Obstacles to Physical Activity: Pain

Back pain. Knee pain. Hip pain. Shoulder pain.

Elbow pain. Foot pain. Ankle pain.

Chances are you've run into one of these problems at some point in your life.

Pain is a tricky topic to wrap our heads around because honestly, there's still a lot about pain science that we don't fully understand. What we do know for sure is that pain changes both movement quality and movement frequency. Put simply, when in pain you don't move as well, or as often, as you would when pain-free. So when pain stops you from moving, what are you supposed to do about it?

Check In With Yourself

An easy first step is to try to sort out why you have pain in the first place. Here are some simple screening questions you can ask yourself:

• Did I do something outside of my normal routine?

• How did I sleep last night?

• Am I moving throughout the day?

• Do I need to check my training volume?

• How am I eating/ hydrating?

• Am I prepared for my sport?

• How am I managing my stress?

These questions allow you to dig a little deeper into how your lifestyle and behaviours are factoring in to your experience of pain. Over-stressed and under recovered? Your body is going to send you a message asking for change and sometimes that includes reminding you of that old back or neck pain you used to have.

How Is This Helpful?

For starters, it gives you the opportunity to address the problem on your own. Often times it can something as simple as breaking up your sitting time to reduce neck pain. Pick a behaviour you think may be responsible, change it, and then see how you respond.

The second reason checking in on yourself is important is that it helps your practitioner to determine what behaviours may be contributing to your pain. This is helpful because sometimes simply removing/changing the negative behaviour can be as useful as prescribing exercise or giving hands-on therapy. If you come to us knowing the answers to the above questions, it can speed up your recovery and help us to figure out what could be driving your body's pain response.

Find A Different Way To Move

In most cases, shutting it down completely is not the best way to deal with your pain. Among other things, movement helps improve your mood so you don't get too down about being unable to do some of the things you love. Once you've identified some of the potential triggers for you pain, find ways to work around them. Low back pain? Most people respond well to walking. Back squats painful for you? Try goblet or landmine squats. You can still load the squat pattern, but it allows you to take some of the load off of your spine. Play around with different movements and figure out what you can do at a pain-free level.

Seek out Help

If you make changes and after 1-2 weeks are still finding yourself experiencing some pain, don't be afraid to ask for some help. Find a practitioner who will help you get to the bottom of your pain, and create a plan for getting you back to doing the things you love. This should include exercise and advice around how you can manage the pain on your own at home. The key here is to be patient as often this requires some trial and error to figure out what exercises or tools are best for you and your body. I've had people see huge improvements just by adding foam rolling, but other people hate it and feel better by using heat or ice. Be willing to go through the process to find out what combination of tools works best for you.

To Sum it Up

1. Ask yourself where your pain could be coming form

2. Pick a behaviour, change it, and see how you respond

3. Keep moving as much as possible

4. Ask for help. A practitioner can help you to understand your pain and create a plan to help you manage it.

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Disclaimer: this article is intended as general advice only and is not meant to replace the advice of your physician or any other health practitioner.