New aches after you start running or lifting again usually do not mean you are injured. Your body is not broken. It is unprepared, and you can prepare it.

Dr. Derrick Hines explains why pain after jumping back into an activity, like a friend's knee pain after he started running again, is usually a sign the body was not ready rather than damaged. He walks through progressive loading: building up over weeks, starting with the smallest piece of a movement, and moving on only when each stage feels easy. He shares how his patients over 60 have run 200-mile races and how grandmothers now do kettlebell swings daily, and gives a simple exercise for training today for the life you want in ten years.

Key Takeaways
-- Pain when you start a new activity often means your body was not prepared for it, not that it is broken or injured.
-- As we get older, the body needs more preparation and more warning before a new activity than it did when we were young.
-- To get back to running, progress from walking to jogging to short runs to longer runs over several weeks, so muscles, tendons, joints and ligaments have time to adapt.
-- Start with the smallest piece of a movement. For a kettlebell swing, Derrick starts with mini squats for a week or two, then holds the weight while squatting, then does small swings, and moves on only when each stage gets easy.
-- Given enough time and a progressive load, the body is resilient enough to get ready for almost anything. Derrick's patients include people over 60 who have run 200-mile races.
-- Decide what you want to be doing a decade from now and train for it today. Hiking and travel, for example, need strength and a good cardiovascular system.

Questions Answered
-- Why does my knee hurt after I started running again?
-- How do I start exercising again without getting injured?
-- How should I build back up to running?
-- How do I learn a new exercise like a kettlebell swing safely?
-- How should I train now for the activities I want to do in ten years?

A Thought Exercise
Write down what you want to be doing ten years from now. Then ask how you can start preparing your body for it this week. If you get stuck, share your goal with Derrick.

DERRICK
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/derrickbhines/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DrDerrick

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