Home » Blog » Don’t Let Injury Pull You from the Pool

Many former runners and aerobics queens who switch to swimming for its low impact may be surprised to learn about possible swimming injuries.  Don’t you get into the pool to rehab from other sports injuries like knee surgery?  No matter the sport, if you do too much, too often with the wrong form, bad things are going to happen.  This process is exacerbated with age as well.

Swimming is a fantastic sport that combines strength, flexibility and endurance and is known for being a very low impact form of exercise.  The water’s buoyancy removes any shock to the body.  And, yet it is still possible to be pulled from the pool due to injury.  You pull quite a bit of force when you propel yourself forward over and over again while swimming.  In fact, a high school swimmer is estimated to complete nearly two million stokes a year with each arm!  You also use more muscles than you might think kicking your legs.

Overuse and repetitive motion injuries do happen to swimmers, typically affecting the shoulders, neck, lower back and knees.

Poor form is also a major contributing factor to injury for swimmers.  Poor mechanics with the freestyle can lead to shoulder problems.  Whereas a poor arm pull in the butterfly or breaststroke may cause elbow problems.

Chiropractic care can help recover from injury by igniting your body’s own recuperative abilities, and help avoid future problems by improving alignment and overall flexibility and blood flow.   It may surprise you to learn that acupuncture can be very helpful when recovering from an overuse injury.  Many chiropractic offices specializing in sports injury are beginning to offer this therapy.

Acupuncture helps stimulate the release of pain-relieving endorphins.  It also influences the autonomic nervous system and the release of neurotransmitters (substances that transmit nerve impulses to the brain).  Additionally, acupuncture stimulates circulation.

Regular chiropractic care and proper form will help keep you enjoying all the great benefits of swimming without the pain of injury.