Vancouver Chiropractor: Ski & Snowboard Injury Prevention
The ski and snowboard season has officially commenced in Vancouver! Whether you travel the mountain on one or two planks, or even snowshoes, mountain sport injuries are common. Perhaps this is due to the fact that we all choose to begin the season with one mind-blowing, full day on the mountain. Why don’t we consider starting the season off gently with a half day or a less aggressive full day? Maybe because that just wouldn’t be as much fun!
So, let’s talk about a few generic things we can do to prevent some mountain sport injuries. First off, if you are a skier, get those quadricep and buttock muscles good and strong ASAP! These two muscle groups when strong and firing properly will help to decrease the risk of knee injuries.
Due to restrictive boots, our feet and lower legs often end up injured or at least very sore for a few days. To help prevent this, try working on these small muscles prior to your season. Here are a few simple exercises you could try: stand on a towel and repeatedly pull it under your foot with your toes, draw the alphabet with your feet at your ankle joints, use a Theraband ® to strengthen your lower legs, try calf raises off the end of a step, and roll a tennis ball gently on the bottom of your feet to loosen overly tight plantar fascias and intrinsic foot musculature.
Balance training is something you can integrate into your everyday life and it will translate into developed muscle control and firing patterns. This will decrease your risk of low back and knee injuries, never mind those you incur due to a bad fall.
Core strengthening is also very important in low back injury prevention, whether on or off the slopes.
If you are a skier, strong scapular stabilizers are central in avoiding shoulder and mid-back injuries related to using your poles.
I have written blogs and articles on the highlighted subjects in this blog. To learn more about any of these, click away!
Enjoy yourselves out there and be sure to listen to your bodies. Take your time out there, remember, a long season is more important than one long day!
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