How to prevent injuries in student athletes
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TEXAS (KXAN)—As spring turns to summer, student athletes across Texas prepare for playoffs and finals in sports like baseball and softball—but any kind of physical activity carries the risk of injury. Younger athletes are more prone to ankle, knee, and shoulder injuries.
Dr. Clayton Skaggs is the founder and CEO of the Central Institute for Human Performance, working with both athletes and non-athletes to identify and solve the root causes of their pain.
“Having an awareness of your body, having awareness of your movement, really improves your responsiveness and your control for when those stresses come your way,” Skaggs said. “That’s one form of resilience-building that is within our control.”
Skaggs said a common misconception of sports-related injuries is that the area of injury is the cause of the injury. For example, a non-traumatic knee injury could actually stem from weakness above or below the knee. If not properly treated, an injury suffered in childhood could cause problems later on in life.
“I often tell young athletes, and adults as well… it’s actually a gift because it’s revealed their weakness, their area of vulnerability, that we can now restore and improve so they don’t have troubles down the road,” Skaggs said.
One prevention method Skaggs suggested is performing simple strength and movement assessments that test basic things like stability and posture. Another method is more about the mind—sensory awareness. Simply put, sensory awareness is knowing one’s body and abilities.
And when it comes to fitness, Skaggs said simplicity is important.
“The body loves simplicity,” Skaggs said. “If an exercise is simple enough, we’ll continue to do it, and if you continue to do it, that’s when [you’ll] often reap the rewards.”
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