Unlocking the Mystery of Pain in Your Training: Discover the Hidden Factors Holding You Back
Wednesday, October 11, 2023
WHAT is Pain?
Pain is a complex response to 3 major stimuli in our body: thermal, chemical, and mechanical. During training, our body is under constant mechanical pressure, and mechanical nociceptors convert it into electrical energy through the nerve system. Once the magnitude of this electrical energy reaches a threshold, a signal is sent to your brain, which leads to a painful sensation. This mechanism is an important part of our basic survival instinct, in order to protect ourselves from potential harm & injury.
Photo by Victor Freitas / Unsplash
WHY do I feel pain?
Pain is a signal from your body that something is wrong or needs attention!
Arthritis is a condition that refers to the inflammation of one or more joints in the body. Lateral epicondylitis, medial epicondylitis, and adhesive capsulitis are the medical terms for tennis elbow, golfer‘s elbow, and frozen shoulder, respectively. They all end with the same suffix,"-itis", which denotes inflammation. However, there are five cardinal signs of inflammation: heat, redness, pain, swelling, and loss of function. Pain is merely a symptom of inflammation, and is not always a clear sign of it.
If you experience pain without any of the other common signs of inflammation mentioned above, then it might not be caused by inflammatory conditions. Furthermore, if you only feel pain when moving your body outside of a limited range of motion, then this may indicate that the pain is not due to inflammation, but may be the result of misalignment in your body.
Understanding the Impact of Misalignment on Pain: Muscle & Body Structure
Misalignment is a common cause of pain, particularly for individuals who engage in frequent exercise. This issue can arise from using incorrect form during exercise or even from prolonged periods of sitting in a fixed position. When misalignment occurs, it can create muscle imbalances and excessive tension on joints, resulting in discomfort and pain.
When we feel pain during physical exercise or when we perform daily tasks, our body is sending us a natural warning signal to prevent injury. This happens when we push our muscles to their limit when the body is misaligned.
So, rather than asking “how can I prevent pain?” the more important question that we should be asking is: How can I reverse the misalignment in my body?
The key to that answer is muscle overuse.
Surprisingly, misalignment is not merely caused by natural body structure alone, but is a result of repeated movements, which lead to muscle overuse. , This overuse of the muscle can cause muscle cohesion, which causes the muscle group to lose its full range of motion as well as its ability to function properly.
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Your body has a remarkable ability to adapt to compensate for new and different movement patterns. When you overuse a certain muscle group, it becomes contracted and contorted, losing its full range of motion. To counter this, the antagonistic or opposing muscle group has to be lengthened and stretched to compensate for this new movement pattern. This adaptation is a common consequence of muscle cohesion. The newly compensated movement pattern will take over, and your body may forget the correct way to move. As a result, through daily use and consistent training without properly addressing these overused muscles, your muscles and body structure will gradually become misaligned, which will lead to limited range of motion, pain and discomfort.
Addressing misalignment is crucial in order to alleviate pain and discomfort. At Venus Weightlifting, we have clients that come to us with different backgrounds and starting points. It is important that for all our clients, we develop individualized training programs that target your unique needs and goals. By first addressing issues of misalignment, incorporating corrective exercises, and promoting proper posture and movement patterns, we emphasize injury prevention and create a safe and supportive training environment for all members.
In conclusion, misalignment can significantly contribute to pain and discomfort, particularly for individuals who engage in regular exercise. Understanding the impact of muscle overuse and subsequent muscle cohesion is essential in addressing misalignment and its negative effects on the body. Through targeted exercises and corrective techniques, we can gradually realign the body, improve range of motion, and alleviate pain.
Think you might need help?
No one deserves to have pain hinder their training progress.
Pain is not meant to be a normal part of training. With a proper understanding of your body alignment and what steps you need to take to restore that alignment, you can prevent pain and see progress in your training.
We created the Body Alignment Training programme, which has become a fundamental piece in the way we train our athletes. If you’d like to learn more, consider any one of our coaching programs to help you break through these barriers.
Train like a human, before you train like an athlete.
WHY do you suffer from ENDLESS training Pain? - Part 1
WHY do you suffer from ENDLESS training Pain? - Part 2
Hi, I Am Gaby
Head Coach of Venus Weightlifting
Greetings! I'm Gaby, Head Coach of Venus Weightlifting club, the first of its kind in China. Curious how weightlifting can advance without exhaustive efforts and stiff bodies? I've unraveled this secret by integrating Chinese medical training and my innovative BAT (Body Alignment Training), catapulting thousands to their personal bests.
Ready to get your new PRs without pain? Let's embark on this journey of transformation together!