Exercises To Prevent Injuries To The Wrist

In most sports, especially gymnastics, the wrist is forced to hold an overwhelming amount of weight, and is exposed to huge amount of trauma by performing different activities that exceed normal daily activity. 

While doing a tumbling or a handstand, the wrist of a gymnast is often required to hold his own bodyweight while bending his wrist backwards. Also, most of the movements done by the gymnast require fast and sudden movements that may stress their wrists and hands too much.

Daily exposure to this kind of stress may cause fractures, sprains and dislocations to the wrist of an individual. Luckily, there are several exercises that you can perform to avoid to protect your wrist for these kinds of injuries.

1. Wrist Extensor Stretch

Extend your hands with your palm facing up and elbows straight. Using your other hand, pull your extended hand downwards. You would feel a mild to moderate stretch in your wrist while doing this. Hold this position for 10-15 seconds and then repeat using your other hand. Do it for three sets.

2. Wrist Flexor Stretch

Stretch your hands by keeping your elbow straight and then pull your wrist backwards using your other hand. During the exercise, you should feel a mild to moderate stretch. Hold this position for 10-15 seconds before repeating with your other hand. Repeat for three sets.

3. Resistance Band Wrist Flexion

Using a resistance band, wrap the band around your hand while your palm is facing up. Put your elbow by your side and keep your elbow bent at a 90-degree angle before slowly curling your wrist up, just like doing a dumbbell curls. Do it for 15 repetitions before repeating on your other wrist.

4. Resistant Band Wrist Extension

Wrap the resistance band around your hand with your palm facing down. Keep your elbows at your side and keep it bent to 90 degrees and curl your wrist up slowly, just like doing a reverse dumbbell curls. Perform 10-15 repetitions before repeating on your other wrist.

5. Tennis Ball Squeeze

Grab a tennis ball and squeeze it as hard as you can without hurting yourself. Do it for 5-10 seconds and repeat 8-10 times.

It is very important to take care of your wrists as it serves a lot of function for you as a gymnast, and as an individual. However, keep in mind that these exercises are meant for preventative measures only and are in no way to be used to cure existing injuries. If you are already injured, you should consult your physician and you should not just rely on information found on the internet.

If you are looking for a great and reliable school that teaches gymnastics for kids you could check and visit the official website of Bianka Panova Academy.

Common Gymnastics Injuries and How to Avoid Them

Gymnastics is a very demanding sport that needs to start when a child is still young, while her body is still soft and developing. Aspiring professional gymnasts undergo years of severe training to make their bodies flexible and gain an amazing balance on the floor, beam, bars, or rings.

A gymnast jumps and lands on her feet or hands, runs, dismounts, swings, flips and do all sorts of body expressions. She uses the whole of her body in a routine with a tremendous force, from sole to the tip of her fingers, causing stress on the shoulders, elbows, wrists and hands.

It is because of this intense training that gymnasts are prone to injuries. Their muscles, joints, ligaments and tendons are stressed for years. Their kind of training makes small wears and tears on a young gymnast’s body, and through the years they accumulate.

Your child might look healthy now, but later on small injuries might start occurring. It is important that you, as a parent, know what to watch out for and, if it did happen, know what to do about it.

Common Gymnastic Injuries

1. Sprained ankles – These are due to floor routines or falls from the balance beam or parallel bars. If the ankle rolls outward while the foot rolls inward, it can cause ligaments outside the ankle to stretch and tear.

2. Achilles Tendonitis – This is another foot injury. The Achilles tendon is just above the back of the heel and can be injured because of repetitive stress of jumping and landing. This injury is the Achilles Tendonitis, where the tendon is swollen and painful.

3. Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury – An ACL injury occurs when a gymnast lands short or is over-rotated when tumbling, dismounting or vaulting. The ACL is found on the knee, providing stability, and can rupture when twisted suddenly under high forces.

4. Spondylolysis – This is a back injury caused by strains and breaks. It occurs in a specific part of one or more vertebrae.

5. Herniated Discs – This happens when the lumbar segments become misaligned, putting pressure on the nerves of the spinal cord.

6. Wrist Sprains – The wrist is the most heavily used part of the body in gymnastics and a constant strain to this part of the body lead to sprains, tears or tendonitis.

Prevent or Cure Injuries

As much as possible, it is best to prevent the injuries listed above. On how to avoid injuries, read: Protect Your Young Gymnast From Injuries

However, if an injury did happen, almost all hospitals offer physical therapies. Therapists will work with the injured to reduce pain and get them back on the bars and mat as soon as possible.

Get updated on all important health information by following the posts on our Facebook Page. Looking for a fun and exciting way to learn gymnastics? Then come and enroll atBianka Panova Sport and Art Academy today :) Come and learn gymnastics for kids with us!

What You Need To Know About Concussions

Concussion is one of the most serious risks to young athletes. Kids’ body, at a young age, is still developing and therefore weaker than an adult’s. Whether the athlete plays football, hockey, soccer, baseball or any number of other sports that uses force or requires vigorous physical activities, a serious hit to the head or a repeated mild force causes a concussion, which manifest itself in different symptoms.

The Centers for Disease Control defines concussion as a brain injury that affects how our brain works and it happens even when the person who has a concussion haven’t been knocked unconscious.

The symptoms for this injury vary from person to person and with each injury, but the common symptoms include:

•Headache

•Confusion

•Nausea or vomiting

•Difficulty remembering or paying attention

•Balance problems or dizziness

•Feeling sluggish, hazy, foggy or groggy

•Slowed reaction time

•Sleep problems

•Double or blurry vision

•Bothered by light or noise

If you think your kid have a concussion, they should not be allowed to return to play on the day of the injury and should be brought immediately to the doctor. Playing with concussion increases the risk of repeat concussions, and these take longer to recover, causing a delay to your kid’s return to play. Repeat concussions in young athletes could also result to brain swelling or permanent damage to the brain, could even be fatal.

(Also read: Protect Your Young Gymnast From Injuries)

Get updated on all important health information by following the posts on our Facebook Page. Looking for a fun and exciting way to learn gymnastics? Then come and enroll atBianka Panova Sport and Art Academy today :) Come and learn gymnastics for kids with us!