Have you ever heard the phrase: “no pain, no gain”? You hear it in exercise classes and sporting events by well-meaning coaches and trainers who want you to push yourself harder or to the next level. While usually well-intended, this motto can be a recipe for disaster. Let me explain...
Most of our early experiences with fitness came from gym class or childhood sports. Whether it was the Presidential Fitness Test or being forced to run a mile with no training, we can all recall some early experiences that were either mentally and/or physically painful.
For whatever reason, those memories are the ones that we carried into adulthood that shape our ideas of what it means to have a "good" workout - one that leaves you super sweaty and hurts enough to leave you barely standing, struggling to breathe and sometimes, vomiting.
But the truth is, you CAN have gains without pain. You can improve your fitness without punishing yourself. You can enjoy exercise without feeling like you need a trip to the ER.
Let’s start by understanding the difference between pain, discomfort and soreness:
Pain can be sharp, achey, acute or chronic. It's your body signaling that something is wrong. It can be caused by running through extreme discomfort, not taking a long enough break during intervals or forcing yourself to lift weights that are too heavy. If ignored, it can lead to injury.
Mild discomfort, on the other hand, is the sense of uneasiness that you feel when something is just a bit more challenging than usual, but you know you can push through without harming yourself. It’s okay to workout when you feel mild discomfort, as long as there is NO pain or extreme discomfort.
Muscle soreness is normal and usually occurs 24-48 hours after a workout in the muscles that were used in the workout.
If you're wondering why some discomfort is okay, you have to remember that some "stress" is needed to improve. Increasing your weights little by little or adding an additional mile to your weekly long run are examples of the kind of good stress that leads to discomfort.
Despite what that trainer, coach or gym teacher said, pain is not a signal of a good workout. It's a sign that something is not right and you should treat it as such.
Letting go of the "no pain, no gain" mentality may require a bit of practice but your body will thank you in the long run (pun intended).
