NEW THROWERS....

I've seen a thousand people who've never thrown before come out for one Games as a newb, or one/two practices and walk away with no more damage than some muscle soreness. Honest truth.... I've never seen or heard of a newb with little or no experience, who doesn't work out, come out and seriously hurt themselves.

Truth. I swear it.

What I HAVE seen is guys with a lot of macho attitude, who bench press big numbers in the gym, come out for one Games and try to muscle everything, and get hurt pretty badly. This sport is NOT about how much you bench press. I've seen throwers who should know better, do a throw completely (grossly) wrong and get hurt, too. I recall a local Master to messed up his shoulder pretty badly (he'd already torn it, waterskiing) a few years ago by pulling an unusually large caber WAY too hard with his shoulders, and not popping it with his core/hips/quads. It can happen. However, if you learn to do it right, it's unlikely that you'll get hurt. Hey, the weight may not go very far, or the caber might not go over, but you'll walk away from it with a smile on your face.

So....who should try this stuff?

If you don't have a nagging lower back or rotator cuff or knee issue, then you can, and should try it, if you want to. Maybe one Games, with your certificate in the C or Novice class is all you need. You DID IT! Now you know what it's all about. Well, guid on ye, lad! I'm all for that.

After that first Games, maybe you get hooked....you try it again. That's great. It's time to start working out a bit. Go read the "off season workout" and the "So you want to be an athlete" threads here in this forum. That will give you an idea of what to start out with. Find a more experienced thrower in your area, and work with them. Watch YouTube videos. YOU CAN DO IT, and the odds are very good that you won't get hurt, at all...and if you DO get hurt, it will probably be something that you will heal up from in a week or two.

The people who get seriously hurt are, generally speaking (there are exceptions):

A) testosterone-soaked newbs who don't know how to throw, but who are very strong and apply a LOT of force in totally the wrong way...

B.) guys who are "into" this sport for many years, and develop overuse injuries, or chronic lifestyle issues because they can't see the bigger picture beyond the Highland Games.

cheers! I hope this was helpful. I'm sure o1d_dude will have a mess of good insights, as well.