Calling all Sports Science students!!
You may have heard the common phrase, “No pain, no gain.” Many of the athletes you may work with in your future career might believe that they must experience pain to make meaningful gains in their training. It’s up to you, as someone who may work closely with athletes, to look out for the health of your athletes.
Step 1 - Vote: What’s your take? Do you agree or disagree with the statement, “No pain. no gain”? React with a (Agree) or (Disagree) to cast your vote!
Step 2 - Share Your Insights: In the comments, share your thoughts. Have you encountered this concept during your studies? How do you plan to promote safe and effective training in your future sports science career?
Lets get the conversation going… share your vote and thoughts below!
Maybe not from a point of someone who’s studying sports science, but as a professional athlete, the ‘no pain, no gain’ mindset can be quite accurate. In any case you would go through muscle ache, recovery from injuries, even mental pain from losing a competition. Is it good? No, but these are the sacrifices you need to be ready for as a professional🥲
Interesting opinion! Thank you for sharing your thoughts!
I’m also an elite athlete and have fallen prisoner to this mindset, to the point of destruction. Like you said, I think that there are certain situations where its application is beneficial, but as a sports scientist (and as athlete!) I think it’s crucial to understand the distinction between discomfort and pain. Of course, feeling the burn during training, or experiencing muscle soreness afterwards is normal and expected, but pain is a sign that something is wrong, potentially leading to injuries and overtraining!
I’m not an elite athlete (quite the opposite - is it possible to be an elite sloth?!) but can find parallels here with studying and with work. We hear a lot about "work-life"balance when talking about careers, but there is nevertheless an expectation that people should “work until they drop”.
Hard to make any firm rules here since one person’s hard work may be another’s work for pleasure - like the difference between pain and discomfort, probably best to draw a parallel wit the difference between working hard & smart (good) and working to destruction.
The scientific approach to sport has a lot to teach us in other fields, clearly.
Step 1 - Vote: What’s your take? Do you agree or disagree with the statement, “No pain. no gain”? React with a 
(Agree) or 
(Disagree) to cast your vote!