As an athlete or an occasional sportsman or woman, there is nothing you can do to avoid injuries. Professional athletes and sports persons hate injuries because they not only stop them from playing but also halt their career progression. Sports injuries may also prevent individuals from continuing with their normal day-to-day lives.

One of the fastest ways to heal sports injuries is physiotherapy. Proper physiotherapy can get you back in action in double-quick time. Many people underestimate just how important physiotherapy is but its therapeutic value is proven and it can restore health. Physiotherapy can also prevent certain injuries from occurring. These key benefits of physiotherapy are the reason why most professional sports teams have physiotherapists among their support staff.

However, not every physiotherapist has the same ability as the next one. This is because most have different educational backgrounds, training experiences, values, and pieces of equipment. All these things will determine how a physiotherapist will evaluate your condition and plan your treatment and rehabilitation.

How Physiotherapists Treat Sports Injuries

1. Evaluation

The first step is evaluation and it takes place during the first meeting. The meeting is usually a long one and is meant for the physiotherapist to evaluate the injury and find out what exactly the problem is. The meeting usually starts with questions as the physiotherapist seeks to understand how the injury occurred. And then after the questions, several tests may be done to actually pinpoint the problem. After finding out what the problem is, the physiotherapist will proceed to draft a treatment plan.

2. Treatment

Treatment or rehabilitation is what follows the first evaluation. The treatment is usually based on the evaluation and the plan formulated thereafter. There are several Ottawa physiotherapy centers where you can get various forms of physiotherapy treatments including soft tissue mobilization, taping, cold therapy, heat therapy, Tens, and total immobilization.

Physiotherapists often use one or two of these interventions to initiate recovery, control swelling, reduce pain, or prevent further harm. The intervention of choice usually depends on the nature of the injury.

After the initial intervention reduces the pain, several remedies include various massages, strengthening workouts, and motions are normally introduced to commence rehabilitation. The purpose of rehabilitation is to return the injured area to normal. To ensure the area regains its muscle function and strength.

Preventive Physiotherapy

As mentioned earlier, in addition to dealing with sports injuries, physiotherapists can also help sportsmen and women to be less prone to injuries. They usually do this by employing various tactics such as:

  • Prescribing core strengthening exercises: Core strengthening exercises such as those that strengthen the lower back muscles, the oblique muscles and the abs, can help to build a strong core that can support complex movements and make injuries less likely.
  • Prescribing stretching patterns: Stretching patterns can help to loosen up tight muscles and make injuries less likely.
  • Providing education about the essence of proper warm-up: Proper warm-up is the most common way of preventing muscle injuries.
  • Providing education about the right way to workout: Proper form of doing exercises and playing sports helps to reduce the likelihood of getting injured.
  • Providing education about the right shoes, sports gear, and protective bracing or taping to prevent injury.

Physiotherapy is not just about treating sports injuries. It is more than that. It is about using a wide variety of remedies, interventions, and rehabilitation strategies to heal injuries and to ensure both the body and the mind are of optimal health and are working in sync.

A professional physiotherapist will have the right expertise to ensure both your body and mind are in perfect condition for sports and day-to-day life. So seek professional help when injured or in any sort of problem. There are quite a number of Sports Rehab centers in Ottawa. They offer a variety of injury remediation and rehabilitation strategies. So do not hold back if injured. Get the help you need to get back to doing what you love.