Sports Safety

The 2014 Sochi Olympics games are in full swing, with Cana­di­an ath­letes pur­su­ing vic­to­ry.  The Olympics were cre­at­ed to pro­mote peace­ful com­pe­ti­tion amongst nations through sport while bring­ing peo­ple from dif­fer­ent nations togeth­er to share in the cel­e­bra­tion.  As Cana­di­ans across the coun­try take in the Olympics, many of them too enjoy the thrill, excite­ment and joy that sport can bring.  How­ev­er, as much fun as it may be, sport can be dan­ger­ous.  So, in cel­e­bra­tion of the 2014 Sochi Olympics, here are some ways you can enjoy your favourite sport while keep­ing safe. It is also a time to think of Sports Safe­ty. Wear the right gear Mak­ing sure you have the right equip­ment and gear on is key to pre­vent­ing sports injuries.  This includes every­thing from hel­mets to elbow and knee pads.  Even sim­ple gear like wrist and ankle braces can make the slight­est dif­fer­ence.  Remem­ber that each sport requires dif­fer­ent gear to be worn and it’s impor­tant to adhere to those guide­lines to pre­vent injuries. Warm up and stretch first Before tak­ing part in any sport activ­i­ty, even if it is going out for a quick run, remem­ber to stretch and warm up first. Stretch­ing allows for your mus­cles to warm up, gets your heart going and the blood flow­ing and helps to pre­vent injuries and sprains from occur­ring.  Start by cre­at­ing a warm up rou­tine, 10–15 min­utes longs, that stretch­es your mus­cles and gets the  blood flow­ing. Drink lots of water Drink­ing lots of water dur­ing phys­i­cal activ­i­ty helps pre­vent dehy­dra­tion from occur­ring.  Keep­ing hydrat­ed fuels your body and keeps you going.  You can also keep hydrat­ed through juice or sports drinks but water is your best bet. Tend to your injuries If you expe­ri­ence an injury dur­ing any phys­i­cal activ­i­ty, attend to it imme­di­ate­ly. Delay­ing treat­ment can cause the injury to wors­en over time.  Allow for injuries to heal com­plete­ly before tak­ing part in any stren­u­ous phys­i­cal activ­i­ty.  Use ice packs to relieve swelling and use sup­port bands for extra sup­port.  Avoid putting any pres­sure on the injured area and make sure to get a lot of rest.  It’s also a good thing to get injuries exam­ined by a doc­tor to get a full diag­no­sis. Learn the skills first Before get­ting into any phys­i­cal activ­i­ty, it’s impor­tant to learn the skills first.  When play­ing any sport, there are cer­tain skills that must be learned and mas­tered before that sport can be car­ried out.  If not, you put your­self at a greater risk of get­ting a sports injury.  Just like learn­ing how to walk, swim or dri­ve a car, it’s impor­tant to know the skills first in order to attain suc­cess. Get some R&R – Rest and relax­ation Tak­ing part in sports or any phys­i­cal activ­i­ty is good for your health and can make you feel ener­gized.  How­ev­er, when par­tak­ing in any phys­i­cal activ­i­ty, it’s always good to remem­ber to get some rest and relax.  Tak­ing the time out to get some rest and relax­ation gives your body the time to recov­er from the stren­u­ous phys­i­cal activ­i­ty.  You don’t want to put a lot of strain on the body caus­ing sig­nif­i­cant strain on your mus­cles and putting you at a high­er risk for injuries.  The time off will also give you a chance to bet­ter your game and tend to any injuries. From all of us here, wish­ing the Cana­di­an ath­letes the best of luck.