Can You Still Work Out When Something Hurts? A Frederick Personal Trainer Explains
Coach John said something to me recently that perfectly sums up the way we approach personal training at Straight Shot:
“If you can physically get here, we can train you.”
We were talking about his morning sessions and all of the different things people come through the door dealing with. John will sometimes see 25 people before 10 a.m., and within those sessions he might have someone whose knee is bothering them, someone working around a shoulder issue, someone preparing for a joint replacement, and someone who just woke up with a back that doesn’t feel quite right.
That’s normal.
Our average member is in their 40s, and we work with plenty of people in their 50s, 60s and beyond. If you’re going to strength train consistently for years, there are going to be days when something aches, something gets tweaked or something just doesn’t feel 100%.
The mistake a lot of people make is assuming that means they can’t work out.
You Don’t Have to Feel 100% to Strength Train
One of the questions we hear from people looking for a personal trainer in Frederick is some version of, “Can I start working out if my knee hurts?” or “Should I wait until my shoulder feels better before I start strength training?”
In many cases, there is still plenty that you can do.
A sore shoulder doesn’t mean we can’t train your legs. A cranky knee doesn’t mean we can’t train your upper body, core or find lower-body exercises that your knee currently tolerates. One thing hurting doesn’t suddenly make the rest of your body untrainable.
Even if you’ve been given specific restrictions, that doesn’t necessarily mean all exercise has to stop. If your doctor has told you not to put stress on your knee, for example, we can respect that restriction while continuing to train the rest of your body.
The important part is having a coach who knows how to make those decisions and adjust your training accordingly.
How Our Personal Trainers Modify Workouts
One of the biggest advantages of working with a personal trainer is that your workout doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing decision.
At Straight Shot Training, our semi-private personal training sessions have five or fewer people working with a coach. Each person is still following their own structured training program, which means your coach can make changes based on what you need that day.
We know your training history. We know what you’ve dealt with in the past. We know which exercises have worked well for you, and because we track your training, we can see what modifications we’ve made before and how you responded to them.
Last week, for example, we had a member come in with some shoulder issues. Instead of telling them they couldn’t train their upper body, we modified all of their upper-body exercises so they could still train without doing any movements that caused pain.
We currently have several members preparing for knee replacements. Their programs have been modified so they can continue getting stronger while working around what their knees can currently tolerate.
We’ve also had members recently return to strength training after giving birth, and we’ve gradually modified and progressed their workouts as they rebuild their strength.
The goal isn’t to force everyone through the same exercises. The goal is to figure out what you can do and build from there.
Training Around Knee, Shoulder and Back Pain
When something starts bothering you, sometimes the answer is surprisingly simple. We change the exercise, change the range of motion, reduce the weight, adjust the volume, use a different variation, or train something else entirely.
A lot of the aches and pains people experience with strength training come down to what their body can currently tolerate. An exercise that bothers you with a certain amount of weight, volume or range of motion may feel completely different once those variables are adjusted.
That’s why simply labeling an exercise as “good” or “bad” usually isn’t very helpful.
Our coaches have progressions, regressions and substitutions available for exercises throughout our programs. We can make those changes right inside your training program, document what you did and know exactly where to start the next time you come in.
That individualized approach is a major reason personal training can be so valuable for someone who has avoided strength training because of knee pain, shoulder problems, back discomfort or an old injury. You don’t have to figure out all of those modifications yourself.
This Approach Has Been Built Over Thousands of Personal Training Sessions
The Straight Shot Training system wasn’t created from a textbook or a collection of random workouts.
It has been developed over 19 years of personal training with hundreds of people across thousands of coaching sessions.
Over those years, I’ve worked with people who came into the gym with just about every type of injury, limitation, ache and training history you can imagine. Learning how to adjust exercises, modify loads and keep people training when circumstances change has played a huge role in how I write our programs today.
I then train our Straight Shot coaches to carry out those programs and make the appropriate adjustments for the individual standing in front of them.
Some of our coaches also bring 15 to 20 years of their own experience working with people with different abilities, limitations, injuries and training histories.
This isn’t something unusual that throws off the workout. Figuring out how to help someone continue training comfortably when something changes is a normal part of personal training.
When You Shouldn’t Just Push Through It
None of this means we want people ignoring pain or disregarding medical restrictions.
If an exercise hurts, our goal isn’t to convince you to tough it out and finish your reps anyway. We want to know about it so we can change what you’re doing.
If you’ve been given a specific restriction by your doctor, tell your coach. We can take that restriction into account when deciding what your training should look like.
And if something happens that clearly needs medical attention, that’s different from waking up with a stiff back or noticing that your shoulder doesn’t like a particular exercise that day.
The point isn’t that you should train through everything. The point is that one limitation doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t train at all.
What If Something Starts Hurting the Day of My Workout?
Tell us.
If you know ahead of time that something is bothering you, sending your coach a message is helpful because it gives us a chance to think through your workout before you arrive.
But bodies aren’t always that predictable. You might feel completely fine the night before and wake up the next morning with a shoulder that suddenly doesn’t feel great. You can still walk through the door and tell your coach what’s going on.
We can figure it out from there. That’s part of what you’re paying a personal trainer to do.
Personal Training in Frederick, MD That Meets You Where You Are
If you’ve been putting off strength training because your knees aren’t perfect, your shoulder bothers you, you have an old injury or you’re worried that a personal trainer is going to push you through exercises you shouldn’t be doing, I want you to know that training doesn’t have to work that way.
At Straight Shot Training in Frederick, Maryland, our job isn’t to hand everybody the same workout and expect them to keep up.
Our job is to meet you where you are, figure out what you can do right now, and help you progressively build from there.
Sometimes that means pushing you to lift a little more weight. Sometimes it means backing the weight down. Sometimes it means changing an exercise entirely. Good personal training requires knowing the difference.
Start With a Free Strong Start Session
If knee pain, a shoulder issue, an old injury or simply not knowing what exercises are appropriate for you has kept you from getting started, come talk to us.
Your free Strong Start Session starts with a conversation about your goals, training history, injuries and anything else we need to know. Then we’ll take you through a short, personalized workout based on what you can comfortably do.
We can see how you move, make adjustments as needed and help you figure out what strength training could look like for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I work out if I have knee pain?
Having knee pain doesn’t automatically mean you need to stop exercising completely. Depending on what your knee currently tolerates and any restrictions you’ve been given, a personal trainer can modify exercises, range of motion, resistance and training volume or focus on other areas of your body. If an exercise causes pain, let your coach know so it can be adjusted.
Can a personal trainer modify exercises around an injury?
Yes. Exercise modification is a normal part of personal training. A coach may change the exercise, reduce the load, adjust the range of motion, change the number of sets or reps, or substitute a different movement based on what you can comfortably tolerate.
Should I skip my workout if my back hurts?
Not necessarily. Back discomfort can vary significantly, so tell your coach what you’re experiencing rather than assuming you have to skip your entire workout. There may be exercises you should avoid that day while still having plenty of other options available. If you have a significant injury or have been given medical restrictions, those should always be communicated to your coach.
Can I strength train before a knee replacement?
Some of our Straight Shot Training members continue strength training while preparing for knee replacement surgery. Their workouts are modified around what their knees currently tolerate and any restrictions they have been given. Even when lower-body training is limited, there may still be opportunities to train the upper body, core and unaffected movements.
Am I too old or too injured to start personal training?
There isn’t a single age or perfect physical starting point required to begin personal training. We work with adults in their 40s, 50s, 60s and beyond, including people with previous injuries and physical limitations. Your starting point determines how we train you. It doesn’t disqualify you from training.
Where can I find a personal trainer for knee pain or physical limitations in Frederick, MD?
Straight Shot Training is a private personal training studio in Frederick, Maryland. Our coaches provide individualized and semi-private personal training for adults with a wide range of fitness levels, training histories and physical limitations. Your program can be modified around what you can currently do while helping you progressively build strength and confidence.
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