What Are the Most Common Skateboarding Injuries

The Most Pivotal Moment in Skateboarding When I began skateboarding, it was about to land a new trick and cruising with friends. Soon enough though I came to understand that skateboarding injuries were just part of the game.

The first real fall I had was trying to land a kickflip, and all that resulted from it is me landing on my wrist wrong so hard that g took weeks off the board. The most common denominator of skateboard injuries is that they are always worst when done naked and without the fear being hit in certain areas which results the paranoia-stomping board to body.

Whether you’re a newbie or have been on 4 wheels for longer than Dr. Brown has studied theoretical physics, how to prevent injury can keep that deck attached to your feet and absolve you of visiting the man holding probes in his hands healthcare providers forever! Most common skateboarding injuries are less severe like bruises and scrapes, but head injury or fracture is more serious.

The good news? With the right gear, caution and sticking to proper techniques most injuries can be avoided.

By looking at the most common injuries you can sustain while skating, we provide tips on how to avoid them in this article — because sticking a trick beats injuring yourself any day.

Why Skateboarding Injuries Happen

Before discussing injuries and prevention, let’s consider why injuries happen. Skateboarding is a high-impact sport involving sudden movements, jumps, and falls. It thrives on pushing physical and mental limits.

Lack of Experience: Newbies may get hurt more due to not learning how to balance well, control and do tricks safely.

Overconfidence: Conversely, people who have been skating for longer are less likely to be daunted by difficult tricks or the difficulty level of a particular location.

Shoddy Safety Gear: Cycling without correct gear or with obviously faulty equipment can raise the chances of suffering from cycle accident injuries.

Uneven surfaces, obstacles and weather: Choosing a safe spot in the barbell journey can also contribute to avoid an unnecessary accident. For example, what should be a routine ride to the store can become much more dangerous with even one slip up on a wet or icy surface.

It is important to understand these factors to avoid injury from the sport. With this, lets look into the most prevalent injuries in Skateboarding and how you can avoid them.

These Were The Most Prevalent Skateboarding Injuries

What do you think when it comes to skateboarding injuries? Scraped knees? A twisted ankle? More serious injuries are common, and in some cases life-changing.

Most probable injuries for skaters:

Head Injuries

A skateboarder and head injuries are the worst combination in any sport. On the other hand, if you fall on your head, it may result in concussions or sutural fractures of the skull to as serious TBIs (traumatic brain injuries). Such injuries can have lifelong repercussions on memory and cognitive function, impairing quality of life.

So, Be serious bro!

Falls are the leading cause of head injuries in skateboarding.

If you lose balance on a trick or even trip over a rock the head is usually the first thing to hit hard. However, the number 1 way to protect your head from these sad events is by wearing a helmet.

Why Helmets Matter

She said wearing a helmet is not only about obeying the rules, it’s also to do with saving your brain. Modern helmets are engineered to abate the collision, in turn lowering its force as it hits your hard head during a fall.

Minor falls can cause great brain damage if you are not wearing a helmet.

For more on why helmets are essential, check out our Helmet Safety for Skateboarders guide.

Real-Life Example: I recall one of my friends in real life who made sure he has his helmet on all the time, and then that day when everything was normal decided not to have it.

Hindsight, he kicked a tiny little rock and tripped him over himself to the ground harshly. It was a bad moment.

In 2012, he was hit from behind and sustained a concussion that took five months to get over. A brutal reminder of how it only takes seconds to turn your dream race into a nightmare and safety gear is there for a reason.

Wrist and Hand Injuries

When I fall, every human being falls down by arm (Anyone and so do all my body but) While padding this part might help your head, it will likely leave you with a sprained wrist, possibly even broken or other injuries to the hand. The wrist, in particular, is at obvious risk because it’s a small joint that undergoes major forces during landing from a fall.

Most Common Injuries of the Wrist and Hand:

• Wrist Sprains: When the ligaments in your wrist are stretched or torn, it is known as a sprain.
• Fractures of the Wrist: Fracture in one or more bones and wrist.
• Finger Fractures: Breaks in the little bones of your fingers.
• Dislocations: This happens when the bones in the wrist or fingers are pushed out of place.

Protecting Wrist and Hand Injuries

The most effective protection you can provide is by wearing wrist guards. In essence, this guard is intended to cushion a fall; limit the range of motion or rotation at your wrist in some way and hopefully prevent/lessen fractures/sprains.

Our article on Protective Gear for Skaters explains the importance of wrist guards.

Learning to fall: Surprising but true, there is a correct way to take a spill. Falling right can help to not get injured. Instead of reaching out with your hands to absorb the fall, let yourself roll with it so that you hit multiple areas on your body (some safer than others) instead of all at once, right onto those poor little wrists.

Application: I sprained my wrist from a nasty fall during the beginning of my skateboarding lifestyle. I was not wearing any wrist guards at that time and my wrist took week to recover. Since then, wrist guards have been a standard part of my kit and I very rarely run into issues anymore.

Ankle and Foot Injuries

Your ankles and feet are critical for maintaining balance and control on a skateboard. Unfortunately, they’re also some of the most injury-prone parts of your body.

Twisted ankles, sprains, and fractures are common, especially when landing tricks or riding on uneven surfaces.

Common Ankle and Foot Injuries:

• Ankle Sprains: When the ligaments in the ankle are stretched.
• Fractures: A fracture is a break in one or more bones of the foot or ankle.
• Tendonitis: Stems from an inflamed tendon in the foot or ankle, commonly related to overuse.

How to Avoid Ankle and Foot Injuries

Proper footwear is essential. What makes skate shoes especially durable, is the specialist design which provides the support you need to keep on your board — and for frequent falls when attempting new tricks.

Ensure Your Shoes Fit Properly and Are in Good Repair Wearing loose or improper shoes can lead to riskier injury.

For more on choosing the proper footwear, see our guide on Choosing the Right Skateboard Shoes.

Strengthen Your Ankles: Regular exercises to strengthen the muscles around your ankles can help prevent sprains and other injuries. Simple exercises like calf raises, ankle circles, and balance drills can improve your stability and strength.

Real-Life Example: Yes, I am no stranger to ankle sprains and it is exactly that; not fun. Most notably from landing incorrectly on a trick I was not prepared for. After that I focused on strengthening my ankle and improving the positioning of my foot when executing specific tricks. I feel like it has a huge impact in my skate.

Knee and Elbow Injuries

When someone falls, their knees and elbows are typically the first parts of their body to hit a hard surface when they fall – so there is an increased risk for scrapes, bruises or worse: torn ligaments & broken bones.

Common Knee and Elbow Injuries:

• Scrapes and Bruises: These are merely surface-level injuries but they hurt.
• Ligament Tears: More serious injuries that need medical help and surgeries.
• Fractures: Breaks in the bones of the elbow or knee from high impact falls.

Avoiding Knee and Elbow Injuries

Wearing knee and elbow pads is one of the best ways to protect these vulnerable areas. Pads can absorb the impact of a fall, reducing the risk of serious injury. Ensure your pads fit well and are adequately secured before you start skating.

Check out our Skateboarding Protective Gear Guide for the best pads.

Learn Safe Falling Techniques: As with falling on your wrist or hand, knowing how to fall will prevent serious knee and elbow injuries as well. Try to tuck those arms and roll with the fall instead of bracing your limb.

For Example: At one point, I thought that knee and elbow pads were only for beginners but after a few crash-and-burn moments, I saw the error of my ways. Now I refuse to skate without them, and they’ve saved me from numerous injuries.

Shoulder Injuries

While shoulder injuries are less frequent, they can be more severe when they do occur. These injuries are often associated with a fall on an outstretched arm, resulting in dislocations, fractures and/or rotator cuff tears.

Common Shoulder Injuries:

• Dislocations: When the bone in the shoulder is forced out of its socket.
• Fractures: Breaks in the collarbone or upper arm bone.
• Rotator Cuff Tears: injuries to the muscles and tendons in play for joining your upper arm with shoulder joint.

Preventing Shoulder Injuries

Strengthening your shoulders through regular exercise can help reduce the risk of injury. Focus on exercises that improve shoulder stability and flexibility, such as shoulder presses, lateral raises, and rotator cuff exercises.

Learn more about preventing shoulder injuries in our Skateboarding Injury Prevention Guide.

Fall Smart: Like all other incidents of injury, knowing how to fall properly can give you a band aid for another straw. If you sense that your body is headed towards a fall, attempt to tumble instead or reaching out an arm (a maneuver which frequently translates into dislocations and fractures in the shoulder).

Back Injuries

Sprained ankles are common, and back injuries can be the most debilitating caused by falls or overexertion. Back Injuries — these injuries can be as mild and temporary as muscle strains or more severe, including herniated discs.

Common Back Injuries:

• Muscle Strains: Ruptures or over-stretching the muscles in your back.
• Herniated Discs: This is when the cushioning disks located within each vertebrae in your spine get pushed off location.
• Spinal Fractures: Vertebrae breaks, often from high-concentration drops.

Preventing Back Injuries

Having a strong core can help you keep your back out of harm’s way. A strong core will keep you upright and balanced, saving your back when you over-rotate in big airs or bail while hammering down the street.

For core-strengthening exercises that can help prevent back injuries, check out our Core Strengthening for Skaters guide.

Always Warm Up and Cool Down: Before you hit the ice, spend 10 minutes doing a slow warm up. This will help you avoid muscle strain and keep your back feeling limber, yet strong.

Most Common Skateboarding Injuries: Wrap-up

Skateboarding is a thrilling sport however knowing the most common skateboard injuries and how to prevent them will help. These are injuries that skating enthusiasts all around the world have suffered from, be it a major or minor injury like head injury or wrist sprain to ankle twists and even knee bruises.

That means there is a lot you can do to mitigate your risk and be proactive in avoiding injury. You have to always wear the best protective gear you can find: a helmet, elbow and knee pads are key for this type of things.

Just be sure to warm up before you embark on your run — a brief stretch can keep your muscles from straining or spraining during exercise.

You also have to know when enough is enough — challenge yourself, but don’t kill yourself. Skating within your ability allows you to remain in control and reduce the amount of avoidable falls.

Keeping your board in good shape is just as important; a properly-kept up deck will decrease the chances of injury. available blocAnd if you do take a tumble, learning how to fall safely can save damage done.

Be informed and equipped so you can enjoy the awesome feeling of riding your board, while not having to worry about constant fear for all things that will try their best to killjoy (most common Skateboarding injuries).

To learn more on how to skate safely, read our piece On The Benefits of Skateboarding here. 

Then go and spend some time on the board before getting injured.

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