There are many different types of workouts that you can do to benefit your body. With all the viruses and germs that are around us today, exercise, partnered with a healthy lifestyle, is vital to your overall physical health.
Workouts can be done almost anywhere, and the key to a successful one is perseverance and determination. You can easily do workouts with simple tasks such as a walk in the park, a grocery run, or by simply using the stairs of your office instead of riding the elevators. Especially if you are living in the city, it is important to improvise ways to workout in different places. With the pandemic that the whole world is enduring right now, make sure that you still workout from the comfort of your homes. If you plan on going to the gym to work out, make sure that you practice proper hygiene and wipe and sanitize the equipment that you used.
Human bodies are like machines where every part should work in harmony in order to function well. If you fail to perform your exercise properly, then it may cause an injury to a certain part of your body, which will then have a cascading negative effect on your overall physical health.
Hence, you need to always remember how important it is to exercise properly so that you will not injure yourself which might keep you in bed for days or even weeks. This will simply hamper your exercise routine and even do harm to your body.
Here are the top 7 ways to avoid injury during a workout
1. Reflexive Performance Reset
One thing about your body is that it compensates for its broken parts in order to keep your body functioning as much as possible. For example, when you have a sore ankle, your body will still ensure that you get to point A to point B by calling on its other muscles/muscle groups to do compensation patterns in order to get you to where you need to be. That’s just one of the many wonders of the human body.
However, compensation patterns can be harmful in the long run because they rely too much on the movements of the different muscle groups. If this persists for a prolonged period of time, it may eventually cause damage to the affected muscle groups. You might not really feel something at first but eventually, compensation patters can lead to a breakdown. Therefore, there is a need to break these compensation patterns. But how?
You can avoid injury with reflexive performance reset or better known as the RPR.
RPR is a combination of both breathing and acupressure. The main aim of RPR is to evaluate your body in order to assess its physical state before you do a workout. The evaluation can also assess the parts where compensation patterns happen.
Doing RPR includes following a series of Wake Up Drills. The objective of these drills is to “reset” parts of your body. Closely monitoring how your body feels during the routine will make you be more aware as to what might be some of its parts that are simply compensating for another muscle/muscle group. Upon resetting, your body will be less prone to injury when doing workouts. When the body resets, you get to do more and improve your fitness altogether.
2. Avoid incorrect technique when doing exercise
People are prone to creating their own styles and innovating their own take on workouts. This creativity is commendable on other things like in art, for example, but it is not best when it comes to exercise. An incorrect movement that you innovated can pull or tear a delicate part of your muscle which can damage other tissues as well. Remember to always check your form before you start doing a number of reps for every set that you on each workout routine. Observe how the fitness coaches do it, listen to them intently and watch them carefully. Doing this will always keep your body in tune and you can avoid injuries and body pain that comes along with it.
There are only certain movements that our bodies are equipped to do. For example, arms and legs only move a certain way. We are not gifted with Elastigirl’s incredible flexibility so therefore there is also specific exercise for them too.
3. Choose your workout carefully
In order to avoid incorrect techniques when working out, it is best to choose your workout carefully. You can do this by enrolling in a program or seeking the advice of a personal trainer or coach. These people were professionally trained to evaluate your body type, built, and weight. But first, consult with them and ask questions about which routine you should do or which is the best for your build. Upon assessing what you need they will be able to give you a program or a workout plan to follow which caters specifically to your needs. This way, you will not have to improvise on your own, which lessens the chances of getting injured. Moreover, you can also consult them about the snacks that you can eat or a specific diet that you can follow while working out.
Another tip when choosing your workout carefully is taking into consideration your age. What your body can do five or even just two years ago is not the same as what you can do now. Don’t overestimate your capabilities and leave room for the realization of weakness. Our bodies change as we get older and our strength changes as well. Exerting too much effort and stressing out your muscles on a workout that it isn’t compatible with your capability will eventually lead to injury. You should start with something slow and small at first. Then, slowly work your way into the harder workouts. Remember, don’t overexert yourself!
4. Avoid the lack of a proper warm-up
Every workout routine begins with a warm-up that conditions the entire body. But what is a warm-up?
A warm-up is a form of exercise that increases blood flow to the muscles before starting a formal workout. Warm-ups are usually thrown around in the world of sports like basketball in order for athletes to avoid injuries but this is not just for sports activities. Warming up before an exercise can also help you as a normal person that is just trying to get through some exercise in the morning. Without a proper warm-up, your muscles will tense up, making them more prone to injury.
Try doing dynamic stretches for your warm-ups and not those wherein you will simply hold a position since this can lead to muscle stiffness. Even wrong warm-up techniques can lead to muscle tears. Moreover, remember to cool down after your formal workout to avoid muscle strain and body pain.
5. Do not work out as much as you can
There is such a thing as getting overworked in exercise. Never work out until you are in so much physical pain. That could be detrimental to your overall wellness and health.
Overworked muscles will take a longer time to heal. If you force yourself to workout without enough rest, it will result in more damage to your muscles. Also, when your ATP and glycogen are almost drained out because of high metabolism, your body becomes more prone to injury.
Therefore, always choose to listen to your body and give it proper rest in order to be able to easily recover. Muscle soreness after an exercise is typical for up to 48 hours. If it exceeds more than that, then you might need to consult a doctor. Don’t be disappointed on your rest days because your body needs it desperately as well.
If you ever experience sudden dizziness, shortness of breath, or chest pain when working out, remember to seek out professional and medical help. You might be given some medication to relieve the pain while it recovers.
6. Consume nutritious food
Poor nutrition leads to poor health. That includes eating an imbalanced diet or eating lots of junk and sugary foods.
Doing heavy workouts but not supplying your body with the needed proteins, vitamins and nutrients will surely weaken your physical state. Soon, your energy will drastically change and you’ll feel demotivated or lethargic to do anything. That affects your fitness and health.
Being on a diet is not an excuse to let your body waste away. Always eat a balanced diet (this consists of go, grow, and glow foods) and drink plenty of water. Eating and drinking will not automatically make you fat. In fact, it is vital to supply your body with carbohydrates to give you more energy for your workout. Consuming protein after a workout is also important in muscle recovery. A healthy body means healthy muscles which can withstand your workout and lessen the chances of injury.
Others drink supplements, protein shakes, or use protein powders to accompany them during workouts. But before you start consuming supplements, make sure you consult with a fitness coach so that you’ll purchase the right one for your build.
7. Try Cross-Training
What is cross-training? Cross-training means that you will change your routine by trying out different activities. Breaking your normal routines will help your body recuperate. You can try doing other activities such as cleaning your home, reading your favorite book, or even cook your meals for the week.
If you are trying to burn fats then this is also a good way to spice up things. As you may not know, it has been a known fact that switching up your exercises can increase the fat burning capacity of your body. Try inserting different routines in your whole workout. Mix it up by doing some cardio first then lift weights after. Other than that, you can also lift weights for now and then supplement it by attending dance classes or try wall climbing as an alternative to your usual routine.
Now that you have learned the various ways on how you can avoid injury during a workout, let’s talk about the importance of why you should be doing this in the first place. Why is exercise important if it poses the danger of injury? Should we just not do it at all? Is exercising even really that important to our health?
4 Benefits of doing good and proper exercise
1. Brightens your mood levels
One of the best things about doing good and proper exercise is that it brightens up your day and lightens up your mood. Exercising is not just simply for losing weight or for a more fit body any longer. It has been proven that exercising decreases feelings of depression, anxiety, and even stress.
Working out helps our brain regulate stress and anxiety levels and produces happy hormones known as endorphins which fight against the feelings of sadness. Hence, if you feel pensive about your work or other matters, you can try running to breathe some air. Not only it helps you relax but also, it helps you continue being fit.
For those suffering from mental health illness, exercising is also a good way to focus and practice distraction from negative feelings. Trying different types of workouts will help you calm yourself down and focus on the more important things that you need to attend to.
2. Reduces the risks of chronic disease
Prevention is really the key to long life and good health. Lack of regular exercise is one of the main reasons why people suffer from chronic diseases. Regular workouts have an effect on improving your insulin sensitivity, cardiovascular fitness, and body composition. Additionally, it also helps decrease blood pressure which helps in avoiding a heart attack.
3. Helps you with sleep better
For people who experience difficulties when they sleep and continue to tumble and turn, exercising may help you resolve that. But how?
Exercising improves your sleep quality which gives you more energy when you wake up. Usually, adults need at least 7-8 hours of sleep a day in order to fully recuperate yourselves. When you experience sleep apnea or other sleep disruption, you can start a simple workout that will help you release some happy hormones that will calm you down. Hence, you’ll fall asleep easier and more peaceful.
The temperature rise during exercise improves your sleep quality as well. This is particularly helpful to those belonging to the older age bracket due to the fact that they are the ones who are finding it hard to sleep.
4. Exercise is always good for your muscles and bones
Physical activity builds the muscles in your body as well as bone density. When people age, they tend to lose their muscle mass, which can lead to injuries and unfortunately, disabilities as well. When you have good bone density, you will be able to hopefully avoid osteoporosis as you age. If you are interested in an exercise that really builds bone density then you should get involved with high-impact exercises like gymnastics, running, soccer, and basketball.
Conclusion
Exercising gives a lot of benefits such as lifting your mood, helping you improve your sleep quality, relax, and become healthier. Missing one of the techniques may be detrimental to your health. Remember to continue performing the workout routines, make sure that you execute and follow the techniques to prevent any injuries.
