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your injury as an excuse to quit exercising altogether. Simply choose an activ-

ity that doesn’t hurt. If you pull a hamstring, you don’t have to stop upper-

body weight training. Swimming is also often a great activity when injured,

unless, of course, your injury is swimming-related.

Ice ..........................................................................................................

Ice reduces swelling and deadens pain by constricting blood flow into the

injured area. Ice for 15 to 20 minutes three or four times a day for as long

as you feel pain. Contrary to popular belief, ice is not useless after the first

day. You can apply ice with a pack, a plastic bag full of cubes, or a package of

frozen corn. Just don’t allow the ice to rest directly on your skin; otherwise,

you’re inviting a whole new list of problems, such as ice burns. Instead, put a

thin, damp washcloth between your skin and the ice.

One of our favorite icing techniques is ice massage. Fill a paper cup^3 ⁄ 4 full of

water and stick it in the freezer. When the water freezes, peel the cup down

so you have what resembles an ice cream cone of ice. Use this to massage the

injured area in a circular motion for as long as you can take it, usually four or

five minutes. Ice massage penetrates deeper into your muscles than passively

throwing an ice pack over the injured area. Be sure to keep the ice moving.

Compression ........................................................................................

Put pressure on the injured area to keep the swelling down. Wrap a damp

ACE Brand bandage around the injury, or buy a special knee, elbow, or wrist

wrap or brace. Wrap tightly enough so that you feel some tension but not so

firmly that you cut off your circulation or feel numbness.

Elevation ...............................................................................................

Elevating your injured body part reduces swelling by allowing fluids and

waste products to drain from the area, much like water runs downstream.

(Waste products are the bits of broken blood cells and other inflammatory

agents hanging around the injury.) If your ankle is injured, you don’t need

to raise it so high that it’s perpendicular to the ground. Propping it up on a

couple of fluffy pillows will do. Elevation works best when used in conjunc-

tion with the rest of the RICE treatment.

68 Part II: Enjoying Total-Body Health: Eating Well and Staying Injury-Free