So, you've done damage to your connective tissue or muscle from exercise and now you wonder what could you have done differently to prevent this injury and how can you avoid exercise injury in the future.
I know how frustrating you feel. It's like taking a drug away from addict. Exercise has been feeding you and now you need to back off to recovery properly. Backing off in this case, is either stopping your exercise or lowering your intensity.
I know some people that will keep training the body when they've seriously hurt their back.
That was me, always looking for a work around. In the past, when injured my back and could not bend-over, I would still do pull-ups on the bar to exhaustion.
In my experience, injury prevention has been something that has made my gains continue to prosper. Progression without having to take time off for tendinitis or some other type of injury.
I first started weight training when I was 11 years old, back then I had 2 1/2 pound plate and 5 pound plate. I did about 10-20 single hand curls with the weight in my hand and then switched hands. I also did single arm reverse curls and reverse wrist curls and hammer wrist curls.
Yes. I was infatuated with getting my forearms and biceps bigger. At that age, it was all that mattered. Every second day I workout out my forearms with high repetition training. Something like 50-100 reps with the 2 1/2 pound plate.. I can still remember the burn was intense. Something that I did right, from the start of my early weight training was high repetition movements.
This is the BEST way of training to strengthen your tendons, ligaments and start and build the vascularity necessary to feed these tissues. Whenever you feel that your shoulders or elbows, knees are starting to get sore, take two weeks of training and go light with high reps. Keep the rep rage around 15-20 reps and control the movement all the way.
If you are having a problem with flexibility and it's causing you pain when doing curls, bench or squats then consider Myofascial Release Therapy. With high rep training, the muscle are warm enough to start the perfect stretching routine. This is the BEST compliment to any training program to prevent injury and assist in growth. You will also be able to focus more on the form of your movement. Your movement must be flawless, and that's were stability and balance training comes in.
Lifting a lighter weight will teach you what your natural form should feel like, so when you start going heavier you should be able to use your mind muscle link to assist you. S-T-R-E-T-C-H !! after 10 minute cardio warm-up, in-between each set for 5 seconds and after your workout.
Here are 5 training tips you can start right away to avoid exercise injuries caused by overused and tightened muscles.
Plan a active recovery program for 2 weeks and your body will love you for it.
- Change your exercise routine so that your not performing your exercise movement at the same angle as your current exercise routine.
- Decrease the weight of your resistance and increase the amount of repetitions. As an example, if you were performing 3 x 10 reps with 35 lbs dumbell curls, decrease the weight of the dumbell to 20 lbs and aim between 15-20 reps. Your not showing that your weak, you just want to allow your body to recover properly, so that your can train heavier!
- Start a flexibility program. Stretch all major muscle groups after every workout when your muscles are very warm. Dedicate at least 10 minutes to stretching.
- Perform self-myofascial release on your feet, legs, hips, butt and back. By itself this can also be a powerful technique for recovery when done correctly.
- Practice some form of meditation before going to bed, eat foods with a balanced nutrition profile and drink plenty of water.
Robert Lagana http://www.laganafitness.com
Robert Lagana has been weight training and helping people for over 16 years. He has competed in numerous bodybuilding competitions and is a multi-title winner. He currently holds the 2006 Mr. Canada Natural Bodybuilding title in the NFSO & IFSB. Along with experience, He teaches natural muscular development as a therapeutic approach.
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