Athletes are often either wary of pain or try to ignore it entirely. Neither is optimal! But learning to reevaluate your relationship with pain can help you understand what it’s trying to tell you, and help your long-term health.
We have long been conditioned to see pain as a warning sign. For those of us who thrive on running, pain can invoke a feeling of dread knowing we might have to press pause on our favorite sport because we got injured.
When pain progresses beyond the typical soreness or fatigue that can accompany heavy training, runners have often been directed to take time off. Give it a few days, a week, and just rest. Unfortunately, rest alone is rarely the answer and can frequently be counter-productive.
It’s far easier to build injury resilience during training, instead.
What if we could learn to look at pain in a new way, to see it as a line of communication with our body, and something to approach with curiosity instead of dread? If you are currently injured or have been recently, that may sound far-fetched! It’s easier to wallow in the misery of missing out on our daily runs.
Ryan Whited on a new approach to pain
My guest on this episode has written a book that takes a novel approach to pain in athletics and everyday life. Ryan Whited is an elite climber, personal trainer and strength & conditioning coach who owns Paragon Athletics in Flagstaff, Arizona. Together with author and coach Matt Fitzgerald he has written Pain & Performance: A revolutionary new way to use training as treatment for pain and injury.
At Paragon Athletics, Ryan Whited works with a wide variety of athletes to help them move beyond pain and get back to the sports that they love. His approach to pain is a novel one and requires you to think about it in a much different way than most of us currently do.
In this episode, we discuss how to use “training as treatment,” recognize the positive aspects of pain, and more:
- Why pain can be a tool that is used to your advantage
- Understanding pain as a subjective experience from our history and beliefs
- What is inaccurate about the structural model of injury
- How our expectancy of pain can influence it
- “Sweet talking” your system and using tissue without damaging it
- The problem with imaging – the difference between abnormal and problematic
- The role of fun in returning to activity after an injury
- Why pain is neither all in your head nor all in your body
The subject of pain is intriguing and you’ll never look at it quite the same way again after this conversation with Ryan Whited!
Subscribe to the podcast in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, or Google Play
Links & Resources from the Show:
- Learn more about Ryan and Paragon Athletics
- Follow Ryan Whited on Instagram
- Check out Paragon Athletic’s YouTube videos
- Read Pain and Performance
- Get advice on how to stay healthy
You can also watch the companion video for this episode:
Thank you DrinkLMNT!
A big thanks to DrinkLMNT for their support of this episode! They make electrolyte drinks for athletes and low-carb folks with no sugar, artificial ingredients, or colors. They are offering a free gift with your purchase at DrinkLMNT. And this does NOT have to be your first purchase. You’ll get a sample pack with every flavor so you can try them all before deciding what you like best.
DrinkLMNT’s products have some of the highest sodium concentrations that you can find. Anybody who runs a lot knows that sodium, as well as other electrolytes like magnesium and potassium, are essential to our performance and how we feel throughout the day.
If you’re not familiar, LMNT is my favorite way to hydrate. They make electrolytes for athletes and low-carb folks with no Sugar, artificial ingredients, or colors. I’m now in the habit of giving away boxes of LMNT at group runs around Denver and Boulder and everyone loves this stuff.
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Thank you Previnex!
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