ML Coaching
If you train regularly, you know that injuries can sometimes happen. There are a few measures that minimise the injury risk, such as hiring a personal trainer who helps with correct execution.
But if an injury does occur, you should be prepared and know exactly what to do so you're back in shape as quickly as possible.
In this article I want to show you five simple steps that help you recover faster from a sports injury. These steps are based on the RICE principle: Rest, Ice, Elevation and Compression - and at the end I've added Heat.
Let's go through the individual steps together:
Step 1: Rest
This step sounds obvious at first, but it's probably one of the most important after an injury.
You should avoid any stress and strain on the injured body part until you're fully healed. This can take varying amounts of time and be very frustrating when you can hardly wait to train again. But if you give yourself time to recover and rest, you dramatically lower the risk of another injury in the future.
As a general rule, you should wait at least a few extra days AFTER you no longer feel any pain before you load the muscle again. You should also start training slowly and not immediately use the very heavy weights. Ease back into your workout calmly and see how you feel during the individual exercises. Don't overstrain your body.
Step 2: Ice
As soon as you feel you've injured yourself somewhere, you should cool the spot as quickly as possible.
Cooling the injured area with ice reduces swelling, inflammation and internal bleeding, which reduces the impact of the injury and can help your body recover faster.
However, you should make sure not to hold the ice directly against your skin. Instead, wrap it in a kitchen towel or use a cold pack.
You also shouldn't cool continuously all day, but in cycles. Hold ice on your injury for 15 minutes and then take a break. You should repeat this as often as possible over the next 24 hours.
Step 3: Compression
Just like ice, applying pressure can also help reduce inflammation and swelling.
The simplest method is to use a compression sleeve or an elastic bandage, depending on which body part is injured.
The pressure should be clearly noticeable and firm, but not so firm that your circulation is impaired. If you want to cool at the same time, you can wrap a cold pack around the injured area.
Step 4: Elevation
This step isn't always possible. Depending on where your injury is located, elevating that body part can help with faster recovery.
That's because when you hold the injured area above your heart, the swelling can be reduced. This helps your body transport toxic waste away from the injured area faster.
Step 5: Heat
Last but not least, I want to mention the benefits of heat. When you apply heat to your injury, you stimulate your blood circulation. This allows more nutrients to reach the affected area.
However, if you heat your injury too early, it can have very negative effects on the healing process, since heat can promote inflammation.
To avoid this, you should only start applying heat about three days after the injury - until then you're better off cooling with ice. From then on you can alternate cooling and heating in 15-minute intervals.
If you want to optimise your training and minimise your injury risk, feel free to send me an email. As part of my personal training in Zurich, I create an individual training plan for your needs, take your previous injuries into account and pay close attention to ensuring you perform all exercises correctly. That's the best chance to prevent sports injuries.