Don't Hurt Yourself
April 12th 2007 09:42
I believe that serious weight training is a very safe fitness activity both in terms of spontaneous injuries and those that are chronic in nature. It also seems apparent that consistent weight training done intelligently is one way to protect yourself from a variety of conditions that afflict the sedentary. It is more than possible,however, to train in such a way as to promote both accidents and chronic injuries. Today I have a few tips on avoiding injury.
When I think of injuries in the gym I immediately think of shoulders. In a recent post I mentioned that shoulders are worked in any upper body movement. That means that they sustain alot of punishment in a workout cycle. This constant movement against resistance is a strain that can easily turn into chronic pain. I suggest that specific shoulder work be as limited as is practical. Doing set after set of front raises, for instance, is probably overkilling the front deltoid, since it is heavily involved in bench pressing. The same is true of the rear delt,because of its involvement with back training.
Another portion of the body that is subject to chronic injury is the lower back. Again, it is because of the lower back's involvement in so many different exercises. If you do squats and stiff legged deadlifts, that is alot of stress on the lower back, but things like bent over rows or t-bar rows add more duress, as do hyperextensions. It is also very easy to strain the lower back doing one of the above exercises. I try to be constantly vigilant about not overloading my back with workouts which stress it day after day. If you have ever had an injured lower back, you know that it will get its rest by debilitating you if it has to.
Believe it or not weight training can really put the hurt on your feet. Squats or leg presses with heavy weights shove your feet into the floor and calf raises with the heels off the floor stress the arches of the feets. Again I would be aware of this problem and try to select training shoes which give as much support to the feet as possible.
I have always found shrugging movements and upright rows to be a problem for the neck. If you do either in a jerky manner you are asking for neck problems-the very area these movements are designed to strengthen. Be careful there.
Knees and elbows are obvious loci for all kinds of painful injuries, if you do not take care. Forcing repetitions of movements should be undertaken guardedly,because they can result in injuries to these vital joints. Once they are injured they will either stop your training altogether or add an unwanted pain to most of the things you do.
It is always worth thinking about safety in the gym, even though it is a remarkably safe activity. Your servant, as always.
Weight training is safer than this...
...or this.
Believe it or not weight training can really put the hurt on your feet. Squats or leg presses with heavy weights shove your feet into the floor and calf raises with the heels off the floor stress the arches of the feets. Again I would be aware of this problem and try to select training shoes which give as much support to the feet as possible.
I have always found shrugging movements and upright rows to be a problem for the neck. If you do either in a jerky manner you are asking for neck problems-the very area these movements are designed to strengthen. Be careful there.
Knees and elbows are obvious loci for all kinds of painful injuries, if you do not take care. Forcing repetitions of movements should be undertaken guardedly,because they can result in injuries to these vital joints. Once they are injured they will either stop your training altogether or add an unwanted pain to most of the things you do.
It is always worth thinking about safety in the gym, even though it is a remarkably safe activity. Your servant, as always.
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