Blog 2 - Should we be training whilst ‘injured’?
injury
/ˈɪn(d)ʒ(ə)ri/
noun
1. 1.
an instance of being injured.
"she suffered an injury to her back"
Similar:
Wound, bruise, cut, gash,
It’s also the dirty word which those that partake in sport do not ever wish to utter. No-one is immune, no matter how experienced or well prepared we are.
Having had my fair share of injuries ranging from niggling sprains to the more severe breaks and fractures I can safely say I’ve endured more than my fair share of recovery and rehabilitation sets.
We are now living in the era of the home gym. We follow online FitPro’s and have bought the entire stock line of Sports direct resistance bands and PVC dumbbells BUT!!, do we know how to use them correctly?
Injuries from working out at home have increased. According to BUPA, 7.2 million eager exercisers have potentially been hurt or injured during lockdown, with men twice as likely as women to injure themselves.
Some exercises are proving more perilous than others, with those doing online classes or PT sessions, weight training, and using home gym equipment most likely to report injury
The most common injuries include pulled muscles (36%), with a similar number reporting more severe damage to their knees, backs and ankles as newfound enthusiasm takes its toll.
So, how do we recover? Firstly, it’s important to always remember that no matter who you train with, they do not feel what your body is going through in that session. Only you can feel your muscles under tension or the difference between fatigue and outright agony. If you feel ANY instance of acute pain- stop! Forcing yourself through another rep whilst you are aware of a lingering pain in the background will do you zero favours and could lead to a lengthier rehabilitation or more severe injury.
Always seek professional advice from your GP in the immediate occurrence of injury. There are no quick fixes to comebacks, it’s a long slow process headed up by frustration but, by working with specific practitioners this process could be resolved more swiftly. Having been on the receiving end of chiropractic treatments, sports massage, dry needling and regular sports physiotherapy sessions I feel I can vouch quite honestly for the benefits of them all.
So, how do we train around an injury, the answer? - SENSIBLY!
Here is one example;
Training unilaterally (one sided) hands, arms, legs, ankles etc,
A common misconception that training the uninjured side could lead to muscular imbalance paved the way for clinical research and studies. Evidence showed that specific programmed exercise not only helped strengthen the injured side, but in some cases also increased the muscle mass of the injured side.
Dumbbells, cable machines, resistance bands all afford the ability to train unilaterally when you feel you are fit and able enough to commence a full programme once again. It’s important to not attempt to run before we can walk. Maintaining unilateral training throughout the period of rehabilitation and introducing weights only when you feel you can, begin by loading and de-loading wherever necessary to accommodate a safe and comfortable session.
Be sensible, LISTEN to what your body is telling you. Slow the reps down. Speed plays a crucial part in rehabilitation. Clients will often hear me refer to the ‘switching on’ of muscles. This is essentially me trying to get the client to feel the movement at both the top and bottom ranges, through the movement whilst maintaining as perfect form as possible and keeping the muscle under tension.
It is important to remember that this is not a quick fix, its challenging and the progression will be steady if adhered to and performed correctly.
There are MANY advantages to working out to your favourite inspirational fitness influencer in the comfort of your living room but, NONE of them outweigh the knowledge and experience of a qualified and experienced coach delivering a specific targeted programme for you.
In a nutshell, injuries are not the end of the road. Knowing how and when to train in harmony with them is the difference between a successful, relatively short road to recovery and frustrating perpetual cycle of train-pain-setback.
Drop the coaches a message if you have any queries or need any advice.
Cheers!,
Simone