Not all (training-related) pain is equal. It can be either acute (sudden onset as a result of a clearly defined cause) or chronic (persists for weeks or months). It can range from a side stitch in your stomach to an inflamed ITB to a (potentially fatal) angina in the heart.

The trick is to know why you’re hurting. In very broad general terms, we are able to distinguish between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ pain.

THE BAD
Bad pain is injury or health related and most average athletes should be body conscious enough to understand when this is what they are feeling. And, if at all in doubt, to stop whatever training you’re doing and to see a relevant expert for a diagnosis.

THE GOOD
Good pain usually relates to when you push hard in a training session or a race: Heart rate way up, breathing really deeply and you can feel the lactic acid build-up in your legs… As soon as you reduce the pace you feel normal pretty soon again, however.

This is ‘good’ pain, because from it (after rest) comes improvement, but it still hurts. Pro athletes tend to hurt a lot better than average runners though. They understand their bodies far better and are in tune with them. More likely than not, they will tell you that a large part of dealing with pain is emotional. They’ll outline how it is important not to be scared of pain and to embrace it.

AND, THE UGLY
That being said, it’s not a good idea for recreational athletes to push through the pain barrier more than once or twice a week, and not for too long at a time - an hour or less. This way you become familiar with good pain and if you do start to feel bad pain, you’re able to tell the difference.

Sports Psychologists, Scientists and trainers will advise you to build this into your training regime, so that you plan and mentally prepare for it. They refer to it as association/disassociation. By just giving the body a bit of a pep-talk along the lines of ‘I’m feeling great today, my legs are feeling strong, I’m winning’ – you can play the mental game and disassociate and be distracted from the pain and discomfort and achieve a higher goal.

*Image: Chelsea Bartz