3 Tips To Fully, and Quickly, Recover From an Injury

So, you’re in the gym crushing your workout when all of a sudden you feel a sharp pain in your shoulder during your military press. 

Now, what most people don’t realize is that what you decide next could significantly hinder or help your recovery.  If you decide that it is not a big deal and finish your workout, “pushing through the pain,” without making any modifications to your lifts, then the likelihood is that you will end up with a more serious injury a few weeks down the road.  And as much as I love my clients, I would much rather keep them out of my office and in the gym, injury-free.  With that in mind, here are a few things I recommend to treat acute injuries and prevent long term ones:

1.      Listen to your body- Pain is a defense mechanism we have for survival; in the vast majority of acute injuries, you need to stop what you are doing and figure out a safe, non-painful way to move so that your body can properly heal

2.      Control symptoms- Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) and ice are good interventions for controlling pain in the short term.  However, they do not heal tissue, so be careful not to use them as a way to do more activity since this could lead to further injury.  Remember, pain is your guide.

3.      Ease back into activity- Soft tissue (not ligaments) generally takes 6-8 weeks to fully heal.  Sometimes, people have the tendency to go full throttle after a few weeks since they are usually feeling better; this is a mistake that can set you back and lead to further injury.  I generally recommend slowly increasing activity one week at a time without any increase in pain levels, before moving to a higher intensity exercise.

Stick to these, and of course feel free to reach out with any specific questions about your injury!

Happy exercising,

Dr. James