Skiing, snowshoeing, snowboarding, ice skating and other winter sports provide a fun and exciting way to exercise and enjoy the outdoors. However, these sports can take a toll on your joints and lead to injuries. It’s important to make sure you reduce your risk of injuries to your knees, back and other joints when doing these activities. The following tips can help you protect your joints.
Warm Up Beforehand
Before hitting the slopes or doing other winter activities, you should take time to warm your muscles up. Warming them up with stretches helps reduce the risk of joint injuries to muscles, tendons and ligaments. You should also cool down with stretches each time you’re done skiing or doing other winter sports. This helps your muscles recover after working out.
Wear the Right Gear
Depending on the winter sport you’re doing, you should always wear protective gear. This can help protect your joints from injuries. For example, you should wear knee pads when snowboarding. Having the right gear on helps you stay safe and lowers your risk of sprains, dislocations and other joint injuries.
Know When to Stop or Skip
If you start feeling pain while doing winter sports, you should stop instead of risking an injury. You should avoid doing winter sports if you have a joint injury or if your joints are feeling sore and stiff. Winter sports also aren’t safe to do if you’re feeling fatigued. Only do these activities when your body is feeling rested and your joints aren’t hurting.
Work Out Regularly
You should exercise on a regular basis to keep your joints in good condition. Exercising helps your joints stay flexible. This can help reduce your risk of joint injuries when you participate in winter sports. Do exercises that involve stretching, as well as other exercises that keep your joints and muscles healthy.
Dress Warm
Doing winter activities when your body is cold can increase your risk of injuries. Make sure you dress in layers, so that your body stays warm and dry. Check the weather before heading out, and consider putting off these activities when temperatures are extremely cold or the weather is unsafe, such as during snow or ice storms.
Take Lessons
If you’re new to snowboarding, skiing or other winter sports, take lessons from a professional instructor before doing these on your own. Instructors can show you the proper ways to do these winter sports, which can help lower your risk of joint injuries.
Stay Hydrated
Staying hydrated is highly important when doing any type of sport, including winter sports. When you’re out in the cold, you might not realize how close you are to becoming dehydrated. Drink plenty of water while participating in winter activities. Dehydration puts your joints at a higher risk of injuries.
If you have joint pain, contact Huntington Orthopedics to make an appointment. We can evaluate your joints, then come up with a treatment plan, so you can enjoy your usual winter activities.