While volleyball is a non-contact sport, you might be surprised how often injuries occur. These can range from aches and pains to full on medical treatment and even surgery. Compared to other sports, they don’t happen that often, but you still want to make sure you reduce the risks.
It’s challenging enough to bring out your competitive side yet fun enough that you actually enjoy playing it. Whether you play beach volleyball or indoor volleyball, you probably like to play because it’s a lot of fun.
With the following tips you can make sure that it remains fun and you avoid the most common injuries.
Injuries On The Court
The following injuries are some of the most common ones that volleyball players usually have:
- Ankle injuries-Ankle sprains are common in almost any sport but especially in sports like basketball and volleyball. Because of the amount of jumping that’s done and the fast-paced nature of the game, players often land wrong on their feet, which often results in ankle sprains. From ligament to tendon injuries, some require surgery while others heal on their own.
- Shoulder injury-While this may not happen to you if you just play every once in a while, competitive players may find themselves dealing with sore shoulders. Torn tendons or ligaments tend to happen due to frequent spiking and serving in volleyball.
- Injured fingers-Jammed and fractured fingers happen often in any sport that has ball-to-hand contact. The constant contact with even a light ball puts a lot of strain on hand joints and ligaments
- Back pain-Lower back pain also often results in volleyball players, due to their constant moving and stretching. From simple muscle or ligament strains to more serious problems such as spondylolysis or a herniated disc, back injuries range from minor to serious problems that require surgery.
- Torn knee cartilage-From transitions to jumping, volleyball players tend to put a lot of weight on their knees. Whether you jump and land wrong or fall on your knee, there are many ways that you can injure your knee during volleyball.
How to Avoid Injury
No one wants to have to deal with injury treatment, or even worse, having to quit their favorite sport. In order to avoid having to deal with the cost and pain of getting hurt, you can do certain things to avoid and prevent injuries from ever happening in your volleyball games.
Here are some ways that you can stay safe during your volleyball games:
Warm up and stretch before each workout. It’s easier to pull a muscle or tear a ligament when your body is cold and stiff. Loosen it up by doing stretches before your game.- Make sure to wear shoes that provide plenty of heel and ankle support, as well as knee pads. Whether you have already injured ankles or knees or simply want to make sure that you stay injury-free, protective gear can go far in helping you to prevent accidents.
- Do light cardio before the game to make sure that your body and joints are loosened up. Light cardio can help you go into your game much better prepared and even play better than you would if you didn’t get your body moving beforehand. Feeling warmed-up and loose allows you to move more freely and es even good for your reflexes.
- Cool down after your game. Whether it’s walking around a track or lightly jogging after your game, do something to help your body cool down after your high-intensity game.
Warm up and stretch before each workout. It’s easier to pull a muscle or tear a ligament when your body is cold and stiff. Loosen it up by doing stretches before your game.More Tips
Aside from the above things that you can do during the game, consider the following ways to take care of yourself as well:
- Get massages often to help relieve the build up of tension from your games. Because you’re using the same muscles over and over again in volleyball, it’s easy for tension to build up in your body. Consider getting a deep massage at least once every week.
- Play other sports to keep your body’s motion varied, so you can avoid overusing the same muscles. If you only use the same muscles over and over again, it’s not good for them. Switch things up with other physical activities and sports.
- Don’t overdo it by playing too many volleyball games. As we mentioned above, overuse is not good for your body. It’s actually one of the main ways that volleyball injuries happen, so don’t push your body to collapse by playing more than a couple of seasons a year.
- Use common sense during the game. Don’t be so eager to win that you’ll do anything to win—including doing things that can easily cause injury.
Final Thoughts
As fun as volleyball can be and as great at it as you may be at it, it’s definitely one of the top sports for sports-related injuries. The good news is that you can avoid getting injured by being careful during your game, wearing the proper active wear and shoes (find out more), as well as knee and ankle protection. Stay safe and keep enjoying the game.
