Healthy Times
Your Seasonal Newsletter
Spring 2005
Training at the Gym - Practice Makes Perfect??
It's amazing given all the solid research that exists today on exercising that it's still common to observe poor techniques (e.g. at risk for injury) in peoples' workouts at gyms and fitness centres.
If you still think stretching should hurt, reaching for your toes (without maintaining the normal curve in the lower back) is a good stretch for the lower back, the bench press (or even a using a straight bar) or upright row exercises are good ways to strengthen the shoulder, sit-ups with the feet being held are the way to work the abdominal muscles, it perhaps is time to get updated.
These common training errors along with several others are common causes of back injuries (e.g. back strains/sprains, herniated discs…) and shoulder problems (e.g. various forms of rotator cuff injuries/impingement syndromes and scapular (shoulder blade) instabilities, arthritis,…). Probably 50% of the shoulder injuries I see in the clinic are a direct result of poor weight training technique which could have been avoided.
Anyone who plays a sport such as tennis, golf or hockey will attest to the benefits of having lessons. Learning to consistently hit the golf ball well or to hit a hard tennis serve consistently within a few inches of the service line involves highly developed skills. Skills such as these take coaching and 100's of hours of practice to learn well.
Although learning how to effectively and safely train in the gym does not rank in the same high skill level as the specific sport skills described above it is still a physical skill that needs to be taught by practical application. Most of us have poor body awareness (e.g. the actual physical action we perform is in fact not what we think we are doing) and are unable to learn a physical task by simply watching a video or reading a book. A good analogy is: you would never toss someone in the water after showing them a video and having them look at diagrams on how to swim without first being in the water with them to physically show them how.
Generally (even if you are a good athlete) a few sessions with a physical trainer are all that's needed to learn how to perform strength and stretching exercises in an safe and effective way. The reason poor form in the gym is so common is simple. Most people have never been physically shown how to train in the gym. It's not practice that makes perfect it's 'perfect' practice that makes perfect.
If you are going to spend the time and effort at the gym why not try to ensure it's productive, safe and tailored to your specific goals (e.g. general fitness, able to go for hikes with your children or grandchildren, lose weight, becoming a faster swmmer, cyclist, or runner, more powerful golf swing or overhead tennis stroke…).
For many of us we already encounter too many daily repetitive strains such as from computer use (especially the infamous mouse), improper lifting, too much sitting, poor posture and the list goes on to add further insult at the gym. Besides don't we go to the gym to get or stay fit and counter these repetitive daily strains?
I have yet to meet someone who thought they did not benefit significantly from working with a well trained personal trainer.
F.Y.I. - Golf
Think again if you don't think golf is demanding on the body. The golf swing much like the tennis serve, or throwing a fast pitch in baseball is a near full body effort. These are all high velocity high torque activities. Try throwing 3-4 fast pitches with a deconditioned arm let alone 80-90 times as is common for a round of golf. Your arm/shoulder is likely to end up by your knee feeling pain.
Quiz
1. Restricted range of motion in the hips or lower back can cause a shoulder injury in golf.
a. true
b. false
2. Of the reasons for quitting golf what percent is due to injury?
a. 10%
b. 30%
c. 5%
d. 20%
3. What type of injuries are common to golf?
a. back
b. shoulder
c. elbow/wrist
d. all of the above
4. As high as ___%of amateur and ___%of professional golfers will suffer some type of injury.
a. 25%, 20%
b. 10%, 20%
c. 40%, 50%
d. 62%, 89%
Health Quiz Answers:
1. a. the shoulder will commonly move excessively (e.g. beyond the normal physiological range) to try to compensate for lack of movement in the lower back and pelvis. The opposite can also occur.
2. b. 30% of golfers who discontinue playing due so due to injury (source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 1994/5).
3. d. back, shoulder, elbow and wrist are all common injuries associated with golf.
4. d. source: Theriault/La chance Sports Med 1998
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