As a lifelong athlete and coach I have dealt with my fair share of toughing it out, pushing through, grinding it out, and being strong. While toughness is a good quality in many areas of life, it is not always the best to employ for extended amounts of time.  Pain is a sign that something is not quite right, it is an alarm to get the body to listen and respond. Athletes are not the only ones trained to ignore pain either. Many of us are deeply conditioned to ignore our emotional pain, but pain ignored always increases until it is either dealt with or brings death (of something).