Bragg Creek Physiotherapy

SPRING INTO ACTION!!

With the arrival of spring, the outdoors is tempting us with a wide variety of activities from golfing and tennis to spring cleaning and gardening.  Inside you may want, or more likely, need, to dust the walls and ceilings to wipe away the cobwebs of winter, de-junk the basement, clean the drapes and blinds and maybe even paint and redecorate.  Outside debris may need to be raked up and the deadfall cleared, not to mention the garden that needs to be planted.

These are all perfect scenarios for injuries to your back, shoulders or knees.  Not a fun way to start the spring!  Such injuries can be avoided with a little careful preparation and know how you can complete all your chores, activities and projects and enjoy an injury-free summer.

Residing on the doorstep of the mountains, there are many weekend warriors around who live for action-packed weekends.  With a burst of energy after a long winter, most of us eagerly embark on activities without considering if our bodies are prepared to handle the demand we place on the muscles, ligaments and joints.  Some golfers attempt to cut their handicap in half on the first 18 holes, while others attempt to mountain bike Powderface in under 2 hours.  Enthusiasts have been known to hit 200 tennis balls, with the intent of crushing Pete Sampras at the Bragg Creek Tennis Club tournament!  Many of these weekend warriors are transformed to weekend casualties the following day, when they struggle to get out of bed, with every muscle in their body ceased up and each limb has some sort of pain or ache.  The day after is often worse!   If they’ve really overdone it, the soreness and pain does not subside and the injury may require physiotherapy treatment to gain a speedy recovery.

Whether you plan to do some spring cleaning or engage in a sporting activity, you need to prepare yourself by warming up and stretching prior to tackling your task.  A proper warm up requires that you raise your heart rate (5 minutes minimum), just enough to break a light sweat on your forehead, and increase the blood flow to your muscles.  Follow this with gentle stretching of the muscles you will be using during your activity.  Start your activity slowly, once your muscles are feeling limber and loose you can increase the intensity and the load of the activity.

If you are serious about improving your performance in your sport this season then a pre-season exercise program might be considered.  Training programs include, cardiovascular training specific to your sport, stretching and strengthening exercises targeting the muscles necessary to perform the sport, and specific skill work by a expert in the sport.  Pre-season training helps to minimize injuries and enhance performance by improving the strength and flexibility of the muscles that have repetitive load and stress placed on them during the sport.

Bragg Creek Physiotherapy not only provides treatment for the weekend casualty, we also offer personal training programs designed to help you achieve your sport-specific goals, weather it’s in golf, tennis, mountain biking, running or hiking.  We can help you help you maximize your performance and reduce the risk of injury in your activity of choice.  Inquiries can be directed to a physiotherapist at 949-5100.

Prior to taking on your spring activities you should asses your physical ability to tackle them.  Were you active over the winter?….did you hibernate in front of the fire with a good book?  Unfortunately, those less active folks will require more preparation for spring activities.  By following the above precautions aches and pains should be minimized, making your spring activities more enjoyable.