Always a Little Sore

There’s a fine line between making good progress and getting injured. In the gym, you want to use your time well. If four sets gives you better results than three sets, it makes sense to do all four sets. But your body doesn’t come with a stress meter that shows exactly where the line is. In fact, you can do the same thing every day for weeks before you go over a threshold you don’t know is there, and then — bang! — you’re injured. Or you can feel like you did a great job in the gym, but the next morning you get the message that you overdid it.

To become a longevity athlete, you need to be more in tune with the signals and with your body’s tolerance for stress. Because these things are invisible, the smart way is to stay low and don’t push it.

There are some things we know about and can watch for. We know what causes tennis elbow, plantar fasciitis, and other injuries. If you’ve never had these conditions, I want to make sure you never cross the line into that territory, so you don’t have to deal with an injury that can take years to recover from.

You should be a little sore, but not too sore. You’re always trying to raise each muscle up from the plateau you reached three/four days ago, but you’re also not trying to jeopardize the gains you’ve made so far. The rule is simple:

Don’t overdo it. There will be more chances to build muscle later. Don’t be too eager. Take your small wins one at a time. Make incremental progress. You’ll see the difference eventually. The results will come.

Be patient. Stick to the plan.

Book your first call with me and let’s set you up for success, not injury.