How to prevent stress fractures?Please see here!

Stress fractures, also known as fatigue fractures or accumulated damage, are a skeletal injury caused by excessive use. When the muscle is excessively used to cause fatigue, the vibration of repeated collisions cannot be absorbed in time, transmitting stress to the bones, which can cause small bone fracture or fractures, and is accompanied by local swelling and pain. About 20%of the people's sports will be affected after a stress fracture.

The risk factors that cause stress fractures mainly include insufficient energy intake, destruction of bone quality, lack of vitamin D in the body, and unreasonable running content arrangements. Other influencing factors include the age, height, and weight of the runner.

It is especially important to take the following measures for risk factors generated by stress fractures.

Balanced diet, supplement enough calories. Long -distance running consumes a lot of energy. It is recommended to supplement sufficient carbohydrates with carbohydrates 2-4 hours before running. Essence In 90 minutes after the end of high -intensity exercise, the synthesis of glycogen is faster. At this time, the appropriate amount of carbohydrates need to be added to promote the recovery of glycogen.

Supplement vitamin D. Vitamin D is a matter necessary for maintaining bone health. It can promote the absorption of calcium and protect the bones. In daily life, vitamin D is mainly synthesized by human skin through ultraviolet rays, and a small part of it is intake from food or supplements. After long -distance running, vitamin D is sometimes difficult to meet the needs of the body. It is usually recommended to add 400IU -800IU (international unit) vitamin D every day after running.

Arrange the running content reasonably. It is recommended to do warm -up and muscle stretching for 5-10 minutes before running, and incorporate strength training into daily exercise. In particular, the muscle strength exercises of the feet and calfs of stress fractures should be strengthened. It is recommended to arrange muscle endurance and strength exercises twice a week. Each major muscle group should train 2-4 groups, repeat 8-12 times, and rest between the group for 2-3 minutes. In addition, you can arrange cross -crossing training twice a week. The training content can choose swimming, cycling, etc. Cross training is an effective means for many world -class runners to prevent running damage. If the muscles continue to sore after running long distances, the amount of exercise or rest is needed to gradually adapt to the rhythm of running.

Finding stress fracture symptoms should reduce the amount of exercise or stop exercise. It is not recommended to use painkillers blindly, especially non -steroidal anti -inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen, unless the doctor recommends using it. When the symptoms of stress fracture occur, it is recommended to use the "R.I.C.E." method to process: R (REST) ​​rest, I (ICE) ice compress, C (compression) pressing and ELEVATION to raise the affected limb. Apply ice packs on the injured area, 15 minutes each time, each time the interval is 2-3 hours, be careful not to apply the ice directly to the place where the injured skin frostbite is caused; Blood circulation disorders; raising the affected limb to higher than the heart position can help reduce the swelling of the injured area. Stress fractures are divided into two types: low risk and high risk. Low -risk stress fractures can promote fracture healing by reducing activity or other physical therapy methods.

(The author is Zou Rongqi, deputy director of the Institute of Sports Investigation and Rehabilitation of the Institute of Sports Medicine of the State General Administration of Sports)

(Source: People's Daily Overseas Edition)

[Edit: Yu Lina]

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