At The Woodlands Sports Medicine Centre, we have a mission to deliver clear health and wellness guidance that the communities of Conroe and Woodlands, Texas, can utilize to improve quality of life.
As we move into 2026, many people are embracing new fitness goals as part of their New Year’s resolutions. While this is an admirable and worthy pursuit, everyone who begins a new exercise regimen faces an increased risk of injury. It’s understandable to want to see results right away, and to channel all of that positive energy into your workouts.
But pushing too hard, too fast is a perfect recipe for injuries. So today, let’s take a look at some of the signs that you might have pushed beyond your body’s limits and what you need to do to prevent further damage.
Pain is the body’s way of signalling for help. Your nervous system communicates pain signals from your body to your brain, letting you know that something is wrong.
To be clear, a certain degree of discomfort is to be expected when you begin a new fitness routine. Soreness the day after a workout or muscle fatigue are a normal reaction to an increase in exercise.
But pain should never be part of your routine. If you experience sudden pain while engaged in any form of physical exertion, stop and assess your overall condition. You may only need to reduce your intensity, or you might need to take a break. But if pain prevents you from putting weight on a joint, moving in a normal range of motion, or causes significant anxiety or stress, it’s time to visit The Woodlands Sports Medicine Centre to determine the root cause.
One of the other common signs of an injury is swelling. When you damage a joint component, your body widens your blood vessels to allow more blood to flow to the site of the injury. This ensures that more oxygen, white blood cells, and proteins get to the injured area and hasten your natural healing process.
Swelling also creates a natural cushion around the injury, protecting it from additional damage. It also limits your ability to move the damaged joints or limbs, which also helps aid healing.
While swelling is a necessary part of the healing process, it should never be ignored or accepted as just another part of ramping up your fitness intensity. If you experience significant swelling, stop any actions that place strain on that area immediately.
When you sustain a joint injury, fracture, or soft tissue injury, your body triggers changes that can limit your ability to continue placing strain on the affected area. This often includes pain that worsens when you try to put weight on a damaged joint. Limited range of motion in your joints is also common.
While a bit of stiffness and soreness is to be expected for a day or so after a strenuous workout, you should be able to continue your normal daily routines without much change. If pain, swelling, or stiffness is keeping you from moving around easily or completing normal daily tasks, you may have overtaxed your body. Be sure to see a specialist to avoid further damage.
Sometimes it’s the absence of pain that should be a cause for concern. If you begin to experience a lack of sensation in part of your body or notice that normal stimuli are not creating the expected sensory reactions, you’ve likely developed numbness in that area.
Not only can numbness be a symptom of a serious injury, it also places you at risk of further damaging the area because you can’t process normal pain signals.
A sensation of weakness in a joint or limb should also never be ignored. It might be an indication that your nerves are not communicating properly between body and brain. If weakness doesn’t improve within a day or two, reach out for a diagnostic assessment.
Pain and swelling are the most obvious signs of a sports injury. But the sounds your body makes can also be an indication that something has gone wrong.
If you experience clicking, grinding, or popping sounds when you move a joint, you may have damaged one or more of the joint components. As mentioned above, pain is not the only indication of injury; numbness is also a possible outcome. So even if you aren’t experiencing discomfort, pay close attention to new sounds that occur as you move your body.
While it might be tempting to “push through” these symptoms in an effort to reach your goals, overtaxing your body can actually slow your progress and put you off your track for weeks or even months.
If you experience any of the changes discussed here, set aside some time to come in for a quick diagnostic assessment. Not only can the team members at The Woodlands Sports Medicine Centre determine the source of your symptoms and get you started on a treatment path, we can also help you create a personalized fitness plan with clear and reasonable goals.
You can connect with our team online or over the phone to explore appointment availability.
