Is your injury stopping you training?

The temptation to carry on training when you know that you are injured, is often too great to resist. It’s even harder when you have a deadline that you have been working towards.

Your body is probably very good (too good) at compensating for injuries, and you tell everyone that you have a high pain threshold, so why shouldn’t you keep training?

But continuing to push your body when you have an area that is tight and painful, can very easily backfire. Yes, you can probably push through it, and you may feel that it doesn’t need to stop you. You may be able to keep hitting your training targets, until …

… your body fights back, and you end up in more pain, or  with an even worse injury.

The compensation is what causes a lot of the issues. Because everything in your body is connected via your fascial system, when an area isn’t functioning as it should, the rest of your body has to change. So muscles tighten up (even in areas away from the injury). This means that they are also more vulnerable to injury, and the joints that they should be supporting are also at more risk.

So what should you do?

• Stay well-hydrated to maintain flexibility and speed healing times
• Listen to your body –  pain and injury is often preceded by tension. By learning to identify muscles which are staying tight after you have stretched them, you will be able to target the right areas for more focussed attention.
• Stretch correctly – never stretch into pain. Instead, wait at the point at which you can feel a gentle pull, until it softens or lengthens.
• Get professional help for injuries sooner rather than later.
• Don’t keep training with an injury if it is making your symptoms worse.

Myofascial Release treatment is a gentle way of working with your body. As well as reducing your pain and tension, it can help to create the optimum conditions for healing. It also enables the therapist to find restrictions elsewhere in your body that could be contributing to the problem. 

For example, old injuries and scar tissue tend to lead to tension throughout your body, increasing the chance of injury, and increasing recovery time.

For treatment for your sports injury, ask us about our Let it Go Packages – intensive treatment to get you back into your training quickly and safely.