Anankle sprain is a common injury in athletes. Ankle sprains occur when the ligaments surrounding the ankle joint are stretched or even torn when the ankle joint and foot is turned, twisted or forced beyond it’s normal range of motion. This usually happens during a missed step or a hard landing. Ankle sprains vary in severity and are classified by the degree of severity.

• Grade I – stretch and/or minor tear of the ligament without laxity (loosening)
• Grade II – tear of ligament plus some laxity
• Grade III – complete tear of the affected ligament (very loose)

Step One – Assess Joint Alignment

After an ankle injury, a sports medicine physician will assess the joint for misalignment or structural defects caused by the ankle sprain. He will check the joint alignment and test for weakness or deficits in soft tissues (tendons, ligaments, and cartilage). If there are any deficits, your injury may require taping, bracing or in severe sprains, surgery.

Step Two – Assess Joint Stability

Once joint alignment is corrected, joint stability is addressed. Specific exercises are prescribed to help restore ankle stability and function. These exercises are progressive and generally prescribed for each of the following areas:

• Range of Motion / Flexibility Exercises
• Balance / Proprioception Exercises
• Progressive Strength Exercises
• Progressive Endurance Exercises
• Agility / Plyometric Exercises

Step Three – Ankle Sprain Rehab Exercises

The following exercises can be used to rehab a Grade I ankle sprain. If your sprain is more severe, you should follow the plan prescribed by your physician and physical therapist.You should always work with your own physical therapist to design the best program for your specific injury and your limitations.

Ankle Flexibility Exercises

As soon as you can tolerate movement in the ankle joint and swelling has stopped, you can begin gentle stretching and range of motion exercises of the ankle joint.

Although poor eating habits get a lot of the blame for the rise inchildhood obesity, another very big factor is that kids just aren’t as active as they used to be.Unfortunately, the focus for many people on battling childhood obesity is only on improving nutrition, like making school lunches more nutritious and taking soda out of schools, but doesn’t do enough to actually get kids more active.

As with improving their child’s eating habits, parents can have an important role in helping their kids more physically active.

In addition to more physically active, unorganized free play, getting involved in youth sports, such as soccer, baseball, and gymnastics, etc., can be a good way to encourage kids to be active.

How Young Is Too Young For Sports?

Since most youth sports programs for young children are very noncompetitive and are just about getting kids to be active and learning some basic rules, even older toddlers and preschoolers can play some sports. In fact, many communities now have programs like Soccer Tots for toddlers who are 20 months and older.Depending on where you live, you might also find:

• Gymnastics – gymnastics programs are available for kids at almost any age, even infants and toddlers, like at The Little Gym, and get more physically demanding as your child gets older
• Swimming – although the AAP doesn’t recommend formal swimming lessons until children are 4 years old, an introduction to the water type Aquatics program is okay for toddlers if they are well supervised
• Flag Football – typically age 4 and above
• T-ball – typically age 4 to 7
• Soccer – the YMCA has a Small Fry Soccer program for preschoolers over age 3

Your local YMCA and their Youth Super Sports program is a good place to look for noncompetitive sports for younger kids. You might also find a youth sports program through your city, a private association, or a larger church in your area. Keep in mind that youth sports that are run by private associations tend to be more competitive than the YMCA, church groups, and most city leagues.

Benefits of Starting Sports Early

Although some parents try to avoid youth sports until their kids are older, like 9 or 10 years old, because they want to avoid what they think is a competitive environment for their younger children, it is important to remember that most youth sports for younger kids are noncompetitive.Of course, you could have your 7 year old tryout for a tournament baseball team that travels from state to state with the goal of going to the Little League World Series or a football team that practices 4 days a week, and they would both likely be ultra-competitive. But you could just as easily join a team at the YMCA that doesn’t have tryouts and doesn’t keep score.

Some benefits of starting sports early, in addition to teaching responsibility, teamwork, and commitment, etc., include:

• avoiding childhood obesity
• encouraging a healthy lifestyle and continued physical activity as they get older
• building motor skills
• making new friends
• less time to watch TV

And if your child starts playing sports early, he or she can play a variety of sports, or all of them, and get a better idea of which one they like best.

Team Sports vs Individual Sports

In addition to differences in motor skills and how well they play sports, kids can have very different personalities and temperaments. Some are outgoing and competitive and love to play team sports, like soccer, basketball, and baseball, while others are overwhelmed with the idea of being on the field with a large group of kids.If your child isn’t interested in team sports, that doesn’t mean that he can’t be active. There are many individual sports that might be a better fit, including:

• swimming
• gymnastics
• wrestling
• tennis
• golf
• martial arts
• track and field
• dance

Keep in mind that some kids don’t like team sports simply because they had a bad experience with one sport, team, or coach, and you might give another team or sport a chance or join a new team with a close friend so that he feels more comfortable.

Helping a Late Bloomer

Some children don’t like sports because they just aren’t as good as the other kids on the team. Especially for younger kids, there can be sharp differences in their abilities and developmental levels, but instead of giving up on sports, it can be a good idea to get your child some extra help so he can catch up. This can include gymnastics classes to improve general motor skills, enrolling in a skill and fitness program to help develop your child’s athletic skills, extra practice at home, or getting some lessons in the specific sport you are playing.

What Is Sports Psychology?:

What Do Sports Psychologists Do?:

How Much Do Sports Psychologists Typically Earn?:

What Type of Degree Do Sports Psychologists Need?:

Is a Career in Sports Psychology Right for Me?:

What Are the Pros and Cons of a Career in Sports Psychology?:

If you are scheduled forarthroscopic ACL surgery, there are some actions you can take to be better prepared for surgery and have a faster recovery.Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries of the knee are commonly treated with outpatient arthroscopic ACL surgery. In most cases, ACL surgery is scheduled far enough in advance to allow time for a patient and a surgeon to work together and develop a pre-surgery plan.

Most surgeons will provide a patient with pre-surgery instructions and answer any questions the patient may have well before surgery. Patients who follow these instructions and have appropriate expectations of the surgery tend to have a better surgical outcome and a faster recovery than patients who are less informed about the surgical procedure.

Preparing for ACL Surgery

Being prepared for your ACL surgery often results in a better surgical experience. The following list provides basic recommendations for preparing for a successful ACL surgery.

• Discuss Your Diagnosis. Be sure to thoroughly discuss with your doctor the details of your ACL injury, including the causes and treatment options.
• Ask Questions. Make sure you understand the potential risks, limitations, and benefits of the ACL surgery.
• Talk With Other Patients. If possible, talk with someone who has had the same procedure to learn first-hand what to expect.
• Understand The Surgery. Ask your doctor for details about how the surgery will be performed, and set appropriate expectations for both the day of surgery and the amount of time you will need to rehab.
• Get Healthy. Ask your surgeon what physical preparation you can do to ensure optimal health and faster recovery from surgery. In most cases, you will be advised to stop smoking and eat a healthy diet for several weeks prior to surgery to ensure adequatenutrition for healing.
• Stay Strong. Ask your surgeon what strengthening exercises you can do before surgery in order to recover faster. In many cases you will be able to swim or bicycle without causing further damage to the knee.
• Protect Your Knee. Also ask what activities you need to avoid before surgery to limit any further damage to the knee.
• Practice Using Crutches. Using crutches takes practice. Some surgeons advise patents to get comfortable using crutches in the weeks prior to surgery so you will be less likely to fall or stumble immediately after surgery.
• Ask About Your Medications. You may need to stop taking some medications prior to surgery so discuss all your current prescriptions with your surgeon.
• Inform Your Surgeon of Changes in Your Health. ACL surgery may need to be delayed if you have a fever or infection, so be sure to keep your surgeon advised of any changes in your health in the days prior to surgery.
• Follow Pre-op Instructions. Follow all pre-surgery preparation instructions, including what and when to eat and drink the night before or how to clean the surgical area.
• Arrange Transportation. ACL surgery is typically an outpatient procedure and you will go home the same day. Because you will be on medications, you’ll need someone to drive you home.
• Dress Comfortably. On the day of surgery, be sure to wear comfortable, loose-fitting clothing that will fit comfortably over your knee bandages or brace.
• Practice Relaxation Techniques. Use relaxation exercises or podcasts to maintain a confident and relaxed state of mind and reduce any anxiety you may have about undergoing surgery.
• Get Support. Have personal support with you. Bringing a friend or loved one is a good way to help you stay relaxed before and after surgery.
• Plan Ahead. Keep in mind that you will be less active for six to eight weeks after the surgery. You should make arrangements for necessary assistance and help at home long before surgery.
• Notify Others. Inform anyone who needs to be aware of your limitations after surgery. Notify your employer, school or team to make necessary arrangements in your schedule.
• Contact Your Insurance Provider. Contact your insurance provider regarding your health benefit and out-of-pocket costs for an ACL surgery.

When it comes to training and competition, having the support of family, friends and teammates may just be an athlete’s secret weapon to improving sports success on game days.It may seem obvious that social support systems would help an athlete stick to a training program or eating a healthy diet, but does it really help you perform better during competition? Yes, it does, according to research on golfers.

Researcher Tim Rees reported that ongoing support of friends and family may be one of the most important factors influencing sports performance. He believes that the encouragement and support of friends and family is a key factor in building confidence in an athlete, and it’s this confidence that can lead to success in a high-pressure sporting event.

For the study, Rees asked nearly 200 elite golfers about their social support systems. They were also asked about their confidence and levels of stress or anxiety. After analyzing the results, Rees found that during stressful matches, players with strong social support systems improved their golf score by one shot per round of golf, whereas the players with little social support actually played worse and added up to three shots per round to their total score.

Other studies also show that high levels of confidence can improve sports success. These studies raise some interesting questions about how confidence, or what the researchers call “self-efficacy,” affects and athlete’s success. Belief in one’s sports ability is a large part of the drive that most elite athletes feel, but having a support system, made up of friends, family, a coach or a strong team is perhaps as important. In some cases, it appears to be the most important factor to an athlete’s success.

So, if this is the case, how do you develop a strong network and support system? Here are a few tips.

How to Create a Great Support System

• Ask for Support
  This is probably the easiest way to find support. Share your goals and plans and then ask you family and friends to help encourage you to achieve them. Those closest to you are probably your biggest fans, but may not know that you want or need their encouragement.
• Hire a Coach
  A good coach is your biggest support system. A coach takes care of details, keeps you focused, provides positive feedback, understands what you are going through and is completely invested in your personal success.
• Find a Training Partner
  A training partner who is at your level, or even a bit more advanced, can be your best friend and confident for sports. Seek out someone who will push you, encourage you and cheer you to the finish. Look for a training partner who is positive and encouraging and fun to be around.
• Join a Local Club or Group
  Finding support doesn’t have to mean working within your current network. Branch out and find new friends who share some of the same goals. If you run, and want to run your best 10K, find a local running group that is active, consistent and working towards the same goals. You may find that these people are the same ones cheering you on to the finish line at your local fun runs.
• Lead By Example
  Are you enthusiastic about your training workouts and competitions? If you grumble to your spouse, drag your feet to the gym and moan about your aches an pains to your friends, don’t be surprised if they discourage you from participating in a sport that makes you miserable. If you want others to support you, you need to give them a reason to support you.
• Support Others
  Anotehr great way to build a support system is to provide support to others. Enthusiasm and encouragement can be contagious and encouraging others to perform their best often results in them doing the same for you.

Frequently athletes react to injuries with wide range of emotions including denial, anger, and even depression. An injury often seems unfair to anyone who has been physically active and otherwise healthy. Although your feelings are real, its important to move beyond the negative and find more positive strategies to cope with this setback. In many cases dealing gracefully with an injury will make you a more focused, flexible, and resilient athlete. Here are some suggestions for coping with an injury.Learn About Your Injury
Learn as much as possible about the cause, treatment and prevention of your injury. Not fully understanding an injury can cause fear or anxiety. Learnhow to talk to your doctor. Ask the following questions of your doctor, trainer, coach or therapist until you know exactly what you can do to heal quickly and fully.

• What is my diagnosis (what type of injury do I have)?
• How long will recovery take?
• What is the purpose of the treatments I am receiving?
• What should I expect during rehab?
• What alternative workouts can I safely do?
• What are the warning signs that I am getting worse?

By understanding the injury and knowing what to expect during the rehabilitation process, you will feel less anxiety and a greater sense of control.

Accept Responsibility for Your Injury
This is not to say that the injury is your fault. What this means is that you accept that now you have an injury and you are the only one that truly determine your outcome. By taking on responsibility for your recovery process you will find a greater sense of control and will quickly progress in recovery, rather than dwelling on the past or blaming the injury on an outside factor.

Monitor Your Attitude
To heal quickly you need to be committed to overcoming your injury by showing up for your treatments, working hard, and listening and doing what your doctor and/or athletic trainer tells you to do. You also need to monitor what you are thinking and saying to yourself regarding the injury and the rehab process.Your self-talk is important. Are your thoughts negative and self-defeating? To get the most out of your daily rehab, you need to work hard and maintain a positive attitude. Remain focused on what you need to do.

Use the Mind to Heal the Body
Growing research shows that it may be possible to speed up the healing process by using specific mental skills and techniques such as imagery and self-hypnosis. Imagery techniques use all of the senses to create mental images, feelings and sensations related to a desired outcome as though it is happening now or has already happened. For more information, see:How to Use Imagery – Step-by-Step Guide

Get Support
A common response after an injury is to isolate yourself from teammates, coaches, and friends. It is important to maintain contact with others as you recover from your injury. Your teammates, friends and coach can listen when you need to vent some anger, or can offer advice or encouragement during the rehab process. Just knowing you don’t have to face the injury alone can also be a tremendous comfort. So, go to practice; remain around the locker room and the weight room. Be visible by being an active member of the group.

Set Goals
Just because you are injured doesn’t mean you stop planning or setting goals. Rather than viewing the injury as a crisis, make it another training challenge. You goals will now focus on recovery rather than performance. This will help keep you motivated. By monitoring your goals you will also be able to notice small improvements in the rehab of your injury. You will feel more confident that you are getting better and improving.

Remember to work closely with your therapist or doctor. They can help you set realistic goals that are in line with each stage of your rehab. Most athletes have a tendency to try to speed-up the recovery by doing too much too soon. It is important to accept that you are injured and know your limits.

Maintain Your Fitness While Injured
Depending upon the type of injury you have, you may be able to modify your training or add alternate forms of training to maintain cardiovascular conditioning or strength. Work with your trainer, therapist or physician to establish a good alternative workout program. If you can’t run, perhaps you can cycle or swim.

Work on relaxation training and flexibility. Create a modified strength training program, do alimited amount of exercise to maintain cardiovascular fitness or focus onbetter nutritional health.

With the right knowledge, support and patience an injury can be overcome without turning your whole world upside down. By taking things slow, setting realistic goals and maintaining a positive, focused approach most athletes can overcome minor injuries quickly and major injuries in time. Make sure you see your doctor for a proper diagnosis and treatment plan for any injury.

We’ve all seen athletes performing ritual movements before competition and have heard stories about the baseball player with his lucky socks or the hockey player with his favorite stick. In fact, in pro sports, superstition and ritual is widespread and considered normal. To the onlooker, it may seem silly and strange, but if you consider how athletes use these rituals, you might see that many of them are strategies also used in the world of sports psychology. In fact, for some players these patterns may actually influence success of the field.The Power of Rituals in Sports
A ritual is a certain behavior or action that an athlete performs with the belief that these behaviors have a specific purpose, or power, to influence their performance. Many athletes believe that performing a specific ritual before competition improves their performance. These rituals range from the clothes they wear to the foods they eat or drink; the warm up they perform or even the music they listen to.

The Power of Superstition in Sports
Superstition is generally something that is initially developed in hindsight, almost by accident and then required in future events. A superstition arises when an athlete has a particularly good (or bad) performance and then tries to establish “cause and effect” by reviewing the facts of the day. They will notice things like what they ate or wore and they’ll notice anything unusual that happened such as getting a haircut, receiving a gift or hearing a certain song. If they have a great performance they attribute their success to that unusual circumstance and attempt to recreate it before every competition.

The Value of Superstition and Ritual in Sports
Perhaps the real value in superstition and ritual is the boost of confidence and the sense of control that they provide an athlete. If you believe that doing a specific action or behavior will make you perform better, then you probably will perform better. This is the foundation of sports psychology. Many athletes use rituals such asvisualization or guided imagery, to recreate a particularly successful race and experience the feelings they had then as though they are happening now. This recall and visualization prepares them both mentally and physically for competition.

Can you speed up the healing process by using your mind? It’s not as strange as it may sound. Growing research is finding that it may be possible to speed up the healing process by using specific mental skills and techniques and maintaining a positive mindset. Researchers have been studying how the mind influences healing for decades.A 2006 qualitative analysis of the use of imagery by injured athletes concluded that “the implementation of imagery alongside physical rehabilitation should enhance the rehabilitation experience and, therefore, facilitate the recovery rates of injured athletes.” Another study looked at the differences in people who healed quickly and those who healed slowly and found some significant differences. Those who healed faster had the following characteristics:

• Took personal responsibility for their recovery process
• Had high motivation, desire and determination
• Had more social support
• Maintained a positive attitude
• Frequently used imagery and other visualization techniques
• Expected a full and successful return to sports

What is Imagery?

One specific technique that is often used in sports psychology and in healing is called imagery. This is also sometimes referred to as guided imagery, mental rehearsal or self-hypnosis. These are all terms used to describe specific techniques that use all of the senses to create mental images, feelings and sensations related to a desired outcome as though it is happening now or has already happened. By using all your senses to create this very real experience of having the desired outcome, you mentally and physically rehearse this desired state.Research on imagery use by injured athletes, cancer patients, and those undergoing physical rehabilitation has shown that using imagery has many positive outcomes including:

• Increased feelings of control
• Increased rate of healing
• Increased ability to cope with therapy
• Increased motivation to participate in self-care
• Improved mood
• Improved quality of life
• Decreased post-operative pain
• Decreased post-operative anxiety
• Reduced length of time in the hospital
• Decreased amount of pain medication taken

When to Use Imagery Techniques

There are many uses of imagery or self-hypnosis in sports medicine. These techniques have been found to be useful in injury recovery, pain reduction, sports performance enhancement and general stress management. There are possibly many more uses that haven’t yet been studied.Imagery for Pain Reduction
The idea behind using imagery for pain reduction is built upon the principle of relaxation. When muscles are relaxed, they hold less tension. This often leads to reductions in the experience of pain. Imagery techniques that often help increase relaxation and reduce pain include imagining the sensation of getting a massage, sitting on a warm beach or taking a hot bath. Some people have success with imagery by imagining pain being released from the body in a visual way, such as being breathed out with each exhalation. If you mentally rehearse experiences such as this in great detail, you are using imagery.

Imagery for Healing
Just as people use imagery for reducing pain, individuals have reported that similar techniques work for promoting healing and recovery. Examples of healing imagery include imaging a broken bone being glued back together or torn muscles woven back together. Some people use warm, healing colors to promote a feeling of warmth over a body part. Even silly images of strength and power found in comic books have been used successfully to aid healing.

What is Imagery?

Imagery, sometimes called guided imagery,visualization, mental rehearsal, or self-hypnosis, refers to specific techniques often used by psychologists to help individuals visualize or mentally rehearse a desired event. It involves using all of the senses to create an imagined experience that feels real. By using all your senses you create a very real experience of having the desired outcome.

How to Use Imagery – Step-by-Step Guide

The first time you try imagery it’s helpful to have a skilled facilitator or practitioner walk you through the process. This is referred to as guided imagery. You can also use CDs or tapes, or record your own script to use as your guide. After you are comfortable with the technique, it’s easy to practice these techniques on your own.

1. Sit in a comfortable place where you wont be interrupted.
2. Relax your body and take several long, slow breaths.
3. Close your eyes and create a vivid and convincing image. This image can be one you’ve previously experienced, or one you simply desire.
4. If you become distracted or find you are thinking about something else, simply acknowledge it and let it go.
5. Focus on your breathing if you lose the image.
6. Maintain a positive attitude.
7. Imagine the sights, sounds, tastes, feelings, and even smells of the experience.
8. Take note of as much detail of the scene as possible. What are you wearing, who is there, what are you hearing, how do you feel?
9. If your imagery session is not going the way you want it to, simply open your eyes and start over with your breathing.
10. Always end an imagery session with a positive image.

Imagery and Sports

Athletes have many opportunities to try the various imagery or self-hypnosis techniques. From injury recovery to improved sports performance, these techniques are showing promise as a standard part of an athlete’s training program.

Shop for Guided Imagery and Self-Hypnosis Books or CDs

• Self-Healing With Guided Imagery CD – from Dr. Andrew Weil.
• The Soul Of Healing Meditations CD – from Deepak Chopra and Adam Plack.
• CDs for Healing Meditations
• Books on Meditation and Healing
  _Source

  Driediger, Molly ; Hall, Craig ; Callow, Nichola, Imagery use by injured athletes: a qualitative analysis. Journal of Sports Sciences, March, 2006

  Evans, Lynne; Hare, Rebecca; and Mullen, Richard, Imagery Use During Rehabilitation from Injury, Journal of Imagery Research in Sport and Physical Activity, Vol. 1. 2006

  Ievleva and Orlick, Mental Links to Enhanced Healing: An Exploratory Study, TSP, 5(1), March 1991.