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Tips for Avoiding Weekend Warrior Injuries · The Dohnal Health Minute

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  Hey there, and welcome back to the show. I'm
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  Dr. Chris Donald, your chiropractor here in Nashville,
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  and today we're talking about something I see
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  come through my doors almost every single Monday,
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  weekend warrior injuries. You know the type.
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  You sit at a desk all week and then Saturday
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  rolls around and suddenly you're playing two
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  hours of tennis or lifting heavy boxes in the
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  garage or going all out at the flag football
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  game. And by Sunday night, your back is screaming
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  at you. So let's talk about why this happens,
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  and more importantly, what you can do to keep
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  yourself off the injured list. Here's the thing.
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  Your body is incredibly adaptable, but it adapts
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  to what you actually do consistently. So if you're
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  sitting most of the week, your muscles, your
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  joints, your connective tissue, they all get
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  comfortable in that pattern. Then when you suddenly
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  ask them to sprint, jump, twist, or lift, they're
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  just not ready for it. That's really the heart
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  of the Weekend Warrior problem. It's not that
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  you're too old or too out of shape, it's that
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  the demand you're putting on your body is way
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  higher than what it's been prepared for. Now,
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  here's what I hear a lot. People say, I stretched
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  before I played, so I don't know why I got hurt.
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  And I totally understand that. But here's what's
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  interesting. Static stretching, where you hold
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  a stretch for 30 seconds before activity, that's
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  actually not the best warmup for your muscles.
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  What your body really needs before intense movement
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  is dynamic movement. Things like leg swings,
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  hip circles, arm rotations, gentle squats. You're
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  basically telling your nervous system, hey, we're
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  about to move. Let's wake up. Just five to 10
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  minutes of that kind of movement can make a real
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  difference in how your body responds when you
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  go all out. The other big piece of this is something
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  I call the ramp up problem. Let's say you used
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  to run five miles a few years ago and you decide
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  to lace up your shoes this weekend and just go
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  for it. Your mind remembers what it felt like
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  to do that. But your tissues, your tendons, your
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  joints, they need time to rebuild that capacity.
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  So instead of going 0 to 100, try going 0 to
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  50, maybe even 0 to 30. Give your body a chance
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  to catch up. You can absolutely get back to where
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  you were. You just need to give it a few weeks
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  to adapt safely. Now, what can you start doing
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  right now? A few simple things. First, move a
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  little every single day. Even 10 minutes of walking
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  or light movement during the week keeps your
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  body warmer and more ready for the weekend. Second,
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  cool down after activity. I know it's tempting
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  to just stop and sit down when you're done, but
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  a few minutes of gentle stretching and slowing
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  the body down helps reduce soreness and stiffness
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  later. And third, drink enough water. Hydration
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  affects how your muscles and joints feel and
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  function. It's one of those things that sounds
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  basic, but it matters more than most people realize.
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  And here's when you should come see us. If you've
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  got nagging pain that's been hanging around for
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  more than a few days after activity, if you're
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  noticing stiffness in your back, neck, or hips
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  that keeps coming back, or if something just
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  feels off after a hard weekend, please don't
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  wait it out and hope it goes away. A chiropractic
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  evaluation can help us figure out what's going
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  on and get you moving better before it becomes
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  a bigger issue. You don't have to choose between
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  being active and staying healthy. The goal is
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  to help you do both. And that's exactly what
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  we're here for. Thanks so much for listening
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  today. If you're here in Nashville and you want
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  to come see us, we'd love to help you out. We're
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  Donald PowerPractic, right here in your community.
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  You can find us online or just give us a call.
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  We'll take great care of you. Until next time,
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  take care of yourself and keep moving.