I am writing this entry on the morning following an NFL football Sunday…one in which I saw my beloved N.Y. Giants take the lead in the abysmal NFC East division. During the game, their quarterback went down with an injury to his right hamstring. With that injury, I saw in a flash that the chances of the Giants maintaining first place for the rest of the year just went down quite a bit. I was wondering just how quickly the quarterback could return from his injury. Daniel Jones is young (23) and in great shape, so if anyone can come back from an injury quickly, it would be a person in this type of athletic shape.
I started thinking more about rehabbing from injuries and extending these thoughts outside the football stadiums and into the everyday life of people in general. We all have had, currently have or will have injuries in the future. It is sort of a pessimistic viewpoint to look at life this way, but we will all be subject to an accidental fall, an ankle twist, banging an extremity against a piece of furniture, etc. Injuries will happen.
Does weight control play a role in rehabbing from injuries? The answer is a resounding “Yes”. This is especially true when it comes to injuries involving weight bearing joints. Lower back, hip, knee, ankle and foot injuries seem to occur with increase frequency as we age. Even without specific injuries, simply the wear and tear of joints over time lead to chronic pain.
With the physics of weight coning down to smaller surface areas, for every pound of weight loss comes 4 pounds of less pressure on weight bearing joints. So, someone that loses 25 pounds has just taken 100 pounds of pressure on those hips, knees and feet. Markedly less pressure on the lower back discs also occurs.
Rehabilitation is markedly enhanced in a positive way by controlling weight. Do not wait for the injuries to occur…most assuredly they will. Work on the weight control NOW. And, for those NFL fans out there that are not Giants fans, Posner’s prediction for the NFC East title this year is (drum roll please)…The Washington Football Team….they are peaking and have a great coach and defense. Kudos to their quarterback, Alex Smith, who miraculously came back from a life threatening injury and rehabbed back to playing professional football.
