Figure Skating Injuries
Competitive figure skating requires speed, agility, flexibility, strength, endurance and power. Over the years the level of difficulty has steadily increased creating a need for off-ice training to facilitate on-ice performance and prevent injuries.
Injuries
Injuries can be classified as either overuse or acute. The most common types of injury seen in figure skaters result from overuse. Overuse injuries result from microtrauma or a small force placed on a structure (such as muscle, tendon or bone) over a long period of time.
These consist of such injuries as tendonitis, bursitis, stress fractures and shin splints. Acute injuries result from a large force placed on a structure(s) over a very short time, resulting in immediate damage to the structure. These injuries may be ligament sprains, muscle strains, cartilage tears and fractures.
Off-ice Training and Injury Prevention
Overuse injuries are often preventable with an off-ice conditioning program. The goals of an off-ice training program are to increase body awareness for proper alignment, eliminate imbalances between muscles with respect to strength and flexibility, and to prevent injuries. Off-ice training should consist of stretching, strengthening and endurance with emphasis on anaerobic conditioning.
Figure skaters are prone to developing muscle imbalances. These muscle imbalances are caused by decreased flexibility and muscle weakness, which lead to abnormal or poorly controlled movements. The deviations may often be subtle, especially to the untrained eye. Deviations from "normal" biomechanical movements of the body caused by muscle imbalances create a need for a strengthening program and a daily stretching program.
It has been reported that a marked decrease in flexibility often occurs in the quadriceps muscle (in front of the thigh) and in the gastosoleus muscle complex (the calf). Reports have also indicated that there is a significant difference in the force output between the quadricep and hamstring (back of the thigh) muscles between the take-off and landing legs.
Overuse injuries can also occur from a sudden increase in training time and/or intensity, which is often the case when transitioning from the academic school year to the summer skating schedule. It is recommended that the transition be gradual depending on the change in training time.
Off-ice training should be performed under the supervision of a qualified professional, such as a certified strength and conditioning coach, exercise physiologist, physical therapist or athletic trainer. Exercises which are performed incorrectly can lead to unnecessary injury.
It is preferred that many of the drills be as sport specific as possible; thus, an off-ice training professional possessing knowledge of figure skating is beneficial. The frequency of exercise should be individualized depending on goals, age, ability, and phase of the competitive year.
Utilization of body weight rather than weights or machines is a safe and excellent way to increase strength and endurance, especially in younger skaters.
Plyometrics and Pilates
Many off-ice programs incorporate plyometrics, jumping exercises which train inborn strength reflexes within the muscle to respond powerfully and quickly. Plyometric exercises are an excellent way to increase explosive jumping power. However, they can often lead to injury when moderate or advanced plyometric exercise is performed incorrectly or when the participating skater does not have adequate strength and flexibility.
Low intensity plyometric exercise such as jumping rope, skipping or hopping are safe and appropriate exercises. Pilate exercise is becoming increasingly popular with figure skaters. These exercises teach skaters muscle control and body awareness which are vital skills for skaters to master.
In case of a skater who experiences repeated injuries, analysis of the training schedule, body mechanics, strength, flexibility and skating boots should be performed by a qualified professional. Careful coaching, a gradual increase in training time and intensity, and a structured off-ice training program that incorporates strength and flexibility are the best way to prevent overuse injuries.
Cleveland Clinic Sports Health provides care and off-ice training to skaters at all levels from early beginnings to national and world level figure skating competitors.
For further information, call Cleveland Clinic Sports Health and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation at 877.440.TEAM.
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