Back pain is one of the most common medical complications,
affecting 8 out of 10 individuals at some point during their lives. Many people
report feeling back pain symptoms after a poor night’s rest, a common
occurrence where the pain and discomfort generally resolves on its own. But,
when the symptoms continue over a longer period of time, it may be best to
properly diagnose the cause of the individual’s back pain, especially if you
are an athlete.
Back Pain in Athletes
Athletes are at a higher risk of suffering a back injury due
to the intense physical activity they participate in. Whether the sport is gymnastics,
basketball, football, weight training, or simply all around physical fitness,
the spine experiences greater amounts of pressure and stress, twisting,
flexion, extension and even bodily impact than an individual whom does not
engage in strenuous physical activities. The demanding training and exercises
of athletes can place significant amounts of force on the spine which may cause
damage or injury to even the best and most fit athletes.
Although the entire spine is used during a majority of
sports, it is estimated that a considerable amount of athletic injuries are
associated with the lumbar spine, or low back. The prevalent rate of low back
pain in athletes range from 1 percent to 40 percent. Back injuries in younger
athletes are a common circumstance, resulting in 10 percent to 15 percent of
individuals.
Back pain in athletes can range from a dull, constant ache
to a sudden, sharp pain. Acute back pain is characterized by unexpected symptoms
which usually last from several days to several weeks. Chronic back pain is
identified when the symptoms last for more than three months.
Chiropractic for Athletes with Back Pain
Fortunately, there are a variety of treatment options
available for athletes experiencing back pain and discomfort. A recent study
researched numerous alternative treatments, including chiropractic care, to
determine the efficiency of each when treating back symptoms. According to the
study, chiropractic treatment showed the most promising results.
Chiropractic care offers many benefits for athletes than
just treating an existing back injury or complication. After diagnosing the
source of the individual’s back pain, a chiropractor may use spinal adjustments
and manual manipulations to carefully treat an athlete. Spinal misalignments,
which can occur after trauma from an injury, can be gradually corrected through
chiropractic, slowly restoring the individuals natural, spinal alignment. Chiropractic
adjustments will also help reduce the irritation of the nerve roots between the
vertebrae as well as help strengthen the surrounding muscles and tissues,
improve the body’s natural flexibility and range of motion and increase blood
flow, ultimately increasing athletic performance.
After a series of spinal manipulations, a chiropractor may
recommend a set of stretches and exercises to speed up the rehabilitation
process and ensure athletes return to their specific sport as quickly as
possible. Furthermore, chiropractic treatment can also be used to prevent
injuries in the future. Because the strength and flexibility of the muscles,
tendons, ligaments, and other tissues of the body increase through chiropractic
care, a variety of sports injuries caused by stiff muscles can be avoided.
For athletes, maintaining overall health and fitness levels
while avoiding injury or the development of impairing conditions is essential
towards achieving optimal performance goals. Whether you are an athlete or not,
if you’ve experienced debilitating symptoms of back pain that challenge your
daily lifestyle, it’s crucial to seek immediate medical attention to properly
diagnose the cause of the symptoms and begin treatment as soon as possible.
Helping Athletes with Chiropractic care:
A Client’s Story
Bryan Filidor, a wrestler for 7 years, strives to continue
wrestling in college. Every day, Bryan assists to Push-as-Rx ®™, where he
trains hard and pushes himself in order to achieve his goal of becoming an
Olympian. At Push as Rx, Bryan makes the best of his work outs and together
with the trainer's care, his endurance has helped him to exceed more than what
he has already been accomplished. Bryan Filidor is grateful for coming to
Push-as-Rx ®™ because the trainers are there for him, no matter what. Dr. Alex
Jimenez treated Bryan using chiropractic treatment and personally trained him
together with Alexander Jimenez through a series of strengthening programs to
help him achieve his ultimate fitness performance.
The clinic and the PUSH-as-Rx ®™ system is leading the
field with laser focus supporting our youth sport programs.
The PUSH-as-Rx ®™ System is a sport specific athletic program
designed by a strength-agility coach and physiology doctor with a combined 40
years of experience working with extreme athletes. At its core, the program is
the multidisciplinary study of reactive agility, body mechanics and extreme
motion dynamics. Through continuous and detailed assessments of the athletes in
motion and while under direct supervised stress loads, a clear quantitative
picture of body dynamics emerges. Exposure to the biomechanical vulnerabilities
are presented to our team. Immediately, we adjust our methods for
our athletes in order to optimize performance. This highly adaptive
system with continual dynamic adjustments has helped many of our athletes
come back faster, stronger, and ready post injury while safely minimizing
recovery times. Results demonstrate clear improved agility, speed, decreased
reaction time with greatly improved postural-torque
mechanics. PUSH-as-Rx ®™ offers specialized extreme performance
enhancements to our athletes no matter the age.
By Dr. Alex Jimenez
