Pickle-Ball Peak Performance & Injury Prevention.
“Once in the racket, you’re always in it”.
-Al Capone
Millions of pickle-heads are jumping on the bandwagon, gathering steam since its inception during the 1960’s. Pickleball was created as a children’s game on the beautiful Bainbridge Island, nestled between the Cascade Mountains and the Puget Sound. A huge appeal of the fast growing sport is undoubtedly its ease to learn, and the fun of socialization for all fitness levels. Even for elite athletes, pickleball provides excellent cross-training by honing reaction time and agility. Exploding in popularity, this hybrid of badminton, ping pong, squash, and tennis (my fave), is enticing players of all ages, growing over 10% each year for the past several years to create quite an international “racket” as the fastest growing sport.
Unfortunately, the increase in pickleball participation has resulted in a surge of injuries especially among seniors (60+). According to the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, the most prevalent injuries from pickle ball include sprains and strains of muscles, tendons and ligaments, especially vulnerable knees and ankles. The game has all the movements of tennis reduced into a smaller area meaning change in directions movements tend to be more rapid. Our clinic has been plagued with overuse injuries, such as Achilles tendonitis/ tendnosis, plantar fasciitis, rotator cuff strains, and even occasional fractures and concussions from loss of balance. The sport is perceived as “easy” which attracts even the least athletic to give it a try, often pushing too much, too fast to end up in a true “pickle”.
The great news is that some simple approaches can help reduce risk of injuries to keep you on the court for fun you can truly “relish”. Gear up with supportive court shoes for good traction and multi-directional control, and maintain an athletic ready position throughout play on the balls of your feet instead off pounding high ground reaction forces through the heels. Be sure to get sized for a comfortable grip to avoid upper extremity strains such as “tennis elbow” or “carpal tunnel syndrome”. Before you hit the courts, establish a foundation of core stability for optimal kinetic chain performance.
Devote 5-10 minutes for dynamic warm-up to get your blood pumping, raise body temperature, and lubricate your joints, and improve flexibility throughout your body’s chain. Remember that slow and steady wins the race. Cultivate body awareness and respect your potential while you diversify with cross-training benefits of joyful active endeavors to thrive “in the racket” for life!