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Sports Injuries:

History:
For years almost all major sports leagues have chiropractors treating some of the most elite athletes in the world. If they don’t, the athletes will seek out their own chiropractic care and pay for it themselves. The Ravens and Redskins, Lance Armstrong, Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Terrell Owens, Derek Jeter, Evander Holyfield, Emmitt Smith, Maurice Jones Drew and Nolan Ryan are just a few of the top-notch athletes who have used chiropractic to stay ahead of their competition.

Injuries can be sustained by twisting and ankle in karate, getting tackled in football, sliding in baseball or exercising regularly at your gym. Athletes move at tremendously forceful speeds which can really strain the joints, muscles and tendons.


Symptoms:
Pain will vary depending on the location of the injury like a rotator cuff problem versus a pulled hamstring. Pain can be sharp, dull and nagging or plain old achy. Pain can last or come and go with additional activity.

When a football player gets tackled they are hit from any angle and sometimes when the body isn’t prepared for the impact. Emmitt Smith described playing a game and basically being in 30 – 40 car accidents in one day. His spine, joints and muscles don’t bounce back to the original state after that. Chiropractic helped him reduce recovery time and get him back on the field.


Treatment:
Initially ice is great to reduce swelling and calm the area down, but sometimes heat can decrease a muscle spasm, that’s why the doctor decides what is wrong and then provides treatment. You’ve seen the guys dip themselves into the ice bath after a game. That helps muscle recovery.

Returning the body to motion is instrumental in any injury like knee, shoulder or back pains for instance. In the old days we would rest and elevate the injure body part. Now we try to get you moving as quickly as possible. With that in mind, adjusting the affected area along with electric stim, heat or ice, stretches and rehab exercises are necessary to get you back in the action and prevent further problems.

We can take a step back and train the exact muscle you use for your sport. I’m a baseball player so I have a bat that I connect to the weight machines and swing against the resistance of the weights. I do this slowly but I can train every muscle used to swing. I use the same approach for tennis, golf, throwing, etc.







Research:
  • Chiropractic: The Journal of Chiropractic Research and Clinical Investigation by Lauro A and Mouch B in 1991, Athletes exhibited a 30% improvement in performance after 12 weeks of chiropractic treatment. They were tested on several aspects of athletic ability including kinesthetic perception, power, reaction time, agility and balance. Those who did not receive chiropractic treatment showed only a 1% increase in performance after 6 weeks of treatment, while those who received the chiropractic treatments showed an 18% increase in performance after 6 weeks.

  • Trainers surveyed in a study in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics predominantly referred players to chiropractors for low back pain, neck injury, and headaches.

  • Check the athlete testimonial section to hear what the stars have to say about chiropractic care.