Injury is the body's way of a hard stop

Perhaps I was too enthusiastic with my Fit AF goal.

Or perhaps I was really too sedentary for the past two years.

But I injured my left Achilles tendon on Tuesday. And I’m not even sure how I injured it. I was out and had lunch with some friends. And when I came back, the pain just appeared out of nowhere.

Now I’m limping along. I can walk, but forced to slow down.

It’s annoying more than anything, for someone used to charging ahead in work and life.

But okay okay, I get it:

• Injury is the body’s way of implementing a hard stop. I wanted to take a break and start slow in January. Perhaps I’m not even rested enough yet. The body broke me in a place where I can no longer keep rushing forward.

• Isn’t it poignant that it’s my Achilles heel that was injured? Totally not-so-subtle in conveying the key message here: my key weak point—my Achilles heels—is my inability to rest, decompress and restore.

• I should learn to really pick things up slowly for fitness, since I’m starting off from zero this time. My past expectations aren’t helping. Warming up is important! Do less initially, not more (out of enthusiasm).

Injury is feedback.

Injury is a body’s whisper wrought into a scream over time.

Listen, for god’s sake.