Preventing Youth Sports Injuries

Although most injuries in sports are accidental and unpredictable, there are some precautions that you can take to try and avoid this from happening.

First of all, my gym teachers and coaches always had us stretching before we began playing any sport. We were told this was to prepare and loosen your muscles. The stretching releases any muscle tension and tightness and makes it easier to move. There is also less chance of getting muscle aches once you start playing. If you haven't used these muscles in a while, you will feel very sore the next day because your muscles can get pulled or inflamed. This could prevent you from playing the sport for a couple of days.

Also I remember teachers and coaches always reviewing the rules with us before playing. This is very important because someone could make a wrong move with a sporting equipment at the wrong time and injure someone. I remember when I used to play field hockey, we were always told to keep the sticks on the ground because someone could get hit.

Wearing the proper clothing and gears are also very important. Just a few weeks ago, my nephew got kicked in the leg during soccer practice. He did have his knee pads on which I think prevented him from really getting injured. He was just a little sore but was able to continue playing. Being kicked with those soccer cleats can be a big deal if you're not wearing pads. Helmets are a must for certain sports like baseball or football.

During sports games and practices there are a lot of distractions from parents, friends and other family members. From the field the person playing looks up at his or her family in the bleachers instead of paying attention to the game. This is mostly because someone on the bleachers is yelling out something to the player causing him or her to get distracted. It takes just a few seconds for something serious to happen because someone is not paying attention. It is best to just keep focused on the game and not worry about what anyone is saying to you. Also reading signs that fans hold up could also be a huge distraction.

Lastly, if you have a non serious injury or bruise to begin with, you need to take care of it. This may mean not being able to play for a few games. I have not taken care of my injuries a number of times, and things only get worse. Then you could end up not playing for a longer period of time. Or it could eventually lead to having surgery.

There are way too many injuries that happen when playing sports. Many of them could be avoided if people would only follow a few simple steps.