We hear all the time about how sports are dangerous. It seems you only have to switch on the TV to see that someone had been injured playing sports or competing. Typically, the injury has occurred during a professional sports event where the stakes are higher and the situation is more dangerous.
For the amateur sportsman, it’s considerably easier to stay safe competing in sporting activities. Here are our tips if you want to avoid some particularly nasty injuries.
Wear The Right Equipment
Children are commonly known for not bothering with safety equipment. Skateboarding is a good example: You hardly ever see a child skateboarding while wearing knee pads and elbow pads. It just doesn’t happen.
On the other hand, check out professional skateboarders and you will see that they certainly do. They are probably attempting more dangerous tricks, but the injuries at stake are the same. If you fly off a board at a high height or a fast speed, you’ll be glad you were wearing pads for safety.
Safety equipment is recommended in almost every sport under the sun. Men who play cricket are brave if they aren’t wearing a cup. If you’re out on the water you should always be wearing a life jacket, particularly if you’re wakeboarding. Wakeboarding involves riding in the wake of a boat. If you lose control, the wake can easily push you under. Without a rip curl life jacket, you could be in serious danger.
Avoid Contact Sports
A lot of people will tell you that all sports are safe as long as you play them sensibly. But this has proven to not be the case. Football is the best example of this. In the past, we had no idea what the effect of extreme contact was on the human head.
Now we know that the blows suffered in a sport like football can cause serious brain damage. It isn’t the only sport where these blows occur either. Ice hockey is another sport where players suffer extreme hits to the head. If you want to be safe, avoid these types of sports if you want to avoid injuries.
Get Training
Almost every sport involves some degree of training to play or participate. For some, you just need to know the rules of the game. For others, the safety procedures are more important. Skydiving is a great example of this.
If you don’t have the right training for jumping out of a plane, you could pull the chute too late or too early. Too early and the higher air currents could cause you to lose control of the chute. Too late and you’re looking at a painful landing. You should always be aware of the possible dangers.
Listen To The Person In Charge
Finally, when competing or participating in sports there will always be someone in charge of you. They are the ones responsible for your safety. Something as simple as running the wrong play could lead to an injury. If your coach has a play in mind and you are in the wrong place, you could easily get injured.