Exercises for Injury Prevention in Athletes

Exercises for Injury prevention in athletes

At our sports injury clinic in Portland OR, we routinely see many teens and adults who have experienced an injury to their knees and ankles because of sports like soccer, basketball, and football. Injuries are typically classified as acute/traumatic from a particular event or overuse. Fortunately, there are many effective ways to help reduce injuries like cross-training, getting plenty of rest, staying hydrated, and not playing through pain. Additionally, many of these injuries, including anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries, could be prevented through exercises that improve balance, flexibility, and strength of the lower extremities as well as the core muscles of the lower back, hip, and abdomen.

Recently, the British Journal of Sports Medicine published a review article on the FIFA 11+ exercise program for injury prevention.* The Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) has produced a series of exercises known as “The 11”. FIFA’s Medical Assessment and Research Center known as F-MARC designed this 11-exercise injury prevention and warm-up program to prevent injuries in soccer players. The first study in 2008 in young female soccer players proved that these exercises can prevent non-contact ACL injuries. Subsequent studies have found that in both female and male players, these exercises prevent non-contact injuries.

The 11+ program consists of select exercises and drills with various movements including squatting and jumping. Many athletes are interested in this program because it has been shown to decrease knee valgus moment during double leg jumps. This knee malalignment can result in knee ligament sprains (tears). When our knees go into valgus it means they are no longer in a preferred alignment with the hips and feet and they are now moving closer together during a jumping and landing movement. As the knees move towards each other during a jump and landing movement this can increase the load on the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and increase the risk for an ACL injury. Doing the 11+ exercises using proper form may help mitigate the risk of ACL injury by improving jumping and landing strength and technique. These 11 exercises can be performed within 15 minutes and require no equipment other than a ball. The eleven exercises can be performed during a training session after a routine warm-up. A shortened version of exercises 4, 5, and 8 are recommended as part of a pre-game routine. In addition to injury prevention, these exercises can improve performance by improving core stabilization and proprioception.

Several studies in male and female football players around the globe have shown better lower extremity and core stabilization, functional balance, enhanced knee strength ratios, improved jumping, better hamstring/quadricep strength ratios, and improved agility.

The 11+ program should be performed at least twice a week for injury prevention and can easily be incorporated into practices as a standard warm-up by coaches. The coach is the most important person on the team to promote this program to their players. Due to the increased risk of knee ligament injuries in female athletes, this program is especially useful for young female athletes.

At Sports Health Northwest, we want to help you stay healthy and enjoy exercise and sports activity to its fullest. At times we know injuries can sideline you and when that occurs, we are here to help. If you have experienced a recent knee or other sports injury, contact our office for an appointment. We are happy to work with you to help you recover from injury and get back to activities you enjoy.

*Bizzini M, Dvorak J. FIFA 11+: an effective program to prevent football injuries in various player groups worldwide, a narrative review. British Journal of Sports Medicine 2015;49:577-579

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