So let’s talk about the season-ending (and perhaps, career changing) injury that no football player wants to face - an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear.

While it’s certainly not the worst case scenario, coming back from an ACL tear takes a good 10-12 months to return to full competition and it can be frustrating because that 10-12 months actually feels like 10-12 years (not to be dramatic). 

Most ACL injuries occur in non-contact situations and happen when a player is running, plants their foot, then cuts to change direction. They can also happen as a result of contact injury with another player, usually with impact to one side of the knee when the foot is planted.

I’m all about sharing my knowledge to help athletes prevent season-ending injuries so that they can stay healthy in their sport. Sometimes things just happen, where it’s the perfect storm of circumstance that leads to the ACL tear, and in those instances, there’s nothing you can do about it.

But you can set yourself up for success by actively working to prevent ACL tears in football (and also just acl injury prevention overall). And I’m about to spell it all out for you.

Make sure your injury prevention program current program includes these elements to help prevent ACL tears in football:

1. Total body strengthening that targets hips and stabilizing muscles

2. Agility drills

3. Recovery

4. Warm-up exercises 

5. Connection with a local sports PT - schedule a check-up/evaluation and connect with for quick treatment following knee and ankle injuries

Hip Strengthening 

Most football players understand that strength training is a key piece of success when it comes to getting your body ready for football season. I have yet to see a football strengthening program that doesn’t incorporate all the classics - power cleans, deadlifts, push jerks, back squats, front squats, bench press, and incline press. 

While these are great lifts to include, it’s also important to make sure that you place an emphasis on training the glutes and specifically address strength and activation of the deep hip stabilizers. These muscles help reduce the inward collapse of the knee (that may result in an ACL tear) when running, changing directions, and during impact with another player. 

Some of my favorite hip strengthening exercises include:

• Romanian deadlifts (double leg or single leg)

• Glute bridges (single leg or double leg with band around knees)

• Single leg squats

• Crossover step-ups

• Resisted band walks (weight on toes)

• Anti-rotation lunges 

• Bulgarian split squats

Of course, it’s worth mentioning this: avoid overtraining muscle groups. As athletes, we can get carried away with wanting to hit every muscle group multiple times per week and progressively loading resistance on the bar, but it’s important to incorporate rest. Focus on getting quality repetitions and on proper technique instead of increasing weight from what you did last time. 

If you’re feeling tired and sore multiple days in a row, be mindful of what you’re doing in your program. And if you’re dealing with injury after injury, it might be time to revamp the program. You can consult with your local sports physical therapist to make sure that your program is optimal for you and your goals. 

P.S. Here’s a link to my ACL Tear Prevention Mini Strengthening Program that you can do at home with minimal equipment.

Agility Drills

This one might seem obvious at first, but often gets overlooked. If your sport includes running and changing direction, speed, contact with other players, and power then you need to work on your agility during the season and in the off-season. Spoiler alert: I’m talking to you, football players. 

Incorporate 1-2 days of speed and agility training in your routine. Work on increasing speed, footwork accuracy and practice multi-directional movement at a fast pace. This will help your muscles be more responsive to quick changes in direction when you’re in a live game, which reduces your risk of injury. 

Some of my favorite agility drills include:

• Cone drills (forward running, quick stop, side shuffle, crossover steps, backwards running)

• Speed ladder

• Reaction drills with sprints (ex. sprint, quick stop, and go right or left)

• Progressive sprints (gradually increase intensity)

Play Hard, Recover Harder

It’s worth making an effort to optimize your recovery routine. Quite frankly, spending time doing recovery tasks is something that athletes often skip, especially when they’re feeling good (and aren’t actively injured). Why? Because it takes time and it isn’t as glamorous as all the hustle. 

However, taking time to recover properly will allow your muscles to grow stronger, tissues to be more resilient, and reduce fatigue. If you adopt even a few recovery elements in your weekly routine, it will help your body be more resistant to injury and improve your performance. 

Some of my favorite recovery activities include:

• Going to physical therapy 

• Scheduling regular massages

• Use of mechanical percussive devices (read: theragun) or compression devices (read: Normatec boots) at home

• Deep breathing and visualization

• Meditation

• Foam rolling 

• Yoga or active stretching

I took a deeper dive into my top recovery practices for athletes in this blog post (link to recovery blog), so take a look!

Always do the warm-up

And this goes without saying, but take it seriously. The purpose of the warm-up is to activate all the muscles that you’ll be using when playing your sport. It gets everything ready to perform at it’s best, and yeah, it does take a little time. But a targeted 5-10 minute exercise routine and progressive team warm-up should make a world of difference and might be the difference in a light sprain vs tearing your ACL.

Create a routine that activates your core, hips, quads, hamstrings, calves, and upper body. And it might be different depending on which position you play on the field in order to optimally target your goal. 

I’m a big fan of custom routines, but try adding a few of these movements (1x15) before you play next time:

• Heel raises on a step

• Plank to down dog

• Reverse lunge to forward knee drive

• Diagonal lunges

• Mini pogos

• Squat jumps

Consult with a Sports Physical Therapist

There’s a lot of advantages to this one and making an effort to establish care with a sports PT will be well worth your time. They can be an excellent resource as you continue through your athletic career. 

During an initial evaluation a sports PT can measure your current strength and mobility, screen for risk of injury, and look for potential areas of weakness. Then come up with a plan to address those areas and optimize performance on the field. They can help you adapt your training plan to make sure that it is well rounded with strength, agility, and recovery. 

Another benefit of having a sports PT you know and trust - they can get you in quickly for treatment if you get injured. Whether it’s an ankle sprain, muscle strain, or something more serious, reach out ASAP and get evaluated as soon as you can. Swelling and trauma can decrease muscle activation and function of the stabilizing muscles, making the ACL more susceptible to injury. Moral of the story: don’t ignore pain, get injuries evaluated early. 

This is my specialty as sports PT, helping injured athletes come back stronger. If you’re local to the Tri-Cities area, I’d love to work with you and help you decrease your risk for acl injury!

Schedule a discovery call here and we can discuss what it looks like to work together.

Next on your reading list:

1. How to Prevent ACL Injuries In Soccer

2. The Ultimate Guide to Comprehensive Athlete Recovery Strategies

3. Physical Therapy for Athletes at Game Changer