Preventing Hockey Injuries

Like in any other sports, it is important that you are physically fit when you start playing hockey. You need to be strong, flexible, and have good endurance in order to decrease your risk of injuring yourself. It is important to keep fit in your off-season by exercising at a gym or by participating in activities around your house and in your community. It is also very important that you warm-up before every game.

For an thorough hockey warm-up click on warm-up.

Warm-up

First thing to do in a hockey warm-up is skate around the ice at a comfortable pace for about 5 minutes. You should skate in both directions and also incorporate backward skating.

Then you need to stretch.

While you are gliding around the ice you can:

• Stretch your trunk by holding your stick above your head and then tilting your upper body to the right and then to the left 5 times each. Then twist your upper body from side to side 5 times each way.
• Stretch your arms by holding your stick behind your back and lifting it backwards away from your body. Hold this stretch for 10 to 15 seconds and then repeat 5 times.
• Stretch your groin by using lunges while you glide. With your upper body straight and your right leg forward, bend your right knee while keeping you're the left leg straight and behind you. Hold for 10 seconds and then stretch your other leg. Make sure to stretch each leg about 5 times.
• Stretch your legs by holding your stick in front of you and bending forward at your hips. Bend until you feel a stretch in the back of your legs and then hold for 10 seconds. Repeat this 5 times.

Now take a seat on the ice to finish up your stretches:

• Spread your legs a comfortable distance apart and lean forward. Hold this stretch for 10 to 15 seconds.
  Then bend your right leg and reach both hands towards your left foot. Hold for 10 to 15 seconds and then repeat on the opposite leg.
• Bend your right leg and cross it over your left leg. Use your left elbow to push your right knee and rotate your upper body to the right. Hold for 10 seconds and repeat with the other leg.
• Then lie on your stomach with your legs behind you like a frog. Lift your chest off the ice until you feel a stretch in the front of your thighs. Hold for 10 seconds.
  
  

Beyond being fit and warming up before your games, there are many ways to decrease your risk of developing an injury while playing hockey. Check out each of the following links for tips on keeping safe on the ice.

Buying The Proper Equipment
Maintaining Your Equipment
Check The Arena
Visit Your Doctor and Physical Therapist

For more information about preventing hockey injuries, check out this link:
http://www.hockeyinjuries.com/prevention/prevention.asp

Buying The Proper Equipment
Equipment should cover the entire area of the body that it is meant to cover. You should never buy equipment that you can grow into. This puts you at risk of developing a serious injury, as equipment that is too big will fall away from the area that it is supposed to be protecting.

Helmet - snug and remain in place with chin strap fastened, fit just above the eyebrows, no cracks on outside or on inside padding of helmet, CSA approved
Facemask - front of helmet to bottom of chin, compatible with helmet
Mouth Guard - recommended to decrease risk of concussion
Neck Guard - fit snuggly and completely cover the throat
Shoulder Pads - should cover the entire shoulder, extend to top of pants and just above elbows
Elbow Pads - top of elbow pad should extend to the shoulder pad, bottom should fit inside the cuff of the gloves
Gloves - fit snuggly, overlap the elbow pad, the padding on the back of the hand should ensure that no pressure is felt when you press the back of the glove
Hockey Pants - should slightly overlap top of shin pads, pants must completely cover kidneys, hips, tail bone, and thighs
Jock/Jill Strap - fitted according to waist size, comfortable
Shin Pads - cap of shin pad centred on kneecap, bottom of shin pad should leave no exposed areas but not restrict movement
Skates - there should be half and inch of space between toes and front of skate, when completely laced the eyelets should be no more than 2 inches apart

Maintaining Your Equipment

Your equipment should be inspected often in order to recognize any cracks or breaks. If any piece of equipment is cracked, it should be replaced or professionally repaired immediately. Protective equipment works by taking the direct pressure from the hit and spreading it out over the whole space of the equipment that was hit. If there is a crack, the equipment can no longer spread this pressure throughout the equipment. The equipment is essentially useless.

Your equipment should be hung to dry following every use. This helps your equipment keep its shape and quality.

Check The Arena

Before a game or practice you should make sure all of the doors are securely closed. Check the ice surface for damaged areas. Check the goal net to make sure it will release from the posts easily.

Visit Your Doctor and Physical Therapist

When you have injured yourself, you should get it checked out by your doctor. They can determine the seriousness of your injury. Playing hockey after even a slight concussion can cause your reaction time to be slightly changed and increase your risk of injuring yourself. Any injury can cause you to alter your play and increase your risk of injuring yourself more.

Your physical therapist can help get you back to your pre-injured self by strengthening, stretching, balance re-training or whatever treatment is neccessary.