you to train for longer periods.

Supplements, sports drinks, bars, and gels have their place in sports nutrition, but should not be considered replacements for real, whole foods.  They are best used during actual prolonged training periods and on the day of the event for immediate replacement of sugars and fluids lost during exercise.

Eating a well-balanced diet comprised of nutrient-dense meals and snacks throughout training is the best way to ensure you have more effective workouts and perform at your best on event day.

The attention you pay to sports nutrition while training for an endurance event is just as important as the intensity and duration of your workouts.

Reindeer Runs, Jingle Bell Jump, and More

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Everyone is happy for a holiday break, but with school, sports practices and workout schedules on extended hiatus, many of us go from active participant to full-on couch potato for the duration of the season, seriously derailing the fitness progress we’ve made all year.   By staying active throughout the season, you’ll encourage healthy metabolism for the extra calories you’ll be consuming, relieve stress inherent in many holiday activities, and maintain the sports strengthening and conditioning you’ve worked so hard for.

There are many great and social ways to keep moving through the holidays.

  • Invite a friend or loved one to join you for a brisk walk, hike or holiday fun run.  Meet them at the gym for shooting hoops, cardio class or weight work. Finish up with coffee or a festive post-workout drink afterward.
  • Go shopping the old-fashioned way: on foot! Online buying is super convenient, but dashing through the malls with a friend is a great way to catch up while upping your step count. Grab a healthy lunch mid-day to rest tired feet and tally gifts bought.
  • Make it a family game (or competition!) by playing a friendly game of flag football or soccer outside.
  • Create themed daily activities for family sports conditioning.  Reindeer runs, Santa sit-ups, jingle bell jump roping, and holiday hula hooping can get everyone up and moving!

Of course, it is the holidays, so eat some sweet treats, watch some football (and maybe more than a few holiday movies) but remember to sprinkle some exercise onto your seasonal to-do list.

Sports Medicine Doctor

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The Difference in Sports Medicine Doctors

Chiropractic vs. Conventional Medicine

Whether teen, recreational or professional, athletes of all levels experience injury at one time or another.  While some sports injuries are acute and others the result of overuse, the trick is getting the proper treatment quickly to help you heal and be back in the game in the most efficient way possible.

Both chiropractors and conventional medical doctors practice sports medicine, and both can conduct thorough examinations, and order Xrays and MRIs to diagnose injuries.  It’s their treatment approaches that are often radically different. 

Sports chiropractors

Sports chiropractors use a holistic approach to treating sports injuries by focusing on the manipulation of the spine and various other joints, as well as soft tissue mobilization in the affected area.  This increases mobility and relieves undue stress on certain joints, offering patients immediate pain relief and long-term curative effects. Other common treatments used in chiropractic sports rehabilitation include targeted red laser therapy to reduce inflammation, electrical stimulation, and specific exercises aimed at improved mobility and strength in the injured area.

Conventional Medicine

Sports medical doctors treat sports injuries by prescribing rest, physical therapy, or more invasive techniques such as pain medication and even surgery.   While these may be necessary in emergency situations such as when a bone is broken or other severe cases, most sports injuries can be healed with the more hands-on, non-invasive approach of a sports chiropractor and without the use of prescription drugs.

Cause of Injury

Aside from utilizing more-natural, less-invasive procedures, chiropractors are as focused on the cause of the problem as much as they are the problem itself.  While you may think you know what caused your injury — your elbow hurts because you play too much tennis, for example — there could actually be a posture/alignment issue or soft tissue restriction affecting strength, balance, flexibility or mobility in that area that led to the condition. 

In addition, many chronic injuries are due to other lifestyle factors such as obesity, stress or nutrient deficiencies.  Sports chiropractors can address those areas as well, with the intention of treating the cause of your problem, and not just the symptoms.  With this approach, chiropractors have great success in not only the treatment of existing sports injuries but in helping patients return to their sports pain-free with reduced risk of re-injury.

If you are seeking pain relief from a sports injury that is not an emergency, consider chiropractic as your first choice in a sports medicine doctor.

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