Why Resting After an Injury Can Make Things Worse

Introduction

Perhaps the most common piece of advice people hear following an injury is: “Just rest.” Rest for a little while can decrease pain and irritation, but an extended period of rest does more harm than good. Prolonged rest of an injury can prevent healing, weaken muscles and tendons, and increase the chances of re-injury.

At Revive Physiotherapy, we frequently encounter patients who sought to “wait it out” with rest — and come back weaker, stiffer, and less able months later. To heal properly, it takes more than a "few days" to heal, it takes movement of a certain kind that follows a good program of movement, progressive loading, and structured rehab.

This article details why resting too long has the potential to slow the healing of injuries, what happens to your body during rest, and why your recovery with physiotherapy is the secret to restoring strength, mobility, and confidence.

The Secret Dangers of Prolonged Rest

1. Muscle Atrophy and Weakness

The body is able to adapt quickly to inactivity. Research shows:

• The size of muscles may have reduced after only two weeks of immobilization.

• Strength declines more quickly than muscle size because of a decrease in neuromuscular efficiency.

• Fast-twitch fibers (necessary for speed and power) go first.

👉 Over-rest = weaker muscles, even in areas that weren’t injured.

2. Tendon Deconditioning

Tendons benefit from loads and stimulation. Without it:

• Collagen fibers don't align to each other.

• Stiffness and strength decline.

• Tendon load capacity goes down, and tendons become susceptible to subsequent injury.

3. Joint Stiffness & Decline of Cartilage

Movement nourishes cartilage by circulating synovial fluid. For inactivity:

• Joints stiffen.

• Cartilage loses nutrition.

• Scar tissue or adhesions can form.

👉 Rest is starving joints and tissues of the movement signals they use for health.

Reduced Load Capacity = Increased Risk of Re-Injury

Think as much of your muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones as a bridge. The bridge will become less reliable if traffic stops using it for months at once. Likewise, when tissue is injured and not loaded, its stress resilience diminishes.

• Everyday tasks (walking, stairs, lifting) seem harder.

• Athletes have a greater risk of re-injury before returning to play without reconditioning.

Whole Body & Systemic Effects of Rest

Cardiovascular Decline.

Inactivity decreases VO₂ max — cardiovascular fitness — which in turn leads to faster fatigue.

Metabolic Changes.

• Increased insulin resistance.

• Larger fat mass, less lean mass.

• Slower metabolism overall.

Bone Density Loss.

Bone without regular loading becomes weakened — and more susceptible to stress fractures and osteoporosis.

The Kinetic Chain Breakdown

Resting one joint or muscle affects the entire body.

• Ankle sprain: Calf and hip weaken, balance declines, knee/hip injuries follow.

• Shoulder injury: weak scapular stabilizers will lead to neck strain, mid-back tightness, and elbow overload.

👉 A single weak link in the chain can set off a chain of compensations.

Neurological & Psychological Effects

• Reduced coordination: Fewer motor units fire, making movements clumsy.
  
  

• Fear of movement: Rest builds anxiety, loss of confidence, and fear of re-injury.
  
  

• Motivation loss: Inactivity decreases drive to stay active, prolonging recovery.

Why Movement Beats Rest

Cross-disciplinary research across sports medicine, orthopedics, and physiotherapy demonstrates that active rehabilitation outpaces rest.

Advantages of Early Guided Movement

• Increases blood flow and facilitates healing.

• Remains strong and flexible with surrounding tissues.

• Improvement in Neuromuscular Coordination.

• Increases confidence in the injured area.
  

Active Rest vs. Passive Rest

• Passive rest = doing nothing.

• Engaging rest = safe, modified activity for healing.

Examples:

• Cross training (ie swimming, cycling) in leg injury.

• Isometric (or partial range) strengthening of the injured area.

• Training for unaffected body parts.

Practical Recovery Tips

• Get assess early: No “time heals all wounds.” A physiotherapist will help with safe loading.

• Move within tolerance: Be mobile with minimal pain to the injury.

• Train the chain: Work out supporting muscles and joints.

• Reload slowly: Increase stress slowly to recover tissue volume

• Adopt the correct mindset: Treat movement as medicine, not a hazard.

Takeaway

Rest is beneficial in the initial time of an injury, but prolonged rest typically causes more harm than good. It leads to:

• Muscle and tendon weakness.

• Reduced bone density.

• Lower cardiovascular and metabolic health.

• Compensation throughout the kinetic chain.

• Fear, stiffness and slower recovery.

At Revive Physiotherapy we help patients heal faster and stronger with evidence-based exercise therapy and progressive loading strategies.

📞 Call today to schedule your injury assessment or

💻 Book an online appointment now so that recovery can commence.

👉 It is harder, the longer you rest, to come back. But if you move now — with the proper

guidance — the better you will heal.