If you have been going to the gym or practicing any sport consistently for a considerable amount of time, chances are, you’ve experienced the grueling despair that comes with an injury. How do you deal with those feelings?
Your training is going great, you are getting stronger and bigger, and you are enjoying the gym more than ever. And then, all of a sudden, your pec tears. Or your knee starts hurting, or your hip, or your shoulder, or whatever. And you are forced to cut your training short and go home with your tail between your legs, feeling devastated, as if this may be the end of your fitness journey.
Keep your head up soldier. This too shall pass.
Keep your head up soldier. This too shall pass. I know that feeling all too well, as I have had my fair share of injuries. Right now I’m dealing with a recurring chest injury that has kept me from working out my strongest muscle for far too long. But no injury will keep me from trying again and again. And it shouldn’t hold you back or make you quit either. We’ll just have to find a way to work around those filthy injuries.
I’m no doctor, so if you were expecting a medical explanation on how to recover quickly from injuries, then I’m sorry to disappoint you. All that I can offer is the mental push required for you to not let yourself be beaten by the shitty luck of your broken body. You cannot let that stop you. If it is absolutely necessary then take a few days off entirely, but don’t let that become too long of a resting period. It is necessary that you find a way to treat your injury, while still following whatever routine you are following as close as possible. Work around your injury. If you hurt your knee, treat it, but maintain some sort of order and routine. There are very few injuries that justify a complete stop. Most of them involve one or two body parts, whch means that the rest of your body is still healthy and able to work. Another practical solution is to focus on another aspect of physical fitness, for example flexibility. If you suffer from an injury that completeley eliminates the possibility of strength training, then use the recovery period to try and become more flexible. You can always do something to be healthier and improve your physical fitness. So don't become disheartened and try to see it as a blessing in disguise, to work your body in ways that you're not used to.
And I know full well that injuries are a pain in the ass and can absolutely destroy our momentum and motivation. But we cannot let them beat us. Do whatever you can to recover and heal up, but an injury is never a good enough reason to quit. It’s just another hurdle, another way for life to test your metal. Are you going to let it kill your goals? You are much stronger than whatever it is that life throws at you.
It’s just another hurdle, another way for life to test your metal.
Injuries will happen to absolutely everyone. Most people will use them as an excuse to quit entirely, but you won’t. You’ll grow stronger from them, and you’ll learn from them. And then your comeback story will be that much more amazing.