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63 High Street, Drysdale
(03) 5253 2345
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(03) 5253 2345

Category: Sporting

Peninsula OsteopathySporting
By Belinda Kelly Children, Sporting

INJURY ALERT- Severs Disease

Children with sore heels?

Pain in the back of the foot after activities?

This is what we are hearing from a lot of our young patients at the moment.

Severs disease (calcaneal apophosytis) usually presents with pain at the back of the heel around the achilles (calf muscle) insertion.Children often also experience aching into these muscle and the sole of the foot.

This condition is diagnosed with physical examination (special tests and feeling structures of the foot), and sometimes imaging (ultrasound or MRI of the foot).

Whilst this condition is painful and frustrating (for active little humans) it is a self limiting condition meaning it will usually take 6-12 months to settle down, and is often manageable following the treatment approach below.

Treatment will include

– treating soft tissues to relieve tension
– mobilising structures (joints) of the lower limb especially the foot
– assessing activities and how we can modify them to decrease pain
– looking at footwear especially sporting and school shoes (ONLY THONGS OR SLIDES WITH IN BUILT SUPPORT!!)
– advice around exercise such as warm up well before the sport including stretching appropriate to the sport, ice for pain relief after sport, self massage to the leg and foot muscles, always wear correct footwear.

Often we will include other practitioners such as a podiatrist to assess the need for orthotics, or massage therapists to assist with muscle and soft tissue release or relaxing.

Some rest from some activities can help at times, your practitioner will advise of this. Usually once the right balance of exercise is found this conditions settles and sports can be resumed.

This condition is really common, especially as children move from their summer to winter sports. At this time often the increased exercise and physical demands on their growing body can result in this condition. As you can see, whilst it is frustrating and painful this condition is very manageable with the right advice and treatment.

If you think we can help you or someone you know with their foot pain feel free to contact the clinic on 52532345 or email the clinic info@peninsulaosteopathy.com.au.

By Demi Donegan Sporting

Injury Prevention In Winter

Exercising and training in the colder months of the year isn’t easy. As the mercury dips often does our motivation to get moving and persist with the extra parts of exercise that keep us pain and injury free. There are just a few simple things for us to be reminded of to keep winter a pain free season.

Warm Up

As with any exercise, warming up is essential in the colder months. A warm up helps prepare the body for exercise and should consist of exercises related to the activity you are about to undertake. When it is cold outside it is important to remember to increase your warm up time as it may take a bit longer to get warm due to the low temperatures. It is not necessary to create a new warm up routine, just increase the duration to ensure your body is ready to exercise at its full potential.

Appropriate Clothing

To maintain the motivation for the chilly mornings it is important to be comfortable. If you are still running around in your shorts and singlets from summer, it’s time to invest in some more appropriate clothing. Wearing layers of clothing is the best way to go as it allows you remove jackets and jumpers as you begin to warm up and increase the intensity of exercise. This may also assist in the warm up stage of activity and increase your motivation to get out of your warm bed on those chilly winter mornings!

Hydration

Just because it is cold doesn’t mean you reduce or stop your fluid intake. It is important to remember it is still possible to become dehydrated when it is cold. Although you may feel as though you aren’t sweating as much when it is cold, you will still be losing water through sweat and breathing during exercise. Remember that these lost fluids need to be replaced. Reduced fluid intake can lead to fatigue which often leads to poor technique, delayed recovery and ultimately injury.

Recovery

As with any time of the year it is always paramount to allow your body to recover between exercise sessions. Failing to allow your body to recover will most likely prolong exercise related soreness and increase your risk of injury. If in doubt as to whether to use heat or cold packs always consult your practitioner for advice. In addition winter is also the cold and flu season so it is also important to give your body adequate rest to fight off any infections you may pick up along the way. There is no substitute for sleep when fighting off a cold or flu.

These are just a few very easy and simple things to consider as the months get a little colder! It is quite rewarding heading into summer fit and healthy and the best way for this to happen is to stay injury free in winter. Please give the clinic a call to see how we can help you stay injury-free this winter!

By Belinda Kelly Exercises, Sporting

Ankle Sprains: 3 Exercises You Have To Do

The ankle sprain, one of the most common lower limb sporting injuries we see. Typically characterised by pain on the side of the ankle (outside usually, but can also occur on the inside), swelling, bruising and an altered gait. Most are the result of the person landing with the ankle rolled in or out.

Depending on the severity of the sprain also determines how long it will take for the ligaments to heal. On the lesser end of the spectrum, milder sprains generally take 2-3 weeks to heal whereas more severe sprains can take up to 6 weeks or more! It is important to get your ankle injury assessed by a healthcare professional so that you can get information on your particular case.

After the initial stages of the ankle injury, performing some basic rehabilitation exercises can shorten your recovery period and also lessen the chance of re-injuring your ankle.

Our Exercise Physiologist Jack and one of our Osteopaths Mitch have put together a few videos on some basic ankle rehab exercises you can do to help you return to your chosen sport sooner – click on the links below for some examples!

Ankle Mobility Exercises

Following and ankle sprain, range of motion in the ankle is generally lost, so it is important to regain this in order to decrease your risk of re-injury. Gentle range-of-motion exercises like the ones shown below should do the trick. Start by trying to bring your toes closer towards you, then try and point the toes away. Another great one is to start making mini-circles with your ankle and increase the size of the circle as tolerable.
Ankle mobility exercises

Improve Your Balance

Proprioception or balance is one of the first things we lose when spraining any ligament so this is another important aspect to address in rehabilitation. Progress from both legs to single leg (the side that is injured) as tolerable and add in some movement to make it even more challenging!
Single leg balance progressions

Get Some Strength Back

It’s highly likely that you’ve been hobbling around for a couple of weeks, so getting some strength back into the affected leg will again limit the chance of re-injury. Gentle isometric contractions (like pushing into the floor) and some heel raises can all help strengthening the muscles surrounding the lower leg.
Seated PF isometric and heel raise (ankle strengthening exercises)

Please contact the clinic to get your ankle assessed or if you require any further information.

By Gemma Percy Sporting

5 Netball Training Tips To Avoid Injury This Preseason

It’s getting to that time of year where netball pre-season training is well and truly in full swing so we’ve put together 5 key factors to consider when preparing and planning for a successful season ahead.
 

1. Keep it specific

When preparing for netball it is vital to factor in key aspects of the game itself and mimic these within each session.

Netball is a high intensity, short sharp game requiring quick bursts of energy to make hard drives, take intercepts and change direction quickly. Therefore when planning your session it is necessary to incorporate some form of high-intensity interval work to get yourself and teammates in top shape for the season ahead.  

High-intensity interval work incorporates short periods of work followed by short periods of rest. A good example for netball may include 10 x 20m sprints with 10 seconds rest between each sprint. Doing this will improve endurance and the body’s ability to perform under stress/fatigue to get you over the line in those close games! Not to mention high-intensity interval training boosts metabolism and will have you burning calories long after your session has ended!
 

2. Hydration

It is likely that during your pre-season training you will be breaking a sweat quick smart, particularly as it is often during the hottest months of the year that we begin training, therefore hydration is essential!

Dehydration occurs when we inadequately replace fluids lost and can seriously affect your capacity to perform. When we are dehydrated our muscle function significantly decreases and we fatigue at a much quicker rate. This means that we are unable to put in maximal efforts and therefore will not enjoy the maximum benefits.

Hydration should begin before you begin exercising, maintained throughout exercise and continue post exercise to assist in recovery.

Water is sufficient to keep you hydrated but you may wish to utilise a sports drink with added electrolyte and sodium has added re-hydration benefits and may assist in recovery and hydration. When selecting a sports drink opt for a drink with low caffeine and sugars levels.
 

3. Knee strength & stability

Did you know that during running and jumping movements the knee joint can experience forces up to 10 times your body weight?

This brings me to the next point of incorporating specific exercises that load the knee joint to enhance strength and stability and minimise risks of nasty season-ending injuries such as ACL & PCL tears. This should include exercises such as lunges, squats & burpee’s.

When incorporating these exercises it is important to begin simply and slowly progress the exercise to gradually load the joint. Where possible try to do a mix of double and single legged versions of the exercise and integrate the use of weights and resistance to assist in reducing muscle imbalances side to side! See below for squat variations.
 

4. Ankle stability & proprioception

One of the most common injuries we see with Netball is ankle sprains, and so it goes without saying that improving ankle stability pre-season may just be a netballers best friend!

Proprioception is a term that describes the body’s awareness of joint position and movement. In netball this plays a vital role in preventing ankle injuries during fast-paced change of directions, jumping and landing. Performing single legged exercises such as calf raises, side to side to jumps and forward jumping to a single leg landing is a great and easy way to enhance your proprioception. This combined with fast-paced agility exercise will have your ankles ready for the season ahead in no time!
 

5. Recovery

Perhaps one of the most important factors to consider with pre-season is recovery.

Adopting an effective recovery regime will assist your muscles to repair quicker, reduce pain from DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) and have you feeling eager and ready to go for your next session.

Effective recovery includes static stretching post exercise and adequate nutrition.

For many of us pre-season marks a sudden and often significant increase in physical activity and there a few additional things you can do to help reduce DOMS. These include the use of a high-quality magnesium spray or powder may assist in reducing muscle aches and cramping post exercise, foam rolling/self-massage and gentle walking in the ocean/pool.

 

Finally, it is important to listen to what your body is telling you during the preseason. Aches and pains often serve as a protective mechanism to the body and act as an alarm to tell us that the body does not like the way we are doing something. It is important to remember that it is not uncommon to experience muscle soreness for 1-2 days post-exercise.

If you are concerned about lingering aches/pains or would like some specific advice throughout your preseason campaign feel free to contact our friendly reception staff and book in to see one of our qualified health professionals!