When it comes to traditional sports, most athletes have long accepted the health and wellness benefits of sports chiropractic care.
Nowadays, doctors of chiropractic work closely with athletes — both professional and amateur — to help them strike a balance between preventative care, performance optimization and injury recovery.
However, sports chiropractic treatments haven’t quite yet made such an impact on non-traditional sports like dance, team gymnastics, pickleball and more.
The key to reaching this audience? Providing the right education to these athletes about the benefits of sports chiropractic care specifically in relation to their non-traditional sport.
How sports chiropractic treatment can benefit athletes in non-traditional sports
It can speed up recovery time
If a non-traditional athlete gets injured, which happens, regular and responsible chiropractic care can help expedite the healing process.
Chiropractic care is the checks and balances system ensuring every bone and soft tissue piece is in its rightful place, all the while assisting with blood flow and healing. This ensures the body works quickly to do what it does best — heal itself rapidly.
Sports chiropractic treatment can provide pain relief and speed up the healing process without the use of medication (or, at least, with less medication).
It can prevent injury
Even if a sport isn’t traditional, like volleyball, football or soccer, the possibility of injury is just as high. Non-traditional sports, like pickleball or gymnastics, cause their fair share of injuries, too. For example, pickleball injuries usually impact wrists, knees and elbows, while gymnastics and dance pose a threat to athletes’ ankles, backs and more.
Just like with traditional sports, regular spinal adjustments and sports chiropractic care can loosen muscle tension and relax connective tissues, improving flexibility and increasing range of motion. With more flexibility in the tendons, ligaments and muscles, athletes are able to mitigate the risk of stretching, tearing and other types of injuries.
It can improve performance
A stiff, sore, misaligned body might not allow an athlete to perform at their absolute peak. Even small things — a pickleball player’s tweaked back or a gymnast’s sore wrist, for example — can impact how that athlete performs.
Every part of the body is connected and works in conjunction; even a minor issue could throw off an athlete’s entire performance.
A properly aligned spine and regular chiropractic attention can ensure an athlete’s nervous system is at peak functionality, improving balance, posture, coordination and even focus. This encourages athletes to push their limits safely, knowing lingering pain won’t hold them back.
With sports chiropractic care and regular adjustments, athletes can maintain proper alignment and improve their body’s overall athletic performance.
It can support young athletes through growth spurts
Though you can provide assistance for athletes of any age, this is a key point on which to educate your younger athletes.
As adolescents grow, chiropractic support through growth spurts can provide them with pain relief, improved joint mobility and even increased flexibility. With this in mind, younger athletes can work through growing pains and avoid sports-related injuries.
Advocating for non-traditional athletes: How to educate patients on the benefits of sports chiropractic
If you’re a doctor of chiropractic with a passion for assisting athletes, it’s important to educate your patients on the benefits of sports chiropractic — even if they play a non-traditional sport. Explain in detail the advantages of regular care in reference to their sport. Fortify your communication with sport-specific knowledge, explain the general body benefits of sports chiropractic treatments and do your best to explain the sport-specific advantages they can expect in whatever level of detail is appropriate for them.
If you’re seeking more insight, advice and guidance on how to expand your practice, reach more patients and discover new ways to improve your career, start your free subscription to Chiropractic Economics today.