by Amethyst Tagney
Achieving physical fitness is a goal for many people. To combat the obesity epidemic, health has become a major priority in the United States, so everyone is doing what they can to move more and live healthier. There are many ways you can go about strengthening your body, but not all workout routines are necessarily good for you.
In their excitement, people can try new exercises without really knowing how effective or safe they actually are. In fact, a lot of the popular workouts you see at the gym can lead to some pretty serious injuries.
So which exercises should you avoid in your pursuit of a fitter body?
Crunches/Sit Ups
No one would mind having a flatter stomach and sculpted abs. That’s why individuals turn to crunches and sit ups over and over again to get those amazing beach-body results. However, experts are now saying this is not the path to reduce stomach fat, but actually to a bad back.
The motions of these exercises are putting unnecessary strain on your spine where it is weakest. Additionally, all that bending back and forth can cause your spinal discs to bulge and cause herniation. Herniated discs are no walk in the park, causing chronic pain in your back and even your legs.
That being said, the adage “lift with your legs instead of your back” is no joke. Essentially, with every crunch and sit up you do, you’re lifting with your back. You only have so many bends you can do before your back gives out. In order to get the stomach of your dreams without harming yourself is by activating your muscles in ways they naturally work.
Since your abdominals are helped by other stomach muscles in your body, it’s important to exercise all of them in conjunction instead of just focusing on a single muscle group. Exercises like pushups and planks engage your core muscle groups to get the toned stomach you want and none of the back pain you don’t.
Deadlifts
Deadlifts can actually be a great addition to your workout routine since they use major muscle groups throughout your body. However, if you’re not strong enough or do them incorrectly, you can end up landing yourself in the hospital. It’s going to take time to build up your core strength to be able to lift something that weighs as much or more than you.
Deadlifting should not be rushed into until you nail down the correct form. Like crunches and sit ups, you run the risk of herniating a disk if you use your back instead of your core to lift. By bowing your back instead of keeping it neutral, the stress from lifting will be concentrated in one area of your spine instead of equally dispersed throughout your back.
You’re also more likely to get hernias in general due to the straining and weakening of your muscles from lifting heavy amounts of weight. Unfortunately, hernia treatment doesn’t always have positive outcomes.
In order to properly execute a deadlift and receive benefits instead of consequences, you need to engage several muscles groups at once and have perfect form every single time. If you can’t correctly execute a full deadlift yet, start with hip hinges and working your way from there.
Pull Ups
Probably everyone remembers struggling with pull-ups in gym class during school. Many people still do struggle and try to do them even when they’re not ready. You can tell you’re not strong enough if your legs squirm and kick out when pulling yourself up.
This means that you’re not using the right muscles and can potentially hurt your shoulders. The way you position your hands can also lead to more injuries. If you do pull-ups with the back of your hands facing you, your shoulder and joints are put under extra amounts of stress and strain.
However, by having the inside of your hands face you, this relieves some of the stress your muscles experience. If you already suffer from shoulder pain, this exercise may not be for you. If your body’s not ready for standard pull-ups, it’s advised to use an assisted pull-up machine until you can.
Tricep Dips
Tricep dips are usually the go-to move for people when they’re trying to tone the backs of their arms. However, trainers would advise against it. Similar to pull-ups, tricep dips rely too much on your shoulders. As you move through the exercise, different joints and muscles become even more vulnerable to possible injury.
At the highest point of your tricep dip, excess pressure is placed on the joint that’s located between your shoulder blade and collarbone. Depending on if you injured your shoulder in the past or if it’s already strained while you’re exercising, you can re-injure yourself or even dislocate your shoulder.
When you’re going down into the dip, you will increase the amount of pressure on your shoulder again and risk causing a tear. Each tricep dip you take can be the last one you do in a long time. Instead, do your shoulders a favor and do close-grip pushups.
Exercise is a sure way to look great at any age, but working out does much more than that. Physical fitness can make our bodies strong and healthy, but only if done correctly. Avoid exercises such as crunches, sit ups, pull-ups, and tricep dips. You’ll be doing yourself and your body a huge favor. With any new or old exercise you try, make sure you do your research on which ones to avoid.
(Amethyst Tagney is a freelance writer and illustrator. Maintaining her health is one of the most important things to Amethyst, so keeping up with the latest news on nutrition and fitness is a must. When she’s not in the kitchen or working out, Amethyst loves to share what she discovers. You can find her on Twitter @AmTagWrites.)
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