It can be exciting hitting new goals and milestones on our workout journey.
When we are ready to increase our weights, knowledge certainly is power in order to do this the correct way and prevent injury. There are some key indicators and things to pay attention to as we are venturing off to new heights in our workouts.
First and foremost, it is always a good reminder to take a look at how we are performing certain weight training exercises to ensure we are performing these correctly and safely. How you execute any movement during exercise in regards to form and performance is crucial to minimizing injury. It is also important to consider your overall health, things your body is able to do and maybe areas you need to be careful working on, as well as what fitness level you consider yourself to be at. A beginner will certainly be performing certain exercises much differently and at a lower weight training level than an experienced weight trainer. Consider doing your own body scan to answer questions around existing bone and muscle structure. Have you had any past injuries? Do you have any pre-existing conditions? You will need to be careful working these areas of your body and it could be wise to share your workout plans with a medical professional for clearance.
When you are starting out, it is best to start very small in regards to weight. It is recommended by fitness experts to consider a weight that is perhaps 50% less than what you really could handle. This is so you can get a feel for how your body responds to exercise. Slowly increase until you find a weight that challenges you to slow down in order to maintain good form and the reps of the exercise you are hoping to achieve. When it comes to looking at increasing weights, take a look at how often you are working what are considered to be the most injured areas. These consist of the back, shoulders and knees. Working these areas in excess puts them at a greater risk for what is called an overuse injury. It is always best to consider a gradual application of weight especially with these areas. If you are using dumbbells this comes easy, just simply look at the next weight up. A common rule many fitness trainers apply is to not increase your weight by more than 10% at a time. So, if you are lifting 100 pounds, you would be looking at adding 10 pounds with your increase.
Weight training is an effective way to not only lose weight, but to improve overall health. It is best to start off small, and create a gradual plan to increase. Being mindful of your body and the condition it is in will help you make the right choices around if and when to increase weight to prevent injury.
