Getting back to the gym after an injury
Injuring yourself sucks big time. It can spin your life out
of sync, quicker than a revolving door during winter. You know exactly what
lies ahead - pain, inflammation and time out of the gym to recover.
Regardless of who you are, unless you have superpowers – you
will need to allow your body enough time to heal. How quickly you can resume
exercise will really depend on many factors, such as your age, gender, general
health, physical fitness, previous injuries and of course - the type of injury.
Get expert help
If you’ve hurt yourself, please go and get a diagnosis. If
you are in pain, you’ve damaged something and it’s not easy to be objective at
times like this. You need expert help, so see your GP or health professional,
pronto and find out what’s wrong.
If your GP or health professional thinks you should be at
home, resting and binge-watching Game of Thrones - best listen up.
Ease back into exercise
slowly
Try and remember that time heals, especially when it comes
to injuries and broken hearts.
Exercise can be addictive and it’s normal to miss the
endorphin rush you feel afterwards. Depending on how long you are out of
action, realise that it’s perfectly normal to feel frustrated or even angry at
yourself. Remind yourself this is temporary. It will pass. Your body will
recover.
‘Walk before you run’ – didn’t someone famous say that? Seriously
though, walking is a great way to ease yourself back into physical movement.
Why not grab a friend and head out for a walk together? Resist the urge to walk 20km, even if you
used to run 10km for fun before breakfast.
Don’t forget the golden rule… warm up beforehand and stretch
after your activity, or you may end up back on the injury roundabout!
Pain is not your
friend
Listen to your body, look out for signs you may be aggravating
your injury. If you feel pain, stop. If you push yourself too much, before your
body is ready, there’s a darn good chance you may hurt yourself again. Just go
as far as you feel comfortable with, build it up slowly, gradually and safely.
The same with weight training or any of your other favourites activities, ask
your expert for guidance.
Make sure you warm up before and stretch after your activity,
or you may need to go back to step 1.
Eat, sleep and laugh
To aid your body in it’s recovery phase, aim to eat a
healthy balanced diet, hydrate plenty and try for as much quality sleep as
possible. Make sure you warm up before and stretch
after your activity.
Keep yourself busy, get your mates round for a movie session
or anything that makes you laugh. Laughter, like exercise, releases feel-good
endorphins which can help improve your mood.
Good luck with your recovery! If you are concerned about an injury why not pop into your local Genesis Health and Fitness for advice?
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