“Are you hurt or are you injured?”
I was a collegiate athlete, I think, when I overheard an assistant football coach ask that question to his player. The question helped me understand that its two terms are not necessarily synonymous.
Exercisers, in comparison to the sedentary, have an increased risk of breaks, tears, strains and other orthopedic injuries. A traditional response to injury is to rest, ice, compress, and elevate the injured limb. This response is called the R.I.C.E method. If the injury is a trauma, or if the pain continues, you should cease any activity that irritates the injury and find medical assistance.
Exercisers will feel the pain of soreness, however, much more often than they will feel the pain of an injury. Exercise physiology does not have an explanation for what causes muscle soreness after exercising, although there are theories. A number of therapies can help reduce muscle soreness: most popular are pain relieving medications, ice, heat, various ointments, and lower-intensity exercise.
While it is important to alleviate soreness, it is equally important to continue exercising with soreness. Do this by making an honest effort during a workout. Your performance may not be what it usually is; but that should not matter if you make an honest effort.
We don’t have complete control over the physiological hand of cards that we are dealt, but we can play them well.
