Revealed! The danger signs that let you know if you're injured
No pain, no gain is a phrase you hear all the time in the gym. However, it's important to distinguish between the pain associated with genuine effort, and the pain of a joint or muscle injury. There are 3 different types of pain:
1. The burning sensation in the working muscle
Many people notice a burning sensation in their muscles when they train. This is due to the build-up of lactic acid. Completing your set despite this pain generally leads to greater gains in muscle size and strength.
2. Muscle soreness
Muscle soreness 24-48 hours after exercise is caused by a small amount of damage to the muscle fibre itself. This is quite normal. Avoid training a muscle that is still sore from the previous session. Treat muscle soreness as a message from your body that it needs more rest.
3. The pain of injury
This includes muscle strains (damage to the muscle itself), and joint sprains (damage to the tendon or ligaments).
Over time, you will learn to recognise the difference between different types of pain. If you're in any doubt over whether you have an injury, then seek the advice of an expert in the field (such as a physiotherapist).
To reduce the risk of future injury, consider the use of supplements containing both glucosamine and chrondroitin (such as Ache Free). Studies show that these nutrients can speed up recovery from existing injuries, reduce or eliminate joint pain, and leave your body far more resilient to injury.
But don't give up if the results are not immediate. That's the conclusion from what may be the longest study of glucosamine to date. Glucosamine HCL is just one of the four active ingredients in Ache Free, which is considered by many experts to be the most effective joint protection formula on the market. For 12 weeks, researchers from the University of Western Australia monitored 50 volunteers who all had knee pain from cartilage damage or long-term wear and tear.
Half the group took 2,000 milligrams of glucosamine daily, and the other half took a placebo (a placebo is a fake supplement). Almost 90 percent of the glucosamine group reported at least some amount of improvement after 12 weeks, compared to just 17 percent taking the placebo. More importantly, most of the improvements for those taking glucosamine appeared AFTER eight weeks.
In other words, many subjects who had noticed no relief at all in the first two months, eventually began improving. And because the overall trend was toward improvement, the authors of the study belief that continued use mightprovide steadily increasing relief. The message here is that you shouldn't be discouraged if results are not immediate. Even eight weeks may not be long enough to determine if a supplement will be effective for you.
References
- Braham R, Dawson B, Goodman C. (2003). The effect of glucosamine supplementation on people experiencing regular knee pain. British Journal of Sports Medicine,37, 45-49
