When In Doubt

In episode number 4 of this 20 episode mini series we explore the topic of why getting professional advice in times of uncertainty is so important.

Listen to the other episodes of this mini-series:

• #1: 20 Lessons From 20 Weeks Of Training (intro) 
• #2: You Get Out What You Put In 
• #3: Avoid Distractions 
• #4: When In Doubt 
• #5: The Best Recovery Tool 
• #6: Don't Avoid What You Suck At 
• #7: Plan Your Day 
• #8: Training Hard And Weight Loss Journeys 
• #9: Plan For Social Occasions 
• #10: Trust The Process 
• #11: Self Reflection 
• #12: Ask Questions 
• #13: Avoid Triggers 
• #14: Search Out Support 
• #15: Be Serious About Recovery 
• #16: Have A Prepared Answer 
• #17: Have A Mantra 
• #18: Simplicity 
• #19: Self Reflection 
• #20: Have A Follow Up Plan 

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​EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:

Introduction to the 20-episode mini-series on training insights

[0:00] Hello, hello, ladies and gentlemen. So in today's episode, we're doing episode number four of our 20 episode mini series, which is 20 lessons learned from 20 weeks of training, where I'm sharing 20 little insights when I was going through a training process for myself and how it relates to the world of training for hiking.

Importance of Seeking Professional Advice in Training

[0:21] So essentially in today's episode, what we are talking about is the title is when in doubt, get professional advice. advice.

[0:29] Now, where this comes from in the training process, as I sort of said, you know, what I was doing over those 20 weeks was 20 weeks of martial arts, of mixed martial arts with the intention at the end of having a competition and a fight at the end.
And, you know, mixed martial arts, it's pretty rough. You know, obviously it's not just, you know, stuff in the gym, but, you know, we're wrestling, we're on the ground, we're, you know, hitting each other.
Like it is pretty rough and rough and tumble.
And through the process, you know, there were a number of times or a couple of times where I picked up a few aches and pains and niggles.
And prior to this mini-series, I did do a little podcast around, you know, when I sort of had a little injury scare and when I was, you know, the emotions I kind of felt through that.

Personal experience of dealing with an injury in training

[1:11] And there were other points where the injuries weren't so much as, you know, maybe it wasn't such a mental battle as that and what I described into that. But there were things that kind of were getting in the way.
And one particular example was, you know, I think we're maybe, I don't know, eight weeks into the process, nine weeks, 10 weeks, somewhere around about halfway mark.
And I started getting this discomfort in my back. Now, not my lower back, but kind of around the back of the shoulder blades.
And it was really frustrating because, you know, initially, like I didn't really know where it had come from specifically.
There wasn't an incident. It kind of was just getting sore.
And then what I was sort of noticing was I was trying to self-manage it.
I was doing a bit of stretching. I was doing doing a little bit of release work.
I was trying to avoid the area.

[1:55] And what I kind of realized was some days it would be fine, some days it would be uncomfortable.
And then it got to the point where in the morning it would be typically okay, or through the day it would be okay.
But what really aggravated it was when I was asleep at night and I was in bed.
And every time I turned over, that particular area got really uncomfortable.
And it was really annoying me. And it was holding me back in the training.
It started playing in my head a little bit. And I dealt with it for about maybe 10 days or so. And then I was like, you know what?
Enough's enough. I was like, this isn't really...
Helping or sorting itself out. It's kind of slowly getting better, but it's lingering. It's playing on my head. Like I kind of need to get someone to look at it.
So, I ended up booking in with a physiotherapist who I know in the local area, really great physio.
And me had a look, he did some assessments. And basically what he said to me, he was like, look, you know what, what's happened here is there's no dramatic injury. There's no major issue.
What's basically happened is this particular area, it's just getting overworked.

Understanding the cause of the pain and its pattern

[2:56] And it's So, what's typically happening, you said it's getting sore overnight, it's probably during the day and during your training sessions, that area is getting overworked and then it's not really flaring up until nighttime.
So, essentially what you need to do, you know, if you're going through this training process, there's probably not much we can really do just to make it disappear.
Like you probably do need a little bit of rest, but if you're dedicated to training five days a week and this is very important to you, I can assume you don't want to give that up.
So, what we need to do now is just manage it. We need to get this area stronger.
And then, you know, it'll hopefully either dissipate over a little bit longer period of time, or we're just going to manage it until this process is done.
And then you can get on top of it at the end, which for me, it was fantastic advice because number one, it gave me clear direction.
It sort of said, okay, you know what? You haven't majorly injured yourself.
It's probably not going to get dramatically worse and you just need to get it stronger.
And also for the fact that I had a physio who really understood where I was coming from.
He knew I was dedicated to this training process he knew that I probably wasn't going to take the advice of just rest it for two weeks which probably would have sorted out and he knew like look if we can just manage it until the end day um then we can get on top of it and like you know we need rest by then that's when we'll rest which is something that a lot of hikers run into with physios and you know it's a whole different story but sometimes when physios tell a hiker who has a high calm enough in six weeks time um they say hey you shouldn't be doing any walking well you you know, that's a bit tricky advice.

[4:19] But anyway, for me, it was fantastic. So I started strengthening the area.

Strengthening the area and experiencing gradual improvement

[4:22] I still was protecting it. It still was a little bit uncomfortable, but you know, over the next couple of weeks, it actually cleared itself.
And it took a little while. It was a bit frustrating. And there were some setbacks where a couple of days was good. One day was bad.
A couple of days was good. One day was bad, whatever it may be.
But for me, it was really, really good.

[4:39] But basically, where this comes back into relevance for training for hiking is the fact that, you know, I identified that I had something that was holding me back. I identified something that was causing me pain.
And what I'd done initially in regards to self-management wasn't really working.
I tried a bit of stretching. I tried a bit of release. Just tried to, like, you know, save the area. And it wasn't really working.
So, I got professional advice. And that advice gave me clear direction.
It gave me clear clarity in regards to what's going on, whether it was a major injury. and I needed to be really careful with it or whether it was something that just wasn't a big deal.
And it also gave me just some good idea in regard to long-term, like, you know, expectation may hang around for a few weeks until we can get you a proper rest.
But that expectation was in my head so I knew what was going on and that was my choice.
And I see so many hikers out there who struggle with aches and pains, foot pain, shin pain, knee pain, hip pain, back pain, shoulder pain, whatever may be. And they just ignore it.
They just ignore it, they just ignore it, they just ignore it, and they just push through with their training, and it just keeps on getting worse, and it just keeps on playing in their head, and they keep on worrying, and they just don't know what they should be doing.

The Importance of Seeking Professional Advice for Lingering Pain

[5:52] And then all of a sudden, a month's gone by, or five weeks gone by, or six weeks gone by, and this pain hasn't disappeared, or it's even gotten worse, and it causes more stress, and more stress, and more stress.
So the advice from here today is, if you are in doubt, Now, get professional advice.
Don't, you know, give it a few days. You don't have to do it like, you know, book in a physio the second something starts to get hurting.
But if something's lingering around, if it's been around for a week or something, get someone to have a look at it.
Book in with a physio or a physical therapist. Get some clarity here.

Seeking Professional Advice for Nutrition and Other Concerns

[6:22] The same thing goes for your nutrition or for any other area.
If you're worried about what you should be eating, if you're worried about, you know, being too full or if you're worried about digestion or whatever it may be, don't let it linger for weeks and weeks and weeks and weeks and weeks.
Weeks, get professional advice.
Go see a dietician, have a chat, get some real good clarity because it's so worth the investment.
If you're struggling with your feet, if you're always getting blisters, if you're whatever may be, go and get professional advice.
Get your shoes fitted at a proper gear store or go see a podiatrist if you've got major foot issues or whatever may be.
When in doubt, get professional advice. It will clear up a lot of mental headspace. face.
It'll take out all those what-if questions in the back of your head, thinking, what if I've really hurt myself?
What if my feet are not designed for this? What if, you know, I just can't wear any boots or whatever it may be?
It'll give you clarity in regards to what's going on, and it should give you some hope and some direction for the future.

[7:21] So whether it's pain, gear, mental strength, whatever it may be, if you are in doubt, get professional advice
​.
The Benefits of Getting Professional Advice for Gear and Mental Strength

[7:27] For myself, it was so, so, so, so, so important.
And I not only did that for my shoulder, there was another thing going on with my neck, which again, I went and saw a professional, had a chat, and they gave me some really clear advice.
They helped manage it. They helped me get me through. And you know, it got me through to the end. And after that, I managed to get on top of it.
Professional advice is professional advice for a reason. It does go a long, long, long way. way.
So, if you're a hiker going through a bit of a training process and there's something that's been playing in your mind, that's been holding you back or whatever it may be, maybe now's the time to reach out.
See a physio, see a podiatrist, you know, work with a trainer, work with a dietician, go see a professional about gear, whatever it may be.
Use this as an incentive to make this happen, get on top of or at least get clarity on what you're dealing with and clear up that mental space.
It just goes such a long, long, long way and just clears so much room for you to focus on the more important things and the more positive things as well.
So I hope this is a little bit of incentive for a few people to take that step.
It was so important for me and I know it's going to be so important for a lot of people who are listening to this podcast.
So with that being said, that'll probably do it for today's episode.
I think I've made my point clear. So thank you for listening.
Hope you've enjoyed it and we'll talk to you very, very soon.

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