If your students are complaining about pain, it’s your job as a coach to help them parse out what they are actually feeling, so they can make an intelligent decision about whether to stop the activity or to continue. Young fencers, especially, aren’t equipped to understand if they are actually hurt or if they are just feeling resistance towards something that is going to hurt in the short term (like running wind sprints).

When you ask questions like “what does the pain feel like?” and “where are you feeling the pain?” the type of language your students use to respond can provide helpful clues. Good pain tends to be in the muscles targeted by whatever activity is being performing. That body part is also often referred to in more general terms such as the “leg” or “shoulder.” Good pain is usually described using keywords like “burn” or “sore.” So a fencer saying “my legs burn” is usually referring to good pain. Bad pain tends to occur within or near a joint. Or, if a fencer is complaining about a muscle, they will usually point to a specific spot on the muscle such as the “top of the hamstring” or “this spot on the lower back.” Bad pain also is associated with key words like “sharp” or “pinch.” So a fencer saying something like “I feel a pinching pain on this spot in my back” would likely be referring to bad pain.