Why Do Athletes Often Rely on Chiropractic Care?
An athlete's body takes on a ton of stress. Between tough workouts and the rigors of practices and games, no wonder athletes often suffer chronic aches and pains, which unfortunately can morph into serious injuries. Athletes can experience many different benefits from receiving chiropractic care. Not only can adjustments help when treating injuries from high-impact sports but they offer other benefits as well. It’s been shown that high-impact sports can place the same amount of strain on the body as an auto collision. Athletes getting routine adjustments may notice improved athletic performance, improved range of motion, better flexibility, increased blood flow, and may suffer from fewer injuries. Because spinal adjustments will reduce the irritation of the nerve roots between the vertebrae, the healing time from minor injuries can be shortened, improving performance.
That’s why when injuries occur, many turn to chiropractic care rather than more invasive options for pain relief. The common injuries suffered in many sports can knock the spine out of alignment, causing stress on the pain sensitive joints, muscles, nerves, discs and ligaments. Studies after studies have shown how chiropractic care outperforms other medical options at reducing pain and restoring normal function.
It is not just injured athletes who visit chiropractors. In fact, the majority of the world-class athletes have routinely used chiropractic care to prevent injuries and boost their performance. In competitive sports, the difference between winning and losing is measured and athletes need every little bit of strength, speed, and flexibility as possible.
Fixing Asymmetries
One of the biggest causes of injuries in athletes is asymmetry throughout the body, meaning one side of the body is different from the other. It could be a strength difference on the left or right side, but most commonly we deal with mobility and flexibility issues. We use chiropractic adjustments to get the body properly aligned and perform soft tissue work such as massage to reduce tension that could be keeping the body out of alignment. This reduces the risk of injury because one area of the body won't have to work as hard or experience as much stress by picking up the slack from a deficient area. Many athletes also find that chiropractic care helps them train more effectively.
Fewer Injuries
Alignment issues cause unnecessary stress on the body and can often lead to injury. Chiropractic care keeps the musculoskeletal system moving smoothly along so that body is less prone to injury.
Increasing Range of Motion
Chiropractic adjustments allow the body to move as freely as it was designed to do. When your spine is out of alignment, your muscles commonly spasm or cramp up, which can cause a decrease in range of motion. Relieving misalignments throughout the spine helps free up areas of tension in the back and neck, reducing pain and improving mobility. As a byproduct, this treatment can also improve your exercise form—especially during overhead lifts—because tight muscles won't be holding you back.
Promoting Faster Healing
Misalignments throughout the body slow down healing. When an athlete is injured, his or her body tries to protect itself with muscle spams and inflammation. This increases the time it takes for the athlete to heal fully and get back on the field. Chiropractic adjustments speed up the recovery process of your muscles by relieving the irritation between misaligned vertebrae.
Should You Go to a Chiropractor?
The answer is absolutely!! Chiropractic care maximizes recovery and helps keep your body healthy, which is why many collegiate and pro teams have a chiropractor on staff. We focus primarily on the spine, but we can also help treat:
-Neck, mid-back and low-back pain
-Sciatica
-Shoulder pain
-Shoulder, elbow, wrist and hand sprains and strains
-Hip, knee, ankle and foot sprains and strains
-Tennis and golfer's elbow
-Headaches
Why do so many professional athletes rely on routine chiropractic care?
Chiropractic provides a safe, natural and drug-free option to relieve pain, as well as preventative benefits vital to keeping the body balanced, flexible and functioning at its best.
How can I benefit from routine chiropractic?
Whether you are a professional, amateur or youth athlete, you can experience the same benefits from routine chiropractic care. And it is just as important for you to include as a key part of your overall health routine. Take the steps to live a healthier and pain-free life and experience the benefits of chiropractic care.
Chiropractors can also help athletes with Kinesio tape. Kinesio taping helps athletes and patients who are in a lot of pain by giving support and stability to your joints and muscles without affecting circulation and range of motion. Kinesio taping is a technique based on the body's own natural healing process. 'The Kinesio Taping Method' is applied over muscles to reduce pain and inflammation, relax overused tired muscles, and to support muscles in movement on a 24hr/day basis. It is a non-restrictive type of taping which allows for full range of motion.
Both high-impact and low-impact athletes can benefit from routine spinal adjustments. For high-impact athletes, it increases performance and flexibility and lowers the risk for injury; for low-impact athletes routine adjustments can help relieve the strain that is being placed on the body. Chiropractic care offers a natural way to treat and prevent many different ailments that often plague athletes. Have your athlete call Bettendorf Chiropractic Wellness Center for their first appointment 563-359-5600!
Link to more information on Chiropractic and Athletes:
https://chirosushi.com/chiropractic-linked-longevity-loyalty-athletes/
https://www.acatoday.org/News-Publications/ACA-News-Archive/ArtMID/5721/ArticleID/201/Up-Your-Game-Sports-Chiropractic-Enhances-Care