Because of my newfound love of mountain biking I am constantly injured and covered in bruises. Two months ago I ruptured my quadriceps on my right leg just a few weeks before my race and I am still dealing with a large hematoma on my thigh. Last week, I added to my injuries by damaging the joint capsule of my right knee, causing it to swell up like a balloon and turn a million shades of blue.
I do not like to be injured; injuries take time to heal and I am not a fan of resting. When I am injured I only think of two things: what form of physical activity can I do that will not make this injury worse and what can I do to increase the rate at which my body heals.
I wrote earlier in the week about prehabilitation but lately my life has had a major focus in rehabilitation and in my life as an athlete I have done it all: acupuncture, IMS, deep tissue release, ultrasound and muscle stimulation. All of these forms of rehabilitation work but this year I was introduced to Class IV Laser Therapy and it has changed my life as it has for many athletes, both recreational and professional, who need to recover from an injury as soon as possible.
As I said in my last article, different injuries require different forms of treatment but if you are dealing with an acute injury, such as a ligament strain or muscle tear, laser therapy might be the way to go. How it works is it increases the permeability of the injured cells which allows for wastes to leave and healing proteins to enter the cell with ease. It also increases the rate of ATP production (remember back to grade 11 cell biology) which promotes quicker healing of the cells. In other words, the laser helps your cells repair quicker which in turn helps you heal faster and gets you back doing the things you love sooner than if you were to do nothing.
Next time you feel as though your injury is preventing you from being the active person you want to be, ask your health care professional if laser therapy might be something that could benefit you. But remember, each injury requires a different approach so do not self diagnose yourself and assume that laser therapy is right for you.
(Lainey: FYI – this laser therapy is similar to the one I recommend for my skin. And you can see the science behind it now, right? The laser promotes HEALING. So imagine what that does for your face. It stimulates your body’s natural healing processes so that you look younger and tighter – and it’s NON-INVASIVE. So why aren’t you trying this first instead of Botox!?! Lorinda Zimmerman developed the micro/cold gel laser treatment that is the best in the business. Click here for more information.)
Attached – Tobey Maguire goes for a run with daughter Ruby.
