Should I Exercise Through Pain?
/The main currency we deal with in Physio is pain. What level is it out of 10? Does it hurt at night?
But let's be honest. As we get older is it realistic to aim for pain free? I’m going to say no unless you're on a concoction of Mexican supplements.
10 years ago I would have made every Physio exercise 100% pain free, and would not progress until everything was pain free. The reality is I was wrong and could have rehabbed things faster.
The balance lies between living your best life - doing whatever flips your switch, training hard or just daily exercise AND preventing long term damage stopping you from doing the above.
So… what does the research tell us
That yes, it is generally ok to exercise whether that be your training, or your rehab program if the pain is up to a 4/10. Yep, it hurts a bit but you can still do it. It doesn’t flare up and you aren’t reaching for the voltaren.
The benefit of a little bit of pain is it can also increase your strength a little faster. The stronger you get, generally the less pain you get.
Other benefits of allowing a little bit of pain are:
It builds resilience in your body. You’re able to push out of the box of movement restriction and therefor live a better life in your body
Weight Bearing (within reason) through a torn hamstring, or calf, by day four leads to a faster return to exercise/ sport
Allowing a little bit of pain through what you do during the day is also good. Research says those with a better relationship with mild pain recover faster.
What can happen if you are too worried to move?
The big thing with kinesiophobia, or fear of movement, is it can actually magnify pain in your brain. Every time you become fearful of movement it becomes more magnified.
You do less movement so you become weaker and your recovery is longer
An example is a sprained ankle without a fracture. Those that don’t weight bear for a week or more are more prone to nerve pain, which can be very painful
When is the above advice really bad?
If your pain is getting worse the more you do, then please stop and see us asap. You could most likely be doing more damage and we need to figure out what is wrong
If you’re getting more night pain - not less, with what you are doing
If the pain hangs around for a few hours following exercise, it’s too much
You have just injured yourself. Most injuries like a muscle tear, or acute tendon injury, require 48 hours of rest to really calm down. Back pain is the exception.
So to summarize!
A healthy relationship with a little bit of pain has a psychological benefit in getting trust in your body again.
But also a physiological benefit. It strengthens your tissue, reduces the threat to your brain and makes your body more resilient to life's challenges.