The ACL Isn't the Problem: What Youth Sports Is Getting Wrong About Female Athletes | Dr. Holly Silvers-Granelli
ACL injuries are reaching epidemic levels in youth sports, high school athletics, college competition, and professional sports. Female athletes are tearing ACLs at alarming rates despite better coaching, more strength training, advanced technology, and greater access to sports medicine than ever before.
So why are these injuries continuing to rise?
In this eye-opening episode of Crackin' Backs, we sit down with Dr. Holly Silvers-Granelli, one of the world's leading experts in ACL injury prevention. Her groundbreaking research has helped shape injury prevention programs used around the globe and recently gained national attention through her work featured in The New York Times.
But this conversation isn't about repairing knees.
It's about asking a bigger question:
What if the ACL tear is simply the warning light on the dashboard?
Dr. Silvers-Granelli explains why the real issues often begin long before the ligament fails—through movement patterns, neuromuscular control, youth sports specialization, recovery deficits, coaching practices, and athlete development.
We explore:
• Why ACL injuries continue to rise despite more training and sports performance programs
• The hidden movement signatures that may predict injury months or years before it occurs
• Why the hip, trunk, brain, and nervous system matter as much as the knee itself
• The unintended consequences of year-round sports participation and early specialization
• What parents, coaches, and athletes should be watching for right now
• How force plates, AI, wearable technology, biomechanics, and video analysis are changing injury prevention
• Whether we are approaching a future where ACL injuries can be predicted before they happen
• The most important change Dr. Silvers-Granelli would make in youth sports tomorrow
Whether you're a parent, coach, healthcare professional, athletic trainer, physical therapist, strength coach, or athlete, this episode provides practical insights that could help keep athletes healthy, performing, and on the field.
Because the future of sports medicine may not be about treating injuries.
It may be about preventing them altogether.
About Dr. Holly Silvers-Granelli
Dr. Holly Silvers-Granelli, PhD, MPT, is an internationally recognized researcher, clinician, and educator specializing in ACL injury prevention, sports performance, biomechanics, and neuromuscular training. Her research has influenced injury prevention programs used worldwide and continues to shape how athletes are trained, screened, and developed.
Free Resources: FIFA 11+ Injury Prevention Program
The FIFA 11+ Injury Prevention Program is one of the most researched injury prevention programs in sports and has been shown to significantly reduce lower-extremity injuries, including ACL injuries, when performed consistently.
Official FIFA 11+ Resources:
• FIFA Training Centre – FIFA 11+ Program
• GetSet Mobile App
The PEP Program (Prevent Injury, Enhance Performance
Link to article and 11+ for Kids program
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We are two sports chiropractors, seeking knowledge from some of the best resources in the world of health. From our perspective, health is more than just “Crackin Backs” but a deep dive into physical, mental, and nutritional well-being philosophies.
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