Warm-ups: Are they really beneficial?
As I was browsing through the internet looking for some interesting information to post today, I came across an article from the L.A. Times concerning ACL injuries. Now, for some of you who don't know, ACL stands for anterior cruciate ligament, and is one of the four major ligaments found in our knees. It's main job is to keep the knee stable while we pivot, or plant our foot while cutting in. If your ACL is torn , many people prefer to get auto graft surgery done, where tissue is commonly taken from your hamstring and used to repair the ligament. Recovery for this is about 6 to 10 months and time going to a rehabilitation center, but at least you'd be able to still play.
The article proved that warming up for 15 minutes before a practice or a fame could significantly lower your chances of any ACL injuries. A study done in San Francisco tested 4, 564 Swedish women who played soccer from the ages of 12-17. 2,479 of the girls were assigned to do a 15 minute neuromuscular warm up twice a week doing a range of 6 different exercises. The other 2, 085 girls were used as a control group for the experiment. The experiment was very conclusive. The girls who warmed up twice a week were 64% less likely to injure their ACL and it reduced their rate of severe knee problems.
I 100% agree with this article because at my practices and games, we were taught at a young age to always warm up before actually doing any practice drills, reducing our chances of getting hurt. A torn ACL is never ideal, especially when training for a big upcoming game or competing for a starting spot on your team. Not taking the necessary precautions could end your chances of succeeding before you get far. A efficient warm-up contains dynamic and static exercises, and you need to individually stretch anything that might feel tight or anything that might be hurting. stretching a couple times during the practice couldn't hurt either,, just to make sure you feel loose and flexible.
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