Kenneth Gardner
Dear Mr. Gardner,
I had a neck injury (minor whiplash) in February 2004, then I injured my neck again in an accident in October 2004. For the second whiplash I immediately consulted with a physiotherapy. Now, I still feel a little discomfort when I ride my bicycle on uneven surfaces. However, it is generally better. Also, my right arm was injured in the same accident in October and I find that my right hand hurts if I carry heavy loads for even short periods.
Another thing is that in 2002 a heavy metal door was accidentally banged against my right knee and it hurts occasionally. In your line of experience do you think that starting karate with all these past injuries is a risky move?
Sensational K
Dear Sensational K,
The discomfort that you experience when you ride over uneven surfaces is an indication of an incomplete healing process. Your neck injury is not yet ready for the level of pressure that the sudden movements are producing. Ongoing exercise will help the recovery process but this should be done gradually, the opposite of the sudden changes that your riding experience presented. Until then the introduction of a karate routine is more likely to increase the aggravation at this time. This could reverse the improvements that you have accomplished so far.
The pain that you experience in your arm when carrying heavy loads is clearly an indication of the lack of readiness of the arm to take on that level of challenge so soon. The carrying of weight in your arm is not a bad thing. However, your arm is not ready for that amount of work. In time, your arm should get stronger as it improves and you should be able to carry progressively heavier loads without too much discomfort.
There are different kinds of exercises that can address your specific needs. You are still in the recovery phase and your involvement in physical activity should ensure ideal transition to complete healing.
ENDANGER YOUR RECOVERY
In a karate programme you will need to perform with your classmates. This could endanger your recovery especially if you were to irritate or re-injure your neck, arm or knee. It is important not to take on activity that poses undue risk before you can face the challenge. However, exercise is an important factor in the prevention and treatment of injuries. The right kind of exercise can shorten your recovery time. To recondition the injured areas, without hampering recovery, you should do exercise within tolerable levels of pain.
Prolonged rest or inactivity can cause delay in the recovery process especially in cases of muscle or bone injury. Lack of activity causes generalised muscle weakness as well as specific degeneration in the area surrounding the injury sites. Inactivity will lead to loss of endurance, strength, flexibility and coordination.
Lack of exercise will also result in the loss of flexibility, muscle mass and undesirable muscle contraction. These will delay the healing process and cause other health problems.
There is the need for a proper balance between resting injuries and exercising injuries to maintain and improve your recovery. You need to display increased movement in your daily routine without pain before you introduce activities that are likely to be much more physically challenging. Focus now on exercises that will help in your recovery before starting karate.
Kenneth Gardner is an exercise physiologist at the G. C. Foster College of Physical Education: email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com.
