When injuries pile up and there seems to be no end to the cycle. It begs to ask: “Why don’t these injuries heal?”
As someone who loves sports, I focus my practice on helping young athletes recover from injuries. Part of that process is to train them on how to avoid future mishaps.
What I have learned is that most athletes have very little understanding of the impact typical movements have on their joints, ligaments and other soft tissues.
While freak accidents can occur and contact-related injuries are hard to avoid. The vast majority of non-contact injuries to knees and other lower body parts occur because of improper weight distribution.
Body weight carries a lot of force!
Good nutrition and maintaining a healthy body weight is very important, but even “light” athletes who use improper form are vulnerable to jumper’s knee, patellofemoral syndrome (pain in the knee cap), ligament sprains, ACL tears and meniscus tears.
These structures are supposed to be secondary to bones and muscles in supporting our joints. However, when an athlete is improperly distributing their weight, they become the primary points of support and often fail.
This is WHY injuries Don’t heal!
It is important to understand the effect of gravity and the incredible amount of force it places on the body as we run, cut and jump.
Picture a 12 or 13-year-old female soccer player who may only weigh 80lbs running down the field at full speed.
At the point of being air-born between strides gravity is accelerating the body back down towards the earth at 9.8m/s2 – that’s very fast.
To appreciate just how fast 9.8m/s^2 is, think about how fast a skydiver is falling to the ground.
The force being generated by the body mass when accelerated by gravity is often 3-7x our body weight! If you do the math that’s 240lbs of force generated by an 80-lb athlete!
That’s a lot of force on each step, especially when an athlete is not trained in how to dissipate it.
When an athlete, their coach or their medical team is not changing their movement pattern injuries continue to pile up.
How to reduce injuries.
There is a way to combat the continual pounding of all this extra weight. The athlete has to redirect it. As well as dissipate it through the entire body. Allowing each joint, in each fascial link to take the load little by little.
Instead, kids typically thrust their legs way out-front of their torso while running and the poor knee gets a huge pounding.
You have to change how an athlete lands from various positions. A proper landing will help them dissipate their body weight. It will spare the body part (s) that keeps taking the brunt of the force.
To do that you often have to address many components simultaneously – their coordination, their strength and mobility deficits.
There really is no “one size fits all” approach to improving body mechanics. One child might be tight, one might be weak, one might lack coordination. There are endless combinations of these factors between different body parts.
I would just say if you have that gut feeling something is off with the way your child runs, jumps or kicks act now. The parent needs to start digging for answers and get ahead of any recurrent injuries by assessing them by a movement specialist.
I suggest someone who understands the intricate interplay of all of our body’s musculoskeletal interactions in your child’s specific sport.
If you are interested in continuing to learn about biomechanics and how gravity affects us please check out work of Dr. Nicholas Romanov.
I see clients in Southern Illinois and Missouri.
- The Confidence Side Effect. - March 29, 2022
- When injuries don’t heal. - October 22, 2020
- Sport Specific Rehab – Soccer - July 12, 2020