Many active sports participants will suffer various aches, pains, strains, and sprains from time to time. These injuries can heal wthout medical attention utilizing a four-step process: Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation. Some injuries progress severely limiting or even ending participation in a psort. Because more serious lower extremity sports injury has the potential for a debilitating and permanent injury, a properly-trained sports medicine podiatrist should be consulted. For many atheletes, balancing the foot and leg will resolve several problems suffered during walking, cycling, running, skiing, tennis, aerobics and golf. The sports medicine podiatrist can determine the proper athletic shoe for each athlete, along with a suggested appropriate athletic training program to minimize injuries.