Fitness Facts: The Do's and Don'ts

We all are getting very conscious about health and fitness as we are struggling with our "modern" ways of life which includes sedentary lifestyle and fast food! The importance of fitness is growing with time and each member in a family is trying to follow a fitness regime according to their energy levels, requirements and age. But fitness mistakes are also in place. Safety is an important issue when you perform workouts. A safe workout, with low risk of injuries, can give you the maximum benefits. Therefore, you should be aware of the Do's and Don'ts of fitness:

The Do's: The Good Habits

• Do Warm Up Exercises: You tend to give less importance to warming up before beginning the actual workouts. Either you contribute very little time to warm up or you never go for that session at all. But your muscles, before being warmed up, are just like cold dough! You would develop the risk of tearing your muscles if you choose to train them at the cold state. Begin by walking for a few minutes to make your muscles ready for more rigorous exercises.
• Focus on More Stretching: It seems as if people have forgotten the art of stretching! Stretching has a positive impact on range of motion and flexibility. This activity also brings down the probability of muscle tightness and strain. You should stretch when your muscles are still warm after a workout session.
• Carry a Bottle of Water to the Gym: When you feel thirsty, the body passes out a signal to indicate that you are already dehydrated by 2 percent. So it would be wise on your part to carry a bottle of water to the gym. Drink water regularly between the workouts before you feel thirsty.
• Consult the Trainer: Some people fail to note what is best for them. They either opt for intense training or do workouts to a smaller degree that won't produce any significant result. If this is the case with you, then you should consult your fitness trainer to know the optimal levels of workout. He or she would design an effective personalized workout plan based on your fitness goals, fitness level and age, and make sure that you are doing your workout correctly.

The Don'ts: The Bad Habits

• Lifting Too Much of Weight: You should lift weights which are right for you. This is the area where your fitness trainer can guide you. Lifting too much weight beyond your capacity can strain your muscles. Start with a weight you can lift comfortably 12 to 15 times. When you feel that your body is ready to face a challenge, then consider adding weights gradually. It is fine if you lift to the point of fatigue, but it is risky if you lift to the point of muscle exhaustion. Listen to your body!
• Leaning on the Machines: You might think that the fitness equipments like cross-trainers, treadmills, elliptical machines and stair-climbers are made to lean on! But this is not the case in actuality! Leaning on these machines can put pressure on your wrist and back. You also need to check your posture during working out to get the optimal results.
• Jerking While Lifting Weights: When you are in the process of lifting a free, heavy weight, you often choose to move the weight by jerking. This activity can cause injuries to your muscles. So you need to do strength training with the weights which you can afford to lift smoothly. This is applicable to the weights on machines as well.
• No Rest: Adequate amount of rest after exercise helps in fighting post exercise stress. Rest helps in relaxing muscles which make them stronger and powerful. Avoid exercising the same muscles two days in a row. For example, work on your legs one day, and arms and shoulders on the next day.

Workouts are there to help you meet your fitness goals and not to produce any reverse effect by causing injuries to your muscles. Any muscular injury can lead to a discontinuation of your exercise regime. So it is very important for you to pay proper attention to the healthy practices of working out.