Keeping Boomers in the Game

My friend Tony is a baby boomer who loves to play soccer.

Now Tony has a wrenched back--from too much kicking, slide tackling and other futbol action.

Since Tony and I are 53, I teased him mercilessly about not leaving the games to the younger folks.

But it turns out, he’s not the only baby boomer getting banged up in amateur athletics. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reported this past week that, for people ages 35 to 54, sports-related injuries have increased 33% over the last seven years. That amounts to about a million injured baby boomers each year, and more than a third of those people wound up in hospital emergency rooms, the report says.

Here’s another jarring statistic: The annual cost of treating those injuries adds up to $18.7 billion.

Topping the injury list are bicyclists, followed by basketball players. Runners have shown the greatest increase in the rate of injuries. Tony will be comforted to know that other sports ranking high on the list include weightlifting, in-line skating, swimming and his beloved soccer.

I bring all this up not to ridicule my friend, but to point out there are tips available to ease--and avoid--such pain. They come in a new brochure for baby boomers put out by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons (www.aaos.org) and the American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine (www.aossm.org). The brochure is simply called “Boomeritis.”

The tips differ for each sport, but a few apply across the board. Here’s the main one: “Always take time to warm up and stretch before physical activity. Cold muscles are more prone to injury.”

It also warns about the “weekend warrior syndrome.” You hibernate Monday through Friday, then want to play your head off Saturday morning. Say the experts: “Try to get at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity every day. If pressed for time, you can break it up into 10 minute chunks.”

Doctors must have had Tony and me in mind for this one: “Listen to your body. As you age, you may find that you are not as flexible as you once were. You will be able to prevent injury by modifying your activity to accommodate your body’s needs.”

Here’s another you might have already heard: the 10% rule. Don’t increase your activity level more than 10% per week. If you walk two miles a day one week, don’t go for four the next.

Some of this may seem like such common sense that you wonder why you need a brochure. But the experts say that it’s the lack of common sense that can lead to so many injuries.

“We see it every day,” said Sean Smith, operations manager at Bally’s Fitness in Anaheim. “Someone in that age group goes years and years without any real exercise regimen and suddenly he wants to play 40 minutes of soccer. His muscles (or hers) just aren’t ready for that.”

Another good brochure tip: Baby boomers stop exercising because it bores them. Try a more well-balanced exercise regimen to reduce boredom--and avoid injuries later.

You can pick up detailed suggestions on each sport by going to the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Web site: www.cpsc.gov. I don’t have room to list them here, but here’s one for Tony’s soccer friends: “Wear shin guards.”

The medical experts say most lower leg injuries to soccer players could have been prevented if they protected their shins.

Jerry Hicks’ column appears Monday and Thursday. Readers may reach Hicks by calling (714) 966-7789 or e-mail to jerry.hicks@latimes.com