When is pain OK, and when does it mean I need to change things up

Discuss injuries, health issues, medical research and other related things.

Moderators: cassiegose, Boss Man

Post Reply
Kaisu
STARTING OUT
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Nov 20, 2015 12:11 pm
Location: Lake Havasu City AZ

When is pain OK, and when does it mean I need to change things up

Post by Kaisu »

Good morning.
I am a newcomer to these boards and this is first post. I am 58 years old, and have been physically active and seeking fitness in varying degrees of intensity and commitment for most of life.

After a fitness hiatus of 6 months, 2 months ago I began to get back into shape. I built up slowly because I have had numerous injuries in the past and wanted to avoid them. I hate how injuries derail progress.

I am now lifting 2 days a week, doing yoga 2 days a week and practicing taekwondo for 2 days per week. I love the variety of exercise and do these activities because I totally enjoy them.

Finally, question. muscles hurt everyday. I'm sure this is because I up the ante every workout and the muscle groups that whine are the ones that got challenged the previous day. Is this a bad thing? Do I need to scale back? I really don't want to. I appreciate any insight you deign to give me.

Thank you for reading
Fitafter50
REGULAR
Posts: 785
Joined: Mon Feb 09, 2015 12:40 pm

Re: When is pain OK, and when does it mean I need to change things up

Post by Fitafter50 »

I think you have to make a distinction between the usually dull ache that tells you that you worked your muscles, and actual pain, which signals an injury. You have a nicely balanced program, but if you have pain, that's a sign that you need to back off. If you are experiencing normal muscle soreness, you can try things like a sports massage or foam rolling, Epsom salt baths, hot/cold therapy, or natural anti-inflammatories like ginger and turmeric.
User avatar
Boss Man
SITE ADMIN
Posts: 15457
Joined: Sat Nov 25, 2006 3:27 pm

Re: When is pain OK, and when does it mean I need to change things up

Post by Boss Man »

Hi Kaisu good to talk to you.

What was said above is very pertinent stuff and if your muscles feel sore then that would be DOMS, Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, which usually occurs within 24 hours of a workout, in which case 5-10 minutes of light cardio and a bit of stretching post-workout, may help to stave off or alleviate some or all of the DOMS you might be getting.

However if the pain felt like a kind of burning sensation, stabbing sensation, shooting sensation, or as if the muscle has been strained or torn in some way, then consider altering your workouts in some way, particularly the weights ones, in terms of changing some of the exercises and / or adjusting technique, but remember that even these measures won't be guaranteed to alleviate any issues if you have any, so if not, then it means you would have to stop doing one or more exercises, or at least reduce the amount of weight used if any current issues continued to flare up and by current issues I mean the things I referred to that are not DOMS.

If such measures and some of the things suggested by FA50, seemed to not work well, then consider medical intervention, as a recurrent problem might need physio or possibly even surgery if it came down to it.
gymcelia2016
STARTING OUT
Posts: 26
Joined: Fri Feb 05, 2016 7:15 am

Re: When is pain OK, and when does it mean I need to change things up

Post by gymcelia2016 »

can only agree with what others have wrote, if youve been into your fitness before then you should know if this pain is normal for yourself, although it does concern me that youre getting pain, keeping fit shouldnt be painful in the fact youre getting actual discomfort.
teamsnoop
STARTING OUT
Posts: 2
Joined: Sun May 22, 2016 8:49 pm

Re: When is pain OK, and when does it mean I need to change things up

Post by teamsnoop »

GingerBread
STARTING OUT
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Jan 05, 2017 5:17 pm

Re: When is pain OK, and when does it mean I need to change things up

Post by GingerBread »

As long there is no joint pain, muscular pain is fine. It will eventually diminish even if you keep upping it each time you exercise.
DecidedToday
STARTING OUT
Posts: 15
Joined: Fri Feb 03, 2017 9:21 am

Re: When is pain OK, and when does it mean I need to change things up

Post by DecidedToday »

GingerBread wrote:As long there is no joint pain, muscular pain is fine. It will eventually diminish even if you keep upping it each time you exercise.
THIS! Pain is good. Being injured is different. :wowzer:
User avatar
Boss Man
SITE ADMIN
Posts: 15457
Joined: Sat Nov 25, 2006 3:27 pm

Re: When is pain OK, and when does it mean I need to change things up

Post by Boss Man »

No pain is good. Pain is the bodies cry for help, as it's your bodies way of telling you that a sensation it experienced was not right.

Exercise related stiffness or soreness, are not in mind types of pain, they are less problematic and shouldn't be viewed as any long-term issue, unless they are accompanied by any level of mild to severe pain.
jgerard
STARTING OUT
Posts: 32
Joined: Mon Sep 09, 2013 4:01 pm

Re: When is pain OK, and when does it mean I need to change things up

Post by jgerard »

Recognizing the difference between pain and regular soreness is the key. If you're finding yourself with serious pain and discomfort every day then, yes, that is your body's way of tell you it is time to change things up.

If you're just experiencing normal soreness from exercising, that's nothing to be concerned about, but since you're asking I'm guessing it isn't that. There are a few things you can do, but the best method would be to cool it for a bit. Be a little less intense in your exercising and see how your body reacts. This blog post has some good information about what causes the soreness and effective ways to combat it: https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/blog/ ... u-are-sore, but if you're pushing your body past its limits there isn't anything you can do to remedy that other than adjusting your workout schedule.
Post Reply