Osteopathic Advice: How To Choose Skates (and How To Stand And Fall On Them)

Important about lace

The most important condition for enjoyable skating is comfortable skates. They will not fit well if not properly laced up. In order for the foot and ankle to be comfortable, it is important to reach the golden mean: without overtightening the leg and toes, to ensure a stable position of the foot in the boot.

Putting your foot in the boot, first pull up the “tongue”, and then start lacing. The tension on the laces should be strong enough for the shoe to fit snugly on the foot, but not too tight to avoid circulatory disorders in the foot. The higher the lacing rises, the weaker you need to grip, so as not to squeeze the vessels and nerves.

Be sure to wear warm long socks or knee-highs - they will prevent the edge of the boot from chafing your feet.

If during the ride you feel discomfort, then it is better to stop and check the lacing. Usually skates "sit" on the leg after you have skated for several hours. Of course, this is only possible if you choose the right skates in the store. You should be comfortable already at the time of fitting, then it will be comfortable to ride too.

Why are rental skates dangerous?

Ideal if you have your own skates that fit, and the boot knows every curve of your foot. If you use the rental services, then be sure to follow a number of conditions.

Fitting: Choose the size carefully according to the warm socks you are wearing. The boots should not pinch, and the ankle should not be pinched.

Blades: Make sure the blades are well sharpened.

Hygiene: it is not known who skated in these skates before you. To avoid infection with fungal diseases, use disposable socks, which should be rented with skates.

Learning to fall

Ice skating is a traumatic activity. Therefore, learn how to fall and group correctly before going out on the ice. A common reason for falling is the cogging of the teeth of the figure skates on the ice. In this case, a person flies forward by inertia, falling either on his knees and elbows, or hitting his forehead on the ice.

To minimize the negative consequences, when falling, you should bend your knees and rotate the body so that the impact falls on the side of the knee and hip.

If you fall backward, when the legs slide forward, the tailbone and sacrum or the back of the head may be affected. In such a situation, the head should be tilted forward, and the chin should be pressed to the chest. You can try to turn a little on your side so that the blow does not fall on the back of the head or tailbone, but on the side of the arm and thigh. If the blow could not be avoided, then it is necessary to carefully consider the injury. Both options are dangerous and fraught with serious complications. The injury will make itself felt after a while. It is like a bad seed that has fallen into the soil: at first it is not visible, but after years the useful vegetation can be completely suppressed by this weed. A childhood injury to the back of the head can lead to visual impairment and headaches in the future. And a fall on the tailbone at the age of 6-7 years by the age of 35 ─ provoke pain and protrusion in the lumbar spine. For those,who have faced similar cases, the connection between past trauma and present health problems is not clear. However, upon close examination and questioning, it can be traced, and an experienced specialist can easily determine the root cause of the disease.

Remedies

It is best to use protective gear when skating, especially if you are a beginner. Even if injury cannot be avoided, thanks to special products, it will not be so dangerous.

Helmet. It should be made of quality materials, ideally suited to the size and shape of your head. After a strong blow, the helmet loses its protective properties, which means that it needs to be changed.

Protection of the sacrum and coccyx. It is a shorts in which there is a special soft pad, located in the projection of the buttocks, ischial tubercles, and the sacrum. If you fall on your tailbone, the full protection, of course, will not save you, but it will significantly soften the blow.

Mittens / Gloves. They will protect both from cold and blows.

If the injury did occur

First of all, it is necessary to give the sore spot a rest, and give up stress for at least 3 days. On the first day after injury, it is most effective to use the cold by applying a bag of snow or ice to the injury, starting from the third day you can start warming up procedures. It is important to understand that any injury, even insignificant at first glance, is a reason to undergo osteopathic treatment so that a specialist will eliminate its consequences before it has time to integrate into the body, and this happens within 10-14 days. And if you or your child attends the figure skating section all the time, and falls down during training, then it is better to visit an osteopath for preventive purposes at least once every six months.

About the author:

In addition to my work in medicine, I have a health blog on Instagram (@vladimirzhivotov). At one time, he developed a manual direction - cranioposturology (he patented the craniobalance method). It is more effective than classical osteopathy. I plan to regularly share my knowledge with Marie Claire readers. Yours sincerely, Vladimir Zhivotov.

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