Causes and Prevention of Surfing Injuries
Surfing is a popular open-water sport around the world. It's estimated that there are more than 2 million surfers for leisure in the United States. As shortboard surfing has become an official competition in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, it is expected to set off a great wave of surfing.
Considering that it is an extreme sport with an air of danger and challenge, surfing may be harmful to players. The most common injury that happened to beginners and amateurs is the hit and cut caused by the nose, fin and tail of the surfboard when they fall into the water. And paddling or taking some particular actions may also be linked with damages.
Except for the skin harm, the most frequently surf-related injuries are on the lower backs, knees and shoulders.
The chest must be continuously raised during the padding, with the thoracic and lumbar vertebrae being extended. When surfers make their takeoff or other performances, the lumbar vertebrae will take the motions in terms of bending, flexing and twisting. Hence, in addition to the overuse of the back muscles, the pressure intervertebral discs suffer will increase, resulting in protrusion and other problems.
Knees are easy to be injured in a variety of movements, especially in the aerial maneuver. The thighs need to rotate internally and the knees roll outwards. Once the movement is unstable, it is most likely to hurt the knee structures such as the medial collateral ligament (MCL), anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and the meniscus. And squatting for a long time also tends to cause patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) and even the iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS).
If the chest is not raised high enough in the paddling, the shoulders must be moved in a wider range, increasing the burden on the rotator cuff and bringing the overuse-related problems like shoulder impingement and tendinitis. And if shoulders are pulled when surfers fall into the water, the joint may be injured, either.
So how to prevent potential sports injuries from surfing?
· Follow the skilled surfers. Besides teaching you the right movements, a man of experience is good at telling the waves and avoiding working up to more demanding and difficult ones at the beginning.
· Wear rash guards and wetsuits. Rash guards can prevent the physical friction between the body and the board and the jellyfish-sting. When it is relatively cold, wetsuits are able to avoid the quick loss of body temperature which may cause cramps.
· Do some dynamic warm-ups. Before entering the water, surfers ought to stretch and wake up their bodies by shoulder rotation, trunk bending and rotation, and hip, thigh and ankle movements, contributing to fewer cramps and injuries.
· Strengthen core muscles. Confronted with the heavy burden on back muscles and the pressure of intervertebral discs caused by trunk rotation, strong core muscles can not only improve the abdominal pressure and protect the disc, but also increase muscular endurance. With the appropriate extension after surfing, the tightness and discomfort on the back can be reduced.
· Enhance the proprioception. The feet constantly change the direction of their forces on a surfboard in response to water conditions. The proprioception is like a horizontal gyroscope built in the feet that coordinates the muscles of the legs as quickly as possible to maintain balance and force without looking and thinking.
Considering that it is an extreme sport with an air of danger and challenge, surfing may be harmful to players. The most common injury that happened to beginners and amateurs is the hit and cut caused by the nose, fin and tail of the surfboard when they fall into the water. And paddling or taking some particular actions may also be linked with damages.
Except for the skin harm, the most frequently surf-related injuries are on the lower backs, knees and shoulders.
The chest must be continuously raised during the padding, with the thoracic and lumbar vertebrae being extended. When surfers make their takeoff or other performances, the lumbar vertebrae will take the motions in terms of bending, flexing and twisting. Hence, in addition to the overuse of the back muscles, the pressure intervertebral discs suffer will increase, resulting in protrusion and other problems.
Knees are easy to be injured in a variety of movements, especially in the aerial maneuver. The thighs need to rotate internally and the knees roll outwards. Once the movement is unstable, it is most likely to hurt the knee structures such as the medial collateral ligament (MCL), anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and the meniscus. And squatting for a long time also tends to cause patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) and even the iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS).
If the chest is not raised high enough in the paddling, the shoulders must be moved in a wider range, increasing the burden on the rotator cuff and bringing the overuse-related problems like shoulder impingement and tendinitis. And if shoulders are pulled when surfers fall into the water, the joint may be injured, either.
So how to prevent potential sports injuries from surfing?
· Follow the skilled surfers. Besides teaching you the right movements, a man of experience is good at telling the waves and avoiding working up to more demanding and difficult ones at the beginning.
· Wear rash guards and wetsuits. Rash guards can prevent the physical friction between the body and the board and the jellyfish-sting. When it is relatively cold, wetsuits are able to avoid the quick loss of body temperature which may cause cramps.
· Do some dynamic warm-ups. Before entering the water, surfers ought to stretch and wake up their bodies by shoulder rotation, trunk bending and rotation, and hip, thigh and ankle movements, contributing to fewer cramps and injuries.
· Strengthen core muscles. Confronted with the heavy burden on back muscles and the pressure of intervertebral discs caused by trunk rotation, strong core muscles can not only improve the abdominal pressure and protect the disc, but also increase muscular endurance. With the appropriate extension after surfing, the tightness and discomfort on the back can be reduced.
· Enhance the proprioception. The feet constantly change the direction of their forces on a surfboard in response to water conditions. The proprioception is like a horizontal gyroscope built in the feet that coordinates the muscles of the legs as quickly as possible to maintain balance and force without looking and thinking.
