Tag: sports injury
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Why Beer Doesn’t Make a Good Sports Drink
Maybe it’s obvious to you. But wishful thinking can be a powerful force for distortion. I mean, wouldn’t it be nice to think that tossing down a bottle of beer after a sweaty workout was actually the healthy thing to do? And some people have claimed just that, notably an article in the Telegraph newspaper.…
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California’s New Sports Concussion Law Doesn’t Go Far Enough
California took a step forward yesterday when Gov. Jerry Brown signed a law limiting contact in American tackle football practices. One provision of the law could affect soccer, hockey and other contact sports as well as football. But it doesn’t go far enough. California’s new law restricts full contact in high school and middle school…
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New Studies Show How to Prevent Hamstring Injuries
When U.S. national soccer team striker Jozy Altidore clutched his thigh and fell to the ground in the World Cup last month, physical therapist Holly Silvers thought once again of Russian hamstring exercises. No less than three other members of the team (Fabian Johnson, Matt Besler and Deandre Yedlin) reportedly suffered injuries to this muscle…
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Scant Evidence that Stretching Prevents Injury
Stretching prevents injury. That idea was drilled into my head at an early age, and I can’t quite get rid of it. Since I was a child, my P.E. teachers and coaches preached the virtue of stretching so consistently, that the pre-game stretch became almost like a religious ritual. So I was shocked to find out…
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Balance Training Reduces Ankle Injury
Knee injuries may grab the headlines more than any other type of athletic injury, perhaps because they can end an athlete’s career. But ankles get hurt more often, and these injuries can be pretty devastating, too. Many of the same exercises that we’ve discussed for knee injury prevention can help protect ankles as well. But…
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Does Soccer Heading Cause Brain Damage?
As a soccer coach, I’ve often yelled at my players to head the ball before it reaches the ground. And anyone who has watched the World Cup this year knows what a beautiful role heading plays in the game, with Robin van Persie’s goal in the Netherlands vs. Spain game a prime example. But given…
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Increasing Power and Speed for Soccer Players
If you’ve been watching the World Cup, you may have noticed that the best soccer players often go airborne. That’s been true for a number of years, as you can see in this video of the top World Cup headers. But what goes up must come down, and how you land can determine how long…
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How Soccer Players Should Build Muscles
“Can’t I get in shape for soccer just by playing more soccer?” my son asked me recently. It’s a natural assumption. After all, your body does adapt to whatever activity you do. But the answer is “no.” Think about it. Professionals — the people who play soccer the most — still get hurt doing it.…
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How to Prevent Knee Injuries in Soccer
It almost seems if you play soccer long enough, you will hurt a knee. A lot of players will be missing from the World Cup this year for that reason: Colombia’s star striker Radamel Facao, midfielder Kevin Strootman of the Netherlands, Ecuador’s Segundo Castillo, Germany’s Holger Badstuber and England’sTheo Walcott, to name a few.
