ACL injury is becoming an epidemic in Australia. Recent research shows Australia has the highest rate of ACL surgery in the world. ACL injury in adolescence is a particularly worrying trend.The are a few theories as to why ACL injury appears to becoming more and more prevalent in kids. One theory is that kids are getting bigger, more athletic in build and are tending to play sport more like adults before they have adequate protective neuromuscular control. Another theory is that kids are tending to concentrate on one sport and play and train at a higher intensity then previously. My favoured theory is the lack of free play that kids have now. Free play (meaning being active and outside the house for long periods playing different games) allows the developing athlete to develop the neuromuscular control needed to protect their knee from injury.
Many ACL injuries can be prevented by implementing a neuromuscular training programme. There are a number of programmes available one of which is the FIFA 11+ programme which you can download here. The programme is a warm-up type of exercise programme, very simple to use, it doesn’t require any special equipment but it does need to be performed correctly as the programme details. If performed three times a week, for about 20 minutes each the programme is proven to reduce non-contact ACL injuries by 60% in adolescent athletes, and 40-50% in adults. I strongly recommend all athletes returning to sport following ACL reconstruction employ this warm up programme. All school sporting programmes should strongly consider implementing the FIFA 11+ programme.
Down load the FIFA 11+ programme here: FIFA-11-Manual