Chiropractic Care for Skiing Injuries
By Sara Butler
With winter here, one thing many people look forward to is skiing. There are few things as exhilarating as skiing on a perfect blanket of white snow down the side of a mountain. Skiing also happens to be great exercise, but it’s also a great opportunity to get injured. Technology has helped fewer people to get injured in recent years, but you should still make sure to take some precautions to stay safe this skiing season. Here’s what to be on the lookout for and how your chiropractor can help.
Knee Injuries
It’s pretty common for skiers to suffer from torn ligaments or sprains of the knee. In fact, according to the American College of Sports Medicine, knee injuries account for about 40 percent of skiing injuries.
The best thing you can do to protect yourself from knee injuries when you ski is to be properly conditioned. It’s not feasible to ski as your primary form of exercise in order to become conditioned, which is why you should make sure you’re exercising regularly at least six weeks before you plan to ski.
Also, don’t resist falling while skiing. If you try to keep yourself from falling instead of just going with it, you take the chance of only injuring yourself more. You should also avoid holding a wide stance on your skis. This puts unnecessary stress on the knees, especially when you are trying to turn.
Skier’s Thumb
There’s tennis elbow, so why not skier’s thumb? When you fall, which is just a part of skiing, and you clutch onto your poles, you run the risk of damaging your thumb joint. If you use poles with saber handles or platforms, this increases your risk.
If you do hurt your thumb while skiing, it’s really important to see your chiropractor or another medical professional about it. It can become a chronic injury that has lasting consequences that can restrict your use of the joint.
Damage to the Spine
Any sport that can result in collisions runs the risk of damage to your spine. If you fall, it’s really easy for your spine to become misaligned and cause other problems. If you go skiing and then notice any discomfort or pain in your back or pain radiating to your arms or legs, make sure you see your chiropractor right away in order to have a proper assessment done.
Enjoy skiing this season a whole lot more with the help of your chiropractor!