How strength training will reduce pain and injury by 50%

At the Injury Rehab Centre our Physiotherapists and Osteopaths who service the Cheltenham, Moorabbin, Mentone, Highett, Hampton, Black Rock, Beaumaris and Heatherton suburbs have the philosophy that stronger people are harder to kill injure. That’s why a big part of our management for dealings with patient pain and injury often involves an active approach teaching our patients to become stronger and move more efficiently.

Exercise is good for us!

jogging

Most patients that our Physiotherapists and Osteopaths see understand that physical activity is beneficial for many common diseases and pathologies. It’s now commonly known through research that exercise helps with:

• Cardiovascular disease

• Diabetes

• Cancer

• Hypertension

• Obesity

• Depression

• Osteoporosis

How does injury occur?

So exercise is good for our body but what about pain and injury? Many of us engage in a variety of different activities and sports that all inherently put our body through stress and strain. We accept the risk of injury because we simply enjoy activity and the benefits outweigh the cons. But what happens when our body doesn’t have the capacity to tolerate the stress and strain that we put it through? Well, injury of course. Whether it be an acute over stretching of a muscle or ligament or repetitive strain over time often the story is simply that we don’t have the strength to care for this amount of stress.

What does the research say?

One study conducted a systematic review (high level evidence) to examine what the effects of strength training, balance/proprioception, stretching, and a combination of these techniques on injury rates.

Main Findings:

• Combination, strength, and balance/proprioception all displayed a tendency to decrease risk of injury!!!

• Stretching alone had no effect

• Strength training had highest preventative effect among all techniques

• Both acute and overuse injuries could be significantly reduced

• Overuse injuries could be reduced by nearly 50%

The take home message:

• Stretching along before and after your workouts is NOT enough to help you reduce your risk of injury

• A strength-training program integrated as a part of your sport/activities should almost be essential to help you reduce your risk!

What do the Physiotherapists and Osteopaths at the Injury Rehab Centre in Cheltenham do?

At the Injury Rehab Centre We specialise in assessment and collecting actionable data using the latest technology previously only found in elite sporting institutions particularly in understanding our patients strength and capacity. This includes:

• M.A.T Assessment created by the therapists of the Injury Rehab Centre to laser focus on areas of flexibility, balance and movement that identify the risk factors of low back pain.

• Slow Motion Video Analysis of fundamental lifting techniques such as squats, deadlifts and presses TO FIND BAD HABITS that can cause injury to areas such as the lower back.

• Strength Testing to identify any strength discrepancies that have a huge role in injury risk.

• Force Plate Technology to put a number on differences in the power you can generate through each leg that can lead to compensations and can cause repetitive stress injuries such as those activities that contribute to back pain.

• Traditional Physiotherapy and Osteopathy examinations to identify dysfunction.

Next our treatment process achieves pain relief in the shortest amount of time by using hands on Physiotherapy and Osteopathy techniques such as soft tissue massage, joint manipulation, articulation and stretching techniques. This may include the use of the True Stretch system as well as Dry Needling and Taping techniques.

Finally your management plan will involve an individualised training plan to build your strength and capacity (muscle and tendon strength, stamina, specific flexibility) often to improve discrepancies from side to side that could be the true cause of your low back pain and build confidence in your body.

If you suffer from low back pain and want to get off the treatment merry-go-round and back to feeling better, moving better and performing better contact the Injury Rehab Centre today on 95537024 or book online using the link at the top of the page.

Reference:

Lauersen, J.B., Bertelsen, D.M., Andersen, L.B. The effectiveness of exercise interventions to prevent sports injuries: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Br J Sports Med, 2014, 48: 871-877.