Is Resting Too Much Bad?
So I sometimes hear from my patients, "Is too much rest bad? My friend said it's best to keep moving.
" Well the answer is Yes and No.
Let me explain further.
This all correlates to the pain you have.
Generally with very fresh acute injuries, complete rest for the first 2/3 days is advisable.
But listen to your body, if it hurts when you move at all and the pain is unbearable but it feels good when you rest, REST!!!! This is not always the case for fresh injuries, you may find some movements are pain-free but only one certain movement is sore.
In which case do the movements which are pain-free but be gentle.
Avoid the movements which are sore.
Its simple.
A very common injury with which there should be complete rest are sprains such as a sprained ankle.
It amazes me the amount of people who soldier on and it just make things worse! The first 2/3 days here are very important.
Get the ankle iced, bandaged, elevated and don't walk on it unless you have to.
With more chronic injuries, generally movement is better for them as they can get stiffer with no movement.
I would see a lot of people with lower back pain.
A very common issue is that with sitting the back becomes stiff and then having to get moving again is sore but once moving the pain is bearable.
This is the time to keep moving the area and to avoid resting too much.
It's all about listening to your body.
It's very smart.
Pain is a sign that something is wrong so your brain is telling you there is a problem, so avoid that painful movement for a day or two and try it again gently on the third/fourth day.
The key here is gently, avoid hard manual work or strenuous activity.
You will only aggravate the area and be set back to square one again.
Be smart about it and gradually do more and more.
I would in these cases avoid hard work or exercise for one week.
If you can move though, do so.
It's better to keep the muscle active and moving.
If you don't, you may find after time it will get tight and weak.
I've even seen patients where the muscle has wasted away because it didn't get used for a couple weeks.
If it's sore to move the affected area, rest.
If you can move it in certain ways, do so.
" Well the answer is Yes and No.
Let me explain further.
This all correlates to the pain you have.
Generally with very fresh acute injuries, complete rest for the first 2/3 days is advisable.
But listen to your body, if it hurts when you move at all and the pain is unbearable but it feels good when you rest, REST!!!! This is not always the case for fresh injuries, you may find some movements are pain-free but only one certain movement is sore.
In which case do the movements which are pain-free but be gentle.
Avoid the movements which are sore.
Its simple.
A very common injury with which there should be complete rest are sprains such as a sprained ankle.
It amazes me the amount of people who soldier on and it just make things worse! The first 2/3 days here are very important.
Get the ankle iced, bandaged, elevated and don't walk on it unless you have to.
With more chronic injuries, generally movement is better for them as they can get stiffer with no movement.
I would see a lot of people with lower back pain.
A very common issue is that with sitting the back becomes stiff and then having to get moving again is sore but once moving the pain is bearable.
This is the time to keep moving the area and to avoid resting too much.
It's all about listening to your body.
It's very smart.
Pain is a sign that something is wrong so your brain is telling you there is a problem, so avoid that painful movement for a day or two and try it again gently on the third/fourth day.
The key here is gently, avoid hard manual work or strenuous activity.
You will only aggravate the area and be set back to square one again.
Be smart about it and gradually do more and more.
I would in these cases avoid hard work or exercise for one week.
If you can move though, do so.
It's better to keep the muscle active and moving.
If you don't, you may find after time it will get tight and weak.
I've even seen patients where the muscle has wasted away because it didn't get used for a couple weeks.
If it's sore to move the affected area, rest.
If you can move it in certain ways, do so.
Source...