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In This Article...
Anatomy Involved
Most Common Squash Injuries
Injury Prevention Strategies
Top 3 Squash Stretches

Easy Squash Stretches and Flexibility Exercises

...guaranteed to improve your performance and do away with squash injuries for good.

Man has been playing sports involving the striking of a ball with the hand, a racket, or bat for thousands of years. Many of these games were invented out of a need for recreation, limited by space or geographic location. The predecessor to squash, Rackets, is no different. Debtors imprisoned in Fleet Prison in London needed to find a way to get their exercise. They resorted to hitting a ball against the wall with a racket.

If you're looking to improve your squash game or just seeking to prevent squash injuries it is important to follow the information in this article. In addition, making stretching a part of your fitness regime will have a significant impact. To get you started on a safe and effective stretching routine learn more about The Stretching Handbook and how it can improve your fitness.

This sport somehow escaped the walls of the prison and found its way to Harrow, and the school yard there. Boys at Harrow school quickly adopted the game and played it in an area called the "Corner." It became so popular that soon two open air rackets courts were built on the school grounds. Court time was a commodity and many younger players were relegated to the small, stone-walled yards of their boarding houses or in alleys in the village. This made for interesting play with the many outcroppings and hazards.

These younger boys discovered that a ball with a hole in it "squashed" against the wall and made for slower play. It also allowed for more unique hits and required more skill. The players also shortened the racket used in the game, due to smaller courts. From this the game of squash was born.

Squash soon spread throughout England. Many rackets courts were divided into squash courts. People began building more squash courts for public and private use. Some people even began building them in their own homes. Although public acceptance of the game grew rapidly, administrative recognition took much longer. Until 1923, squash was no more than a sub-committee of the Tennis, Rackets & Fives Association. In 1923, the Squash Rackets Representative Committee was formed, and later became the Squash Rackets Association (RFA.)

In the U.S. squash had been regulated and codified for nearly two decades by the time the RFA came about. Squash was introduced to the U.S. in New Hampshire by Jay Connover who was an avid rackets player. He learned of squash from a Harrow graduate whom he attended college with in 1884. He built four squash courts, converted from two rackets courts.

By 1900 squash was getting a strong footing in Philadelphia as courts began to spring up around the city. In 1904 members of the various rackets clubs got together to form the first national squash governing body anywhere, the United States Squash Racquets Association. The USSRA set to standardizing the court, equipment and rules. The USSRA also held the first men's national championship in 1907.

The version played in the U.S., until the 1990s used a harder, faster rubber ball, while the International version used the slower ball popular in England. The sport has taken on professional status with tournaments offering substantial cash prizes to the winners. It is played in singles and doubles competitions. It is currently played in 130 countries on over 47,000 courts worldwide.

Anatomy Involved
Squash requires a good deal of agility and good reaction to move to the ball. Upper body strength is required to swing the racket and provide a solid hit. Overall conditioning is also important to be able to play a complete game. Flexibility is important due to the various contorted positions a player may need to move through to react to the ball. Even though the ball is a softer, slower version of the racket ball it often comes off the walls in different directions and good players learn to use this to their advantage.

The major muscles used when playing squash include:

A good overall training program with focus on flexibility, agility training, endurance work, and cardiovascular conditioning will help the squash player stay healthy and able to rebound from injuries quickly.

Most Common Squash Injuries
Squash can lead to traumatic injuries when players quickly change direction to react to a ball or when they fall, striking the hard court surface. Chronic injuries can result from the repetitive swinging motion.

As with most racket sports; injuries to the shoulder and upper extremities are common. The common injuries experienced by a squash player include clavicle fractures, acromioclavicular (AC) injury, rotator cuff injuries, and tendonitis in the elbow (tennis elbow).

Injury Prevention Strategies
Proper training, adequate rest between training or competitions, and good nutrition are all essential for peak performance in squash.

The Top 3 Squash Stretches
Stretching is one of the most under-utilized techniques for improving athletic performance, preventing sports injury and properly rehabilitating sprain and strain injury. Don't make the mistake of thinking that something as simple as stretching won't be effective.

Below are 3 of the most beneficial stretches for squash. Obviously there are a lot more, but these are a great place to start. Please make special note of the instructions beside each stretch.

	Assisted Reverse Chest Stretch: Stand upright with your back towards a table or bench and place your hands on the edge. Bend your arms and slowly lower your entire body.
	Squatting Leg-out Adductor Stretch: Stand with your feet wide apart. Keep one leg straight and your toes pointing forward while bending the other leg and turning your toes out to the side. Lower your groin towards the ground and rest your hands on your bent knee or the ground.
	Kneeling Heel-down Achilles Stretch: Kneel on one foot and place your body weight over your knee. Keep your heel on the ground and lean forward.

The above 3 stretches are just a small sample of stretching exercises that will help you improve your performance and eliminate squash injuries.

Don't make the mistake of thinking that something as simple as stretching won't be effective. To really take advantage of all the benefits of a regular stretching program and improve your flexibility quickly and safely, check out The Stretching Handbook & DVD.

Together they include over 130 clear photographs and 40 videos of every possible stretching exercise, for every major muscle group in your body.

The Stretching Handbook & DVD will show you, step-by-step, how to perform each stretch EXACTLY! Plus, you'll learn the benefits of flexibility; the 7 critical rules for safe stretching; and how to stretch properly. Discover more about The Stretching Handbook & DVD here.

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