Baseball & Softball
Baseball players feet and ankles take incredible punishment on the field. Inadequate conditioning and lack of pregame stretching are significant contributors to injury. Poorly fitting shoes especially for pitchers take their toll on feet and toes. Players require great toe flexion, ankle rotation, multiple muscle layer contraction and Achilles Tendon stretch to remain game-ready day-after-day.
Repeated stressful motions over time ultimately lead to the most common foot and ankle problems for baseball players. Taking these risks seriously and minimizing them with adequate conditioning and stretching is paramount.
The Achilles tendon, stretches from the calf muscle to the heel and although it is the strongest tendon in the body, it is prone to overuse injuries. Normal play and moves in many sports and activities place incredible stress on the tendon making it prone to tendonitis. This inflammation of the tendon leads to pain and stiffness in the calf and a limited range of motion.
Possibly the most common sports injuries are ankle sprains to varying degrees of severity. At some point in an athlete’s career, he or she will experience at least one ankle sprain. When they do occur, proper rehabilitation and conditioning are critical. Studies show that players who have had an ankle sprain are five times more likely to suffer repeat injuries.
Shin splints is an inflammation of the muscles, tendons, and bone tissue around the large bone in your lower leg (tibia) which is commonly known as the shinbone. The pain typically occurs toward the inner front of the bone between the knee and ankle where muscles attach to the bone. Shin splints frequently affect athletes who regularly engage in moderate to heavy physical activity in sports such as tennis, racquetball, soccer or basketball. Pain can be so severe that all sports activity must be halted.
While tendons and muscles bend and stretch, your bones are rigid. When especially young athletes place constant stress on their bones, this injury can occur. A stress fracture is a small crack in the bone brought on by repeated direct stress to a particular spot.
Baseball is a physically demanding sport and foot and ankle injuries are sometimes unavoidable. You can however, reduce your potential risk of these far too common injuries by maintaining optimum foot and ankle flexibility and strength to maximize mobility by using AnkleSTONE® as part of your daily conditioning program. Should an injury occur, seek medical attention to accurately diagnose and treat your injury. Once cleared for rehabilitation, use AnkleSTONE® Therapy for game readiness. Our therapy can be extremely effective at easing and even eliminating the pain caused by many injuries. Always make sure you are cleared by your medical professional to begin physical therapy before exercising.
$30 Off today!
