Regular practice of some exercises can help prevent long-term injuries while strengthening the musculature of a particular muscle.
Squats, for example, in addition to being safe, can prevent knee injuries by strengthening bone, connective tissue and muscle. Therefore, they must be performed correctly, with the appropriate weight and properly distributed, keeping the back straight and without rotation. There are several studies that show that runners are very likely to have some imbalance in the knees, so it will be interesting to take care of the health of these by practicing this exercise.
In addition, it will be important to maintain a good back musculature and strengthen it to avoid possible injuries.
In the case of suffering an injury, rest may interfere with recovery due mainly to two reasons:
Excessive rest can delay cartilage regeneration. Unlike muscle, cartilage does not have its own blood supply, but gets oxygen and nutrients from the synovial fluid in the joints. When we move, we exert pressure on the joints that facilitates the arrival of nutrients to the cartilage, thus promoting its reconstruction and recovery.
It hinders the work of the lymphatic system, which is in charge of eliminating the substances that accumulate in the inflamed area. The lymphatic system also has no heart, that is, it requires movement to be activated. So, if you do not move, you reduce the effectiveness of the body to modulate the inflammation that has occurred.
In terms of injuries such as a sprain, for example, it requires some physical activity to facilitate proper tissue repair and improve the function of the ankle after the injury. Therefore, the sooner rehabilitation begins, the sooner we can accelerate recovery appropriately.
Movement, in this sense and in almost all areas, is medicine and should be promoted in the appropriate dose and tolerated according to the condition of each individual.
This dose of physical exercise will be defined by the pain threshold that each person feels. Pain is the ancestral signal that will tell us what movement we can or cannot do and with what intensity. Moving with pain will surely be counterproductive, as well as resting in excess beyond the minimum required by the injury.
In general, it will be essential to keep moving, but that does not mean that you should force a return to exercise prematurely, but to pursue an active recovery within the possibilities of each one.
Even so, particular injuries will always require special and personalized treatments. In this case, if you have any doubts, you should always consult a medical professional.
