What Are the Most Common Tennis Injuries and How to Avoid Them
Meta: Don’t let pesky injuries ruin your tennis play. Check out TRUEENERGY® compression socks to keep you in the game.
Tennis is a relatively low-impact sport that people of all ages can safely play. While you can look forward to playing tennis either competitively or for leisure for many years, it is important to plan for injury prevention.
At first glance, it might seem as though you are at greater risk for hurting your arm or shoulder with all that racquet swinging. However, many tennis injuries tend to occur in the lower extremities. Paying attention to how you care for your legs and feet ensures that you can continue to enjoy many pain-free hours out on the court.
Compression Sock Background Info and Uses
Athletes have had to worry about injuries since the beginning of time, and the concept of wearing quality socks to prevent painful blisters is nothing new. However, socks have evolved since the basic hand knitted sets that people wore in the past.
Our compression socks first entered the public’s awareness back in 1946 when our founder, C. Hugh Moretz, opened Grandview Hosiery in North Carolina. In those early days, his vision was to provide quality, comfortable socks with a focus on innovation. By the 1990s, the company had become a major powerhouse with athletes from all over the world seeking out their top-selling performance sock in America.
Today, you can see just how well the early focus on innovation paid off in the TRUEENERGY® socks that you can wear during your next competition. Based upon NASA’s scientific research, these socks use infrared technology to provide an additional layer of support to your legs and feet that helps to increase circulation and prevent injuries.
Watch Out for These Most Common Injuries Among Tennis Players
When you love playing a sport, the last thing you want is to get sidelined by a preventable injury. Most tennis knee injuries occur from repetitive movements that place strain on your body’s muscles, tendons and joints. Learning which injuries are most likely to occur provides you a starting point for taking precautions that keep you happily springing back and forth to hit those balls back to your opponent.
Patellar Tendonitis (Jumper’s Knee)
The name of this injury says everything you need to know about how it happens. In a nutshell, all of that jumping around to reach the ball can create microscopic tears and strains in the patellar tendon. This tendon sits at the front of your knee where it connects your kneecap to the shin bone. The most common symptoms that you’ll notice with this injury is pain and swelling along the front part of your knee.
Women are eight times more likely to get jumper’s knee than men, but it can even happen to children. A mild case of this injury can heal within a few weeks to a month. More severe cases could require surgery. In all instances, you’ll need to refrain from playing tennis until you have a full recovery.
Ankle Sprains
If you’ve ever had a sprained ankle, you know what an inconvenience this injury can be—even when you aren’t on the court. Ankle sprains tend to happen due to the rapid moves that you make as you shift positions. Like jumper’s knee, this injury can range from mild to severe. You might need to wear a brace as you go about your daily activities, and a serious sprained ankle might require you to undergo physical therapy before you can safely resume playing tennis.
Arthritis in Joints
Arthritis can develop for many different reasons, and aging plays a big role in how well your joints feel at the end of a game. However, preventing injuries in your ankles, knees and toes helps to prevent you from developing arthritis in your joints too early. Caring for your joints can also help you to reduce the pain that you may already experience from arthritis. That is why you’ll often see professional athletes and older adults wear tennis compression socks during their games.
Achilles Tendonitis and Achilles Tears
The Achilles tendon connects your calf muscles to your heel bone, and you’ll definitely know if you sustain a major injury to this critical part of your lower leg. Achilles tears are known for causing tennis players to drop to the ground during a game due to the sudden lack of support for moving the foot.
If you experience an Achilles tear, then you might hear a pop as the tendon stretches beyond its limit. This injury is also known for causing severe pain and swelling almost immediately.
Achilles tendonitis is a milder injury to this portion of your foot and calf. However, you’ll still find walking painful, and you will likely need to sit out your next tennis competition or lessons until it heals. Properly wrapping your achilles tendonitis can help the healing process and prevent further injury.
Calf Strains
Your calf muscles are under constant pressure as you leap around the court. As you jump up, the muscles stretch out to help you clear the ground. Then, they absorb a tremendous amount of force as you land. With a calf strain, you’ll typically notice pain in the lower back portion of your leg when you jump or stand on your tiptoes.
While some soreness in your calves is normal after a tough game, you should notice that it goes away within a short amount of time. Any pain that lingers or causes you to change your normal activities needs to be investigated to make sure that you don’t have a major strain in your calf.
How Can We Avoid These Common Tennis Injuries?
If just the thought of being in pain or having to sit out a game causes you to cringe, then you are likely wondering how you can avoid common tennis injuries. Fortunately, there’s a lot that you can do, and many of the best ways to prevent injuries are quite simple.
For instance, you’ll want to remember to do your warmup exercises before you play, even if you’re just engaging in a brief round of practice. Stretching your muscles helps to keep them limber so that they are less likely to get strained or tear.
Tennis players will also want to pay attention to what they wear, particularly on their feet. You’ll want to wear a comfortable pair of shoes that are able to absorb some of the shock that occurs when you are jumping around. Compression socks for tennis are another must-have in your athletic gear. Wearing socks that use infrared technology to keep your muscles and tendons warm helps to maintain that limberness that you create during your warm-up, allowing you to jump around with greater freedom.
Find Your New Favorite Pair of Compression Socks
For a serious tennis player, a pair of quality socks that are made with the latest technology is a gift that keeps on giving. Not only can you expect TRUEENERGY® socks to last through many practices and competitions, but you also get the advantage of knowing that they are actively working to prevent serious injuries. Now, all you must do is pick out your favorite color and style to start heating it up on the court during your next match.