Better to have Broken Bones Than to Tear a Ligament or Tendon

Many athletes protect their bones with equipment like shin guards, but forget about protecting their ligaments and tendons.

Broken Bones Heal Better Than Ligaments and Tendon

Interestingly, bones often heal better than ligaments and tendons. This is because bones have a good blood supply, bringing oxygen and nutrients needed for healing.

Plenty of Blood Supply

Ligaments and tendons, however, have much poorer blood flow, which means they heal slower and may not regain full strength without proper rehabilitation.

That’s why protection alone isn’t enough. While guards can prevent impact injuries, strength training and conditioning are key to protecting your joints.

Strong muscles help support your joints and reduce stress on ligaments and tendons, lowering your risk of injury.

Hence, even though guards are important at preventing impact injuries, we should not neglect and forget about the importance of a strength and conditioning program which is key to preventing ligament and tendon injuries which happen frequently sometimes more so than bone injuries.

More Complex Structures

Bones also heal more quickly because they are less complex to build than ligaments and tendon. Designed to take a lot of stress along its lengths, there is a lot of effort required to align the ligament and tendon building materials in a specific way.

So the next time you think about protecting or preventing broken bones, give a thought to your other ligaments and tendons in your joints.

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