Recovering from Injury with a Knee Support
If you live an active lifestyle and play sports on a regular basis, injuries are an unfortunate reality. Most of the time we’re able to shrug them off as a natural consequence of wanting to get off the couch. However, some parts of our bodies are able to recover more quickly and readily than others. When we sustain an injury to the delicate ligaments in joints like the knee, full recovery can take a long time.
While a knee support can help you to make a faster and more comprehensive recovery that gets you up and active sooner, there are other ways in which you can help yourself to recover from an injury with a knee support.
Choose the right support
One knee support might look the same as any other at first glance, but there are a range of knee braces for many different purposes and choosing the wrong one could prevent you from making the fastest possible recovery. Some are designed for wearing as a preventative measure when skiing or playing high impact sports while others are designed exclusively for the needs of those with arthritis.
As well as choosing the right support for your needs, correct fitting and sizing are also essential. The goal of a support is to compress the knee, taking the pressure off your muscles and ligatures so that they can heal better. It should also help to maintain warmth and blood flow to aid in a quick recovery.
When it comes to recovery… you are what you eat!
An injury is more than just physical pain. It can also take a toll on your mental health. Deprived of the ability to lead an active lifestyle, you may feel the temptation to indulge in less healthy eating habits. But this can do way more harm than good.
When injured, your dietary choices can play a huge part in making a speedy recovery. Make sure you are eating lots of green leafy veggies which are full of both vitamins and fibre. It’s also important to ensure that you get plenty of protein to allow muscles and ligaments to grow back stronger and faster.
As tempting as junk food maybe after an injury, you’ll need to double down on your healthy diet if you want to get up and active sooner.
Raise your knee when sitting or lying down
When you’re recovering from a knee injury you’ll need to get into a different set of habits. For example, you’ll need to keep your knee raised when sitting down or going to bed. This will help to alleviate the pressure on the joints, muscles and ligature to ensure less strain and a faster recovery.
Take efforts to reduce pain and inflammation
Inflammation is your body’s natural response to injuries, but it can also make living with an injury much harder, especially when moving around, getting dressed etc. With that in mind, try taking steps to reduce pain and inflammation like giving your injured knee an icing for 20 minutes every 3 or 4 hours or taking anti-inflammatory painkillers.
With a little preparation and know-how, recovery can be a much quicker and easier process.