Do’s and Don’ts of Exercising With Injuries

When you get an injury, it can be hard to break up your normal fitness routine. There 
are some things you should do when you’re ready to exercise again, and others you 
need to avoid. Here are some important do’s and don’ts to keep in mind.

Don’t Make the Injury Worse

This is unfortunately a common mistake people make when they want to keep 
exercising after getting an injury. It is crucial that you exercise slowly and are gentle with 
your body following an injury. If you make the injury worse or create other injuries in the 
process, it is only going to take you longer before you can get back to your normal 
fitness routine. Follow your doctor’s orders and don’t go back to your normal amount of 
weight or intensity right off the bat.

Do Rest After Getting an Injury

Every injury needs time to heal, so don’t assume that just by working hard, you can 
‘work through the pain’. This is another quick way to make the healing take longer 
instead of helping speed it up. After an injury, rest the extremity, ice it, and go back to 
exercising slowly. 

Don’t Stop Exercising Altogether

While you want to rest and give your injury proper time to heal, you should also avoid 
skipping exercise altogether. The longer you go without using your muscles, the harder 
it is going to be to get back on track. The best thing to do is go through the initial stage 
of rest and icing the extremity, then start working out different parts of your body. So if 
you have a wrist injury, skip the weight training and instead go for walks or hiking to 
keep yourself fit. If you hurt your knee, stay off the treadmill and instead focus on your 
seated weight training. 

Do Stretch and Warm Up

One thing you can do with the injured part of your body is to stretch it slowly and gently. 
This is going to help it heal better and start working on better range of motion. When 
you sprain something, there isn’t much doctors can do, but one thing you can do to help 
it heal faster is slowly start stretching the area. Warming up a little longer before your 
workouts when you do pick them up again is another great way to exercise with injuries 
and not make them worse.

