Ankle sprains are very common in athletes yet can happen easily to anyone. Walking off a curb or stepping awkwardly, slipping on the grass, or tripping on the sidewalk are all common causes of ankle sprains.
You’ve heard it before – ”use it or lose it” – that goes for muscle flexibility too. In order for your muscle length to improve, or even stay at its current length, you need to develop a consistent routine. You brush your teeth every day, it’s time you stretch every day too.
Incorrect stretching can lead to muscle strains which could be more detrimental than not stretching at all. Flexibility is easy to achieve when completed regularly. Do your muscles, joints, and really your whole body a favor and start a stretching routine today.
Ankle sprains can vary in severity depending on the degree of injury to the ligaments. The severity can be on a spectrum from simply inflamed, to overstretched with microtears, to being torn completely. Depending on the injury, you could experience anything from simply pain, to a feeling of instability with walking.
Our lives are full of negative influences causing us to have a difficult time maintaining good posture. Modern conveniences promote a lot of sitting or distractions causing us to be sedentary and in prolonged positions for periods of time.
While repetitive activities and being over the age of 50 years-old are common factors for joint pains, prolonged postures and sedentary lifestyles can also affect our pain.
Movement helps our body make the ‘feel good hormones’ and endorphins that are stimulated with activity. The joints thrive on movement, as movement is what causes their self lubrication to continue.
Tight muscles and joint stiffness can turn into difficulty walking, falls, progressive weakness, and joint pain.Studies show we sit more than 51 hours a week. Assuming that we sleep 8 hours a day, that equates to nearly half of our awake time sitting!
Sitting for prolonged periods of time has been linked over and over to changes in our cardiovascular strength, endurance and overall health.
Reducing joint pain may be as simple as opening the refrigerator and pulling out some fruits and vegetables. Most of us have all heard about eating a balanced diet of fruit and vegetables, yet the benefits of this goes beyond just worrying about our waistlines. Choosing foods that build bone mass, strengthen connective tissue, and reduce inflammation can help you preserve your joints and reduce inflammation for an active life.
As we age many things change throughout our bodies. For example, our muscles may lose some flexibility and overall strength can decrease.
Protecting your joints as early as possible can prevent unnecessary joint stress, injuries and enhance mobility as you age. Follow these tips to get started.