The Advantages of Getting Injured
So before I get roasted about how injuries are obviously a bad thing in training and should be avoided at all costs. I agree with you. Injuries are the worst. I have had many injuries in my lifting and sporting career. From broken bones to torn muscles, surgeries etc. My sporting career would have been and will be much better without these injuries. Although, there are some advantages to getting those injuries.
The first advantage is the knowledge you get from it. You might gain a little bit of knowledge or a large amount of in-depth knowledge regarding the injury. Regardless of the amount you gain, it is a valuable asset for preventing, detecting and curing/improving future injuries of a similar nature. For example; you get some patella tendon pain in your knee. Working with a health professional (physiotherapist, chiropractor, massage therapist etc.) you gain some knowledge of the injury (if they are so kind to tell you about the injury or if you ask). This knowledge can be how your training is making your knee worse. This might include how you are squatting/moving, muscle strength imbalances, mobility imbalances and even genetic predisposition. You can also learn what has actually happened to your knee.
In this case, the tendon on the bottom of the knee cap is experiencing microscopic tears that cause pain at the knee. Finally, you can learn how to improve these things by most often trying something new or reversing the things making it worse. The health professional might say to decrease your quadricep volume for a week, work on your muscle imbalances, try implementing this cue in your squat technique. Those are just some examples of how you can learn to deal with an injury like this in the future.
The next advantage of getting an injury is the experience of it. I believe this is a great asset as a personal trainer to have. This way you have a level of sympathy and understanding of how they might be feeling. That is the mental side of the experience. There is a physical side of the experience that is quite valuable too. This is the experience of recovery time, what worked best or worst for you, early warning signs of the injury etc. For example, if a client of mine were to complain of knee pain above or below the knee cap while performing a leg extension, I would adjust things in case it was a patella tendon issue. This way I can see if the alterations decrease the knee pain during the session. And I can alter the program if necessary.
The final thing is knowing how to structure a training program, session, lifting form etc. This is based on someone’s exercise history, injury history, genetic predispositions and any current injuries or even small pains. This is where you can use your knowledge and experience to reduce the chance of a future injury in the same area and also know how to prevent a client or gym partner from ever getting an injury. Applied knowledge and experience is the most important thing from here. You have the knowledge and experience to help, now it just needs to be applied as early and specific as possible. From here your training services will be further improved due to those injuries.
Good luck with your training! I hope you don’t get injured. Though if you do, remember, it isn’t all bad.
Want extra help with your training? We have personal trainers who offer a superior, personalised service to suit your needs and goals. Get in touch today.
Follow us on Instagram for more training and nutrition tips.
