You may be wondering what sports medicine chiropractors do. Dr Ashley Martin is a St Petersburg Chiropractor specializing in the treatment and prevention of athletic injuries. Sports medicine chiropractors have specialized training in diagnosing and treating sports-related injuries. If you are an athlete or have a family member who is an athlete, it is essential to know about the benefits of sports medicine chiropractic care. Here are seven things you need to know about sports medicine chiropractors:
1) They can help prevent and treat injuries-
Injuries are prevalent among athletes that play sports. Sports medicine chiropractors have been trained specifically in the area of helping to prevent and treat athletic injuries. They can help with several different injuries, including back pain, muscle knots, muscle spasms, strains, and sprains, among other things.
2) They perform a type of adjustment called an “adjusting force impulse” adjustment-
One type of adjusting performed by sports medicine chiropractors is an adjusting force impulse (or an IF adjustment). An IF adjustment involves quickly moving the part of your body that needs to be adjusted while applying slight pressure. This allows the chiropractor to check if your bones are lined up properly. If they’re not lined up correctly, your chiropractor will bring them into better alignment. For example, if you’ve been in a car accident and suffered an injury to your spine, the chiropractor will take X-rays of your body and determine which bones are not aligned properly. They’ll then use an IF adjustment to get the bones back into place.
3) Sports medicine chiropractors also offer education on how to prevent future injuries-
Sports medicine chiropractors want their patients to be educated on what they can do at home or work that can help prevent future injuries from occurring. For example, if you’re dealing with back pain, they may recommend stretches you can perform before doing certain activities to avoid making your condition worse.
4) They can improve flexibility and range of motion-
Physical therapists can help their patients improve flexibility and range of motion. For instance, if you sprained your ankle, the physical therapist would teach you how to restore your normal range of motion as quickly as possible. This is something that sports medicine chiropractors do as well.
5) Sports medicine chiropractors treat a wide variety of ailments-
Athletes aren’t the only people who visit sports medicine chiropractors. They treat a lot more than just athletes! Their patients include those who suffer from back pain, neck pain, headaches, repetitive stress injuries, accidents (car or otherwise), arthritis, and even fibromyalgia. They also assess nutrition plans and provide nutritional supplements if they feel it’s necessary.
As you can imagine, this means they are very knowledgeable about the body. They are well versed in anatomy, physiology, neurology, pathology, kinesiology, nutrition, and exercise science. If your regular chiropractor cannot help your condition or you need something beyond what they can provide, a sports medicine chiropractor may be beneficial.
6) They can speed up healing time-
If you have an injury, your body will be working extra hard to fight it off, so anything you can do to help with the healing process is beneficial. A sports medicine chiropractor has a lot of knowledge about human physiology to recommend or provide techniques that help speed up the entire recovery process. These procedures include ultrasound, electrical stimulation, traction, kinesiology taping, etc.
7) They are safe and effective for athletes of all ages-
Chiropractors have been practicing for over 100 years, so obviously, they are safe. They can provide treatments catered explicitly to athletes, and chiropractors will always try their best not to touch certain areas that could potentially be dangerous.
In professional sports, an injured athlete is a huge liability. That’s why sports medicine chiropractors are a secure and safe treatment for all the professional athletes out there. They are trained in the same way as traditional chiropractors but focus more on athletes and their specific injuries. But remember, always consult a professional before going ahead with the treatment.