The correlation between pain and gain

We have all heard the old training adage "No pain, no gain."  But before you reach for the black leather lets pause for a moment and consider the validity of the statement.

Pain is defined as an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage. On a more technical level it involves the stimulation of nociceptors or "pain nerves" most commonly by thermal (e.g. touching boiling water), mechanical (e.g. treading on a nail) and/or chemical (putting chilli in the eyes) stimuli.


In the context of exercise training, the pain that one experiences 0-72 hours following  training is commonly referred to as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) and is typically the result of inflammatory mediators interacting with nociceptors. The question is whether you need an inflammatory response to gain a physical improvement?


Sports science and personal trainer sydney CBD says no. 


Perhaps a more appropriate adage to adopt would be "no effort, no gain." With this approach an individual would mark them self on whether or not they consciously push themselves rather than whether or not they wake up the following morning with musculoskeletal soreness. Thus the important distinction between the pain of effort as opposed to the pain of injury can be made, with the former being a prerequisite for adaptation and ultimately training success.


For more information please email me at info@anthonybloomfield.com.au