Doesn’t that Peloton bike look appealing? Wait, what? You don’t want to ride it because it’s wintertime and freezing outside and you’re afraid of pulling or tearing a muscle. Don’t fret. You’ll learn how to exercise without running the risk of pulling, tearing, or straining/spraining your muscles while doing so. Now, you can enjoy the ride without enduring lots of pain later on. Read this article to learn how!

How do You Get Sports Injuries in Winter:

The colder weather that winter brings does your body a disservice. It dehydrates your skin. That’s why your skin chaps and cracks more when it’s really cold outside. Colder weather also makes your muscles less flexible and much less effective in moving your body around. The reason? Your body diverts energy from your muscles in the attempt to keep you from freezing.

Your muscles are not just deprived of energy. They get far less blood flow during the winter time. That deprives them of the nutrients needed for them to perform optimally. All of that’s a problem for athletes and those who do sports in the winter since it increases their chances of sprains, muscle strains, pulls, and muscle tears.

Are you just resigned to exercise only when it’s hot outside? No, you can exercise when the barometer dips outside. Just do the following.

How to Prevent Sports Injuries:

The first arsenal in your line of defense when protecting your muscles from damage in colder weather is to carry a water bottle or bottle of whatever you like to drink when working out. Staying hydrated constantly will keep your muscles supple and reduce the likelihood of them being injured when you’re exercising.

However, preventing sports injuries doesn’t stop there. Always do warm up exercises. These increase the blood and nutrient flow to your muscles. They also warm your muscles up. Your muscles will be more flexible and nourished. They will be better prepared to handle any wear and tear you may subject them to when exercising.

You should also protect your muscles by wearing the right protective equipment. It wouldn’t hurt to layer up with lots of warm and protective clothing. All of those layers will keep your muscles warmer and more flexible, so that they’re less likely to be pulled or injured when you exercise intensively.

Finally, always make sure your clothes are warm and dry. Bring a few changes of clothing if you happen to sweat a lot. Remember that damper muscles are more likely to get injured during workouts.

How to Treat Sports Injuries:

Make sure you get plenty of rest after you’ve hurt a muscle from exercising. That’s important since rest will help your muscles recover faster. It may not hurt to take a few Tylenol, aspirin, or some other over-the-counter pills. The pain relievers will help keep the swelling down and may even prevent it.

Putting a cold compress on the injured areas will also help reduce the swelling and promote faster healing. Incidentally, so will elevating the affected body parts.

Conclusion:

You’re in control now. Gone are the days when you shuddered with fear at the thought of getting hurt when exercising when it’s cold outside. Now that you know how to prevent these types of injuries when the temperature drops, you can jog outside, even when it’s snowing. Just make sure you bundle up first!