With the summer season here, spending time outdoors and engaging in summer sports is a popular choice. Although the condition of your feet may be far from your mind when you play your favourite sports, summer sports can greatly increase your risk for a foot injury to occur. Sprains, fractures, pain and breaks are all common foot injuries that can result from a step gone wrong in any type of game. Soccer, basketball, baseball, and tennis are popular summer sports that can create these foot injuries.
Chiropodist Tony Abbott provides these foot safety tips to ensure your summer isn’t spent on the sidelines of your favourite sport game. They include:
- Always warm up. Spend an efficient amount of time before any sports activity to jog and stretch in order to warm up your muscles. Jumping into a high intensity sport without proper warm up can greatly increase your risk for injury as your foot muscles aren’t loose.
- Wear the appropriate footwear for the sport. Proper fitting shoes are a must when it comes to playing any type of sport. It’s important to wear the right type of shoes that match the activity in which you’re participating. For example, if you play tennis, invest in a pair of tennis shoes that will provide the adequate amount of support for that specific game.
- Stay hydrated. It’s important to drink lots of water with any type of physical activity. However, if you’re playing outdoors in the summer heat, having a water bottle with you is a must.
- Know when to quit. Getting enough exercise is important for your overall health, but there can come a point where too much activity can damage it. Most foot or ankle injuries that occur are due to overuse. If you’re experiencing foot pain or exhaustion, stop playing immediately to prevent an injury occurrence or pain to worsen.
Summer sports are a great way to stay active this summer, but don’t let foot injuries keep you from playing them! Contact our office to set up an appointment with Tony Abbott if you are experiencing any foot problems related to your sport activity. Let us help you maintain your foot health this summer season!