Saturday Cinco de Derby

OLE! With that hat, Jacob is ready for the Kentucky Derby too!

Injury versus just sore from a hard workout. Do you know the difference? 

When you first start CrossFit, muscle soreness is a given. When you haven't done 50, 30, or even 10 squats in a row before, you are going to be sore. You're may even walk a little funny or have trouble sitting down the next day. When you haven't ever done pullups before, then your forearms are going the be on fire. It is going to hurt to attempt to straighten your arms the next day. It is the same for those who begin their first Couch to 5K running program. If you never ran, jogged, or walked 3, 2, or 1 miles ever before in your life, then your legs are going to be sore. You muscles will feel tight, cramped, and angry. 

Does soreness mean that you must stop working out completely? No. In order for your body to adapt to these imposed demands (i.e., in order for your body to get stronger and recover more quickly), then you need to push through the soreness at the beginning. That is why we incorporate warm ups into our WODs - to loosen up those muscles and work out some of the soreness before jumping into the more intense part of the WOD. The more consistent you are with your workouts, the shorter your recovery time becomes between workouts, and the less soreness you will experience.

But how do you know if you're just sore and not risking injury? How do you know if you are injured? Here are some tips:

1) Does the soreness persist for several days or a week? If soreness from working out is not dissipating over time, and it limits your range of motion during the performance of daily tasks, then you may have an injury.

2) Do you only feel persistent soreness/pain in one specific area? Is the pain asymmetrical? Is the pain associated with a specific movement (e.g., shoulder pain only during push presses)? If pain is only triggered by specific movements, then there may be something more going on. Additionally, if the pain is asymmetrical (i.e., only appearing in the left shoulder and not in the right shoulder after a heavy day of overhead lifts), then there may be an injury.

3) Is the pain in a joint? Soreness tends to be all over and an injury many times is more targeted. For example, after lots of jumping rope, many people have sore calves. However, if after jumping rope you have sore knees or ankles, and this soreness persists over several days to a week, then there may be an injury.

If you are just sore after working out, then there are several ways to alleviate this condition. NUMERO UNO: STAY HYDRATED. Water is your best friend. Your muscle tissues need plenty of fluid to flush out the inflammation causing your soreness. NUMBER TWO: STRETCH. Gentle stretching loosens the muscles and relieves some of the cramping. NUMBER THREE: If the soreness is severe enough, then this a time when LESS IS MORE. More pullups will not relieve soreness from a ton of pullups. It may be a good day to take a rest day or scale down your workout. Go for a walk or run. Focus on using other muscle groups than those that are sore. Use little or no weight. NUMBER FOUR: Refer to NUMERO UNO AND NUMBER TWO.

When you first start any exercise program after time away from frequent physical activity, you will be sore. The ONLY way to move beyond this soreness, however, is to become consistent with your exercise routine and to be smart about moving up in intensity and load. Jacob and I do our best to help our athletes discern the best course of action for each WOD. It is up to the individual to know best how their body is feeling. Know the difference between sore and injured and adjust your training schedule as necessary. We want healthy, happy, and safe athletes!

As always, Saturday is Choose Yer WOD. Choose one from those below, or come with your own ideas!

WOD Choices

Feel free to add "Annie" to any WOD

50-40-30-20-10 doubleunders and situps

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"Nancy"
5 Rounds
Run/Row 400m
15 OHS (95/65)
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"Kelly"
5 Rounds
Run/Row 400m
30 wall balls (20/14)
30 box jumps (24"/20")
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"Paul"
Pittsburgh Police Officer Paul John Rizzo Domenic Sciullo II, 36, was shot and killed in the line of duty while responding to a domestic disturbance call on April 4, 2009. 
He was engaged to be married with Lisa Esposito.
5 Rounds
50 doubleunders
35 knees-to-elbow
20 m walk with 185# overhead