I always hand-tighten my pedals, never more. it will tighten as you pedal, so there is no need to put 5000 ft-lbs of torque on it with a pedal wrench. I've never had a problem using this method. Next time, just hand-tighten, and when you take it off, all you'll need is a small hex tool. In fact, I don't even own a pedal wrench.

Also, remember, to untighten it's "down toward the rear wheel"