Pain is universal. And the Masters Athlete, the Athlete of Aging, approaches training in the sure knowledge that one can be older and hurting and strong or older and hurting and weak. But the ubiquity of pain most emphatically does not mandate or even recommend the passive acceptance of pain.
The following assumes that we are confident your pain is musculoskeletal in origin, that appropriate referral and evaluation by a professional health care provider, as indicated, has ruled out serious underlying processes or systemic illnesses, and that there is no significant limitation in activities of daily living or other cause for medical intervention.
If you are barfing or have a fever or literally cannot walk, wipe your butt, or feel your unmentionable parts, you should be in the ER, not searching Dr.
Google or wiping yourself with Ben Gay. Step 1 is to internalize what was just said: aches and pains affect all athletes. When your muscles are sore, when a joint is tweaked or your back is out or a hamstring is strained, remember that this is part of what it is to be an athlete , living a vibrant, active life. As Rippetoe once said albeit more indelicately when you grab Life by the Bosom, sometimes you get slapped. Step 2 is to affirm to yourself, repeatedly, that you are not broken.
This, too, shall pass. Step 3 is to treat musculoskeletal pain aggressively with over-the-counter analgesics and anti- inflammatories. The key here is to stay ahead of the pain. Pain is like a weed. The longer it is left uncontested, the deeper and stronger will be its roots, the more extensive and ramified will be its branches, the farther will be its reach, and the longer and darker will be the shadows it casts on your training, your function, and your well-being.
