Are You Overtrained or Are You Injured?
That is the question..
Dr. Mark T. Rathjen PT, DPT, CSCS
Dr. Claire Lakatos Rathjen PT, DPT, SCS, CSCS
CORE Physical Therapy and Sports Performance, PC
2017
Lets get down to brass tacks here.
There is a HUGE difference physiologically between overtraining and injury but often athletes cannot or refuse to acknowledge the difference in symptoms associated with each. Here is a quick guide to keep you in the game longer, performing better, and taking your fitness to the next level.
Signs of overtraining
-Lethargy or lack of motivation
-Persistant soreness (muscle or joint)
-Immune system compromise
-Lack of progression or decrease in performance
-An ability to focus or brain fog
Signs of Injury
Persistent burn or ache with or without joint motion. This includes includes during or after exercise. Delayed onset muscle soreness can often last several days, but injuries can fester much much longer. If you remain sore for long periods of time, you need to re-examine your progression.
Point tenderness. Hard workouts can make you sore, but if a muscle is sore or hot to the touch, or a bony protuberance is sore to the touch, you may be in the beginning stage of injury. Please DO NOT just keep popping IBUPROFEN and call it a day.
Joint soreness. Joints are not a contractile tissue and are not subject to breakdown the same as muscle tissue. If a Joint is sore, there is some irritation, and that increases the chance of progressing to an actual injury.
Pain with normal activities. Do you have knee pain or stiffness after sitting for an hour or two? Does your elbow hurt while typing or resting on a table? Activities of daily living should not be painful. IF they are, you need to find out why!
8 Questions to ask yourself.
Am I programming correctly? Do I have a plan?
Do I take time off when sore or have pain?
Do I cross train?
Do I do special mobility work?
When a injury just seems to go away on its own, am I sure that I’m not compensating for it or putting stress somewhere else?
Do I track progress and log my workouts?
Am I sleeping enough?
Is my nutrition spot on?
If you answer NO to any of these questions you may be begging for an injury!
This article may seem like common sense to many, but even the most educated of us still fall victim to IGNORING what our bodies are telling us.
When your body talks to you what is it saying?
When you understand what your body is saying, do you listen?
If not, you may be on a one way ticket to injury city.
DONT let it be you!
IF YOU NEED ANY ASSISTANCE IN MOBILITY WORK, PROGRAMMING, INJURY ASSESSMENT, NUTRITION PLANNING, or CROSS TRAINING
C.O.R.E. CAN HELP YOU.
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