Well, I can’t seem to stay out of my physical therapist’s office and I can’t seem to stay away from injuries. I know, I know, you can clap now if you’d like. At a tournament, that is still happening this weekend, well specifically at my match yesterday, I hurt my back. Not quite sure how, but I’m pretty sure it’s sprained.
I’ve sprained my ankle before, so I know what that’s like but I honestly never thought you could sprain your back. Here’s some information on how back sprains work.
A back sprain is similar to any other sprain in that they occur when you overwork a muscle and then it becomes overstretched or torn. A sprained muscle can also be referred to as a pulled muscle. When this occurs, usually there is pain that worsens with movement, decreased mobility, and muscle cramps or spasms.
Most times, what helps a sprained back is rest, ice, and some form of an anti-inflammatory. Back sprains, as in the actual muscles themselves, typically heal after 1-2 weeks but then for the body to fully recover, it can take 4-6 weeks.
This unfortunately means that I will be doing a little bit of sitting but that’s okay! Most times, a weak core can cause injury to the back, and so that means that I’ve got some work to do on my core. Tennis is a very back and core oriented sport and with my weak core, my back has been taking all of the heat. My core is decently strong, considering I’ve played a lot of tennis and done a fair amount of conditioning for my core, but I guess I need to make it even stronger. Maybe I’ll be able to get my 6-pack now, haha. I’ll probably go see my physical therapist this week and see what she has to say about it. I hope it goes well!
Have a good week everyone!