Groin Injuries: A Pain in the....
 

GROIN INJURIES: A PAIN IN THE…..

Chris Driskill L.A.T

Groin injuries can be one of the most debilitating injuries a cowboy or cowgirl can suffer. The group of muscles that run down the inside portion of the upper leg get stretched or twisted and the ability to squeeze with the legs becomes next to impossible. When dealing with the people in the medical profession, they will refer to these muscle as Adductors, muscles that move the body part closer to the mid line or middle of the body. The muscles involved will be the adductor brevis, adductor magnus, and the adductor longus, the longus is the most commonly affected muscle of the three. For the sake of keeping things simple, I will refer to the whole muscle group as the groin.

The first question we need to ask is how does the groin become strained. Most common way is from a rapid change of direction, too much pressure being applied or with the toes being turned out and the foot getting caught on or in something. Yes I know, 99% of you are sitting there thinking this is everything I do, and I will agree with you on this. Hopefully we can do some things to make this a little more comfortable on you if you do suffer this injury. One thing to keep in mind that with the way things are set up, this can also lead to what is called an avulsion fracture, basically the tendon pulls a small chunk of bone off the pelvis.

The next question that comes to mind is how to treat this injury. Obviously the first step is going to be ice for the first 48-72 hours following the injury. I like to use the acronym RICE for this, Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation. Granted for this type of injury rest and elevation are going to be the two hardest to accomplish. If you have to continue to compete, a hip spika with a 6” double length ace wrap is the way to go. The picture above gives you an idea of how this is done. What you are trying to accomplish is to form an “X” over the hip of the affected leg.

Now for the fun stuff, how do we strengthen the groin to help in preventing this from happening? I know most of you are running up and down the road and do not always have time to stop by a gym and get on the thousand dollar machines, but there is a cheap and easy way to get this done. Get a red playground ball or an under inflated ball, basketball, soccer ball, and place it between your knees and squeeze, hold it for 10 seconds and release for 5 seconds. Do this 20 times per session, try to do it 4-5 times a day. As the resistance becomes easier for you, add a little air to the ball. Stretching is a vital asset in keeping yourself healthy for the long grind, I have seen most cowboys with very good stretching routines, most of them find a fence rail and put the foot up on it and turn the body a ¼ turn and basically squat and get the stretch they desire. The typical groin stretch involves sitting with your heels pulled at far back as possible towards your groin area, the stretch is more commonly referred to as the butterfly stretch. A little twist to this stretch to help get a little more stretch out of it is to have a buddy put a light pressure on the knees and push down, then you bring your knees up, keep your feet on the ground, and make the knees touch. I will have the person do this 5 times and on the last one I make my hands into fist and place them on the inside of the knees and as soon as they get to the top, I have them squeeze against my fist for ten seconds. Another routine I have seen and really like I picked up from a group of bullriders. The play hackey sack for about 15-20 minutes at some point, I have usually seen this done about the time saddle bronc starts.

Hopefully I have given you a little better understanding of an injury that can have a profound effect on your ability to perform at a high level. If you do happen to suffer a groin injury, keep a few simple things in mind and it should be a much easier road to recovery. 1) Ice, 20 minutes every 2-3 hours for 48-72 hours to keep swelling to a minimum. 2) Rest if you can, I know this part is tough, but you are not doing your self any good if you cannot squeeze your legs. 3) Compression wrap to help support the muscles once you return to riding. 4) A TENS unit or some other form of mild electrical stimulation or if you can find someone willing, a easy massage over the area will help as well. 5) Stretch, stretch, stretch along with a good warm up routine and a strengthening routine should will help in preventing an injury from being a significant injury to hopefully only a being minor injury.