Working Thru the Pain?

I recently saw someone do a search that led them to my blog here. It was about working out thru the pain and asking if that's a good idea? Well, I am not a doc, but to me, the answer to that is normally, no.
Pain is your body's way of telling you it is hurt and something is wrong.

So especially if you have an injury and are feeling pain, working thru that pain is not a good idea. You can easily do more damage to it.

Now there is a difference between pain and soreness and working thru things with physical therapy. A physical therapist can explain that one to you.

Plus, there is also a difference between an injury type of pain and a menstrual cycle type of pain which the latter, is what I was referring to when I talked of working out thru that. Heat and relaxing of the muscles help menstrual cramps. Cramping is a tightening of your muscles, a clenching. Take a look here at this link: Bodybuilding: Cramps and what they mean. That will help to explain them better in reference to bodybuilding and weight lifting and working out.

Now let's look at menstrual cramps and pain here at this link: Menstrual Cramps Explanation. As you can see, these are very different than an injury cramp or pain and are quite specific as to region and what is really going on. Plus, there are many different home remedies and methodologies that people try to help to alleviate the pain including exercise and meds.

So be sure and determine which type of pain you are experiencing before you 'push through' a workout!

An example for me, is when I first began Power90 Master Series, I went a little too gungho in trying to get the exercise down right and twisted my ankle slightly and right to the floor I fell! I waited a few minutes and slowly got up, testing my ankle and didn't feel any pain, only a very slight soreness that let me know that while I could continue the workout, I needed to be mindful of that ankle and be careful with my steps and not overdo it. So I took it easy until I felt strong enough and confident enough to build up to a higher intensity and ability.

Then my menstrual cycle came along and I had some very bad cramping in my lower abdomen, I knew it was that 'time of the month' for me and so I had choices as to whether or not I would try a home remedy or take some meds or try to exercise, which would thereby, heat up my body and muscles, cause me to sweat, generating some wet heat that would penetrate into the muscles and might very well relax my muscles.

Big difference there between menstrual cramping and an injury pain. As a woman, I can easily tell what type of pain I am experiencing and when it is a menstrual cramp or when something is wrong.

Be sure and listen to your body always!

If my menstrual pain was too bad, I would have rested and not overdone it. Over the years, I have learned how to gauge my pain on different levels and can usually tell when something is not right with my body. You have to learn to really listen and pay attention to what your body is trying to tell you. :)