More than 10 million sports injuries occur each year, most of which are due to traumatic injury or overuse of muscles or joints. Recognizing the symptoms of an injury before it becomes worse may help you recover more quickly. Sprains, strains, and bruises are easily noticed because of particular symptoms, such as skin discoloration or swelling, but other injuries can easily be overlooked. For instance, if you have joint stiffness or impaired movement in a knee, you might have torn cartilage, or if a small bump appears on your shoulder you may have sustained a slight shoulder separation. In most cases, broken bones are noticed right away, but stress fractures are often disregarded because there's usually little or no swelling. However, pain and tenderness often increases during movement. In most injuries inflammation is a healing response to injury, and is usually accompanied by swelling, heat, redness and pain. If you experience these symptoms, you may have unknowingly sustained an injury. Knowing your body and how much it can take during a strenuous physical workout may help you prevent injury.
