How Weekend Warriors Can Avoid Injury

Desk jockey during the week, fitness fiend on the weekends. If that describes your exercise pattern, you probably belong to the weekend warrior tribe.

“A weekend warrior is anyone who doesn’t have a regular exercise routine, who doesn’t go to the gym five times a week, but who tries to do something active occasionally,” says Amol Saxena, DPM, a sports medicine and podiatry specialist at the Palo Alto Medical Foundation.

You might think of weekend warriors as middle-aged and older folks who friend-up on Saturdays or Sundays to play tennis, take long hikes or golf. But age has nothing to do with it, Dr. Saxena says. In fact, many weekend warriors are high-school kids who don’t play organized sports. “These kids want to get out of the house, so they’ll go shoot baskets or skateboard,” he says.

Take Care

If you don’t run, ride or row daily, your body probably isn’t as conditioned as you think. Be extra careful during your semiregular endeavors so you don’t suffer an injury—a common woe among weekend warriors.

“Mostly we see muscle strains, sprains and tears,” Dr. Saxena says. “These injuries happen because the muscles are underused and not ready” for high demands. You can also fracture a bone, either because your bones aren’t dense enough for high-intensity workouts or the muscles and joints aren’t strong enough to prevent bone breakage.

Injuries occur more frequently during some sports and activities than others. “With basketball, soccer, tennis and other stop-and-start sports, we see a lot of acute traumatic injuries like tendon tears,” Dr. Saxena says. “It’s easy to step wrong or land on your foot awkwardly.”

Use the Buddy System

Working out with someone who’s on par with your abilities might decrease your chances of getting hurt. For instance, if you and a fellow occasional jogger go for a weekend run, your odds of pulling a hammy may be lower than if you try to keep pace with a competitive 10Ker.

However, being near-equals at a sport doesn’t guarantee an injury-free outing, Dr. Saxena says. Accidents can happen to anyone at any time. But he notes that everyone’s body handles physical stress differently.

Both you and your friend can improve resilience with regular strength training. “Lifting weights is very helpful for keeping aging weekend warriors injury free,” Dr. Saxena says. By building up and maintaining all your major muscle groups—legs, arms, shoulders, back, core—you’ll be better prepared to hit the trails, court, course or gymnasium.

Warm Up

You might think static stretching—lengthening and holding particular muscles for 30 seconds or so while sitting, standing or lying down—loosens up muscles and bulletproofs your body against injury before intense exercise.

But according to Dr. Saxena (and a growing body of research), static stretching doesn’t live up to its promise. “It’s never been shown to actually prevent injuries,” he says. Some studies even suggest this old-school stretching style decreases athletic performance.

Instead of static stretching, do active warmup and sport-specific dynamic stretching. This means moving your body through the same motions that your activity will require. If you’re going for a long run, for example, start by jogging slowly in place or walking for a few minutes before picking up the pace. If you’re about to play basketball, Dr. Saxena suggests trotting around the court, jumping up and down, and trying a few layups before the game or practice starts.

Always Hydrate

Finally, Dr. Saxena stresses sufficient hydration for weekend warriors. Drink water before, during and after your activity, he says, but don’t forget electrolytes, which replace key minerals lost through sweat.

Weekend warriors often work out for longer periods of time, such as a 90-minute soccer game or a grueling three-hour hike. If that’s you, drink electrolyte-charged sports drinks to rehydrate and refill your fuel tank with a few calories. Eating a potassium-rich banana along with plain water also does the trick, helping your body go long and hard without harm.