Did you know that cramming all your weekly exercise into the weekend can have a negative impact on your body? Surgical Podiatrist, Dr. Danny Romman and Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Specialist, Dr. Joseph Volpe with Austin Diagnostic Clinic visited with Studio 512 about “weekend warriors” and their injuries.

What is a “weekend warrior”?

Dr. Romman says, “A weekend warrior is a person who crams all of their exercise into the weekend. They’re usually in their mid-30s and older; they might have kids at home, they’re probably at work or doing the school run during the week and they have busy lives. So they tend to “go for it” during the weekend, often without stretching, and can injure themselves. When they try to squeeze a lot of fitness and activity into the weekend, there is a greater chance to get injured.” 

What are some common injuries you see from this exercise type?

Dr. Romman says, “I see a lot of injuries from this style of exercise. High and low ankle sprains, a common break of the second metatarsal of the foot, problems with the Achilles tendon and something called a Jones fracture, which happens on the outside of your foot to your pinky toe. If a foot injury hurts, it’s swelling, it’s bruised and it hurts to put weight on it…we want you to see a doctor immediately. We now tend to heal these injuries in a way where you can still create movement, instead of being immobile for a fixed period of time.”

How can we exercise – functionally, or to gain strength – while staying healthy and avoiding injury?
Dr. Volpe says, “These injuries can come from the feet up to the trunk or vice versa, due to striking the ground. It’s important to have a strong core – front and back – to help you move. Moderately exercising even 15-20 minutes a day can help reduce the risk of these injuries. What you want is to be able to strengthen your stability, so adding in stability balls or blocks can help you increase your proprioception, or your understanding of where you body is in space.”

Austin Diagnostic Clinic has nineteen locations around the Austin area. To find the one nearest to you, go to ADClinic.com.

This segment is paid for by Austin Diagnostic Clinic and is intended as an advertisement. Opinions expressed by the guest(s) on this program are solely those of the guest(s) and are not endorsed by this television station.