Exercise is great for you but you can get injured if you don't do it right. Contact our San Francisco CA chiropractic clinic today to learn more or schedule an appointment.

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Sports injuries happen and can put a damper on your life. Here are seven most common sports injuries doctors see every year:

1. Ankle Sprain: This injury occurs when rolling or twisting the ankle on the outside of the foot. This can tear ligaments and pull and strain the muscles surrounding the joint.
2. Groin Pull: Several muscles that are located on the inside of your leg can get tight and pull. These muscles are the Rectus Abdominis, Internal Oblique, Adductor Brevis, Adductor Longus, Adductor Magnus. It can be painful moving the leg in any direction.
3. Hamstring Pull Or Sprain: This is very common especially now since most people have jobs sitting for long periods of time and then don't stretch this muscle enough. If this muscle is tight and you participate in sports, it is common to pull it and sometimes even tear the muscle. In a lot of cases the hips are uneven making it even more likely to sprain.
4. Shin Splints: These occur right next to the front of the Tibia bone. The Tibia bone is known as the "shin bone". This can happen if there is a lot of pronation in the foot, hips turned or twisted leading to muscles weakening and not performing as normal. The common muscle that hurts is the Anterior Tibialis muscle. When running, dancing or doing cardio exercises, this muscle fatigues and pain occurs.
5. ACL Tear In Knee: This ligament is key in knee stabilization and can be torn with twisting the knee when the foot is planted, collision with the knee or many other factors. The knee will slide back and forth and will not feel stable. It is extremely painful.
6. Patello-Femoral Syndrome (kneecap rubbing against the thigh bone or Femur): This is very commonly associated with tight Quadriceps or one muscle pulling more than the others causing strain on the kneecap.
7. Tennis Elbow: This happens when the forearm muscles are strained on the outside of the elbow. Very frequently this issue occurs with repetitive actions of the arm. Tennis is not the only sport this can happen with. Sometimes working on a computer for long hours can bring upon this injury as well.

Most of the injuries commonly seen by sports chiropractors are strains or sprains to the ligaments, muscles and tendons. This is what most of us refer to as "pulling a muscle". Playing sports or being active sometimes comes with a cost. Accidents happen but in most cases these injuries can be prevented if you take the proper precautions.

In many cases these injuries can be prevented by proper stretching or conditioning to prepare for the activity. Basketball, soccer, football, tennis (even Pickle Ball) need different stretches and conditioning in order to perform the activity and help prevent injury.

Often when asking athletes if they stretch, most say "not enough" or no. This will lead to injury. Stretching right before and after the activity is necessary if you want to prevent tearing or pulling on the musculoskeletal system. I often have to tell active patients that stretching before and after a workout is for the workout, not for the rest of the day.

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When to stretch or roll muscles out In San Francisco CA

A lot of jobs have people sitting at a desk for multiple hours per day. This tightens up the body and puts stress on different joints. Stretching is needed because there is very little activity for the day. You must take into account any sedentary lifestyle patterns and move around increasing blood flow and loosening up the joints. Also, if you have been sitting for hours at a time and not moving then all of a sudden you start running or playing in a sport without proper stretching, you will get hurt unless you do some movement and stretching of the areas that you will be using during the workout.

For those of you that have a physical job like construction, landscaper, painter, plumber, electrician etc. Yes, these jobs are physical and you may feel like you are in great condition but remember that these jobs put a strain on the body and do need stretching beforehand. You must prepare your body for the physical job and it is normally pretty repetitive leading to strained areas. Also, I find that these jobs normally use specific muscles all day long and other muscles are not utilized leading to an imbalance in the system that often leads to injury.

Here is an example: If you are a plumber you often are laying on your back looking up cranking a wrench turning the forearm back and forth. This puts a strain on those areas but the back is weak because it it not engaged. Now you are at risk of injuring your back because your arm, shoulders and hands are strong but the back isn't. Understanding what needs to be conditioned for your specific lifestyle is key to preventing injuries with physical jobs as well.

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So what do you do when one of these injuries happen?

Well, first of all get the swelling down first. Normally after a sprain or strain to an area there is swelling. Ice normally takes care of this during the first 24 hours. However, even if the swelling goes down that doesn't mean that the injury is healed. After the swelling is gone, rehab and strengthening the area is needed so it starts moving the way it should again. This will take some time but if done right, you should be able to start doing your workout or activity without restrictions.

If you sprain the area multiple times, it may be the shoes you are wearing, equipment you are using or your form. All of this can be modified to prevent further injuries. Remember, your lifestyle determines your health status and keeping muscles relaxed before and after a workout is key to a healthy body free of pain or dis-ease.

If you have strained, sprained or stressed your body and live around the mission district in San Francisco, CA area, Dr. Amie Gregory, DC, CCEP can help.