By: Joe Kozma
April 14, 2013
Strength training to prevent ACL tears – Ft. Lauderdale Personal Training
With more and more high school girls becoming actively involved in sports, doctors are seeing more sports related injuries from girls than in the past. The most significant injury that occurs is knee trauma, specifically a torn ACL or anterior cruciate ligament.
Girls have a higher incidence of torn ACL than boys in high school and college sports. If you were to compare the number of ACL injuries sport by sport-baseball vs. softball, girl’s basketball vs. boy’s basketball, girl’s soccer vs. boy’s soccer, girl’s lacrosse vs. boy’s lacrosse, you will find that the injury rate is higher for girls by nearly 30%. Orthopedists and physical therapists understand this is a result of the biological differences in the bone structure of the knee. The gap on the femur at the knee (where the ACL is located) is narrower for girls and any lateral force that occurs at the knee can result in a tear.
But there is a way of improving those odds. By engaging in a dedicated strength training program to improve quad strength, hamstring strength and lower leg strength. Strengthening these muscles for girls helps to protect the knee from bending in odd directions and increasing the odds of a tear. But don’t be fooled by in house strength and conditioning programs offered by schools. The amount of direct supervision, or lack thereof, could lead to injury and not provide you with the strength needed.
If you want to develop your own strength training program and improve your odds of not sustaining a season ending injury, contact contact us at Ft. Lauderdale Personal Training. Joe Kozma is a former collegiate football and baseball player who will develop a program specifically for you to get the results you want.
An ACL tear is season-ending with months of rehabilitation. Prevent that from happening to you by starting your strength and conditioning program now with Joe Kozma.
Fort Lauderdale Personal Trainer, Fort Lauderdale Personal Training
