Playing (and Living) with Pain

Biomechanics 101
One surefire way to manage pain is to avoid it. “As a population, we tend to overdo things,” says Erik Ekstrom, MD, of the Institute of Low Back and Neck Care, whose clinics include locations throughout the metro. He sees plenty of patients suffering from degenerative issues, such as arthritis and disc maladies in their backs. He also treats many who’ve over- or misused their bodies.

“As children we do more activities—we skip, run, jump, and bike,” says Ekstrom, who specializes in physical medicine and rehabilitation, sports medicine, and spine care. “Cross training like that is important, but we get away from it as adults.” This forces the body’s neurological and muscular-skeletal systems out of balance.

“If you’re going to run, play hockey, or ride a bike, your success is based on patterns of movement [that] draw on those muscles time and time again,” says Doug Merz, owner of Merz Physical Therapy at The Marsh Center for Balance and Fitness, in Minnetonka. Improper training, poor technique, bad footwear—all can prompt muscles to overcompensate, which leads to overuse and injuries.

“Physical conditioning is one way of preventing injury—especially core conditioning,” says Paul C. Biewen, MD, physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist at Twin Cities Orthopedics, in Edina. The core stabilizes the spine, pelvis, and shoulders, and movement in related extremities. “Core strength keeps the spine in a better position, so if something unusual happens, the muscles can compensate and relieve the pressure,” Biewen says.

Merz suggests every athlete enlist a qualified trainer to demonstrate good form from the start. “Get your biomechanics evaluated by a good trainer or physical therapist [for] the activity you’re interested in,” he says.