“I’ve got this thing going on with my (insert any body part here) and I went to see the physio and they told me to rest it a few weeks and I should be ok.”
Likely they found a “plan” for you that used all your insurance up too – but that’s a different story.
I can’t even count the number of times that I have heard the above sentence. I’ve even had “Physio’s” send me letters to say “their client” can’t join our program because of an injury. This Physio didn’t even have the decency to ask me what our program was. We might have CrossFit in our name but that can mean something different at every single gym.
Let me back up a bit because I’m getting frustrated thinking about this right now. I didn’t start intending to share this story.
This particular person came to see me as she was extremely unhappy with her body after giving birth over a year ago. Very common story and I’m sure some of you have the same feelings. Also dealing with some pelvic issues, she hadn’t done anything since giving birth and had body fat to lose. She was naturally worried about starting a training program.
My wife Michelle is a family physician and practiced as an OB for a number of years also. Michelle called this lady to address her concerns and assure her we could help and have her feeling strong and confident again.
She was happy, very thankful and extremely motivated to get going. A couple of weeks passed then I received the letter I mentioned above. It said that this woman couldn’t join “CrossFit classes” and this was the wrong thing for her. The funny thing is we never suggested CrossFit classes for her. Everyone starts with some form of 1-1 training when joining us and she would’ve needed more than the normal amount.
We could’ve helped her, as we can with anyone who has any form of injury. Rest is not the answer and in my personal experience, any form of hands-on treatment is just a band-aid. If you’re ‘tight’ then something is weak, if your back is sore then usually your posterior chain (glutes and hamstrings) are weak. If you have joint pain, your tendons could be weaker than your muscles (tennis/golfers elbow).
You need to get these weaknesses stronger. Dancing around with a little thin band isn’t going to do that either. You need to lift weights safely. Maybe you don’t squat until your knees stop hurting but lunging maybe ok – we can find out what works.
Our group classes are awesome. Our members are awesome and I think our program is great too. It has structure and isn’t a typical beat down CrossFit program – that being said, we are limited in fixing injuries during a class. Other members demand our time as coaches too. We can modify and adjust things as needed but figuring out the reason takes some time outside of the class.
Throughout my career, I have worked with some amazing coaches. One person stood out as being very different. He approached movement in a different way. His background was physiotherapy but realized quickly he wasn’t getting lasting results. He and his business partner started to look at things differently.
People have to fix themselves, they just need guiding the right way. I learned a lot from being one of his athletes. Next year I plan on spending the whole year mentoring with him to learn all he knows.
If your shoulder hurts, your legs still work. If your back hurts – something NEEDS to get stronger. We guide but you do the work.
Rest is not the answer