| No pain, no gain. These words are on nearly every gym wall in the country. On t-shirts. Motivational posters. Popping out of every fitness instructor’s mouth when things get tough. No pain, no gain. But who equated pain with progress? Since the dawn of time, humans have pushed our bodies to their very edges. Pheidippides, a Greek messenger ran 300 miles in 3 days to successfully deliver his message, before keeling over and dying. The Tarahumara Indians of the Copper Canyon in Mexico hunt by chasing their prey until the deer die of sheer exhaustion. Ballerinas en pointe are frequently pushed to the point of blood, foot bone disfunction and severe muscle instability to create the shapes required by their sport. Rhabdomyolysis, a once obscure condition of excessive and toxic muscle breakdown that can cause kidney injury or death, has become well known thanks to Ultrarunners and Cross Fitters who push their bodies to the literal point of failure. For fitness hobbyists like myself, pulled muscles, strains, tears, and pain are accepted as just par for the course. Spending hundreds (if not thousands) on the latest recovery tools, PT programs, massages, and gear is seen as a badge of honor. It’s normal for fitness folks to circle for a pre or post workout pissing contest, sharing battle stories of how they got various injuries and how they pushed through despite their body’s resistance to continue. But why? Why are we so conditioned to push our bodies to the point of failure, for fun? I’ve been an athlete for over 35 years and running for more than 25. I can tell you that dealing with a super intense level of training and the aftermath of injuries is anything BUT fun. Along with my physical health, my mental and emotional health suffered, and so did my relationships. There are certain injuries that I ignored, dismissed, or never properly healed that have haunted me for years, through muscle imbalances, compensations, and mental state. When I finally backed off and really started to focus on healing and having fun, rather than pushing through to another PR, I learned a few things. First, “no pain, no gain” is bullshit. Pain is the body’s way of very very clearly communication that something is wrong. If you are actively in pain before, during or after a workout, something is very very wrong. If a trusted fitness pro is pushing you to work out through actual legitimate pain, they are doing something very very wrong and they are actively causing damage to your body. If YOU are pushing your body to work out through actual legitimate pain, YOU are doing something very very wrong and YOU are actively causing damage to your body. Pushing through actual pain isn’t admirable, heroic, or badass. It’s dumb and it’s toxic for us to keep buying into a culture that keeps us chained to an injury treadmill. Second, “no pain, no gain” doesn’t mean what we’ve been brainwashed to think it means. When a really good fitness instructor talks about “pain”, they aren’t talking about physical hurt or body damage. They aren’t talking about running so far you puke or lifting so heavy you tear muscles or herniate disks. They aren’t telling us that we need to push so far past our limits that we break our bodies down with irreparable damage. They are talking about the pain of dedication, the pain of consistency, the pain of starting at the bottom and working to the top of our ability. They are talking about the pain of prioritizing, the pain of making decisions and the pain of following through. They are talking about the pain of building emotional stamina and breaking through mental barriers. They are talking about the pain of starting something and not giving up. They are not talking about physical, mental or emotional pain. They are talking about the discomfort that comes with growth. Unfortunately, “dedication, consistency, priorities and discomfort from growth” isn’t catchy and it doesn’t rhyme with anything. It’s not exactly inspiring and it’s a terrible catch phrase for marketing. If you’re tired of being in pain all of the time and bouncing around between injuries but you also aren’t ready to quit training, I get it. I full intend to run until I die. At Pilates Native, I can teach you how to work with your body, instead of against it. I can teach you how to get strong without sacrificing mobility, how to get mobility without sacrificing strength. I can teach you how to tap into your nervous system to help heal the physical, mental and emotional damage caused by your sport. I can teach you how to protect your body from further injury when you are going full throttle. If you’re ready to step out on pain and try on “dedication, consistency, priorities, and discomfort from growth”, come on over. I got you. -Rubecca |