Sports Physiotherapy

Athletes, both amateur and professional, sometimes overlook the important preventive role that sports physiotherapy plays in their training and their sporting goals.

Seeing a physiotherapist is essential: they help us prevent injuries caused by muscle overload and even correct bad training habits that could eventually lead to injury and, as a result, to a forced and unwanted break from our favourite sport.

What is SPORTS PHYSIOTHERAPY?

SPORTS PHYSIOTHERAPY is a physiotherapy speciality whose main goal is the rehabilitation, care and prevention of athletes, as well as providing them with correct guidelines for their postural and training habits and controlling the risk factors that predispose them to injury.

Since there are many types of sports and physical activities, sports physiotherapy covers the treatment of multiple injuries and conditions using different techniques (the choice of one or another depends on the type of injury and its severity).

How can the physiotherapist help you at each stage?

Pre-competition

Your physiotherapist will prepare you for competition. In the days beforehand, treatment can be carried out to prepare the muscles. It is ideal for athletes with a heavy workload in the preceding weeks and must be done at least FOUR days in advance. The goals are as follows:

• Relieving muscle hypertonia (contractures and myofascial trigger points).
• Normalising bioelectrical processes.
• Normalising the muscles' energy storage capacity (the structures' capacity to handle overtraining).
• Preventing overuse injuries such as tendinitis or stress fractures.

The treatment should be general and/or cover the whole limb, using superficial and deep friction, superficial and deep kneading, digital pressure on trigger points, etc. The manoeuvres are performed at medium-high intensity and can be combined with stretching during or afterwards and with complements such as Kinesio taping.

Treatment during competition or physical activity

It is used, essentially, to solve small problems that arise during activity: reactivating the athlete or easing contractures or discomfort during exercise. These are gentle treatments that allow the athlete to carry on in the moment.

Post-competition treatment

Immediately or up to THREE days after finishing; during the primary restitution or rapid recovery phase.

It is used to:

• Reduce muscle hypertonia resulting from intense physical activity.
• Eliminate as quickly as possible the “toxic substances” produced by muscle contraction.
• Achieve muscle cooling.

TIPS:

• PRE-competition TREATMENT prepares the athlete for the effort they will make during sport. (DURING THE VOLUME TRAINING PHASE)
• TREATMENT during competition serves to solve small problems arising during sport. (DURING COMPETITION)
• POST-competition TREATMENT is applied to reduce muscle hypertonia. (UP TO 3 DAYS AFTER COMPETITION)

Listen to your body and don't let injury stop you — we are here to help you at every stage 🙂