Ok so I've posted two other threats about jow badly my.body hurts and have gotten some gud advice hoping to get some more so I can figure out what to do.....so I woke up this morning when I woke up I woke up in soo much pain and really hurt all over as if I was beaten up really bad n left on the bed on my own.....this sucks but I want to kno if its wise to take the week off of excercising to let my muscles relax but still eat healthy (I'm doin weight watchers) and then get back on it next week again? My concern with this is when I start up again my body is going to counter react n may hurt even more because I haven't worked out.....my other problem is I weighed in this more n I had gained 4lbs.......:/ its messing wit me ryt now bcuz I've done all I can to be healthy no sweets nuthing too salty a lot of water extra veggirs I dnt go over my points and I excercise I dnt get what's happening right now????? I feel like my body is giving up on me ...I'm pushing n pushing n its shutting down I've been @ this since febraury......I Jst need help! :/

Your body has gained because it's sore from too much exercise.

If it hurts that much, you are doing too much. SLOW DOWN so you don't injure yourself.

I would ease off on the exercise. Not stop completely, just ease up. Take a walk, stretch out the aching muscles. Do some light yoga, but slow it down a bit.

THe idea of no pain no gain? Well, that's bunk. A little pain is one thing - some achiness - OK, but who would keep exercising all the time if it truly hurt all the time? NO ONE.

I think you really have to wonder what kind of pain this is? When you start working out you are going to be SORE!!!! It is usually worse the 2nd day then the next day too - that's b/c these are muscles that haven't been used in a long time and you are starting them up again. This is NOT a bad thing and, personally, I fight through the soreness b/c taking week-long breaks is only going to cause repeat soreness. I actually embrace the sorness b/c I know I am pushing myself and my muscles are changing and getting stronger. I definitely take rests but I don't quit working out until I feel 100% not sore.

Now, if you are in actual physical PAIN [which you should not be], then I would definitely NOT work out. Furthermore, you might want to see a trainer to make sure you are doing your exercises correctly because they should not cause extreme pain where you don't want to get out of bed.

Also, if it is soreness, you definitely don't need to take an entire week off...one-three days max should be plenty of time for your muscles to heal. Working out once/week is not going to show the results you want as quickly unless you are planning to lose weight purely on diet alone.

I agree with lm3898 - is it physical pain, like you hurt yourself, or is it muscle soreness? If it's physical pain - something is wrong, and re-evaluate what you are doing. (Are you wearing proper footwear? Do you have good form?)

If it's muscle soreness, I'd give max a two-day rest. If you stop for a week, you risk getting out of the habit of exercising. It's okay to exercise on sore muscles, even if you dial down the intensity because of it. I think the riskiest thing is to get out of the habit - it is way harder to start exercising again after a break (when you think gee, it's nice not to work hard) than it is to get up and move and deal with being sore.

Remember around your workouts to drink drink drink your water! That will help with the soreness. Stretch too, that'll help.

Yea mayb ill do sum stuff at home I normally Jst did classes like zumba or bootcamp classes I always felt gud afterwards except the last maybe two class or so Jst haven't given it my all so I did machine work I think that's when it really hurt bcuz I pushed n pushed for two days straight so maybe this week ill try sum yoga maybe pilates..... Thanks! I appreciate it.....no1 ever said this would be easy I guess but I didn't Think it would be soooo emotional as well!

It's muscle soreness.....because its normally classes i take we always stretch before and after the classes maybe tone down the amount of classes I take i luv zumba its my fav one so maybe stick to that for the week n do sum at home yoga maybe that will help! Thanks I do appreciate it I'm glad I have this place to vent and cry it all out because I had noone before that understood wat I was going through and still am going through

Sometimes the mental is much harder than the physical!! Just remind yourself why you are doing this and what your goals are and hopefully you can lean on the friends and family in your life, and if not, then you can definitely lean on the people on this board!!

Thanks sooo much! This past week I added extra days n extra classes to my workout which is prob y I'm so sore its tru no pain no gain my muscles are fruit to fight me all the way i guess I have to fight them harder!