There's nothing worse than an injury
that sidelines just when you're starting
to exercise on a regular basis.
Here are tips to avoid those injuries:
1. Wear good
shoes that are appropriate for what you're
doing. Injuries seriously affect your motivation
to exercise. Most people, especially walkers
and runners, wear their shoes far too long.
Worn out shoes will make you much more
prone to injuries.
My absolute
favorite place to buy shoes is "Road Runner
Sports". They have great prices and selection
but most importantly, their catalog
includes a great chart for determining
which shoes are best for you based
on numerous factors. Even if you don't buy
shoes from them, this chart is great
to have.
2. Stretch,
but NEVER stretch a cold muscle before exercise.
I like to use the analogy of a rubber band
that's been in the freezer. Your muscle,
like that rubber band, will
tend to tear if stretched when
it's cold. However, when they are
warm and supple, they stretch much more easily
and are much less likely to tear. When
you stretch cold muscles, you are much more
likely to cause muscle strains and other
injuries. Always do your stretching after
your aerobic exercise session or after you
have been exercising for at least ten minutes
to give your muscles time to warm up
and become more supple. NEVER stretch before
you exercise. You are much more likely to
injure yourself when you do. Stretching
is not a "warm-up" for your aerobic
exercise. Your warm-up should be a
very low intensity version of
the exercise that you're doing.
Then, you stretch your muscles after they
are warm. If you stretch on
a regular basis, you'll reverse
the natural loss in flexibility that occurs
over time and you'll also be much less
prone to nagging, and sometimes
serious injuries, including low-back
injuries.
3. Progress
slowly! When most people decide to start
exercising, they go all out.. and often end
up injured. Increase the duration,
intensity, and frequency of
your exercise slowly so that your body
is able to adjust to your new activity!
Put these
three preventive measures in place and
you'll greatly reduce your chances of injuring
yourself due to exercise.
