Swimming Repetitive Stress Injuries by Stroke

A Stroke by Stroke Look at Swimming Overuse Injuries

Repetitive stress injuries or overuse injuries can be expected in any sport, especially a sport that is as, well, repetitive as swimming. Proper body mechanics/technique, good flexibility and enough strength to handle the resistance are necessary to avoid injury. Knowing what injuries each stroke can cause will help as well.

Here are some common repetitive stress injuries for the major swimming strokes:

Freestyle/Backstroke

• Swimmer’s Shoulder – Swimmer’s Shoulder is a form of tendonitis to the rotator cuff that is common from over stressing the shoulder during repetitive rotations
  

Breaststroke

• Breaststroke Knee – Breaststroke Knee is a from of tendonitis in the knee that can degrade to a tear in a meniscus (a pad that protects the end of the bone)
  
• Hip pain – tendonitis or bursitis at the hip joint is another common breaststroke injury
  

Butterfly Stroke

• Swimmer’s Shoulder
• Back pain – muscle pain in the upper and lower back is common with this stroke
  
• Vertebral fractures – in extreme cases repetitive stress can cause a fracture in a vertebrae