The 28-year-old tennis player suffered spasms and aches in her back after returning from 2 tournaments in Taiwan (China) and South Korea. Then there was the phenomenon of not being able to bend down before playing at the world championship in India. As explained by a physical therapist supporting Thuy Linh, "it's not a injury, it's just that the body is too tired but you still try to push, so the muscles have to contract to protect you".
The tennis player born in 1997 jokingly said that "God" or "some force" helped her avoid injury, but in fact, it was the body's reaction that did it. And of course, that is a warning about overload.
From a sports medicine perspective, this phenomenon is called protective muscle spasm - a self-defense reaction caused by nerve-muscular fatigue. When the core muscle groups that stabilize the spine are exhausted, the central nervous system immediately activates the spinal reflex arc, locking the dorsal muscle group to create a temporary "biological splint". Like an emergency brake - like the "aptomatic jump" phenomenon - to prevent more serious physical damage.
The biological machine inside humans is more sophisticated than we think. For athletes, office workers, fathers, mothers and anyone who is burdened with life pressure, such a sudden "blockade" can appear. Overload signals can be a fleeting dizziness, abnormally fast heartbeat, discomfort, or mental exhaustion... And often ignoring, sighing to let it pass. Then, using coffee to suppress drowsiness, using painkillers to ignore shoulder and neck pain and using the will to force the exhausted body inside.
With a rhythm of life honoring "overreach", busyness is easily equated with ability. But will cannot reverse the laws of biology. Any reaction that occurs is a warning, a bell to the boundary before dangers. Life is a marathon, listen, respect and be careful of self-defense signals from the body. Bad luck never lasts!
