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Get Hydragun TodayWorld of Warcraft. League of Legends. Fortnite. Starcraft II. Counter-Strike. What do all of these games have in common?
As gamers, we just can’t help ourselves. Gotta sleep at 11PM to get up early the next day?
“Nope, we’re not sleeping yet. We haven’t won a game today. We’re not done yet. Let’s play until we win”
If the quote above sounds all too familiar, you’re not alone. With the advent of highly immersive MMO games, with thousands of hours of replayability, more and more people are spending countless hours on end, gaming while glued to their screens.
And this trend isn’t stopping anytime soon. The global gaming market is forecasted to be worth $257 billion by 2025. As games are more widely available for free, on more inexpensive devices such as smartphones, more millennials and zoomers are getting exposed to gaming. As a result, e-sports is set to overtake regular sports in terms of viewership before the end of the decade.
Centuries ago, humans were hunter-gatherers, and lived active lifestyles. These days, a huge part of the population spend most of their waking hours in front of a screen, living a sedentary lifestyle.
And while most of us barely even consider the possibility of running out of food and going hungry for the night, modern society created a whole set of new problems for us humans - Musculoskeletal Pains
Musculoskeletal Pain refers to any pain in the muscles, bones, ligaments, tendons and nerves. These include common ailments such as carpal tunnel syndrome, gamer’s thumb, lower back pain, tension headaches and migraines, and more.
A study conducted among Danish e-sports athletes found that 4 out of every 10 athletes experienced some sort of pain. The most prevalent pain sites were the back (31%), neck (11%) and shoulders (11%).
And they’re not alone. Hundreds, if not thousands, of gamers each year fall victim to various musculoskeletal pains, after hours of abuse on their bodies. Even the most legendary gamers, despite having professional in-house medical professionals on their teams, are unable to escape this fate if they do not take good care of their bodies.
Most Common Pain For PC Gamers #1
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a condition that involves a compression on the median nerve at the wrist, causing pain in the thumb, index finger, middle finger and part of the ring finger.
Common symptoms include pain, tingling and numbness in the wrist and fingers. It often feels as if the fingers are “falling asleep”. This is because the small vessels that supply the carpal tunnel are restricted and the nerve no longer receives sufficient oxygen and nutrients.
If the condition worsens further, the whole arm can be affected and the symptoms may last longer or occur permanently, resulting in a loss of feeling in one’s fingers, and an impairment in fine motor skills.
Both conditions can cause pain, numbness and tingling in one’s hands and fingers and is usually triggered when the carpal tunnel is too narrow and the structures it contains no longer have sufficient space.
Lee Young Ho [Flash] - Starcraft Broodwar & Starcraft II bonjwa (champion)
Team: KT Telecom
Known as the greatest Starcraft Broodwar gamer of all-time, Flash was bestowed the title of “God” and other nicknames such as “The Ultimate Weapon” by fans all around the world.
Flash was well-loved not only for his impressive strategies, but also his incredible “micro-management” skills and high APM. And this inhuman APM in the 300s, together with tens of hours of daily practice, came at a huge cost - carpal tunnel.
Sharp pain in his forearm and wrists meant that he could no longer subject himself to the gruelling training needed to stay ahead of the competition. After his swan song at Afreeca Star League Season 8 over Snow in 2019, he was forced into retirement and had to undergo surgery.
One of the best ways to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome, or alleviate any associated pains, is to regularly take breaks between your gaming sessions and perform hand-related exercises.
Step 1:
Make a fist
Step 2:
Release your fingers and fan them out. Stretch them far out as you can.
Step 3:
Repeat steps 1 & 2
5-10 times.
Another important way to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome is to ensure that your hands and wrists remain in a neutral, unbent position while using the keyboard and mouse. This means that your desk should be at an appropriate height, where your arms can stretch out straight without having to bend your wrists.
Massage guns are amazing devices that can help to relieve and support the compromised median nerves and ligaments in your hands so that you can get rid of that numbness, tingling and weakness.
Consider getting yourself a high quality massage gun such as HYDRAGUN so that you can apply deep-tissue percussion therapy to your aching body.
You can do this 2-3 times a day, during your breaks in between your gaming sessions
Most Common Pain For PC Gamers #2
Gamer’s Elbow (Lateral Epicondylitis)
Gamer’s elbow is another common ailment that plagues gamers. It occurs when the fiber orientation of the extensor tendons in the forearms become disrupted.
This dysfunction is called a tendinopathy (jumbled or disorganized fibers) that should otherwise line up parallel with one another. Do note that this is different from tendonitis in nature, where tendons are inflamed (pain with accompanying swelling, redness and heat)
Clinton Loomis [Fear] - DOTA II, TI5 winner
Team: Evil Geniuses
Dota 2 is one of the largest e-sports titles in the world, with prize pools in recent years spanning in the 8-figure range for first place. Fear is one of the rare gaming millionaires who was fortunate enough to lift the Aegis (championship trophy).
Unfortunately, not long after his championship run in The International V (2015), his career sizzled out due to lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow/gamer’s elbow).
One of the best ways to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome, or alleviate any associated pains, is to regularly take breaks between your gaming sessions and perform hand-related exercises.
The way to treat acute pain is similar to other injuries - The RICE method (rest, ice, compression and elevation) protocol can be helpful to relieve pain during the early stages of gamer’s elbow.
It is recommended that you ice the affected area three times a day for 3-5 minutes per session to reduce inflammation.
Step 1:
Rest
Step 2:
Ice
Step 3:
Compression
Step 4:
Elevation
Frequent stretching exercises, as well as high-repetition, low resistance exercises can help to strengthen the tendons and reduce pain. Stretching can provide relief by releasing tension on the wrist extensor muscles and improve blood flow to the area.
Consider getting yourself a high quality massage gun such as HYDRAGUN so that you can apply deep-tissue percussion therapy to your aching body.
Tendons have approximately 7.5x less oxygen consumption when compared to their muscles, because they have less blood flow to them. This is one of the reasons why tendons tend to heal more slowly.
In order for your body to heal and recover, blood needs to provide oxygen and nutrients, and remove toxins and cellular waste. Using a massage gun to stimulate your tendons can help to increase blood flow and speed up the recovery process.
Glide the massage gun along the wrist extensors to promote relaxation and increase tissue extensibility. You can also rotate your forearms into pronation and supination, and your wrists into various positions. Keep the massage gun over areas of maximum tenderness with increasing pressure until tension release is felt.
Most Common Pain For Console & Mobile Gamers
Gamer’s Thumb (De Quervain’s Tenosynovitis)
Gamer’s thumb is a condition that is caused when the tendons that move your thumb become inflamed. Repetitive strain on your thumb tendons lead to inflammation which in turn results in limited movement and pain.
Console gamers are more prone to such injuries as they use their thumbs to press buttons and move the joysticks on the controllers that they game with, as opposed to their PC gaming counterparts who use more of their fingers and hands to control their mouse and keyboards. Mobile gamers are also prone to the same condition as well.
Thomas Paparatto [ZooMaa] - Call Of Duty champion
Team: New York Subliners/FaZe
ZooMaa announced earlier in Jan 2021 that he was taking a step back from competitive Call of Duty on his twitter, being forced into retirement at the ripe old age of 25 years.
The U.S. gamer struggled with weakness in his thumb and his wrist a few years ago while playing for FaZe clan. He had to undergo surgery as a result.
“Going through that process of getting healthy again was one of the hardest things I ever had to do both physically and mentally, which led to a lot of stress and anxiety,” he said.
Unfortunately, the injury has returned making it really hard for me to compete at the highest level against some of the best players in the world.”
He said that playing through the pain in his hand “just isn’t possible anymore”.
Since gamer’s thumb is a form of inflammation, consuming some form of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug could help to reduce inflammation and alleviate the pain.
Hold your hand out, as though you were about to shake someone’s hand. With your other hand, bend the thumb back towards your wrist. Hold this stretch for 30 seconds and repeat ten times.
Consider getting yourself a high quality massage gun such as HYDRAGUN so that you can apply deep-tissue percussion therapy to your aching body.
Most Common Pain For All Gamers
Back Pain
Back pain, especially in the lower back, is prevalent for gamers, regardless of their gaming devices. This is largely due to poor sitting posture while gaming.
A health study conducted by health insurer Bupa on 2,003 adults, found that many young people found themselves unwittingly “hunching (24%), slouched or slumping (18%), or sitting with their back or their legs twisted (10%).”
And no, those people weren’t doing yoga at home. They were probably playing games on their phones or PCs, or watching Youtube on their devices.
Posture or alignment problems, when left unchecked, can lead to long-term health problems that become permanent. Lower back pain from poor posture can lead to weakened muscles which become unable to hold the spine in a neutral position. This causes the neck and shoulders to hunch forward and compresses the spine further.
The number one reason for back pain and injury is a bad gaming setup which leads to poor posture. Therefore, adjusting your gaming setup could do wonders for you in terms of alleviating your pain.
Firstly, you can consider getting yourself a gaming chair so that you can sit comfortably and upright. Recline the back of the seat 90° to 120°, and try to keep your lower back pressed against the chair, to prevent slouching.
Secondly, you should ensure that the distance between your screen and your eyes should be at least 50 cm (20 inches) apart. The top ⅓ to ¼ of your screen should be level with your eyes. Tilt the monitor at a slight angle upwards to meet your eyes.
There are many stretches that can help to reduce pain in one’s back. They include:
Sphinx Stretch
Child’s Pose
Knee-To-Chest
Training and developing your back muscles can greatly improve your posture, reduce back pain, and prevent back injury. The best exercises for strengthening your back include rows (dumbbell or machine), deadlifts and lat pull-downs.
Consider getting yourself a high quality massage gun such as HYDRAGUN so that you can apply deep-tissue percussion therapy to your aching body.
We are confident that you’ll love HYDRAGUN. As an avid PC gamer and as someone who works from home, I found HYDRAGUN very useful for alleviating back pain and carpal tunnel for myself.
But if you’re still skeptical, check out what some of our satisfied customers had to say.
07/06/2021
Bob Omar
Fantastic Gun
"I have tried few cheap brands and it doesn’t give me the oomph. Tried this magical baby and wow...instant relief. Of cos i got to bribe my nephew to massage my back...money well spend. My lovely mum is so afraid to use it on me :). I have recommendad a friend to use this product and he loved it. Willl give another colleague this as a farewell gift."
31/05/2021
A Halim
Excellent Product
"I purchased the hydragun after seeing their instagram page and also reviewing the testimonilas on their website. I use the Hydragun mainly to ease my frozen shoulder condition due to long hours in front of the computer for my job. It is an excellent product which helps me to relax most of my muscles."
15/05/2021
Elizabeth brott
Most popular object in the house!
"I bought this to manage chronic back pain as recommended by my chiropractor. Its reduced my use of analgenics, I also use it before and after runs. My boyfriend who is a serious athlete know uses it after swims and my kid uses it during stay at homw long zoom meetings. Its the best purchase ever!!"
We also have a 30-day “Love it or Return it” guarantee, and back our quality claims with a generous 1.5-year warranty.
Author: Gary B
Senior Content Writer @ HYDRAGUN
Fitness Enthusiast
Owner of both HYDRAGUN & Theragun G4 Pro
DISCLAIMER: The information presented in this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace the advice of your doctor. Please consult a medical professional before attempting any treatment.