Pain, injury prevention, Pilates, my why Rubecca . Pain, injury prevention, Pilates, my why Rubecca .

How I deal with a pain flare-up

Posted on March 26, 2024 by pilatesnative

Hey there, happy March!  

What a joyous thing to see so much more sun the last few weeks.  I am so excited for the longer, warmer days.  This newsletter comes to you fairly late in the month.  March has been extremely dualistic, from long cold days and a month long pain flare-up of a decades old injury, to a wonderful family vacation, visiting my 49th state and beautiful warm sunny days.  

The deep bone throb in my leg has accompanied (and unfortunately at times dampened) hanging out with my kiddo, spending time with my family and even fully enjoying our instructor trainees completing their Mat modules and diving into the equipment work.  This nagging flare has interrupted my strength training schedule, negatively impacted my running and has even been rude enough to disrupt sleep.  I’ve been cranky beyond belief.  Even this newsletter, one of my favorite admin tasks, is low effort and lacking this month.

Sound familiar?

Like many of you, I came to Pilates through extreme chronic pain and injury.  

In my early 20’s, my body was extremely worn out and ragged from a really terrible relationship with fitness that frequently left my body very damaged.  Limping, bracing, sleeping with heating pads, smelling like Tiger Balm, and taking Ibuprofen on a regular schedule was normal.  I had a standing weekly appointment with the chiropractor and frequently chose shoes based on which pair minimized pain.  At 25, I, along with the 65 year old men in my department, had a prescription for a standing desk and midday walk breaks to help with pain management.  Road trips, flights, concerts, my car, even dinner plans were made around pain.

When my doctor prescribed Pilates, I was skeptical and certain that my lifestyle choices meant just dealing with a life of constant irritation, aches and pains.  

At the time, I just didn’t know any different.

It’s been a long time since that first Mat Pilates class, which left me shaking and unable to perform 75% of the class.

Pilates has been a constant companion for the last 16 years, through injury recovery, pregnancy, postnatal recovery, moving cross country, changing careers twice, surgery, and a whole lot of major life moments.  

With this latest pain flare-up of an extremely old injury that I was certain was managed, I’ve felt betrayed by both my body and by my Pilates practice.  Between feeling angry, frustrated and disappointed, I have managed a few moments of clear reflection.  

And the truth is, that I just haven’t been doing my own work…for months.  

At some point, without reason or me noticing, I just stopped doing any sort of recovery or restoration work.  Stopped warming up or cooling down for runs.  Stopped stretching.  Stopped meditating.  Stopped my Pilates practice.  Stopped managing my food allergies.  Stopped all Stretch Therapy, Chiro, Rolfing and Massage.  At the same time, I maintained my weekly running sessions, tripled my strength training sessions and doubled my dance lessons.  

This, in my professional opinion, has been a recipe for disaster.  

As my low back and left leg will attest, disaster has struck.  

So what now?  After a good long pity party, I’ve spent the last few weeks using aaaallll of the tools I’ve learned over the last 16 years, including tapping into a team of experts to help me recalibrate.  Recovery has looked like:

  • Immediately eliminating all food allergens and working with Tina, a trusted friend and nutritionist to get me back to normal.  

  • Meditating again, and actively working on recognizing when I am in a mental pain spiral and separating that from an actual physical pain cycle.  The book The Way Out, recommend by a client, has been a invaluable resource this month.

  • Unrolling my mat for a weekly movement and soul practice at Urban Sanctuary.  

  • Adding the required PT exercises to my strength training routine, backing down to twice a week and getting back on schedule with my trainer, Josh.

  • Booking appointments with my friend Britni for PT and my favorite chiro, Britni at Denver Sports Medicine.

  • Dusting off the trusty old reformer and rekindling the love affair with Pilates that started 16 years ago.

I’ve always described my Pilates and recovery work as the toothbrushing of my movement practice.  It’s not sexy, or entertaining, or overly exciting.  But man, is it effective.  

If you’ve been experiencing a similar pain cycle or set back, I see you.  It sucks.  But with consistency and intention, we can get back on track.  

See you very soon!

-Rubecca

p.s. if you’d like to book a session with me, you can do that here.


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Strength Training, fitness, goals, Pain Rubecca . Strength Training, fitness, goals, Pain Rubecca .

No pain. No Gain.

Posted on June 14, 2023 by pilatesnative

No pain, no gain.

These words are on nearly every gym wall in the country. On t-shirts. Motivational posters. Popping out of every fitness instructor’s mouth when things get tough.

No pain, no gain.

But who equated pain with progress?

Since the dawn of time, humans have pushed our bodies to their very edges. Pheidippides, a Greek messenger ran 300 miles in 3 days to successfully deliver his message, before keeling over and dying. The Tarahumara Indians of the Copper Canyon in Mexico hunt by chasing their prey until the deer die of sheer exhaustion. Ballerinas en pointe are frequently pushed to the point of blood, foot bone disfunction and severe muscle instability to create the shapes required by their sport. Rhabdomyolysis, a once obscure condition of excessive and toxic muscle breakdown that can cause kidney injury or death, has become well known thanks to Ultrarunners and Cross Fitters who push their bodies to the literal point of failure.

For fitness hobbyists like myself, pulled muscles, strains, tears, and pain are accepted as just par for the course. Spending hundreds (if not thousands) on the latest recovery tools, PT programs, massages, and gear is seen as a badge of honor. It’s normal for fitness folks to circle for a pre or post workout pissing contest, sharing battle stories of how they got various injuries and how they pushed through despite their body’s resistance to continue.

But why?

Why are we so conditioned to push our bodies to the point of failure, for fun?

I’ve been an athlete for over 35 years and running for more than 25. I can tell you that dealing with a super intense level of training and the aftermath of injuries is anything BUT fun. Along with my physical health, my mental and emotional health suffered, and so did my relationships. There are certain injuries that I ignored, dismissed, or never properly healed that have haunted me for years, through muscle imbalances, compensations, and mental state.

When I finally backed off and really started to focus on healing and having fun, rather than pushing through to another PR, I learned a few things.

First, “no pain, no gain” is bullshit.

Pain is the body’s way of very very clearly communication that something is wrong. If you are actively in pain before, during or after a workout, something is very very wrong. If a trusted fitness pro is pushing you to work out through actual legitimate pain, they are doing something very very wrong and they are actively causing damage to your body. If YOU are pushing your body to work out through actual legitimate pain, YOU are doing something very very wrong and YOU are actively causing damage to your body.

Pushing through actual pain isn’t admirable, heroic, or badass. It’s dumb and it’s toxic for us to keep buying into a culture that keeps us chained to an injury treadmill.


Second, “no pain, no gain” doesn’t mean what we’ve been brainwashed to think it means.

When a really good fitness instructor talks about “pain”, they aren’t talking about physical hurt or body damage. They aren’t talking about running so far you puke or lifting so heavy you tear muscles or herniate disks. They aren’t telling us that we need to push so far past our limits that we break our bodies down with irreparable damage.

They are talking about the pain of dedication, the pain of consistency, the pain of starting at the bottom and working to the top of our ability. They are talking about the pain of prioritizing, the pain of making decisions and the pain of following through. They are talking about the pain of building emotional stamina and breaking through mental barriers. They are talking about the pain of starting something and not giving up.

They are not talking about physical, mental or emotional pain. They are talking about the discomfort that comes with growth.

Unfortunately, “dedication, consistency, priorities and discomfort from growth” isn’t catchy and it doesn’t rhyme with anything. It’s not exactly inspiring and it’s a terrible catch phrase for marketing.

If you’re tired of being in pain all of the time and bouncing around between injuries but you also aren’t ready to quit training, I get it. I full intend to run until I die.

At Pilates Native, I can teach you how to work with your body, instead of against it.

I can teach you how to get strong without sacrificing mobility, how to get mobility without sacrificing strength. I can teach you how to tap into your nervous system to help heal the physical, mental and emotional damage caused by your sport. I can teach you how to protect your body from further injury when you are going full throttle.

If you’re ready to step out on pain and try on “dedication, consistency, priorities, and discomfort from growth”, come on over. I got you.

-Rubecca


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