Your feet.

They are more complex than you probably know. Containing numerous bones, muscles, and connective tissues, your feet are intricately structured in order to comfortably endure the incredible impact forces brought about by our day-to-day lives. And this is especially true when we perform physical exercises and sports!

Indeed, it doesn’t matter if you are a weekend warrior or a professional athlete: your feet and ankles will naturally be at a higher risk of injury whenever you are active. So taking care of those lower extremities of your body is a must if you want to participate in the sports you love without being sidelined for the remainder of the season—or maybe even longer.

Here at Achilles Foot and Ankle Center, we encourage our patients to be active, but we also strive to best prepare them for strenuous activities, and are always available if—knock on wood—an injury does occur to your foot or ankle. However, the first step to preventing these mishaps is understanding these injuries and knowing how to prevent them in the first place

foot injury richmond

In essence, a sports injury is any type of painful problem that results from participating in athletic activity.

We know—that’s the obvious part. But what you may not be aware of is that these injuries can be divided into two categories:

This happens when the Achilles tendon becomes inflamed or torn, or the tendon fibers themselves start to break down.

These can happen when a sudden impact cracks bone tissue, though lesser impacts that add up over time can result in the same.

These can happen when a sudden impact cracks bone tissue, though lesser impacts that add up over time can result in the same.

These tiny fractures happen when repeated hard impacts create small but painful cracks in your bones.

In these cases, ligaments in the foot are stretched or torn, usually due to rolling or twisting of the ankle.

This is a painful sprain in joint at the base of the big toe.

Need a Same Day Appointment? Call 1-804-273-1717

Most general guidelines for preventing foot and ankle sports injuries apply to all physical activities that may come to mind. From skiing to soccer, the rules as usually the same:

However, the reality is that sometimes no matter what you do, foot and ankle injuries may still happen. And when they do happen, your best course of action is to seek professional advice and treatment. That’s what you will find here at Achilles Foot and Ankle Center!

If you have suffered a sports injury to the foot or ankle, chances are you will need to take time away from high-impact activities and limit the amount of stress you place on your lower limbs. Depending on your injury, we may need to immobilize your injured foot or ankle for a while.

You will also need to be proactive about minimizing swelling and inflammation by wrapping your foot in a compression bandage and icing the injured area. Physical therapy may also be recommended once the initial damage has healed enough. This will help restore flexibility, strength, and range of motion.

In some severe cases, surgery might be required to repair the damage. And if that is the case for you, then you can rest assured that you are in good hands at Austin Foot and Ankle Specialists.

All in all, with the right foot care, sports injuries certainly do not have to keep you sidelined indefinitely. The key for this is early treatment, so invest in your health by addressing the issue instead of allowing it to get worse over time.

You can contact our office by calling (804) 273-1717 to schedule an appointment at our convenient location in Glen Allen VA. Or, just fill out our handy appointment form online and one of our trained staff members will be happy to contact you as soon as possible.