Introduction
When you’re hurt, there’s nothing worse than having to sit on the sidelines. You’re helpless and frustrated, and it can be hard to understand why your body won’t just heal itself already. But here’s a shocker: You don’t have to just accept your injuries as part of life. It is possible—and often best—to train around them instead of letting them keep you sidelined forever! In this post, I’ll show you how to make that work for you by breaking down what “training around” an injury means and offering some strategies for getting back into the gym without further injuring yourself in the process.
It’s okay to rest.
Injuries are often the reason people give up on strength training. Since you’re already injured and probably in pain, it can be tempting to take a break from your workouts. Resist this urge!
The goal of resting is to allow your body enough time without overloading it so that you can heal and return to activity injury-free. Rest does not mean taking a break from working out entirely—you just need to avoid movements or workouts that cause pain or discomfort during rehab.
Train around the injury.
- Use the injury to your advantage.
- Use it as a reminder to take it easy.
- Use it as a reminder to focus on other areas of fitness.
Here are some examples of how you can train around an injury:
Swap for lower impact option like a weighted vest
- Weighted vest: If you’d like to add resistance training to your routine, but aren’t able to do more traditional exercises due to an injury, consider using a weighted vest like this weight vest Australia. This piece of equipment is great for walking and running because it can be used regardless of the surface you’re on. You can also use a weighted vest while cycling or performing upper-body strength training exercises like pushups and pull-ups (although your lower body should not be involved in these types of movements).
- Exercise bands: Like weighted vests, exercise bands are an effective way of adding resistance training to your workout routine if you’re dealing with injuries. They’re also easy to travel with because they don’t take up much space—plus they’re affordable! Consider purchasing an exercise band set so that you have multiple sizes available when working out at home or traveling.
Change your training focus.
If you’re injured, it’s time to shift your focus away from the injured area and work on other body parts. If you have a sprained ankle, for example, try focusing on upper-body strength training with dumbbells or resistance bands. If you’ve got a weak lower back, you can strengthen it by doing exercises like planks and back extensions using a resistance band or medicine ball.
You could even try adding more cardio into your routine while recovering from an injury—this will help keep weight off while still allowing you to maintain muscle mass so that when it comes time to return to full-on strength training, your body won’t be weak!
Be under the supervision of a physiotherapist
If you’re suffering from an injury, getting the go-ahead to start strength training again is a big deal. But before you begin, it’s important to have a physiotherapist or other health professional supervise your workout sessions like this sports physiotherapist Melbourne. If they’re qualified and experienced in treating injuries related to strength training, they can help determine when it’s safe for you to return to the gym and also provide guidance on how often and which exercises are most appropriate for your condition.
A physiotherapist may also be able to recommend specific equipment (like weight machines) that will allow you complete comfort while exercising. They may even work with their colleagues to design workouts based on your unique needs and capabilities—a process called functional rehabilitation—so be sure to ask if this option is available through their practice!
Reduce the intensity.
Another way to reduce the intensity of your workouts is to reduce the amount of weight you use. In other words, instead of lifting as much as possible, lift just enough so that you can still maintain good form.
In addition to reducing the amount of weight in each exercise, you should also cut back on certain exercises if they cause pain or aggravate your injury. If a certain movement hurts when doing it normally but doesn’t hurt when done with lighter weights or an easier technique (such as keeping your working leg bent during squats), then it should be avoided until the injury heals completely. On the other hand, if an exercise causes pain regardless of what method or amount of weight is used in it, then avoid training that muscle until recovery has begun.
Use the right gym equipment
If you’re injured, you must use the right gym equipment like this power tower. To avoid re-injuring yourself, stay away from machines designed for other body parts and perform exercises with a lower impact on your joints. To find out what weight is appropriate for your injury, consult with a personal trainer or physical therapist. If a workout causes pain (even slight), don’t do it!
If possible, try to hire a personal trainer who specializes in working with people who are recovering from injuries—they can help determine exactly which exercises will be safe and effective for you based on the type of injury you’ve sustained
Be willing to adjust your training plan.
If you’re not sure how to modify your plan, don’t be afraid to ask for help. A trainer or manual therapist can help determine which exercises are best suited for your current situation and will be able to give you advice on how to execute them safely. If you choose not to pay a professional, there are plenty of resources online that offer helpful tips and tricks like this one from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons: “If you have an injured arm, use a resistance band attached around your waist with the other end hooked under a door.”
If your injury prevents you from performing certain moves at all—or if it causes enough pain that remaining still is preferable—you can substitute those movements with an exercise that uses similar muscles but doesn’t cause as much stress on the injured area. For example, if shoulder strength is compromised because of rotator cuff tendonitis then it would be wise to avoid bench presses altogether while focusing instead on exercises such as lateral raises (lateral deltoid muscle), overhead presses (anterior deltoid muscle), chest flys (pectorals major). It’s also important not to forget about core work!
Use your injuries to build a better you!
You can use your injuries to build a better you!
Take this time to focus on other areas of your fitness:
- Improve your diet. Eating healthier is always a good idea, but it’s even more important when recovering from an injury. Quality nutrition will help support the healing process, so ensure you’re getting plenty of lean protein and complex carbohydrates with every meal. You may also want to consider adding supplements like Omega-3s or probiotics into your diet if you’re not already taking them regularly!
- Improve recovery. Training hard requires that we take care of our bodies outside of the gym as well—and there are many ways we can do this without sacrificing our gains in strength and size! For example: stretching after your workouts (or every day) will increase blood flow and reduce soreness while improving flexibility; foam rolling daily helps loosen tight muscles and improve mobility; getting enough sleep improves mental clarity while reducing fatigue during training sessions; taking hot/cold showers at least once per week also increases circulation by increasing blood flow for improved recovery after training sessions.*
Conclusion
Hopefully, this article will help you better understand how to train through injury so that you can recover faster and get back into the gym. As always, it’s important to remember that everybody is different and there isn’t one right way to get fit. So if an injury happens during your workout session or training plan, don’t panic! Instead, take some time off from whatever activity caused the pain (even if it was just walking) and then start over again slowly with some basic exercises like squats or lunges until the discomfort goes away completely before progressing onto more complicated movements like deadlifts or overhead presses.
