The sports are fantastic. Whether you are an amateur or a professional player, sports give you a healthy exercise that keeps you fit. Also, they are a great psychological booster, and a practical way to increase mental toughness and confidence. 

However, like in anything else, there’s an unwanted guest. And, the name of that guest is sports injuries.

Common sports injuries 

Maybe this came out a bit too strong. There’s a huge difference between those big, bad sports injuries, and those which are common. 

Common sports injuries include pulls, splits, and strains. These happen occasionally, and all sportsmen are subject to them regardless of their mastery of the sport. And, most of the time, they are a matter of mishap, not an intention. 

Now, the best thing you can do about it, is to learn something about it. That way, you can at least and try to do sports with more care. So, here are some of the most common sports injuries.

Tennis elbow 

Oddly or not, tennis elbow can strike anyone who works extensively with their arms and hands. Tennis elbow could be solved easily with a brace for tennis elbow. 

The tennis elbow is a result of inflammation of tendons in the forearm. This happens when you have to grip a lot, and press with fingers extensively. The common first sign is the lack of grip in the fingers and hands. 

Luckily, this is the type of injury you can solve with stretching or the use of anti-inflammatory medicine. So, if you are working with your hands a lot, make sure to stretch your wrists regularly. 

Hip flexor strain 

This type of strain happens less often to professional athletes. It’s far more common with amateurs that forget to stretch and warm-up before sports activities. 

The hip flexor strain is a strain that happens with sudden hip movements. That’s because hip flexors are muscles found in the upper front of the thigh. Their purpose is to lift the knee toward your abdomen, and help you move your legs. 

Yet, dealing with the hip flexor strain is fairly easy. You can ice it for the first few days, and then rest while using light stretches. Then, after a few weeks, you are going to be as good as new. 

ACL tear 

This is a bad one. At least it hurts like hell, and it’s uncomfortable even more so. ACL stands anterior cruciate ligament, and it’s one of the major ligaments in the knee. 

It happens when you perform a sudden pivot while walking or running. The first sign of an ACL tear is a great swelling in the knee and the inability to walk. 

Even though this sounds disastrous, it’s far from it really. Most ACL tears will heal up on their own with enough rest. Then, the knee will become stronger than before. 

However, in some instances, you’ll need surgery to fix your ACL. 

Concussion 

This one is nasty, and it’s most common in sports that involve full contact. But, concussions can happen almost anywhere. 

They are usually described as an injury to the brain. And, by all means, they shouldn’t be taken lightly. This is probably the most serious injury on the list, and should never be taken lightly. 

If you suffer a concussion, contact a medical professional immediately. The signs of concussion are: 

• Headache
• Confusion
• Dizziness
• Nausea and/or vomiting
• Slurred speech
• Sensitivity to light
• Delayed response to questions

The treatment for a concussion is rest usually. However, during the recovery period you’ll have to reduce physical activity, and return to it slowly.

Groin pull 

Another injury that relates to the thighs is the groin pull or groin strain. The groin muscles are the muscles founded from the upper-inner thigh to the inner thigh right above the knee. 

The groin pull happens as a result of sudden lateral movement or quick side-to-side movements common in basketball. This injury will make it hard for you to perform side to side movements, like getting into a car. 

The best way to treat a groin pull is rest coupled with icing. After the initial pain subsided you can return to your activities, just remember to stretch often and take it easy. 

Shin splints

The sin splits are most common with runners, footballers, or soccer players. They occur to people who run a lot, and to people who try to run more than they are physically able to. However, they aren’t actual splits of the sin, as if in the whole shin breaking apart. 

It’s just a sharp pain in the shin area, which is easily treatable. To treat shin splints you need to rest and ice the shins. 

But, as you return to sports activities it’s most important to take it easy, and build strength this time as you should for the first time. 

Hamstring strain 

The hamstring muscle is found on the back of the thigh. It’s a tight muscle that helps you perform most activities with your legs, and it’s always in need of special care. Unlike other thigh strains, this one could put you in bed for weeks. 

Most of the time it becomes damaged due to poor stretching techniques. People with a hamstring strain will experience pain when walking or moving around. 

Here, you’ll want to know rest and ice the pained thigh, until you feel like you can move again. And, you probably noticed, this is a common point in all injuries. 

Icing and rest are your best friends

It’s a great thing that most sports injuries could be healed with rest and icing. If you experience the pain on this list, you can probably fix it with rest and an ice pack. 

However, if the pain isn’t subsiding, then you should visit a medical professional immediately. Therefore, don’t self-medicate, but instead visit the doctor. 

These are called common sports injuries for a reason. They happen a lot and can be easily healed. However, an injury unsupervised is an ill earned life. Have fun and take care.