How hard do you push yourself when recovering from an injury?

[king tut]

I would recommend The Clear or The Cream that Barry Bonds uses. Really speeds up the healing time, but gives you a massive cranium and a small .. umm nevermind. Other than that, let the injuries heal. I myself never do that, i am way too impatient to give the healing process a chance. Or too stupid. I was off skiing moguls about 4 months after reconstructive knee surgery when i was younger, instead of the recommended 6+ months. ALmost blew my knee back out. These days i am much wimpier as the body parts hurt more, and take longer to heal.

 

[Lawn Sale]

I try not to push myself when injured, but it's impossible. Right now, my ankle is sprained, and the doctor said that I can't walk on it. I am walking on it anyway, and it does hurt, but hey, life goes on. I'm probably not «injured», maybe just «hurted».

I also "sprained" my ankle in the Army when I ran off a cliff at night doing some SERE (long story). The doctors said it was just sprained and I should take it easy, but definitely work it as long as I was able. Three months later, when it was worse than before, they took more X-rays and found a talardome fracture, where the end of the bone breaks off, and it fell into the cartilage tearing it up pretty bad. They did such a good job repairing it that to this day I can't tell which ankle had the surgery.

 

[alpinista]

As others have said, it really depends on the type of injury as well as your own body _ how it heals, how well you know how things normally feel when they're injured. I was having major pain with my left hip that prevented me from lifting my foot any higher than about 6 inches. I hiked through that and ultimately discovered that by doing deep stretches before I started on my hike, that I didn't feel that pain any more. Voila!

I also have foolishly pushed it at times. I did what under normal circumstances would be considered an easy hike: along 19 Mile Brook Trail. However, it was 6 weeks after major surgery, and while it felt great for my psyche to get back out into the woods, I think in hindsight it pushed things a bit too fast and allowed scar tissue to build up. None of it is caused serious problems, but it probably wasn't the wisest thing.

 

[BillyRay]

My experience has been that pushing through pain is simply increasing your injury. I don't know if you build tolerance, or scar tissue, or something else that gets you through, but you end up with over use injuries that can - and often do - come back to haunt you. The sooner you stop the sooner healing can begin. Since hitting 40, I have learned to push only to minor pain levels. especially with tendons and joints... I only wish I'd learned that sooner. I would probably not have to baby all of the joints that ache me today.

 

[spider solo]

This might seem oversimplified but I tend to go to the doctors after putting up with the injury for awhile... then I usually do the max of what the doc says is ok.
If they say it's ok to do a mile or two, I tend not to mention that I'll take their advice to the mountains and do my mile or two up there.

I'm a big believer in PT...at this last go around I brought in my hiking shoes, crampons, back pack things like that. I find that alot of the people have way more suggestions once they get a better idea of what activity your trying to accomplish,
Ok to do a mile or two...with this pack and maybe 10 or twenty lbs ?...things along those lines.

 

[Maddy]

I injured my left knee and low back when running through a parking lot on 1/16. The orthopod told me it was a severe sprain and I also developed sciatica. I had to get a knee brace because I could not even get in and out of my truck. Could not do stairs and had severe pain trying to straighten out my leg. Could not weight bear on it. These are just the highlights. I have been working with PT for approx 6 weeks and they emphasize not to overdo it. Of course I did and set myself back each time. I have a sports PT person at the YMCA so he knows what my needs and goals are for hiking again. It has been very difficult to be patient but I think I have a true vision now of what long term therapy will entail if I keep disregarding their advice.
I have a real tendency to want to push through pain but this is one pain I just can't push through. I think it really depends on the type of injury that one sustains. I think our bodies have a way of telling us to knock it off and slow the pace a bit while healing takes place.
I really love physical therapy. I think I would be all crippled up now if it wasn't for them. What I was doing surely was not working.

 

[blacknblue]

Obviously it depends on the injury, but my immediate reaction was "DON'T DO IT!"

I've 'come back from injury' too fast before. Sure, it sucks to be inactive, but the aggravation of repeated or worsening injury is more terrible. At some point, I had to realize that I wasn't 20 anymore and began to listen carefully to my body. If my knees start hurting, then I stop.

It's hard to say, but some injuries I'll push through if it seems like it can't be worsened. (I've skied with a broken thumb - just tape the sucker to the pole and keep skiing.) But, generally speaking, injuries/soreness to joints and muscles and ligaments only get worse with use. As hard as it is, I'm trying to train myself to stop and set up camp as soon as my aching body says so.

There probably aren't any one-day Presi traverses in my future, but I'm hoping for an occasional mellow foray into the mountains. Is it frustrating to be unable to do long hikes and trail runs any more? Absolutely. But not as much as having to spend an entire season reading on the couch and limping back and forth from the fridge.