How Chiropractic Care Can Prevent Sports Injuries and Improve Performance

Chiropractic care is popular among professional athletes, including those in Major League Baseball, the National Football League, and the National Basketball Association. Learn how chiropractic can help you as well, whether you’re an amateur, collegiate, or pro athlete.

Regular adjustments and early pain intervention can improve your performance and deter injury. Don’t wait until you’re injured to see a chiropractor. At Arbor Vitae Wellness, we urge you to invest in regular care so you play your best at every practice and every competition.

Overall physical health

Chiropractic treats the whole person, not just symptoms or body parts. While the focus of chiropractic is often on the spine, the reasoning is the spine is the axis of the body, and when it’s aligned properly, your body works correctly. Your nerves are free to function normally so they’re not pinched or compressed, which can cause pain.

An aligned spine also facilitates optimal muscle movement so you avoid unnecessary aches and pains.

Help you brace for a hit or fall

Many sports injuries are the result of a tackle, fall, or sudden, unexpected trauma. While chiropractic can’t make you avoid these incidents, it can help your body be better able to handle them.

If you do experience a sports injury, see our chiropractors at Arbor Vitae Wellness right away so they can help accelerate your healing. Research shows that chiropractic care immediately following an injury can help athletes recover more quickly and get back to play sooner.

Repetitive movement

Many athletes, such as runners and cyclists, repeat the same movement over and over. This creates a risk of overuse injury and muscle imbalances. Regular chiropractic visits can help keep your body in balance, and if our doctors at Arbor Vitae Wellness see that you’re headed toward an overuse injury, they can offer physical therapy exercises and cross-training recommendations to prevent it from becoming serious.

More efficient movement

A well-functioning spine means you can more effectively do the tasks associated with your sport, whether that’s swinging a golf club, pivoting on the soccer field, or pitching a softball.  Chiropractic adjustments free up muscles and the central nervous system so they don’t inhibit performance.

Research has shown that regular chiropractic visits can improve performance by more than 6% by clearing up the signaling between your nerve cells, sensory organs, brain, and spinal cord.

Better motor control

Studies show there may be a relationship between your reaction time and spinal dysfunction in your neck. Subluxations, or misalignments, in the upper vertebrae, can interfere with your nerves’ ability to communicate with the brain. Chiropractic care frees up these vertebrae, which can help you react faster to catching a ball, switching direction, or tagging an opponent.

Dietary and supplement support

A doctor of chiropractic medicine uses drug-free therapies to heal your body. This includes information about an optimal diet and any natural supplements that can reduce inflammation and promote optimal sports performance.

At Arbor Vitae Wellness, we offer other therapies that can further boost your athletic performance and keep you injury-free. Inquire about massage, acupuncture, and physical therapy — all of which support an athlete’s wellness and play.