Unhealthy Exercise... page

[nouveau primal]

I am a part time Martial arts enthusiast/Teacher. Kind of moderate MMA training (Boxing/Kickboxing/Wrestling).
Not crazy like some one preparing for a Fight...but enough to hurt.

I'm +45 with sports wear and tear/repetitive stress injuries.
Shoulders, wrists, knees, back, Plantar Fasciitis....just enough to be annoying and constantly in some kind of pain.

Over the last few months I have cleaned up my diet, started moderate running (barefoot/minimalist).
Have lost almost 30 pounds and trying to balance my life out.
I enjoy Hunting/Hiking! Archery, walk every day, Cycle or walk whenever possible, trying to develop a swimming habit.
I'm JUST starting into the Primal Blueprint.

In the past few years I have been on a cycle where I get Strong, get injured, slowly recover and then start over.
It's getting old (and I'm getting older too!)

How do you find your balance?
I enjoy Martial Arts until my Back goes out (old muscle tear) and I literally can't walk for days at a time and it interferes with my work and Daddy duties.
And the Plantar Fascittis flares up badly....

My wife wants me to just do Yoga but then I don't get to hit any body (unless there's a new form of Yoga I don't know about

Thanks for any advice.
Learning lots around here.

[Lynna]

Learn tai chi. It's a martial art that doesn't tear your body up.

[sandstone]

I would take a serious look at Convict Conditioning. It's whole philosophy is about slowly and steadily improving at a rate that is sustainable well into old age, not just into middle age, while staying injury free. It covers all the muscle groups if the body, bridging, leg raises and twists have done wonders for my back. It covers joint health and stretching (both preventative and remedial, in CC2) as well as muscle strengthening.

It certainly fits into the LHT section of PBF and depending on which program you follow can fit pretty much any schedule.

[RichMahogany]

Brazilian/Gracie Jiu Jitsu. You get some of the breathing/flexibility benefits that you might from yoga, but it's combative. Might actually help that back issue. Train with skilled partners who can adjust their level to what's appropriate for you. The place I train is full of guys with similar stats.

[nouveau primal]

I'm well familiar with other Martial Arts.
I've done Tai Chi (ONLY WHEN I WAS INJURED...).
And I have lots of friends that do BJJ (they get hurt too).

My more general question is that any Sport has inherent injuries that go along with it.
Where do you draw the line?

I got interested in Martial Arts 25 years ago because I enjoy it and for the self defense aspects.
But when I limp around after getting out of bed in the morning or when my back hurts and I can't pick up my kids or it hurts my shoulder to get something out of the Refrigerator, I'm not going to be much of a Fighter

I do plan to put some restorative activities into rotation like Yoga/Tai Chi.
But lately it's been more of the "Play" activities like Hiking Hunting Fishing which ha been great....but now I'm trying to balance it all out.

[Richard Seekins]

I guess you need to decide where you want to be long term health wise and mobility wise. Does contact sport in later life come under "don't do stupid things"?

How about teaching it instead of actually doing it..put something back etc

[sbhikes]

Perhaps you simply have always overtrained. Maybe you can continue to do the sports you enjoy but not as often. Maybe you simply need more recovery time. Also, with a good shift toward a diet with more omega 3 and much less omega 6 you may start to feel fewer aches and pains and better flexibility/mobility. I have been avoiding salmon in favor of chicken recently and it seems like some of the old aches and pains from before primal return a bit in the morning.

[mbtwos]

I am also a martial artist. I have been training for over 6 years and have experienced those same injuries. Take a week off and let those injuries heal. I injured myself because I was training 5 and 6 times a week. I have modified it to no more than 3 days per week and have been injury free. Your injuries just might be because you are over indulging...

[Neckhammer]

Play sports and your gonna get hurt. Its not a matter of if, but when. As you get older that when sure does happen more frequently and the time down seems to get longer and longer. You can significantly reduce your risk of injury by choosing your workouts carefully. Books like "Congruent Exercise" analyse the biomechanics of motion and apply it to strength training. Exercise protocols like "Body by Science" maximize effect of training with minimal time and risk. But, you still don't get to hit people. Its all up to what you believe is most important. I have torn whole tendons from bone and had to have them reattached. I would rather not have something like that be permanent, and find myself functionally dependent or unable to perform simple movements. So, I've migrated more to the risk adverse side of the workout equation these days. After 16 years of wrestling my body isn't as resilient as it once was. Maybe after a few years of recuperative exercise I'll get back to competition. We will see.

[Black Timber]

You are still pretty young but you really need to start thinking long term. Doing anything that has a high chance of injury is not going to make you feel better when your 70. Even someone with your history of fitness should consider looking at themselves a little differently. You seem to have chronic injuries and you definitely don't want a permanent debilitating injury.