1. Always wear protective gear

A very common piece of protective wear is the helmet. Helmets can save your head from injury in a collision. They are most effective if they are the proper type of helmet for the activity, and fitted correctly. Other examples of protective equipment are: shin guards, padding, knee or elbow guards, eyeglasses, or cleats. Although protective gear prevents many injuries, it isn’t 100% effective.

2. Warm up and cool down

It isn’t a good idea to run onto the field and start playing. A good warm up to do before starting to play is to take a jog for a few minutes, then stretch legs and arms. Once you are finished playing, make sure to do some stretches.

3. Know the rules of the game

Most rules in sports are created to protect the player. Following these rules can not only keep you safe, but it can keep others safe. There have been rules put in place like cutting back on the amount of contact practices in football, or in youth soccer there is no slide tackling. These have contributed in a significant drop in injuries.

4. Take breaks

Taking a few short water breaks in practices and games can help stop injury and prevent heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Along with taking short breaks, you should take at least one day off a week, and one month off a year. This will let your body recover.

5. Don’t play while injured

You might feel the urge to get right back into playing if you have an injury. But playing before an injury has fully healed is a very bad idea. It can lead to more serious injury which can put you out of the game even longer. If you think you have a severe injury, make sure to get it checked by a professional, and follow the advice of what to do and when to return to play.