A sports hernia involves weakening or tearing in the muscles, tendons, or ligaments of the lower abdominal and groin area that leads to chronic pain, often caused by repetitive and forceful twisting of your pelvis. Sports hernias are most seen in soccer players due to the dynamic nature of the sport, rapid changes in direction, intense sprinting, and repetitive twisting and turning when kicking. Physical therapy can help athletes manage and recover from a sports hernia, addressing underlying muscular imbalances that contributed to injury through targeted exercise, core strengthening, and manual therapy.

Core strengthening has numerous benefits for an athlete’s fitness level and sports performance. The core muscles are the foundation of movement for the entire body, comprised of the abdominals, back muscles, diaphragm, hip muscles, and pelvic floor muscles. A physical therapist can assess an athlete’s core strength and design a core strengthening exercise program to enhance the strength, control, and endurance of their core muscles. Mangiarelli Rehabilitation physical therapy assistant Patti demonstrates several advanced core strengthening exercises on the blog.

Improving an athlete’s sports performance with physical therapy can reduce the incidence of sports-related injuries by improving sports technique and body mechanics as well as enhancing the athlete’s strength, mobility, and power. Physical therapists can create a personalized sports conditioning and performance program to help athletes perform at an elite level. Check out 10 ways physical therapy can improve your sports performance!