Exercising can become part of your routine and life, and it can do so many great things for you physically and for your mental health. But when you suddenly get injured it can really stop you in your tracks. You tend to want to avoid causing anymore pain or making the injury worse, but the big issue with getting an injury is stopping. If you stop completely then you can reduce your fitness levels and perhaps even cause more problems in the future. So here are few ways that you can handle the injury and pain when it comes to keeping going with your exercise and being active.
Change the way you exercise
One of the first things that you could do would be to change the way that you exercise. This might be looking at a different type of exercise, one that requires less impact or force on your muscles, or even a totally different exercise. Things like swimming can be a great way to help you get back after an injury, and it is also a great all over workout. An injury or pain doesn’t mean you need to stop, but it may force you to change the way you do things. But doing this could help you explore new options or find a new love for a different type of exercise.
Try alternative methods of pain relief
The type of injury you have or the pain you are experiencing might not mean you need to stop, but you do need to be able to cope with it, and so it could be worth trying alternative methods of pain relief. There are different types of lotions you can buy or you may even want to look into alternative methods like dry needling that could help alleviate the pain. Other methods you might not have tried could be ice, where you can use a spray to freeze the area, or similarly the opposite end of the spectrum you could use heat which can also work well to help relax a muscle area.
Slow down but don’t stop
You should only really stop exercising if a doctor or health professional has told you that rest is the best cure. Muscles need to still be worked and used, and stopping can cause you more harm than good. Just make a decision to slow down. Walk instead of run, try different exercises that use different muscles instead, or simply just do what you do but on a smaller scale.
Invest in the right gear
Finally, try and avoid injury again or to further cause damage by investing in the right gear. This could be anything such as the right footwear for impact to your feet and legs, to wearing the gift of activewear and clothes when doing a workout. You might also want to consider straps and support for the areas that you have injured to help you to keep on going. These can be really helpful.
Let’s hope this has encouraged you to work through the pain of injury and to keep moving.