The adjustments to getting back into sports is going to take a little time. Dr. Mho Tanaka, sports medicine surgeon at Mass General Brigham says even though kids have been doing other activities and trying to stay in shape, when you get back into sports this is a whole different level of activity. She says you are using different muscles, you’re performing at a different intensity, you’re being more competitive, you require more endurance and all these things put an increased demand on your muscles and joints.
Dr. Tanaka says it is important for parents and coaches to be able to recognize that a kid has an injury, and in general it is not normal for a child to have pain during a workout or during a game. Some of the ways you can pick up on this is they may start to change their form, they may slow down or show signs that they are fatigued. She says she always encourages parents and athletes to connect with their athletic trainers and most schools and teams will have a dedicated person. They know the athletes and they know their competition levels and they can provide competitive training exercises and they can also treat basic sports injuries.
