Shoulder Injuries - A Swimmers Nightmare

Swimming is a fairly safe sport to compete in whenstrengthen and by taking the right amount of rest,
compared to contact sports like football or rugby butswimmers can expect to achieve their best
shoulder injuries are a definite threat to swimmers ofperformance when it really matters.
all ages and abilities.Swimmers that picks up shoulder injuries should
Not many swimmers pick up acute injuries but thoseimmediately get out of the pool, take a shower to
that do often occur when swimmers hit the waterrelax the muscles and rest up. Icing any shoulder injury
hard when diving. The most common type of shoulderis advisable to reduce swelling and improve flexibility
injuries in swimming are overuse injuries caused byquicker. The arm should then be elevated to ensure
repetitive stress on the muscles and joints.the shoulder is comfortable and not being put under
When you consider that a dedicated swimmer whounnecessary strain.
competes in the sport at either amateur orThe hardest thing for a swimmer to do when they
professional level makes over 1 million strokes per armexperience an injury is to sit back and do nothing. They
per year, you can understand how the shoulder canconstantly want to be back in the water, as that's
become strained.where they feel most comfortable. However, to avoid
The important thing to remember if you're a swimmerlonger layoffs it's imperative that any swimmer takes
is to take adequate rest between training sessions ascare with their rehabilitation and doesn't dive back in
not doing this is the number one cause of shouldertoo early.
injuries. The muscles need time to repair and