For Those of Us Injury Challenged and Not Young.....LOL
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luluinca
Posts: 2,899 Member
Injuries and the Gym.......OR Not
I'm making an observation here regarding injuries and how to overcome them. Is it better to really rest the injured muscles/tendons or work through them with low weights and stretching and keep forcing ourselves to show up at the gym?
I've had a lot of injuries since I started back at the gym 5 years ago at age 63. I've always been an accident waiting to happen, so it's not that surprising really, but I do wonder if my age or "gung ho" attitude have something to do with them.
I can't really explain my latest way of overcoming said injuries without briefly mentioning the ones I've had. I made it through the first year relatively unscathed by swimming 5 days a week and circuit training 3 or 4 days a week on the same days. I did walk into a bar on a squat rack and now have a tiny dent in my forehead because of it though.
Year two ended with frozen left shoulder and 8 to 10 weeks of PT and only working legs and running (something I'd never really tried before) to give my shoulder a rest. Running didn't work too well, although I did get a couple of 5 K's in, and by the end of year 3 I'd screwed my left knee up pretty bad training for a 10K but was able to get back to the gym and work upper body while waiting for the knee to heal up with a shot of cortisone and rest.
During the times I was able to work legs I also had a glute tear and both a right and left hip flexor injury. Year 4 started out pretty well and even though I couldn't really run yet I was able to do full body workouts at the gym. I'd already lost the weight and felt strong so I just kept doing what worked for me, 4 days at the gym and walking on the other 2 or 3 with my dog and swimming in the summer.
By the end of year 4 my right shoulder began bothering me and I also re-injured my right hip flexor and then my right knee this time (I was seriously just walking and it became unbearably painful). I worked with a trainer and was able to fix most of these issues over about 4 or 5 months by beginning my workouts with about 20 to 30 minutes of stretching and stripping the muscles and gradually working the muscles again. I really felt like I was at a standstill strength wise though and then BOOM tore my left glute and hamstring about 8 or 9 weeks ago.
There's the background and now for what I've discovered. I looked up all sorts of stretching and ways of easing back into legs after a glute injury and tried a number of them, but honestly, I just kept re-injuring it and a 4 to 6 week recovery just kept getting more elusive.
This week I became injury free for the first time in a really, really long time. Here's how I did it. I took a month off from the gym.............lol. I didn't want to take a month off and didn't plan to take a month off, and did get a day or two in here and there, but I've been so busy with a houseful of guests for 3 to 4 weeks and a memorial for my sister that I literally had zero time for the gym. My 3 children and 3 grandchildren all live far away, as well as a very special nephew and great nephew, so I wasn't about to miss a minute of family time. I haven't missed more than a long weekend or holiday in 5 years of going to the gym so this was a bit of a shock to me, to be honest, and I kind of felt like a slacker.
I did keep my calories and macros in check , so no weight gain, and got a lot of swimming and frankly, cleaning and laundry in, but my shoulder, hips, knees, and glute/hammies got a break.
I went back to the gym on Tuesday of this week and was able to do dead lifts for the first time in about 10 weeks, nothing hurts, other than old age joints which I always just ignore. Even though I think I may have lost a bit of strength this year, I know I'll build back up at my own speed.
I think my body was telling me something and while I didn't necessarily listen, I was forced to take a break. I'm so afraid of making excuses about not working out that I've never really given myself a chance to actually rest my body. I'm not going to go out on the poverbial limb and say my injuries are a thing of the past though.............I know myself too well. What I am going to do is try to ease myself into the amount of weight I lift and maybe be a little more careful to avoid those pesky injuries.
Wish Me Luck!
Link to my blog: https://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/luluinca
I'm making an observation here regarding injuries and how to overcome them. Is it better to really rest the injured muscles/tendons or work through them with low weights and stretching and keep forcing ourselves to show up at the gym?
I've had a lot of injuries since I started back at the gym 5 years ago at age 63. I've always been an accident waiting to happen, so it's not that surprising really, but I do wonder if my age or "gung ho" attitude have something to do with them.
I can't really explain my latest way of overcoming said injuries without briefly mentioning the ones I've had. I made it through the first year relatively unscathed by swimming 5 days a week and circuit training 3 or 4 days a week on the same days. I did walk into a bar on a squat rack and now have a tiny dent in my forehead because of it though.
Year two ended with frozen left shoulder and 8 to 10 weeks of PT and only working legs and running (something I'd never really tried before) to give my shoulder a rest. Running didn't work too well, although I did get a couple of 5 K's in, and by the end of year 3 I'd screwed my left knee up pretty bad training for a 10K but was able to get back to the gym and work upper body while waiting for the knee to heal up with a shot of cortisone and rest.
During the times I was able to work legs I also had a glute tear and both a right and left hip flexor injury. Year 4 started out pretty well and even though I couldn't really run yet I was able to do full body workouts at the gym. I'd already lost the weight and felt strong so I just kept doing what worked for me, 4 days at the gym and walking on the other 2 or 3 with my dog and swimming in the summer.
By the end of year 4 my right shoulder began bothering me and I also re-injured my right hip flexor and then my right knee this time (I was seriously just walking and it became unbearably painful). I worked with a trainer and was able to fix most of these issues over about 4 or 5 months by beginning my workouts with about 20 to 30 minutes of stretching and stripping the muscles and gradually working the muscles again. I really felt like I was at a standstill strength wise though and then BOOM tore my left glute and hamstring about 8 or 9 weeks ago.
There's the background and now for what I've discovered. I looked up all sorts of stretching and ways of easing back into legs after a glute injury and tried a number of them, but honestly, I just kept re-injuring it and a 4 to 6 week recovery just kept getting more elusive.
This week I became injury free for the first time in a really, really long time. Here's how I did it. I took a month off from the gym.............lol. I didn't want to take a month off and didn't plan to take a month off, and did get a day or two in here and there, but I've been so busy with a houseful of guests for 3 to 4 weeks and a memorial for my sister that I literally had zero time for the gym. My 3 children and 3 grandchildren all live far away, as well as a very special nephew and great nephew, so I wasn't about to miss a minute of family time. I haven't missed more than a long weekend or holiday in 5 years of going to the gym so this was a bit of a shock to me, to be honest, and I kind of felt like a slacker.
I did keep my calories and macros in check , so no weight gain, and got a lot of swimming and frankly, cleaning and laundry in, but my shoulder, hips, knees, and glute/hammies got a break.
I went back to the gym on Tuesday of this week and was able to do dead lifts for the first time in about 10 weeks, nothing hurts, other than old age joints which I always just ignore. Even though I think I may have lost a bit of strength this year, I know I'll build back up at my own speed.
I think my body was telling me something and while I didn't necessarily listen, I was forced to take a break. I'm so afraid of making excuses about not working out that I've never really given myself a chance to actually rest my body. I'm not going to go out on the poverbial limb and say my injuries are a thing of the past though.............I know myself too well. What I am going to do is try to ease myself into the amount of weight I lift and maybe be a little more careful to avoid those pesky injuries.
Wish Me Luck!
Link to my blog: https://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/luluinca
3
Replies
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I guess because I'm older than dirt this is not that interesting.............LOL0
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Omg you have had it tough
So I grew up an athlete. I’d get hurt but keep going cause I was on a mission. Every spring I take up running when the weather gets nice. Last year I ended up at physio for plantar fasciitis. I stoped running but keeps skating.
This year my shoulder is sore and I just made an appt for physio for it. I have decided it’s getting ridiculous always being hurt so I’m taking the year off my skating team.
I’m like you I hate resting and feel like it’s almost giving up. But I have decided to fulfil my pretend dream of Beijing 2022 I need to rest. Really I have decided to for once out me and my well being first and get better.
I hope you are able to ease into it. I struggle with that. Don’t run for six months so. I gut as well do 5k quickly when you are give the all clear to run.
Good luck!!!!!0 -
Thanks for the response @AliNouveau and good luck with the shoulder, they can be the worst. I grew up an athlete as well and I think that became a part of our DNA, for better or worse....LOL0
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I would say that an older athlete's first rule might well be, prevent injury. Sometimes that means being content with no progress-sticking to the same routine and not increasing expectations for a while. It also means listening to your body and backing off rather than pushing through. Honestly, that's good advice for any age, but because injuries take longer to heal when you are older, it's more important. One can always do alternative forms of exercise that do not stress the suspect muscle/muscle group--swim (arms only) if you have a lower body concern, for example. Being "gung ho" about regular physical activity is fine; being "gung ho" about constantly trying to do better--go farther, go faster, lift more, etc.--probably isn't. Remember that in the long run, what is sustainable matters most; any momentary achievement that puts sustainability at risk is not worth it. Just my 2 cents!0
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I've had injuries that I've had to rest and rehab, and I've had tweaks and aches that I've been able to work through with a bit of extra stretching, rolling, warming up, etc. It all depends on the nature of the problem.0
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Thanks for the response @AliNouveau and good luck with the shoulder, they can be the worst. I grew up an athlete as well and I think that became a part of our DNA, for better or worse....LOL
Yoi mentioned a out a felting limitation. Omg yes. I've worked hard to get back to a level in my sport that I feel as good as I did when younger.
And as for DNA....my nana was a runner, won and Olympic medal even. At the tender age of at least 65 se decided to try one of the grand kids skate boards and fell and broke her wrist. She was always who we went to at track and field time cause she'd get out there in her skirt or heels and help work on our starts. It's totally in the DNA and it's so hard to fight it. It was painful to tie my skates last night but I ended up skating for an hour and a half because I love the feeling
So ya good luck not pushing through it but I can also tell you I skate with ladies who are 75/80. I skated with a man who gave it up at 82 because of balance issues. The fountain of youth is activity to keep it up0 -
@AliNouveau, thanks for the family history and the encouragement. I have a long history of athletics and learned a lot from my dad........I was the BOY he never had, lol. I intend to keep working on strength and mobility until I can't do it anymore, hopefully that is many years down the road..........LOL1
Have fun! 
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