Every year more than 10 million sports injuries happen. How do these injuries happen and how can they be prevented? Athletes don’t want to stop pushing themselves to their full potential, but if they don’t have some self-control, it could result in serious injuries.

Head

Concussions are usually caused by a blow to the head. When an athlete gets hit, he doesn’t always pass out and because he doesn’t, he may think he doesn’t have one at all. The most common sports that cause concussions are football, boxing, hockey and soccer. Even sports such as skiing and gymnastics can cause concussions.

Arms

Shoulder injuries are typically the tearing or inflaming of the rotator cuff. This injury is seen in athletes who swim, pitch,  and play tennis. Figuring out something is wrong isn’t hard. If it is hard to fall asleep because of a constant and recurring pain or it is hard to move your arm even slightly, it is very likely there is a problem with your shoulder. The tennis (or golf) elbow happens when you over- work the tendons in the elbow.  It happens as a result of moving the arm and wrist repeatedly. When someone has tennis elbow, it is painful to do simple things like shake hands or turn door knobs. To help prevent tennis elbow, learning the right way to swing the racket is helpful as is wearing a brace.

Groin

Groin strains happen when the muscles in the inner thigh are over-stretched or torn. It typically happens in sports where you have to make a quick change in direction when running. Sports such as soccer, hockey, baseball, racket sports, football, and volleyball usually cause this type of  injury. Having a groin strain makes it hard to walk, and bruises and swelling usually occur. To avoid getting a groin strain, always make sure to warm up and stretch before each sport and not to intensify your work-out too quickly.

Legs

Runner’s knee happens when ligaments and cartilage in your knee gets torn. This happens when the knee cap moves over the groove of the thigh bone. Despite the name, runner’s knee doesn’t only happen in runners. Any athletes who bend their knees frequently are at risk. Athletes such as cyclists, swimmers, skiers and volleyball players are at risk of runner’s knee. Replacing shoes regularly and choosing the right surface to run helps.  Shin splints are another injury that happens to people who play sports with sudden stops, starts, and change of direction. People who play basketball and soccer will sometimes get shin splints. Too much force has been placed on the shin bones. Achilles tendinitis is usually seen in runners who intensify their run too quickly. Make sure to put inserts in shoes and to take Motrin or Advil to help ease the pain. In extreme cases, surgery may be needed.

If you’re an athlete, you expect injuries from time to time.  With some easy reminders, however, you can lessen the chance of serious injuries.  Make sure to stretch properly before doing any kind of activity, don’t intensify the workout too quickly, and don’t push too hard if anything starts to hurt.