If you’re like most people, you’re trying to maintain a busy schedule that involves keeping fit so you can stay healthy and have the energy you need to keep up with your demanding schedule. For a lot of people, that involves spending time in the gym and doing plenty of cardiovascular exercises. Running and other types of similar activities are one of the main ways that people stay fit. The problem is, too much of any activity can end up being a bad thing. It doesn’t really matter if you’re running, dancing or doing calisthenics, overuse can result in problems such as stress fractures. The thing you need to know is how to recognize that you could possibly have such a fracture, as well as how to prevent getting one in the first place. If you do get a stress fracture, it’s important to know how to treat it properly so that it doesn’t lead to bigger problems later on down the road.
How Do You Know if You Have a Stress Fracture?
How do you recognize the signs of a stress fracture? The first thing that you might notice is pain in the affected area. Stress fractures occur most frequently in the bones of the feet or ankles, but it’s important to realize that they can occur anywhere. You could just as easily get such a fracture in your hand or wrist, especially if you do a lot of weight training. While working out isn’t the only way that you can get a stress fracture, it is definitely one of the more common ways. These types of fractures occur when the body is repeatedly subjected to the same type of stress. That stress may not be enough to break a bone completely, but repeatedly doing a certain activity can eventually cause a very small fracture in a bone as the result of putting too much repeated stress on that particular area. That is precisely why so many dancers end up with stress fractures in their feet. They spend hours upon hours rehearsing every day. Eventually, all of the stress from the specific dance moves they must perform can take its toll, resulting in these tiny fractures.
Since every person is different, each person also experiences pain differently. One person may notice soreness and swelling in the affected area while someone else scarcely notices anything at all. In some cases, the pain can become quite severe but in others, it goes on unnoticed until the fracture becomes far more serious. If you experience any type of pain or swelling that persists for more than two or three days or suddenly gets worse, it’s important to have it checked out. You could well be dealing with a stress fracture that needs to be addressed. These types of fractures often heal with rest. However, continuing to put the same stress on that part of the body is only going to make things worse. It’s far better to get an x-ray and definitively determine whether or not you actually have a stress fracture than it is to simply wrap up the affected part of your body and hope for the best.
Preventing Stress Fractures
The best way to deal with a stress fracture is to make sure that you never get one in the first place. Obviously, this is sometimes easier said than done. That’s especially true if you are a professional dancer or you’re involved in a very strenuous workout regimen that requires you to hit the gym on a daily basis. If that’s the case, one of the best things you can do for yourself is engage in routine self care. If you lift a lot of weights, wear braces on your wrists. If you do a lot of running or jumping, wear braces on your ankles and even consider wrapping your feet. It’s also important to incorporate days off into your routine, however strenuous or demanding it may be. Your body needs those rest days in order to repair itself. If you aren’t giving yourself that time, you’re not doing yourself any favors. In fact, you’re actually putting yourself in a position where an injury can occur that could potentially sideline you for weeks or even months.
Other ways to prevent stress fractures include changing up your routine so that you’re not doing the same exact movements all the time. You might also consider ensuring that you have shoes that fit properly, as this can make a lot of difference in the way you move. In addition, do your best not to push yourself too hard or too quickly. Allow yourself to gradually increase the difficulty level in any routine that you engage in. If you experience pain, stop what you’re doing and have that pain evaluated before moving forward. It’s also a good idea to pay special attention to sore muscles because this too can cause you to move differently. When you’re trying to protect one part of the body, it’s easy to inadvertently cause injury to another.
How Should You Treat A Stress Fracture if One Occurs?
If you do end up with a stress fracture, the most important thing you can do is get it evaluated by a medical professional. Stress fractures aren’t complete breaks, but that doesn’t mean that they’re any less serious. What it does mean is that you almost always have to have an x-ray in order to get a definitive diagnosis. Once you have that diagnosis, it’s imperative that you follow the doctor’s advice to the letter. Typically, this involves wrapping the affected area and refraining from putting any additional stress on that part of your body. Rest is usually the best solution, along with allowing enough time for the stress fracture to heal completely. In some rare cases, you can go on engaging in the activities that caused the stress fracture, but only if your doctor advises it. In these types of cases, it’s crucial that you remain under your doctor’s close supervision and notify him or her immediately if anything changes.
Most people who engage in repetitive activities that place stress on the body experience a stress fracture at some point in their lives. While it might not be convenient, it is a condition that is likely to heal completely if given enough time to do so.
