With gyms closed across much of the country for the majority of the pandemic, we’ve had to reach our fitness goals by working out at home, including the use of fitness apps where people lead you through a workout on a screen or smart TV.
Unfortunately, people working out on their own has led to an increase in pulled muscles and strained ligaments, according to trainers and physical therapists.
With that in mind, Schenectady Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing has four common home-workout injuries and how to avoid them.
- Free Weights
If you have free weights, be sure to not increase the weight too quickly and know the proper form. Bad form and too much weight are key ingredients to barbell- or dumbbell-related injuries. The rule of thumb is to get the form down prior to adding any weight. Once you feel like you want to increase weight, be sure you can do 15 repetitions without tiring before going up in weight.
- Warm Up
Warming up isn’t very fun for a lot of people—they would rather get right into the workout—but even without a trainer or someone leading a class, be sure not to forget to warm up. Moving your arms and legs around for 5 to 10 minutes is a good warm-up, and don’t forget to stretch afterwards.
- Doing Too Much
Cramming a 20- or 30-minute workout into your schedule pre-pandemic was probably a challenge, but with so many working from home, that can free up additional time that you may have been spending in your commute, getting ready for work, etc. But don’t do a 60-minute workout if your body is used to half that amount without ramping up first.
- Know Your Ability
Remember, the people on those workout videos are trained professionals, so they’re going to make difficult moves look easy. Be sure to listen to the instructor, as they will usually mention what beginners can do to scale-down yet still have an effective workout.
To learn more about Schenectady Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing and all of the services they offer, visit http://schenectady-center.facilities.centershealthcare.org/.
