There has been an increasing number of sports-related injuries in recent times, mainly due to the lack of knowledge when it comes to proper exercising.
In Calisthenics, the most common injury is related to shoulders. It’s not just Calisthenics-specific; thousands of athletes and bodybuilders suffer from shoulder problems too.
What causes shoulder injuries?
The most common cause of this injury is poor technique, but injuries can also happen when exerting yourself much further than your ability, especially when using weights.
In most strength training workouts, such as Calisthenics and Crossfit, the shoulder joint and the muscles surrounding it are also paramount to most exercises. This leads us to overtrain and stress it much easier than we would other areas of our body.
What shoulder injuries are there specifically?
The human shoulder is a ball and socket joint which permits much more movement than the joints which are fixed. The head of the humerus, the bone of the arm rotates in the cavity of the scapula, the shoulder bone and allows a wide range of movements. Due to the complexity of the joint, it can be more susceptible to injury and can be harder to rehabilitate than the more simpler joints on our bodies.
The muscles supporting the shoulder joint are called the rotator cuff and the involvement of these muscles is seen most commonly in shoulder injuries. The rotator cuff is constituted by the supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor and subscapularis muscle and the proper movement and tone of these muscles are very important to avoid shoulder injuries.
How can I rehabilitate and recover from a shoulder injury?
The rehabilitation of shoulder injuries is difficult just because of the high mobility of this ball and socket joint and thus the injuries take a long time to heal. The initiation of shoulder abduction is done by the supraspinatus muscle and thus the proper care to immobilise the hand is of utmost importance when it comes to the rehabilitation of shoulder injuries.
A number of shoulder supports are available in the market and they help in the speedy recovery of the injury. Compression support and mechanical support are commonly used by the people.
Some people also resort to the use of rehabilitation exercises which gradually increase the muscle tone and help in recovery. These exercises should be done under the proper guidance of trained experts and done carefully as they may further exacerbate the injured shoulder.
Physiotherapy is an excellent way to recover from shoulder injuries. Heat therapy when used in combination with other techniques comes handy when it comes to speedy recovery.
A large number of people also resort to pharmaceutics to obtain speedy recovery. Muscle relaxants and painkillers are commonly prescribed to ease the pain and help in the rehabilitation of the injured shoulder. They also relieve the discomfort faced by the injured person as these injuries are also accompanied by pain and malaise.
Thus it is very important to take full care of your injured shoulder as it may otherwise lead to serious complications.
Founder of www.calisthenics-101.co.uk. Training calisthenics since 2012.
Currently working on: 30 second one-arm handstand, muscle-up 360, straddle planche.