Four Sports That Affect Your Back The Most
Participation in sports is an important part of people’s daily routine and many enjoy staying active by engaging in different sports to help maintain a healthy lifestyle! While staying active is a vital part of everyday life, sports such as golf, baseball, basketball, and football are prone to cause injury and pain, especially in the lower back. Knowing which sports are likely to affect specific areas of the back can help with identifying the right preventive action steps. Below is a simple list of how these four sports affect your back and a few ways to fix the issues that may arise:
Golf
Although golf is often seen as an activity of leisure, injuries that result from this sport are very common. One recent study showed that during a two year period, 60 percent of golf professionals and 40 of amateurs suffered either a traumatic or overuse injury while golfing. Over 80 percent of the reported injuries were related to overuse. Of all injuries, low back pain is the most common in golf. This can be contributed to the one side nature of the swing and the repetitive nature of the swing. This causes repeated use and eventually overuse of certain muscles and joints, especially in the lumbar spine, and over time can lead to injury. In some causes, older golfers may experience arthritic changes in their spine that has resulted from the repetitive nature of the golf swing. Interestingly, most golfers get back pain on the side of their back swing.
Baseball
Baseball players are more susceptible to lower back injuries because, similar to golf, baseball is a predominately one-sided sport that requires repeated motion to perfect. In baseball players, the repeated rotation of both swinging and throwing can lead to overload of the tissues of the low back and, over time, can cause strain of the muscles and joints of the area. Notable players repeated bouts of low back pain this season include David Wright, Shane Victorino, and Adrian Beltre.
Basketball
Unlike baseball and golf, basketball is not a one-sided sport, which can help players be more balanced. However, the risk to the low back that occurs with basketball is repeated jumping. The repeated explosive pattern of jumping and the jarring during landing can lead to overload of the spine and result in injury to the ligaments or bone. Recently, several high profile players, including Blake Griffin and Joel Embiid, suffered stress fractures in their lower back that were believed to be caused by the repeated loading of their spine.
Football
Football is a sport that requires much physical wear and tear on the body. It is said that playing football is like being in multiple crashes repeatedly. The effect on the low back can be profound. Some football players may develop earlier onset of arthritis in their spine from the repeated trauma.
Professional athletes understand the deleterious effects that their sport have on their bodies and for this reason they seek out care to treat their injuries and maintain their bodies. Amateur athletes often put the same wear and tear on their bodies but do not take care of themselves in the same manner. Proform Sports Chiropractic treats professional athletes and amateur athletes alike while specializing in professional care for all. Schedule an appointment today to get treated like a pro.
