DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am a high-school football player. In our last game, after making a tackle, I got a shooting, burning pain in my right arm and hand. It was hard to use my hand for a minute or so. The team physician examined me and kept me out of the game. I am fine now. My mom wants me to see a specialist. My dad and I don’t think it’s necessary. Is it? – R.S.

ANSWER: You had a common football injury called a burner or a stinger. Studies have shown that close to 65 percent of college football players suffer from one at least once in their careers. Burning pain runs from the neck down to the hand and fingers. Sometimes, instead of pain, the arm becomes numb. Often there is a temporary weakness of the shoulder, arm and hand.

In the upper chest at the base of the neck and near the shoulder is a network of nerves that serves the arm and hand. During a tackle or a block, the head is bent toward the opposite shoulder, or a direct blow to the edge of the shoulder pad forces the head toward the opposite shoulder. The sudden, violent bend of the neck and head stretches the network of nerves in the upper chest. The result is a burning pain that shoots down the arm to the hand.

Most burners resolve quickly on their own. You were fortunate to have a doctor on the spot who determined that the injury was unlikely to cause any permanent damage.

Players who have had a burner can return to play when their pain goes away, when they can move their neck in all directions easily and without pain, when they can do the same with their shoulder and when shoulder and arm strength is normal.

You don’t need to see a specialist. All these requirements have been met.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am 16 and am on my high-school tennis team. Immediately after our usual sprinting and long-distance running, our coach makes us stretch by bending over and touching our toes for extended periods of time. It bothers my teammates and me and gives us a headache. Is this healthy? – S.S.

ANSWER: Nothing that causes pain is healthy, and since this routine affects the entire team, it should be stopped.

I don’t know why your coach has you stretch immediately after running. This is a cool-down time when slow jogging or walking helps the body get rid of lactic acid built up while running.

Furthermore, a stretch should not be held for extended periods of time. Twenty seconds is more than enough time to hold one.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am starting a weightlifting program. How much weight should I begin with? I don’t know whether to start with heavy weights and few lifts or with light weights and many lifts. Which is better? – K.V.

ANSWER: First determine the so-called one-repetition maximum – the amount of weight you can lift only once while maintaining good form. Many find that weight through trial and error. When you know your one-repetition maximum, use 65 percent of that weight in your regular exercises.

There’s a more scientific way to arrive at the one-repetition maximum weight. Choose a weight you can comfortably lift five to 10 times in a row. After lifting, rest for two minutes. Increase the amount of weight 10 percent to 20 percent and then perform three to five consecutive lifts. Take another two-minute rest. Increase the weight another 10 percent to 20 percent and do two or three consecutive lifts. At this point take a four-minute rest. Now increase the weight 5 percent to 10 percent and see if you can lift it once. If you can, take another four-minute rest, increase the weight 3 percent to 5 percent and see if you can lift it one time.

You end the process when you have reached a weight you cannot comfortably lift one time. The weight immediately before that weight is your one-repetition maximum, and you train with 65 percent of that weight.

This all sounds terribly confusing, but it does have some precision in arriving at the one-repetition maximum.

Dr. Donohue regrets that he is unable to answer individual letters, but he will incorporate them in his column whenever possible. Readers may write him or request an order form of available health newsletters at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Readers may also order health newsletters from www.rbmamall.com.