How to take the strain out of injuries this summer

For many people, spring and summer involve lawn mowing, gardening, home repairs and outdoor exercise.

Unfortunately, the more active you are, the higher your chance of injury. It is common during the warmer months for people to experience acute pain caused by strains (the stretching or tearing of muscles or tendons) or sprains (the stretching or tearing of ligaments).

Tips

Here are a few tips to help you get ready for the summer:

Start slow to prevent injuries. Do not expect to be in the same physical condition you were in last fall, even if you have been maintaining your fitness levels.

Different activities require muscles and joints to respond in a different way.

This may result in minor soreness while your body adjusts. If you push yourself too hard too soon that minor soreness could turn into something more serious.

Do not forget to warm up. Although you may feel warm in good weather, you still have to give your muscles a chance to go through the motions to get the blood pumping to all the necessary areas.

Gentle stretching before finishing your activity will help those hardworking muscles retain and improve flexibility.

Take frequent breaks. Even tennis pros rest between sets.

Taking a rest does not mean you have to completely stop all activity (although it may be advisable sometimes).

Just rest the body parts that are working hard and are susceptible to injury.

Drink lots of water. Keeping well hydrated will help to keep the joints lubricated and also prevent muscle cramps.

Pay attention to your body. Do not ignore the little aches and pains in the joints and muscles. They are early signals that could help you prevent more serious injuries.

Treatment

For strains and sprains like tennis elbow and runner’s knee, try the R.I.C.E. — Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation — treatment method.

Rest the injured part. Pain is the body’s signal to not move an injury.

Ice the injury. This will limit the swelling and help with the spasm.

Compress the injured area. Wrapping the injury in an ACE bandage also limits the swelling. Be careful not to apply a wrap so tightly that it might act as a tourniquet and cut off the blood supply.

Elevate the injured part. This lets gravity help to reduce the swelling by allowing fluid and blood to drain down to the heart.

Medication

Over-the-counter pain medication is another option for treatment that your doctor or pharmacist may recommend.

Acetaminophen (Tylenol) is helpful for pain, but ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil, Nurofen or Cuprofen) or aspirin might be better, depending on your injury, because these medications relieve both pain and inflammation.

Remember to follow the guidelines on the bottle for appropriate amounts of medicine, especially for children and teenagers.

Staying active is an important part of the game in maintaining a healthy lifestyle so do not let those strains and sprains put you on the bench this summer.

Stephanie Simons is the head pharmacist at Lindo’s Pharmacy in Devonshire. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and has been practising for more than 20 years. She is a registered pharmacist with the Bermuda Pharmacy Council and the Bermuda Pharmaceutical Association. For more information, visit Lindo’s at www.lindos.bm.