6 Common Basketball Injuries
Next to drinking, it's likely your favorite after-hours activity. And like the bar, it's where you often get hurt. Here are the common complaints among casual and professional cagers:
MUSCLE STRAINS
Quick bursts of speed, sudden directional changes, and fatigue make for sore muscles after a hard-played game. Strains are most often a result of improper physical conditioning.
Treatment/Prevention: If you experience a painful muscle strain, ice it right away. Icing it on and off for 72 hours will help prevent swelling. A common misconception relates to applying hot compress, which will only aggravate the injury. So wise up, guys. Inflammatory medications are also helpful in combating muscle strains.
Professional basketball players should be religious about preseason workouts and conditioning. This allows them to cope better with long seasons and to peak at the right time. For recreational players, the inevitable muscle pain will be there unless basketball and other workouts become a part of your regular schedule. Work on quick bursts of activity. Sprint on both the lengths and widths of the court with and without the ball.
ANKLE SPRAINS
Rebounding in the crowded alligator wrestling pond (as former Chicago Bulls assistant coach Johnny Bach calls the shaded lane) is risky because you might get hit by an inadvertent or a well-planted elbow, or you could land on someone's foot that can hurt like heck. These are usually sprains to the ligaments outside the ankle that can just ball up like anything.
Treatment/Prevention: It would do well for you to remember the RICE Method (Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation). Icing it will help control the swelling that follows almost immediately after the injury. It is always advisable to see a physician to determine the gravity of the injury because at times, the ankle might be broken. Should you have a history of ankle sprains, we recommend that you wear an ankle brace in addition to taping your ankle.
JAMMED FINGERS
It's not as fast as a baseball clocking in at 90-plus mph, but a basketball flying towards you and jamming a digit can be really, really painful.
Treatment/Prevention: Ice the finger right away then move it as soon as you can. If you think it's dislocated or you can't move it at all, see a physician and ask for an x-ray.
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Men's Health Philippines - July 2006 Issue
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Dan Rose's 4-step program for Ali Peek:
1 Balance Techniques "To help him play under-neath the basket, he has to have a better sense of balance. To help him with his control, I make him do a variety of presses: bench, leg, and push. Ali weighs about 250 lbs. Ideally, he should be able to bench press double his weight."
2 Strengthen those legs "If you weigh 250 lbs and often go up for dunks, you should have strong legs that allow you take all that pounding and punishment your legs are subjected to."
3 Footwork drills "After working on his balance, we had to work on his agility and quickening his movements. Big guys aren't normally fast but we got him to work on his explosiveness that enabled him to get to the ball faster."
4 Water and fruit intake "Ali's a big guy. If the average person drinks 6-8 glasses of water in one day, Ali should be drinking more. The water and fruits helps keep his bones and muscles fluid and strong."
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