Question: When NOT to push through pain

ANewton401

Wednesday I started an exercise routine that alternates weight training days with cardio days I am extremely sore!! Today I am due for the next round of weight training and here lies my question. When SHOULDN’T you push through the pain? My muscles are very tight and it’s very uncomfortable… how you know when you’re pushing through pain or setting yourself up for injury?

wildeone4

Hey! It is really important to allow your body to heal! If your body just keeps feeling sore, I would say give it a break! Let it heal! Also, are you using protein at all? It helps your body (mostly muscle) heal quicker and better! If you aren't I can suggest a great protein for you!

ANewton401

Hey! It is really important to allow your body to heal! If your body just keeps feeling sore, I would say give it a break! Let it heal! Also, are you using protein at all? It helps your body (mostly muscle) heal quicker and better! If you aren't I can suggest a great protein for you!

I wouldn't mind a rest but I don't want to break my stride. I drink ON 100% Whey Protein every morning. I'm pretty good at keeping balanced meals.

bizco

This comes from a certified trainer:

Fatigue can often be mental as well as physical. The first couple of weeks may be especially challenging because you will feel general fatigue over your entire body rather than just your one muscle group. If your fatigue is mostly local, you can push through to the end of the set.

If you're huffing and puffing, stop halfway through the set, take a brief rest, and then resume the set to finish. Try to finish the recommended sets and reps, even if you have to lower the weights to almost nothing. If you get dizzy or feel faint, however, then stop.

Be aware that there's a big difference between being sore and getting injured. If you've injured yourself and feel pain, then stop. If you feel light pain that goes away immediately when you stop exercising (this is much more common than injury and almost entirely avoidable if using good form), then your muscles are simply tired.

Hope that helps.

ANewton401

This comes from a certified trainer:

Fatigue can often be mental as well as physical. The first couple of weeks may be especially challenging because you will feel general fatigue over your entire body rather than just your one muscle group. If your fatigue is mostly local, you can push through to the end of the set.

If you're huffing and puffing, stop halfway through the set, take a brief rest, and then resume the set to finish. Try to finish the recommended sets and reps, even if you have to lower the weights to almost nothing. If you get dizzy or feel faint, however, then stop.

Be aware that there's a big difference between being sore and getting injured. If you've injured yourself and feel pain, then stop. If you feel light pain that goes away immediately when you stop exercising (this is much more common than injury and almost entirely avoidable if using good form), then your muscles are simply tired.

Hope that helps.

This is great information. The pain is everywhere but when I am not using the muscles I feel nothing. I never thought of lessening the weight!!! I just though all or nothing, this is great. Thanks!

foreverjade

There are 3 types of muscle soreness - next day, delayed onset (DOMS), and injury related. If you are experiencing the first or second type (which I think you probably are), then you should not take a day off as working the muscle will actually make it feel less sore.

The term DOMS refers to the deep muscular soreness usually experienced two days after the wokout has been done (not the day after). This soreness prevents the full muscular contraction of the muscle. This type of more severe soreness is caused when you either embark an exercise program for the first time or when you train a body part much harder than usual. This pain can last between a couple of days for an advanced well-conditioned athlete or as much as a week for a beginner. If you are being affected by this type of soreness and it is time to workout again, I find that the best idea is not to take the day off, but instead to exercise the body part doing an Active Recovery routine. The Active Recovery Routine that I am referring to here is a routine where all of the loads are reduced by 50% and the sets are not taken to muscular failure. For example, if you are to perform an exercise for ten repetitions, divide the weight that you usually use for that exercise by two and that is the weight that you will use for that day. Also, stop executing the exercise even though you will not have reached muscular failure once you get to repetition number ten. The idea of this type of workout is to restore full movement in the muscle and to remove the lactic acid and other waste from it. Also, to force high concentrations of blood into the damaged area in order to bring the nutrients needed by the muscle for repair and growth. I have always found that doing this is always more beneficial as by the next day you will not be as sore or stiff anymore as opposed to skipping the workout in the name of recovery and waiting for the pain to subside in a week or so.

ANewton401

There are 3 types of muscle soreness - next day, delayed onset (DOMS), and injury related. If you are experiencing the first or second type (which I think you probably are), then you should not take a day off as working the muscle will actually make it feel less sore.

The term DOMS refers to the deep muscular soreness usually experienced two days after the wokout has been done (not the day after). This soreness prevents the full muscular contraction of the muscle. This type of more severe soreness is caused when you either embark an exercise program for the first time or when you train a body part much harder than usual. This pain can last between a couple of days for an advanced well-conditioned athlete or as much as a week for a beginner. If you are being affected by this type of soreness and it is time to workout again, I find that the best idea is not to take the day off, but instead to exercise the body part doing an Active Recovery routine. The Active Recovery Routine that I am referring to here is a routine where all of the loads are reduced by 50% and the sets are not taken to muscular failure. For example, if you are to perform an exercise for ten repetitions, divide the weight that you usually use for that exercise by two and that is the weight that you will use for that day. Also, stop executing the exercise even though you will not have reached muscular failure once you get to repetition number ten. The idea of this type of workout is to restore full movement in the muscle and to remove the lactic acid and other waste from it. Also, to force high concentrations of blood into the damaged area in order to bring the nutrients needed by the muscle for repair and growth. I have always found that doing this is always more beneficial as by the next day you will not be as sore or stiff anymore as opposed to skipping the workout in the name of recovery and waiting for the pain to subside in a week or so.

This is extremely interesting!! Thanks gorgeous!!