It’s football season again and whether you are an athlete on the field or a fan in the stands, there are many similarities to how the joints and muscles are being used and what it takes to keep them functioning properly.
Joint Health
Joints are the area where bones connect. They contain a piece of cartilage and synovial fluid enclosed in a capsule-like shape. There are different joints for different kinds of movements.
Hip joints flex and extend and are important on the field while running and in the stands while standing or sitting. The hip joint is also capable of rotational movement. Football players use this motion when they are twisting, turning, crouching, or doing quick pivot motions during the game. Fans use this rotational movement when they are turning to speak to a fellow fan.
Because safe movement of joints is important to players and fans alike, it is important to spend a short amount of time before leaving to go to the game to get your joints optimally ready for a full range of motion during the game. This can be done in a series of short exercises taking no more than five to ten minutes.
Squatting fully down and standing back up, raising your knees one at a time and doing a full circle motion with your hips both clockwise and counterclockwise will help keep the joints limber and ready for motion at any time during the game. This is equally important for your little athletes on the stands waiting for their turn to play and should be done once or twice every thirty minutes on the bench.
Benefits of Healthy Joints
There are numerous advantages to doing these exercises including improving both performance and endurance as joint function increases, maintaining healthy joints and decreasing stiffness. Regularly seeing one of our chiropractors will also help keep your joints aligned, healthy, and strong.
For the joint to function properly, proper hydration is imperative. Drinking plenty of water each day both if playing and spectating will help your body with proper cellular function and joint lubrication.
A person should consume half of their body weight in ounces of water daily. An example of this would be a person who weighs 150 pounds should be drinking 75 ounces of water daily. If that person is an athlete, they will need to increase that number to account for energy being expended during practices and games. Decreasing the amount of caffeine and alcohol will also help the body stay hydrated.
Chiropractic Treatment For Football Players
How do chiropractic adjustments play a role and benefit both athletes and fans? For an athlete, regular adjustments help to increase the joint functions, optimizing performance, and also help with recovery time from injuries.
For sports fans, chiropractic care can help fans make it thru an entire game of harsh periods of standing, sitting on hard bleachers, and battling stiffness and achiness that comes with those conditions. Our Snellville chiropractors are standing by and ready to assist you.
Call (404) 889-8826 today and get us on your team this football season.