ISSA Unit 30 SPORTS MEDICINE IN THE TRENCHES

SPORTS MEDICINE IN THE TRENCHES: AN INTRODUCTION TO SPORTS MEDICINE Sports Medicine is concerned with the diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, and prevention of athletic injuries, as well as dealing with the effects of exercise on the human body for the enhancement of athletic performance. Sports medicine is not restricted to the medical field; athletic trainers, coaches, and personal trainers are also involved. While most sports medicine books are written by doctors or researchers for the benefit of their fellow colleagues, it's unfortunate that this information never reaches the fitness consumer. Personal trainers and health-care professionals have typically had an adversarial relationship, resulting in the trainers being left to their own resources when it comes to information regarding injury prevention and care. Again, the consumer loses. A unique aspect of this unit is that it represents not only a doctor's perspective, but the coaches' and athletes' perspectives as well. The authors have extensive backgrounds in their fields and they realize that you want to continue to train! Although risk is omnipresent in most sports, far too many athletes suffer from avoidable injuries, which continue to plague them long after their sport careers are over. By following the principles outlined in this unit, you will be able to greatly reduce the likelihood of injury. If you are already suffering from injury, we will show you the best course of action to take. Charlie Francis, Ben Johnson's sprint coach and coach to many other internationally elite athletes, illustrates an enlightened (yet rare) approach to injury prevention in his book, The Charlie Francis Speed Training System: "If there was ever any doubt about whether or not to take another rep, we would stop for that session." After all is said and done, use your common sense. As cliché as this may sound, the following principles have done more to prevent injury than all the immense wealth of medical science and technology we have available to us today. We wish you success and fulfillment in your training!

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