After a few months of enjoying the beautiful Sioux Falls summer, you might be noticing that the aches and pains from your favorite activities—like golf, pickleball, or gardening—are starting to stick around. But now, a few months into the season, you might be noticing an ache that started as a minor annoyance has become a persistent problem.
While our last post focused on injury prevention, this month we’re talking about the next step: what to do when an injury has already happened. The answer is to move beyond just rest and start actively healing.
Common Summer Injuries That Linger
After months of increased activity, it’s common to see overuse injuries flare up. These occur when repetitive motions put stress on muscles and tendons. Some of the most frequent summer injuries we treat include:
- Rotator Cuff Tendonitis: That nagging shoulder pain after swimming or playing catch.
- Tennis or Golfer’s Elbow: Pain on the outside or inside of your elbow from gripping a racquet, club, or even garden tools. You can learn more about this common condition from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.
- Low Back Pain: Often caused by the bending and lifting motions of gardening or landscaping.
- Achilles Tendonitis: Pain in the back of your heel, common in runners and court sports athletes.
How Physical Therapy Gets You Back in the Game
When you have an injury, simply resting it often isn’t enough. The pain may decrease, but the underlying weakness or imbalance that caused it remains, making re-injury likely. Physical therapy is a proactive treatment that heals the current injury and helps prevent its return.
Here’s how we help:
- Pinpoint the Cause: We perform a thorough evaluation to understand exactly why you’re hurting. It’s not just about where it hurts, but what movement patterns are causing the strain.
- Hands-On Treatment: We use manual therapy techniques to reduce pain, decrease inflammation, and improve mobility in the affected area.
- Targeted Strengthening: We design a personalized exercise program to strengthen the muscles surrounding the injury, providing better support and stability for the joint.
- Education for the Future: A key role of a physical therapy is to teach you how to move correctly and modify activities to prevent the problem from coming back.
Finish Your Summer Strong
Don’t let a nagging injury sideline you for the rest of our beautiful South Dakota summer. Proactive treatment can help you recover faster and get back to the activities you love with confidence.
If you’re dealing with a summer injury, contact Acucare Physical Therapy in Sioux Falls today to schedule an evaluation.
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