The expression goes, "no pain, no gain." When it comes to exercise, especially for those over the age of 40, it's important to understand the difference between "good pain" from muscles growing and strengthening versus the bad pain of a possible injury.
Dr. Tim Henne, orthopedic surgeon with River Valley Orthopedics and member of the Mercy Health orthopedic team, says it's very important to know the difference between the two types of pain.
The most common type of good pain is clinically referred to as “delayed onset muscle soreness,” or DOMS for short. One to two days after exercising a soreness will be felt in the belly of the muscle. It can be quite tender to touch and tends to be spread out over a large area.
With this type of soreness the muscles actually remodel and become stronger and more efficient. If you had gone back to the batting cages once the pain had subsided, the pain response would have been much less pronounced the second time because of the adaptive changes of the muscles.
“Bad pain” comes in many forms. The most common type of bad pain seen in the clinic involves joint pain. When pain occurs in a joint, like the knee, rather than in muscle, it is the body trying to tell us that something is not right.
Don't try to work through joint pain while working out. If it occurs each time that you exercise you should have it checked out by your doctor. If your pain is sudden and sharp, stop whatever you are doing and have it assessed.
Another type of pain that should be brought to the attention of a health care professional is radicular pain, or pain that shoots from one area to another. Pain that shoots down your arm or leg may be spinal in origin. Pressure or trauma to the nerve roots as they exit the spinal column tends to be manifested in this way.
Here's some more signs of "bad" pain:
- Sudden, sharp joint pain (knees, shoulders, etc.)
- Shooting pain down arms and legs
- Pain associated with weakness
- Pain that hasn't subsided after two weeks of ibuprofen and rest
- Night pain lasting more than a few days
It's always a good idea to be assessed by a doctor if pain is recurrent, or if you cannot decide if the pain you are experiencing is “good” or “bad.” Pain can very often be brought under control and even eliminated with proper guidance from your doctor.
Pain is the body's warning signal that injury is occurring or about to occur so it should never be ignored. It is important to become familiar with identifying the “good pain” associated with muscle growth and strengthening or healthy stretching and differentiating this sensation from a “bad pain.”
Our bodies are pretty amazing and will tell us what we need to do; it's up to us to listen.
Learn more about Mercy Health Orthopedics.
