Groin pain in football
Groin pain is an unfortunately common complaint in football players and in many instances this injury is a reason some athletes stop playing all together. Otherwise known as “Osteitis Pubis,” this is one injury you would prefer not to suffer from.
This groin pain is now described in a number of different ways, which is probably more helpful to understand once you have a good diagnosis. We simply know more now than we used to. This can be Pubic bone related, Adductor tendon related, Hip joint related or related to muscles of the hip, or ligaments at the front of the pelvis. Knowing this helps direct what treatment you need.
Fortunately, there are some wonderful options for preventing this groin pain!
In football, as in many other sports now, there are wonderful resources to help with injury prevention. In Football, we have FIFA11+ or in Australia, the “Perform+” injury prevention program. Essentially the aim is to improve muscle strength, coordination and balance,
Strength and movement quality are key not only for preventing injury, but improving performance!
In a sport like football, the primary skill is kicking a ball with brilliant accuracy. This requires a planting leg to be stable and a kicking leg to swing through. At the hip, the groin (adductor) muscles and hip flexor muscles are active throughout the swing and require very high levels of power.
Check out these exercises below to help bullet proof this part of your body and keep you on the park!
Keeping on the park means you continue learning your craft. Continue to learn and you will only get better!
