What are Overuse Injuries
Overuse injuries often creep in slowly—an ache here, a twinge there—until one day you’re dealing with pain that won’t settle. These injuries are common in both athletes and everyday life, and often stem from doing “too much, too soon” or repeating poor movement patterns.
Tendinopathies, stress fractures, shin splints, and ITB syndrome are just a few examples. The key to successful treatment is not just rest, but understanding the underlying cause. We’ll assess your movement, strength, biomechanics, and training habits to identify what’s driving the issue. From there, we’ll create a plan to reduce pain, restore normal function, and reintroduce load gradually so you can return to activity safely. Education is a big part of what we do—so you’ll leave understanding how to avoid the same problem recurring.
If you’re stuck in the cycle of injury and rest, we’ll help you break it and move forward for good.
FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
What has caused my overuse injury?
Overuse injuries are usually the result of repetitive actions that irritate and stress the tissues until they start to niggle and cause pain. There may also be underlying biomechanical issues or weakness/tightness of adjacent tissues.
Overuse injuries can affect joints, bones, ligaments, tendons and muscles.
How long does it take to recover from overuse injuries?
Acute injuries often settle within a few weeks with the right treatment. Often injuries can be slower to recover and you may need treatment over a longer time frame, especially if you’ve been having issues or niggles for a while.
The physiotherapist will discuss this with you at your first appointment.
What treatments are available for overuse injuries?
This will depend on what the physiotherapist finds on the assessment but could include progressive loading exercises, advice, electrotherapy, hand on treatments, taping and acupuncture/dry needling.
Will I need an X-ray or MRI?
This is often not needed.
An X-ray will be needed if a fracture is suspected.
A MRI or ultrasound is most useful when considering next steps if physiotherapy has not been helpful, such as planning for surgery or an injection.
The physiotherapist will be able to discuss this with you and if necessary refer you to an appropriate service.
Can physiotherapy help prevent overuse injuries from recurring?
Yes there is evidence that physiotherapy and exercise/activity can reduce further recurrences.