The process or journey it takes to better understand our personal architecture takes self awareness, assessment and time.
Proprioception is the sense of your body’s position and movement in space. It’s also known as the body’s “sixth sense”. This comes easier to some people than others but it’s vital to fitness and sport performance.
Then there’s interoception which is the process by which the body senses, interprets, and integrates signals from its internal organs and systems. It is a fundamental aspect of our physiological and psychological well-being.
Both proprioception and interoception play a major role in joint health. Having the awareness to listen to the messages the body is sending us can save our joints from repetitive and positional stress. The personal challenge to all of us is that we often override the sensations of the body, leading to joints becoming misaligned. When joints become misaligned they often let us know with pain and if we exercise in spite of these messages, that’s when injuries happen!
I’m not sure how much money is spent just in the United States for joint injuries that start simply as a misalignment but then are compounded by someone that didn’t listen to their body, but I bet it’s billions!
This is exactly why in our New York City personal training studio, we have one rule that we share in every assessment.
“Never train with pain in a joint!”
Living by this rule is an advanced principle and takes discipline but it will keep you training and in action! Why? Because, joint misalignments often clean up quickly without any intervention. The next day, you are back in action and don’t feel the discomfort that was presenting the previous day. It’s great when joints realign quickly but it’s not always that easy and you need to invest time in correct techniques ranging from myofascial soft tissue work, correct exercises, manual therapy, chiropractic care or physical therapy. If you are finding that your strategy for assisting the joint with creating better glide and overall function is lacking, then it’s time to search out a professional personal trainer or practitioner that focuses on structural integration.
Exercising is great but training is far superior! This is why we coach every Nimble client to have a training mindset.
Having a training mindset keeps you dialed in to the cycles of your exercise and assures that you keep quality conditioning practices in your program. In Nimble Fitness we have found that grinding it out in a linear practice of exercise without recovery leads to over training and potential injuries. Having built in days dedicated to mobility and tissue health helps prevent injury and maintain joint health.
To your health…
Daniel
