Signs of exercise injury can be subtle
If you've ever set foot in an exercise class, you've surely heard the instruction to "listen to your body." It's usually an apt one, but sometimes exercise-related injuries speak to us after the fact or in a language we don't always understand — stiffness and delayed soreness, for example, rather than outright pain. Often we even start compensating with different movement patterns, such as altering our stride to avoid soreness or favoring one arm, which can cause even more problems.
What do these delayed symptoms mean? How do we treat the underlying injuries that are causing them? Or better yet, how do we avoid such injuries?
First, pay attention.
"With overuse injuries, oftentimes you'll just notice diffuse soreness and write that off as normal," said Justin Mullner, a Washington, D.C.based doctor who specializes in sports medicine.
Sometimes, instead of making itself known as pain, the overuse injury causes disruptions and changes in movement patterns. If you have Achilles tendinitis, for example, you might start planting your foot differently while running.
Another possibility when it comes to ambiguous sports-injury symptoms is that the injury shows up as stiffness rather than pain — at least initially. That's what happened to Michael Schaeffer, a Washington, D.C., resident who did "too much, too soon" when he resumed running after a long hiatus. "In the morning, my right heel would just feel stiff. I moved like a tin man," Schaeffer said. When the stiffness turned into pain and he consulted a doctor, he was told that Achilles tendinitis was the likely cause.
Most overuse injuries, such as stress injuries in bones (weakened but not fractured), degeneration and improper healing of soft tissue Noticing how your body reacts to a given exercise is important, not just during a workout, but afterward, as stiffness or delayed soreness can indicate a more serious injury.
(tendinopathy), and inflammation (tendinitis) of soft tissue — don't usually go away by themselves and require some therapy.
Schaeffer is rehabilitating his heel and increasing his range of motion by doing heel stretches, calf strengthening, cycling and strength training. But he has hung up his running shoes for the time being.
The length of recovery varies, and you shouldn't go back to your activity too soon, Mullner cautioned. "If you can't walk pain-free or without a limp, you probably shouldn't run," he said.
Even if you're just sore or stiff, rather than in pain, "the damage to the tissue has already happened," said Ben Fidler, a personal trainer. In this case, you should take steps to prevent it from progressing. Mullner and Fidler both recommend having a trainer or physical therapist look at your movement patterns to determine weaknesses and tight areas.
Sometimes clients need more strength training, and other times they need improved flexibility. But usually they need both to prevent the stiffness or soreness from progressing to injuries.
Creating better movement patterns throughout the body can ease that pain. But Mullner noted that even with the help of trainers, some soreness is to be expected, even desired, as we get stronger and progress our drills.