Swimming injuries statistics say that a swimmer makes at least one million strokes in one season. What distance he or she swims during this time is scary to even think about. Swimming involves more muscles than football or basketball. During one active workout, more calories are lost in the pool than in the gym. Let's see what common swimming injuries happen to swimmers and how to avoid them? What are the worst swimming injuries?
The list of swimming injuries is usually divided into three categories:
- "Swimmer's Shoulder". Unlike "tennis player's elbow", "swimmer's shoulder" is a collective name that combines swimming injuries and illnesses of the shoulder.
According to the data, the frequency of shoulder injuries ranges from 40 to 90%. They appear as a result of prolonged monotonous movements and fatigue, forming micro-damage.
- "Swimmer's knee" is the second most common injury. It often appears after breaststroke swimming, since at first the medial ligament of the knee is stretched, and then the knee itself is subjected to extreme rotation.
- "Swimmer's back" For the best conditions of water flow, professional athletes are forced to keep their backs as straight as possible. This gives a constant load on the spine, in particular on the intervertebral discs. Also, pain can occur with overexertion or incorrect execution technique. This disease can be considered one of the competitive swimming injuries.
In addition to the above, athletes themselves often distinguish weakened immunity, otolaryngological, and skin diseases. Here, as in any other sport, we see only healthy and purposeful athletes, but the underside of success looks completely different.
Tips to prevent swimming injuries
- Warm-up. As before any exercise, the body should be warmed up and prepared for loads. Warm it up for 10 minutes before each workout. Also, do not neglect the rest. Swim at a calm pace, do a stretch, and take a shower. It helps to recover after exertion and soothe tired muscles.
- Pay attention, not to the speed, but the quality. The correct technique helps, if not to avoid, then at least to minimize the number of injuries and improve your performance.
- Spread the load on all muscle groups and do not make sudden movements in the water. Be focused and watch your breathing. You will prevent mistakes, which often lead to problems.
- Stop training after the appearance of pain. Even the most insignificant injury can lead to complications or chronic diseases.
- Do not miss the massage procedures. Massage is one of the best means of recovery. It relaxes, strengthens the regenerative processes in the body, and improves joint mobility.
Be healthy!
