Injury Prevention and Recovery
- Sidney Kitchingham
- Oct 7
- 5 min read
Did you know that women are six times more likely than men to tear their ACL? Female athletes face unique challenges when it comes to injuries, many of which come from biological differences in muscle structure, bone density, and overall body mechanics. While sports provide incredible physical and mental benefits, the risk of injury is something all athletes should be aware of. Understanding these risks, their causes, and ways to prevent them is crucial to keeping female athletes healthy, strong, and performing at their best. In this paper, we’ll explore the most common injuries in female athletes, the reasons why they are so common, and the best strategies for both injury prevention and recovery.
Common Injuries in Female Athletes:
Many women suffer similar injuries, among the most common; ACL tears, shin splints, stress fractures, and sprained ankles. ACL–or anterior cruciate ligament–tears are so prevalent in women because of the female musculature. Women have thinner bones than men, forcing them to rely on their other muscles for stability. On top of that, they have a higher tendency to land with their knees pointing in, stressing the knee and ACL. Some common symptoms of an ACL tear are:loud pops or a "popping" sensation in the knee, severe pain and inability to continue activity, rapid swelling, loss of range of motion, and a feeling of instability or "giving way" with weight bearing. If you or anyone you know is experiencing these consult your local doctor or orthopedic professional.
You may be wondering, why are female athletes at higher risk for certain injuries? Well, just like ACL tears, many other common injuries are of increased risk in women due to their body structure. This includes body movement, muscle imbalances, hormonal changes, bone health, and differing nutrition. Women have much more estrogen than men, meaning their bones are less dense than men, which is why eating right and a good exercise balance are so important, as they minimize this gap in bone density.
Moreover, there is a strong lack of research for women in athletics, which further divides the gap between women and men in sports medicine. The National Library of Medicine states that, “Despite constituting approximately 50% of the population, women specifically are under-represented in sport and exercise medicine and they often experience a negative bias.” This gap highlights the lack of sports medicine research conducted on female athletes, which makes it challenging to develop an evidence informed approach to practice. Additionally, when women aren’t being tested, that leaves evidence from male trials to be used for women, which could be completely wrong.
Injury prevention strategies:
There is a common misconception that injuries are recovery based, meaning that the only way to treat them is after the incident. In reality, many injuries can simply be prevented from happening in the first place through certain prehabilitation exercises. Before your race/match/game, always make sure to stretch. There are two types of stretching; dynamic and static. Dynamic stretches are more active, and are used to warm up your muscles before a cardio or strength workout. Static stretches are mostly used after your workout to help your body cool down. Another practice is strength training, which involves fluid movements with added resistance or weight, to improve body alignment. When your body is properly aligned, it can easily engage in intense physical activity. Strength training also builds your muscles, creating equally strong support for joints and bones in your body. All of these factors reduce the risk of strains and sprains, leading to better overall performance. Nutrition is equally important, as athletes burn lots of calories, they need to eat just as much. If an athlete doesn’t properly refuel, it can create an energy deficit, and it is difficult for their body to recover from intense exercise.
As previously mentioned, female athletes have a very high risk of experiencing an ACL tear, which is why, as of 2006, there is now an ACL tear specific prevention exercise program created by a group of international experts. This warm-up is called the FIFA 11+ program. The research behind the use of this program found that there was a 30-50% reduction in injuries among female youth soccer players who followed the program before matches. The warm-up consists of several different running, strength, and plyometric exercises (See left and below for reference images).
Recovery and Rehabilitation:
In the event that you do get injured, there are certain strategies you can use to speed up your recovery time. The most important strategy: rest! You have to listen to your body and allow it the time to recover before returning to your sport. Most of the time, injured athletes return too soon, which can actually exacerbate the injury. Taking a break from strenuous activity gives your body time to recover, as muscles repair themselves and build back strength. Your muscles and tendons adapt to stress- that’s how they become stronger- they also need to rest and rebuild between episodes of stress. Overuse injuries develop when a muscle, tendon, ligament, or bone is repeatedly stressed and never gets a chance to rest.” For those who find it difficult to take a break, try to focus on something outside of athletics, possibly another hobby you enjoy.
All that said, after the right amount of rest, you can begin to build back your strength through rehabilitation work. Seeing a licensed physical therapist is highly recommended, as they will provide you with the right injury-specific exercises and treatments to fully recover. Many different techniques, such as massage therapy, acupuncture, foam rolling, and strength training are all forms of rehabilitation. Returning to sport with diligent care is just as important as rehabilitation. More often than not, people focus all their attention on the physical side of rest and recovery, which is often when they begin to feel the mental challenges that accompany those injuries. Making sure your head is in the right space and you feel confident in your recovery are super important to maintaining a healthy relationship between sport, mind, and body. In prioritizing both psychological and physical sides of recovery, we can create a safer and more supportive environment for all athletes. When female athletes feel confident and healthy, they’re far more likely to return stronger and stay in the game.
Resources/Links:
Under-representation of women is alive and well in sport and exercise medicine: what it looks like and what we can do about it - PMC (National Library of Medicine)
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