Top 10 Causes of Injuries and How to Avoid Them

1. Failing to Warm-up.
If you have never warmed up and have never been injured, consider yourself lucky – and a hopeful candidate for the lottery. A warm up is a great insurance policy against a strain or injury. Warming up is highly subjective and based on a few considerations but regardless, I recommend that everyone spend a few minutes warming up before a strength-training workout.
The best way to warm up depends on your age, your level of conditioning, your history of injury, what you’re wearing and your surrounding temperature. The objective is to get blood rushing through your body and to allow a few minutes to mentally rehearse your goals and the heavy lifts you are about to move. In the end you will have to make your own decision whether you feel ready for heavy lifting or not. That being said, here is what I promote. Always begin with 10-20 minutes of light aerobic work on a treadmill, elliptical or seated bike. Nothing anaerobic or of high intensity
that dips into your energy reserves required for the heavy lifting. Then, before  each weight lifting exercise perform 15-20 repetitions with 1/3 of your lifting weight. Depending on your level of flexibility I would recommend full range of movement. Using this technique has helped me stay injury free in the gym – I’m sure it will do the same for you. If you are nursing an old injury, do two warm-up sets – the second set being 10% heavier for 10-15 repetitions.

2. Training Too Often.
Have you ever heard a friend say, or maybe you’ve said the following yourself, “Yesterday was chest day, today is leg day and tomorrow is arm day.” Yes, I know this is how every single person and their brother trains. Yes, I know this is what every fitness magazine preaches to the masses. Splitting a routine has its benefits, but its benefits are counteracted when you train too often.

It’s not just your muscles that require recovery but your organs, joints, hormonal and nervous system (just to name a few). These vital systems can be overworked too, and just because you feel ‘ready to go’ does not mean these other systems have fully recovered. Your structural system does not care that you worked chest yesterday and are giving it
a break by training back today. It’s all the same to your tendons, ligaments and joints. Your hormonal and central nervous system could care less that yesterday was an upper body day and today is a lower body day. It all means the same to the other systems in your body that require FULL recovery too. I assume you want steady and consistent gains so do not underestimate the other systems in your body. You must FULLY recover before you try to stimulate more growth from any muscle in your body.

3. Psychological Factors.
Studies have shown that athletes who are aggressive, tense, and compulsive have a higher risk of injury than their relaxed peers. Tension may make muscles and tendons more taut, increasing the risk that they will be harmed during workouts. However, don’t underestimate the value of ‘psyching’ yourself up prior to a weight training session. Productive strength training comes from progressively overloading your muscles. This means today’s workout must be better than your last workout. You must reach a greater muscular capacity to create any potential for muscle growth.
Similar to other life goals, improvement requires a sense of focus and purpose prior to each workout.

4. Inappropriate Weights (Lifting Outside of Limits).
Even though our goals are muscle mass and strength there are still times when you could choose a weight that will compromise your form and risk injury. Not only will your form be incorrect but you will lose the isolation on the muscle. Remember, your muscles can not read the amount of weight on the plates. Yes, muscular overload
must be attained with heavy lifts but the progress must be consistent and gradual. Inch by inch life is a cinch. Yard by yard life is hard! A cute saying that can be applied to the concept of progression. Your goal is to stimulate your muscles – not your joints. Oftentimes choosing a weight that is outside our limits will transfer the stress to your tendons, ligaments and joints. Most trainees have no idea until a few days later when they can’t figure out why the heck their lower back, shoulder and knee are killing. Worse yet, most young trainees who are currently lifting outside their limits will have no clue until 5-10 years from now when their neck and shoulder start hurting and they have to start spending hundreds of dollars on therapy. Don’t be that guy!

5. Check Your Ego at the Door.
This one ties into the above. Ego is the mortal enemy of common sense. Don’t let your ego be your guide in lifting. Impress your friends with your physique, not with the amount of weight you can lift. Are you more impressed with the little guy lifting more weight or the massive monster lifting less weight? Amusingly, I have witnessed more weight selection based on the influence of those watching, not on what impact it will have on the body. For what – 20 seconds of glory? Don’t be that guy on the beach telling everyone how much weight he lifted yesterday at the gym. You know why they have to tell everyone how much weight they lift – because you would never guess by just looking at him!
On a side note, not only will you prevent injuries but you will spend less time fighting others, convincing, competing, defending and proving yourself. You should have nothing to prove and nothing to lose. Rise above your ego and you will have more time, more energy and learn more in a shorter period of time. Value your unique self and resist the need to be seen for more than who you are!

6. They Don’t Take in Adequate Nutrients.
Most joint problems, such as arthritis, tendinitis, and bursitis, can be reduced with natural compounds that can save you from aching joints and years of pain. The sad news is that most treatments offered by traditional medicine simply treat the symptoms and make the problem worse in the long run. Common doctor recommendations of anti-inflammatory drugs, injections, joint replacement and ‘stay off it’ advice are useless and could be avoided if the proper measures were taken years ago.
Supplement with flax oil at least three times a day to help reduce inflammation in the joints, which will also help reduce pain from heavy lifting. Glucosamine is considered by many as one of the best natural products for the treatment and prevention of cartilage degeneration. It is an essential part of cartilage, synovial fluid, and other components of joints. Chondroitin sulphate is related to glucosamine and acts like flax oil helping to reduce inflammation around the joints. Also, the antioxidants Vitamin E and C should be added because it is well known that free radical pathology is part of
the damage that takes place in the joints.

7. Choose the Appropriate Range-of-Motion Based on Your Flexibility.
Many injuries occur when training in the weakest part of the motion. For example, the bottom of the squat position places outrageous stress on the knees and the bottom of the bench press position can tear the ligaments and tendons of the upper arm and shoulder. However, lifting heavy with a full range of motion is acceptable and will stimulate
more muscle tissue if you have gradually progressed with a slower and controlled movement and then progressively add resistance. If you are training with full range movements and have limiting flexibility issues in certain joints,
only train within your current range. Do not use weight training as a method to improve your flexibility – save that for the yoga class.

8. Not Stretching At Least Half the Amount of Time That You Lift.
Stretching is not popular, nor has it ever been. Most ‘current’ thinking leads trainees to believe that stretching is ‘bad’ and results in a fear of the unknown, leaving many to avoid it altogether. I think the ‘fear’ is more of an excuse for laziness and an uncertainty of what stretching can actually do. And interestingly, most of the anti-stretch advocates change their reasoning every few years and can not touch their toes! Many ‘believers’ in stretching have learned the side effects of not stretching, not stretching enough and not stretching effectively. Before you read any more literature
on the academic stretch debate I encourage you to decide on this one for yourself. You can create your own laboratory and test out my recommendations yourself, and I’m confident to say that your participation in this experiment will teach you – by doing – the role of flexibility training. I really don’t care what kind of stretching a person uses, providing that the desired range of motion is achieved and sustained to minimize injury and maximize performance.

9. Muscle and Structural Imbalances
Screening for muscle imbalances and postural alignment is the current cutting edge of injury prevention. The rationale behind this is that there are detectable and correctable abnormalities of muscle strength and length that are fundamental to the development of almost all musculo-skeletal pain and dysfunction. Detection of these
abnormalities and correction before injury has occurred should be part of any injury prevention strategy.
Assessment of muscle strength and alignment by a professional therapist should occur prior to your training. Can you imagine if you were training with one leg longer than the other or a separated joint you are not even aware of or a misalignment in your shoulder girdle – and then you go the gym and expose your body to thousands of pounds of poundage? HELLO! Your body is screaming for an injury! I would suggest approaching a reputable and trusted chiropractor, massage therapist and/or Active Release (ART) therapist for regular clean ups and maintenance. Don’t
look at these professionals as a ‘crutch’ or someone you need to ‘rely’ on. If you are serious about making consistent strength gains your body will thank you immensely. If you decide not to make these therapists a part of your team – be prepared to pay for some physiotherapist’s next European vacation when you get hurt!

10. Muscle Weakness
The quickest way to get injured (and stunt your muscular gains) is to ignore your weaknesses. Most often it is the smallest muscle in your body that appears to have no significance until you are sidelined and down for the count. Most people acknowledge this principle but most fail to execute it appropriately.

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