Injuries are an unfortunate part of life, especially when you play sports or exercise regularly. Whether you tweak your back moving furniture or develop an annoying case of tennis elbow, it can be a frustrating experience when you have to change your routine to accommodate an injury.
The good news is that this doesn’t mean you need to stop training entirely. Sure, chasing fitness might look different during the time that you’re recovering, but you shouldn’t give up, especially if you’re one of our members. At CrossFit Donelson, our coaches are experienced in modifying workouts to not only keep you moving, but also continue making progress.
We Modify Every Day (And It’s Not Just for Injured People)
First of all, scaling is a term we use almost every day in CrossFit, and it simply means to modify the movements for each individual in class to match their physical capabilities. This is how we can make one workout meet the fitness needs of several people at the same time. So even though the majority of our members are not injured, many of them will still scale the load, distance, or complexity of the exercises so they can get the best stimulus possible for themselves that day.
Our coaches will guide you through this process beginning on day one, and over time you’ll find yourself scaling to harder and harder variations as your fitness improves. This is an important way to measure progress, whether you’re functioning at full capacity or nursing an injured body part. So if you are injured, don’t worry – you won’t be the only one scaling.
You Don’t Have to Start Over
Injuring yourself can feel like a crushing setback for anyone, especially for athletes or active individuals. After several months or even years of making progress in your fitness, suddenly you’re unable to do those things you worked hard to accomplish. Many people’s instinctual reaction is to throw in the towel and start over when they are fully recovered. This is a mistake for two reasons:
1. They will miss out on weeks or even months of progress they could achieve during that time; and
2. Stopping exercise entirely could also slow the recovery process.
So what do we recommend our members do if they hurt themselves?
Depending on the severity of the injury, we might encourage them to go to a physical therapist or orthopedist, and once the doctor clears them for physical activity – even if it’s limited – we tell them to get back in the gym. After all, movement is medicine! Movement promotes blood flow, and blood flow increases nutrient usage, which in turn improves recovery. Resistance training also makes your muscles and joints stronger, which is critical for preventing future injuries. Win-win!
It’s Not About Pushing Through Pain
Now, I want to be clear: training through injury does not mean ignoring your body’s warning signals. If running or jumping hurts your knees, you shouldn’t do it, or if you can’t do a push-up without pain, you should find a suitable alternative, specifically something that provides a similar stimulus without aggravating your injury.
Does this mean you’ll never perform these movements again? I wouldn’t say that. Since functional movements are rehabilitative, you will most likely be able to restore your former range of motion, especially if you work regularly with a trainer and/or physical therapist. Of course, there are exceptions in extreme cases, such as catastrophic accidents or major reconstructive surgery, but even in those instances you can still pursue fitness in alternative ways. It’s never about doing less, it’s about doing what you can, safely and effectively.
What Training Through Injury Actually Looks Like at Our Gym
So how do we put this in practice at CrossFit Donelson? First, we establish our boundaries. What body part(s) are injured? How much range of motion do we still have? Are there any movements or activities that are completely off limits?
Then, we make a list of exercises that we can do, including some that we can achieve full range of motion and others that we need to limit joint movement. This is our guidebook for continuing to get fitter as we rehabilitate the injured muscle or joint. The eventual goal is to broaden this list to include everything we could do pre-injury, if possible.
Finally, we look at the workouts each day to determine what the stimulus of the exercises are, and try to stay as close to that as possible without pain. The most important part of this process is to understand the distinction between discomfort and pain. Discomfort is necessary for growth (this is true for everyone), while pain is your body’s way of telling you to stop what you’re doing before it gets worse. We want to work around pain by modifying movements or intensity, lean into discomfort to improve, and learn how to distinguish between the two.
Feeling Stuck After an Injury?
You Aren’t Alone When you’re dealing with an injury, it can be disheartening. I’ve been there as a member of the gym, and I felt like there’s no point in working out if I couldn’t do exactly what I wanted or what others in class were doing. Now, as a coach, I know that I was limiting myself with that mindset.
Of course, motivating yourself isn’t easy to do. That’s why accountability is so important. At our gym, your friends will be there to encourage you in your efforts, reminding you to continue making daily deposits in your health, no matter how small they may seem. Having a supportive community like that can make all the difference when you are struggling.
Plus, as I already said, you can leverage our coaches’ expertise to know what to do each and every time you come to our gym. I don’t want to brag, but our team does a great job of keeping you moving, connected, and confident.
You’re Not Broken – You’re Just in a Different Chapter
I know an injury may feel like the end of the road, but I’ve been around long enough to see people come back from injuries or surgeries that could have completely derailed their fitness, through a combination of patience, perseverance, instruction, and support from friends and coaches. You can do it too.
We remind our members often that the human body is an incredible adaptive machine, especially when it comes to repairing damaged tissue, and the best way to put that machine into high gear is to keep moving!
You Deserve a Gym That Knows How to Meet You Where You Are
Whether you’re a longtime athlete or stepping into the gym for the first time, we want to help you find the right modifications for your body, even if you’re currently injured.
If you still have reservations or want to ask us questions, I would love to sit down and talk personally with you about what kind of exercise(s) you could be doing to move forward in your fitness. When you’re ready for that, book a Free Consultation with me, and we’ll figure out your next step together.
Spencer Smith Owner & Head Coach
