Every martial artist, regardless of their style, is prone to injury. Most common martial art injuries can be avoided with correct training and are usually due to insufficient warm-up, improper stretching, and poor technique.
This article is intended to offer immediate guidance in order to prevent and alleviate pain and discomfort due to common injuries and is in no way a substitute for an examination by a qualified health professional. Often simple injuries if not immediately diagnosed can turn into serious injuries and visa versa. So remember that a delay in diagnosis can prolong healing and may lead to permanent damage.
As a martial artist you should extend your knowledge beyond your art and into the area of physical fitness training and body mechanics. Many traditional warm-up exercises and stretch routines are archaic, physically damaging and very counter productive to martial arts training. Lack of flexibility due to inefficient warm up and stretching is the main cause of poor physical performance as well as a reason for many strains and tear injuries. You should also aim to incorporate flexibility, strength and endurance conditioning into your martial art training.
Warm Up
Begin with a simple exercise that will gradually get the heart pumping
and increase blood flow to your muscles. You need to raise the body's temperature
by about 2º F, loosening and warming muscles and joints. You can tell
when you are sufficiently warmed up when you begin to break a slight sweat.
· Muscles are able to stretch more easily and to contract more rapidly
when warm. The faster muscle contracts, the stronger it becomes.
· The higher the temperature of muscle cells, the faster they are
able to metabolize the oxygen and fuel they need.
· As muscles warm, the response to nerve impulses quickens, causing
a faster contraction, which leads to quicker reflexes.
· Warming joints lubricates them, allowing them to move more freely
with less energy expended. This protects the joints from excessive wear
and tear.
· Warming up gradually increases the heart rate and prevents abnormal
heart rhythms. Any sudden strenuous exercise can cause the heart to demand
more oxygen than the circulatory system can provide, resulting in a strain
on the heart.
Purpose of stretching:
(1) Reduce muscle tension
(2) Increase the movement of joints and muscles so that the body can work
more efficiently
(3) Prevent muscle soreness and muscle tears
(4) Prevent muscle inflammation and facilitate recovery from soft tissue
injuries
(5) Improve exercise technique by extending the range of motion
(6) Lengthen the muscle after use
Whenever a muscle is stretched, the stretch reflex action automatically
contracts the stretch muscle, in order to protect it from being over stretched.
Bouncing, or ballistic stretching, does more damage than not stretching
at all. During each bounce, the muscle shortens which is the opposite result
of what you are trying to achieve.
The muscle responds by lengthening slowly as in performing a static stretch.
Hold the stretch still for a minimum of 20 seconds. Stretches should be
slow, gentle and not forced. The stretches you choose should be related
to the kind and type of activity you are going to perform. Stretch daily
if you wish to increase your flexibility.
Remember not to compete during stretching exercises. You should not compare your progress to that of another person if you're in class. Stretching beyond your limits can lead to injury and loss of any gains you will have made. You should always alternate your stretches from one muscle group to another, ensuring that they are progressive. If you are an exceptionally flexible person, you should take a great deal of care not to stretch too far because there is also a danger of injury through dislocation.
Cool Down/Post Training Stretch
When we stretch correctly, most of our muscles are loose and flexible.
As we train, we exert force on these joints and these muscles tense up and
contract to protect the improper rotation of joints, and soon these muscles
can be even tighter than before we began our initial stretch. This tightening
of small motion joints is particularly important in our back. Whenever we
kick the heavy bag in martial arts training our body's joints adjust to
compensate for the force load. Vertebrae shift to take up the shock of our
feet/legs striking the bag or when we train with weights.
The main reason we stretch should not only be to prevent injury but to enable
us to gain flexibility and to restore the looseness of the muscles we have
caused to tighten. The post exercise or a cool down stretch ensures this.
The proper cool down is to gradually decrease the amount of physical activity
but to continue to do enough to generate heat in the main muscles you had
been using. You then allow those muscles that are already loose to contract
slowly while you loosen up the contracted muscles. When we do not stretch
out these muscles and ligaments, they naturally tend to shorten, and with
time and age this eventually causes a decrease in flexibility!
Stretching facilitates recovery by regulating muscle tension, relieving muscle spasms and improving blood flow into your muscles.
Some martial artists are more prone to injury than others. Those that have weaker joints may require extra strengthening exercise to protect the ligaments in their joints. Those that are prone to muscle pulls and tears will need to work more diligently to ensure adequate warm-ups and thorough stretching. Prior injuries will weaken an area of the body and additional strengthening may be required. Some martial artists compete at high levels, which increases their chances of physical strain and injury.
Sore Muscles
As a martial artist, you may on occasion experience "delayed onset muscle soreness" (DOMS) a day or two after a strenuous training session. DOMS usually disappears by itself within a few days but mild exercise and hot baths may help relieve the soreness. The sensation of pain and soreness comes due to the pressure of localized edema (fluid retention) on nerve endings, not by the muscle damage itself or by the build up of lactic acid. Lactic acid is a by-product of anaerobic glycolysis (the conversion of glucose into pyruvate). If adequate oxygen is not available, lactic acid is produced and begins to accumulate in the muscles. Lactic acid is that "burning" felt in muscles during intense exercise. This muscle burn is the result of a change in muscular acidity. Only through proper training can you increase your aerobic capacity, which will produce less lactic acid. Fuel for muscle action comes from the deployment of fatty acids and glucose accompanied by oxygen. Glucose emanates from glycogen, which is stored muscle fuel derived from carbohydrates in your diet. If oxygen is lacking due to improper warm-up, then oxygen will be deficient, causing the muscles to get energy by converting glucose to lactic acid. Lactic acid is a waste product or toxin that causes muscle to fatigue and ultimately fail. You can reduce the lactic acid build up faster if you perform light exercise after an intense workout and continue to move slowly until your heart rate lessens.You can also optimize the recovery process by drinking lots of water and including a post workout snack that contains protein. During intense training you are utilizing your muscle glycogen stores and traumatizing your muscle cells. This trauma can lead to muscle soreness and the increased need to rebuild protein.
Muscle Pulls
A muscle pull is probably the most common martial arts injury next to getting a bruise. Inevitably during the course of your training, although you have stretched properly, you may still pull a muscle from overuse, fatigue, or injury. What exactly happens when you pull a muscle? A muscle pull occurs when a sudden, severe force is applied to the muscle and the fibers are stretched beyond their capacity. If most of the fibers are over-stretched and just a few are torn, you have a muscle pull. If many of the fibers are torn, then it becomes a muscle tear.
The treatment for a muscle pull or tear is to apply ice. This relaxes the muscle and helps relieve any spasm. Apply ice to the injured body part and rest it until the pain and swelling reduce. You should apply the ice for about 20 minutes at a time for several days to reduce inflammation. Then you can start stretching the body part gently. It is very important to stretch the muscle while it heals. A pulled muscle usually goes into spasm, which is its protective mechanism causing the stretched muscle fibers to contract. If these fibers are not gradually re-lengthened, the muscle will pull again upon use because it will have healed in a shortened state. If you stretch the healing muscle gently and gradually, you'll decrease your chances of re-injury. You can return to full training when you are able to stretch the injured body part without pain as far as you can stretch the healthy one on the other side of the body.
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