Stay Ahead Of Injury

Why A Proactive Approach To Body Maintenance Is Your Best Defence Against Bio-Mechanical Issues.

- Pedro van Gaalen

Most of us consider modern medicine as a reactive means to treat disease, illness and injury. For instance, when we get sick we visit a doctor for treatment; when we injure a muscle, tendon or ligament we may visit a physiotherapist for physical therapy; or when we have joint pain we may make an appointment with a chiropractor.

However, globally there has been a shift in thinking towards a more proactive approach to treatment, more commonly known as preventative medicine.

A great deal more medical advice today therefore centres around preventing certain conditions and ailments before they occur, predominantly by improving our general health through better eating habits and regular exercise.

EXERCISE ISSUES

Exercise can often be a double-edge sword, though. Often, in an attempt to move more, improve our performance or enhance our physical appearance, we end up causing issues because our largely reactionary approach to general health has left our musculoskeletal systems in a state of disrepair.

And when you impose physical demands through exercise on bodily structures that are weak and dysfunctional, no matter how good your intentions are, you’re likely to get injured.

As such, a proactive, preventative approach to soft tissue and joint injuries is also warranted, particularly in the context of our modern lives. As Sean Johnson, founder of the Centre for Structural Medicine, located in Fontainebleau, Johannesburg, explains, “our bodies are tensegrity models, which means we have a natural, healthy amount of tension running through our bodies. This keeps us upright and allows us to move and function.”