Oh, the Pain!

Have you ever worked out so hard that once you are finished you don’t even have the strength to lift your water bottle to your mouth? That happened to me last week and as a results, I am just now able to type without pain and pain killers. Killer Kyle had me do an intensive arm workout that included these lovely star poses (picture below). 

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Obviously, this is not me. I'm not that graceful, or tiny!

Of all the people in the world, I would have thought my trainer would realize that my arms are the smallest part of my body and can’t handle the workload of holding my body up. But no, he insisted and the next day, both of my arms were swollen and wouldn't straighten out. What a great way to spend the 4^th of July holiday. Anyhow, these events prompted me to research and write about injuries, how to treat them for a speedy recovery, and lastly, how to prevent them from ever happening.  I will be taking my own advice from now on.

Injuries: It Hurts!

It happens too often to many people who start a fitness regime—you feel great, set out for a great workout, only to feel the twinge of pain somewhere on your body. My biggest sore spots are the IT (Iliotibial) bands (a common injury to the knee, generally associated with running, cycling, hiking or weight-lifting especially squats, of which I do a lot of), the calves (an injury to the gastrocnemius muscle, or muscles of the back of the leg), and my biceps (an injury that occurs at the front of your upper arm) just to name a few. 

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Where’s the RICE?

So, what does any good fitness aficionado do in this situation? For the most common injuries, you can use the RICK method. R.I.C.E stands for Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation.

•  Rest: Reduce or stop using the injured area for at least 48 hours. If you have a leg injury, you may need to stay off of it completely.
•  Ice: Put an ice pack on the injured area for 20 minutes at a time, 4 to 8 times per day. Use a cold pack, ice bag, or a plastic bag filled with crushed ice that has been wrapped in a towel; frozen peas and other small veggies work great too!
•  Compression: Compression of an injured site may help reduce the swelling. These include bandages such as elastic wraps, special boots, air casts and splints. Ask a health professional which is best for your injury.
•   Elevation: Keep the injured area elevated above the level of the heart. Use a pillow to help elevate an injured limb

If this method doesn't help your injury, then it may be more severe. In those cases, get professional treatment. A severe injury means having an obvious fracture or dislocation of a joint, prolonged swelling, or prolonged or severe pain. While many common acute injuries can be controlled with these four simple steps, especially when combined with over-the-counter pain relievers, more serious conditions may require surgery or physical therapy.

Getting Back on the Treadmill (Bike, Road, Etc.)

No surprise, some injuries need more time and more attention for a safe and speedy recovery, so listen to your body. Below are some tips taken directly from elite athletes to getting back in the game of training.

1. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure! Instead of reacting to an injury, know the warning signs before you get hurt in the first place. First, it’s really important to realize when your body is fatigued. I have hard time with this and often overdo it, so I need to listen to this advice myself. Sometimes, it can be important to run when you're tired so you can improve, but you need to recognize when you're pushing yourself too far! Be smart. Foresight before hindsight--looking back it's easy to see when you made a bad decision.

2. Stop doing the activity that caused the injury. Sounds simple. If running is the source, stop running. The same with cycling, weight training, Zumba, etc. The action will often exacerbate the pain during the acute injury phase. So, if it hurts to do it, don’t!

3. Cross train in the pool. This is one of my favorite things to do. You can do most if not all forms of exercise in the water all without impact forces that shouldn't aggravate your injuries. Training in the pool can help you maintain fitness, circulate healing blood flow, and ensure you recover as quickly as possible. Like always, start slow and make sure that the pool exercises don't bring you any pain.

4. Get a massage to the injured area. This may or may not be appropriate for your specific situation, but in most cases it will help. I really hate this part, but using a foam roller and/or a tennis ball to work out tightness and stretch the muscles. If you are like me and have numerous trigger points and painfully tight muscles, foaming rolling may not be the best for you, but getting a professional message may do the trick. I love deep tissue and Swedish massages (those are my special treats). Static stretching of these same areas after massage can also help you feel loose, though it's still unknown if it offers any practical benefits. I think the mental benefits are really good!

5. Increase strength. Most injuries stem from a weakness in the area of injury. It's vital to strengthen these areas targeting the weak areas so you can get back to working out sooner. Keep up with your strength exercises. They are injury insurance. By skipping them, it puts you at a higher risk for injuries. It's also advised to do core workouts as you use your core muscles for everything. Staying on top of the little things is important.

6. Sleep more. As if I needed another excuse! Most recovery and healing happen when you're asleep, so make sure to get a lot of it. During any period of increased training or injury, more sleep can help you recover adequately. That's because your body enters REM and slow-wave Delta sleep after you've been asleep for at least 90 minutes. These are the most restorative sleep cycles for both your body and brain.

Well, I hope you found this informative and useful. I’m off to the gym to train for my next 5K! I get measured (my least favorite gym activity ever) next week by Killer Kyle, so I’ll post my starting numbers and progress ones then. Happy Training!