Tinley Park IL Chiropractic Care for the Young Athletes

The majority of professional teams have chiropractors on staff as a part of their sports medicine program. Chiropractors for professional athletes not only help players address acute and chronic sports-related injuries, but they also help the athlete prevent future injuries and improve performance. Your young athlete will benefit in the same way and more with chiropractic care in Tinley Park IL.

Today’s youth sports programs begin at early ages. The training and game schedules are intense. Over-exercising and pushing your young athlete’s body to its limits without proper support can lead to repetitive strain injuries, spinal misalignment and early joint degeneration. Coaches and supporting members of youth sports are not usually qualified to assess the potential problems that may be in store for your child.

Growing Body

As your child’s body grows, their movements will need to adjust. It’s quite amazing to consider how quickly a body grows reaching full maturity in the first quarter of a human’s life. Especially during the awkward adolescent years, your young athlete may feel clumsy in the hallways and on the field. A chiropractor can help monitor your child’s growth and make suggestions for your child to compensate for this growth. Checking in on proper gait, posture and alignment during these growth stages can make a big difference in your child’s potential for injury as well as increased performance.

Teaching Proper Training

Training in today’s youth sports is intense! Exercises to improve strength and speed are rarely neglected in sports. However, stretching and balance exercises are often underplayed. Teaching your child proper warm-up and balance exercises to reduce the chance of injury could make a huge difference.

Yoga is an excellent way to help improve your child’s flexibility and promote soft tissue strength and agility. Yoga also promotes balance. You can also help your child learn proper stretching techniques by stretching with them prior to practice keeping in mind stretching all the major muscle groups through common stretching. There are also partner exercises to help improve flexibility.

Sleep and Nutrition

Crazy practice and game schedules on top of their academic schedule may leave your child sleep deprived and YOU short on time to make healthy meals. This is a juggling act for many parents, but a bit of planning can certainly help.

Plan your meals ahead and keep it simple. Of course it’s awesome to have a big family dinner night, but keep in mind the basics. Healthy protein, healthy carb and vegetables. Throw together warm up bowls of brown rice, a quick mix of steamed veggies and cooked chicken breast, scrambled eggs or tuna.

In terms of sleep, give you and your child time to shut down before bed. A warm bath and aromatherapy may be an excellent means of helping your child decompress and calm their body after a big game. Essential oils can be added to the bath or sprinkled in the shower to encourage a restful sleep. Lavender is one of the most calming oils.

Please call us at Chiropractic Wellness of Tinley Park today to find out more about chiropractic care for your young athlete!