Greg Oden Quotes

Coping with injuries is always difficult for athletes because all we want to do is, basically, to have our best performances unhindered.

The operations were big ones, so I knew it'd take a lot of hard work. It's hard, you know? You're in the gym for hours on end doing strengthening exercises, and that's just so you are able to start running again. You can't even think about getting on the pitch to start with.

I was kind of at the turning point in my career with my knee. I was dealing with the struggles of trying to make the transition back on the court consistently and not a game here, then sit a game.

The person who's had the biggest impact on my career is Rick Celebrini, the physiotherapist.

I work with a place in Santa Monica called Phase IV. My doctor recommended them to me when I started losing weight. They help people train for things like triathlons or biking and running races. They offer physical therapists, testing, lectures.

Am I ever going to be able to play football again? What's going on with my career? I was just thinking things like that. You've got tears going down your eyes. You've got your trainers right there and my parents right there. I was just thinking, "Is this it?" I didn't know what a knee injury was. I'd never felt pain like that.

Physical therapy is part of my offseason routine. That has helped me greatly.

I've dealt with a lot of injuries over the years, and you just learn about pain management and how to keep yourself in the best shape to play on Sunday, and then playing with pain.

It's been frustrating for me, as I've been injured a lot, but hopefully, I can get more fitness and get time on the pitch.

One thing the fans got to understand is that I missed two years, and we took it really, really slow, and we made sure everything was good, and my foot has been great.

Of course, I made some mistakes as Arsenal goalie but I am sure that people also remember that I was unlucky with injuries.

It's football. Guys get hurt all the time.

Every time I sprinted 100 per cent, my hamstring broke. But I knew if I didn't sprint 100 per cent, I could keep on playing, so that's what you do. I was just lucky it was discovered in America and I haven't had one problem since. I feel I can run past people again and that feels nice.

Like many professional footballers, I have the legacy of injuries picked up over my career but the effect on my day-to-day training and on matchday is non-existent.

It's not like I can't play football with some injuries.

I played with a lot of foot injuries.

People think I'm soft and bailed out on basketball. But it was five knee surgeries.

I did a lot of good work with my trainer and the physio in Barbados, and they were tremendous help to me during my comeback period.

We have physical therapy there now so any fighter with an injury in the UFC can come to Vegas and get treatment every day.

I'm really interested in sports medicine.

I've played through a lot of injuries before, as a young kid through high school.

The work I do with my physiotherapist has been instrumental in keeping me healthy, and it's a big reason why I'm able to continue to improve my game.

I never had any major surgeries or anything like that. I've had a few career-threatening injuries, but I bounced back from them.

I've decided to listen to my doctors and get the procedure I need on my knee. USA Basketball said I had to do what was best for me. They want me to be obviously as healthy as possible so I can continue to play this game at a high level.

I was able to do Classics, the U.S. national championships and the Pan American Games and feel like I improved with each meet, but I was still struggling with a lot of residual pain from the two surgeries.