INJURIES & PAIN
It was definitely the deadlift that hurt you, wasn’t it? Or was it the dumbbell snatches? Oh…you’re too old for this *@#%..
I’ve heard that one before.
What if I told you..the movement or your age probably had little to nothing to do with the pain that you are experiencing.
Injuries and pain are quite interesting and I think it’s important for me to state right away that they (injuries/pain) are for the most part a normal part of living.
The same way we experience sadness or anger, pain and injuries are bound to happen to people in one way or another. It’s not a matter of IF you get hurt…it’s a matter of WHEN.
Should we be doing what we can to prevent these in the gym? 100% yes and I’ll touch up at the end of this article on how we can effectively do this.
How many people do you know that do not attend the gym have pulled their back reaching down to tie their shoes? I know a few.
What happened?
In life, we often times go through bouts of high stress, low sleep, maybe you started doing more yard work? too much alcohol the night before?
What do all these things impact? RECOVERY
By accumulating multiple days of high strain (alcohol, poor sleep, training, life stressors etc…), you are affecting your bodies ability to recover, which in turns accumulates more strain on your body. When you do this and then ask your body to perform at high speeds with relatively heavy loads… you are placing too much of a demand on your body.
What often happens when you’re under recovered is a weight that you previously have found subjectively easy, now feels difficult. And because you want to use that same weight despite it not feeling like it “used too”, you still use that loading, and it becomes too much for the body to recover from.
The human body is incredibly adaptable to stress BUT you must manage load, volume and intensity to not overload it.
For example; is the extra gardening affecting your recovery…YES. Even though you are not going “hard,” you are doing movements that you haven’t been exposed to in months, which places more demand on your body. Couple that with less sleep, less calories, potentially drinking alcohol and it’s no surprise you are potentially feeling more aches and pains.
HOW DO WE MANAGE THIS?
ONE – DO NOT stop working out. Rest was at one time the answer. It no longer is. You want to keep moving in a way that you can manage and keep pain to under a 3 out of 10. This includes changing up the ranges of motion, load or overall volume of your training.
TWO – Pinpoint areas of your diet. Can you include more nutritious food into your day? Can you drink more water? Ok, perfect. Lets start doing that a bit more frequently.
THREE – More sleep time. Can you go to bed 1 hour earlier? Awesome, lets start there.
FOUR – Is there a way you can potentially manage your stress? This can be therapy, journaling, or creating a task list.
These steps seem simple, but they are not easy.
But you do CrossFit…so I don’t suspect you like easy anyways.
If you are experiencing pain or have an injury – its important to talk to a coach so we can help modify and manage the program for you so you can return to the movements and intensities you so very much love, and do it in a way that is safe and progressive.
So, no. You’re not too old for this $^&* and deadlifts are great for you!!
Happy training,
Coach Nani