Season 4, Episode 6: How do I know if it’s the good kind of hurt?

Tania Huddart: Here's a rule I love. If you have to fight your body to do a movement, you're not ready for it yet. That's not failure. That's information. Step back, and work towards it more gradually. Your body will get there. It just wants to be asked, not forced.

Host: Welcome to Build Confidence and Purpose with Pilates. I'm here with Tania Huddart: Pilates teacher, teacher trainer and author of Teach Pilates with Confidence and Pilates & Purpose. Both voices you'll hear are made with AI. Every word Tania says is her own, and she's approved each one.

Last time, we found neutral spine, and learned some of the words your teacher uses. This time, it's the thing I worry about in nearly every class. How do I know if it's the good kind of hurt?

Tania Huddart: It's the right thing to worry about. Pilates should challenge you. But it helps to know which feelings to work with, and which ones mean stop. So let's sort them out.

Host: So there is a good kind?

Tania Huddart: There's honest effort. When a muscle is being challenged, in a controlled strengthening or stretching exercise, you feel it working. It might feel warm, or tired, or a bit shaky. That's the good sort. That's a muscle being asked to do a little more than it's used to. Muscles need to work hard enough to get stronger. But not so hard that they get hurt. That's the line we're looking for.

And it's fine to challenge yourself. I want to say that clearly. As long as you do it in a way that serves your body.

Host: And the bad sort?

Tania Huddart: Sharp pain. Shooting pain. That's always a stop. No exceptions.

Pain is your body's warning that something is wrong. It's not a test of how tough you are. It's a message. And the message is, stop doing this, right now.

Host: That sounds obvious when you say it. But I don't think I always listen.

Tania Huddart: Most of us don't. With pain, we often overlook it and go on regardless. We treat it as an annoyance, not as something to listen to. We finish the set. We don't want to be the one who stops.

But in class, I'd much rather you stopped and told me. That's not making a fuss. That's giving your teacher the information they need.

Host: What about the movement that isn't painful, but just feels impossible?

Tania Huddart: That's the rule from the start. If you have to fight your body to do it, you're not ready for it yet.

You'll know the feeling. You're straining. You're holding your breath. Your neck and shoulders are doing work that isn't theirs. That's fighting.

So step back. Do a smaller version. Build towards the challenge more gradually. There's no rush. The exercise will still be there next week. And it doesn't have to look pretty. It just has to feel right in your body, today.

Host: What if I can't tell which kind of pain it is?

Tania Huddart: Then use a number. Imagine a scale from zero to ten. Zero is no pain at all. Ten is extreme.

Whatever you're feeling, good or bad, it shouldn't go past seven out of ten. Seven is your ceiling. Even for the good kind. Seven can still feel like hard work. It just leaves you enough room to stay in control.

And if you're not sure what's causing a pain, or what kind it is, stop the exercise. Ask a qualified Pilates teacher, or your doctor.

That goes for everything we talk about on this show. It's general information, not medical advice. If you have pain you can't explain, or a condition you're managing, check with your doctor.

Host: Why seven? Why not push through to ten?

Tania Huddart: Because the point isn't to see how much you can stand. When something hurts, your muscles tend to tighten up to protect you. And a muscle that's busy protecting can't learn a new way to move.

It's like trying to learn a new recipe while the kitchen's on fire. You won't take much in. You'll just want to get out.

I said it in the episode on neutral spine, and it applies here too. Effort creates tension. And tension creates discomfort.

Host: So what do I actually do when I stop? Just sit there?

Tania Huddart: Come into a rest position. Child's pose is a lovely one. You kneel, sit back towards your heels, and fold forward. Or lie on your back and hug your knees into your chest.

Then breathe. Let things settle.

And then your teacher can help you find a different way into that movement. There's nearly always another way in.

Sometimes it's breaking the exercise into pieces. You learn each part on its own, then put them together.

Sometimes it's shortening the levers. Your arms and legs are levers. The further they reach from your body, the heavier the work. So bending your knees, or coming down onto your forearms, makes an exercise kinder.

And sometimes it's a prop. If the backs of your legs are tight, you might sit on a rolled-up mat. If your wrists are sore, you might rest your hands on a rolled-up mat, or work on your forearms instead of your palms.

None of that is cheating. It's how you get the good kind of effort, without the bad kind of pain.

Host: How do I get better at telling the difference, over time?

Tania Huddart: By paying attention. Most of us aren't used to describing what our bodies feel, beyond pleasure or pain. "Good" or "ouch". That's about it.

So here's something to try. After you've worked one side of your body, close your eyes. Compare the two sides. Do your shoulders feel level, or is one higher? Do your legs feel the same length?

Don't judge what you find. Just notice the difference, and store it away. Then work the other side, and check again.

Over time, you build a vocabulary for your own body. And the clearer that gets, the easier it is to tell honest effort from a warning.

I love watching this happen. At first, clients need me to ask the questions. Then one day they start telling me what they feel, without my asking. That's when I know they've taken ownership of their own body. It's one of my favourite things about teaching.

Host: Is there anything I should tell my teacher before class starts?

Tania Huddart: Yes. Your history, the first time you come. Old injuries, operations, anything you're managing. And then, each time, how your body is today. A good teacher takes time at the start of class to ask. If they don't, tell them anyway.

If you're healing from an injury or surgery, the right amount of challenge is more complicated. Fear plays a part. So does pain, and how far along your healing is. A good teacher won't guess. They'll want to work alongside your physiotherapist, or whoever is caring for you. That keeps you safe, and it keeps everyone pulling in the same direction.

Host: What about after class? Sometimes I feel tired the next day. Is that bad?

Tania Huddart: Not usually. Feeling tired the day after class is not unusual. Pilates is deep work. Drink a little more water, to help your body with the change.

But if you feel discomfort or pain in that first day, tell your teacher. We want to know. That's how we adjust the next class for you.

Host: And a teacher's hands? Sometimes a correction feels like a lot.

Tania Huddart: Touch should be gentle but firm. It shouldn't hurt. Pain in response to touch makes your muscles contract and protect. That's the opposite of what we're after.

And you always have the right to say no to touch. Always. A good teacher will ask, and will check how it feels. You're the expert on that. You know far more about how you experience touch than your teacher does.

Host: So, all in all, I'm allowed to challenge myself.

Tania Huddart: More than allowed. The aim of Pilates is a pain-free body. A body with a balance between strength and flexibility.

You don't get there by fighting. You get there by working with your body, a little at a time. Challenge, yes. Fight, no.

Host: If someone's taking three things away from this, what should they be?

Tania Huddart: One. Sharp or shooting pain is always a stop.

Two. Nothing past seven out of ten, good or bad. If you're unsure, stop and ask.

Three. If you have to fight your body to do a movement, you're not ready yet. Step back, and build up gradually.

Host: And a question to sit with?

Tania Huddart: This week, notice one feeling in your body that you'd usually ignore. A tight shoulder. A stiff back at the end of the day. Give it a number out of ten. Then ask yourself, what changes when I name it?

Host: You'll find Tania's article, Good pain, bad pain, in the Journal at taniahuddart.com.

Next time: can I keep doing Pilates while I'm pregnant?

Tania, last word?

Tania Huddart: Your body is always talking to you. Pilates is a chance to slow down enough to listen. Be curious about what you feel, not frightened of it.