Damage, Injuries, Dysfunctions - Which Exercises Can Cause Them

If you are not a beginner who has sustained an injury or a bodybuilder who is working on the details of your physique, you should try to avoid exercises on machines. They limit the range of motion and force the direction and work in the joints. These exercises are non-functional and do not develop stabilizing muscles. Two of them require special attention due to the potentially high risk they carry. The first is the leg extension (extension). In this exercise, the work of the quadriceps muscle is strongly isolated, while the muscles of the ankle-calf group are inactive. The consequence is a lack of adequate stabilization and protection of the knee, which is subjected to large shear forces. As a result, there is an excessive stretching of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), which increases the risk of its damage. In addition, this machine forces a single axis of rotation for the knee, which is variable under normal conditions. Try to avoid this device, and if you cannot avoid it, perform single-leg exercises on it by trying to contract the biceps femoris muscles before each repetition. The second non-recommended exercise on the machine is the squat on the Smith machine. The guides force the movement path here, which becomes unnatural, and improperly distributed forces affect the load on the anterior cruciate ligament, the patellar ligament, and the lower back. This exercise, like most on machines, releases stabilizing muscles from work, and its effectiveness (muscle engagement) compared to the conventional squat is 43% lower.

There is a large group of exercises that are considered potentially dangerous for the shoulder girdle, as they cause excessive strain on the shoulder girdle. These include exercises such as: pulling the upper strap to the neck, pulling up to the neck, and pushing the bar out of the back of the neck. Performing these exercises can lead to excessive stretching of the anterior part of the shoulder joint, excessive tension of the subscapularis muscle, and an increase in shoulder impingement. Additionally, a protruding head can lead to irritation of the brachial plexus. Instead of pulling the strap to the neck, it is better to perform this exercise by pulling the strap to the chest, which will help balance the activation of the back muscles. Pull-ups should be performed only to the chest, and pushing the bar out of the back of the neck should be avoided if possible.

If your body is not equipped to lift the weight with your arms in rotation within the armrest, it will increase the load on your shoulder joint, your lower breast muscles and your rotator cuffs. It is advisable to replace them with classic dips on armrests, which will allow you to position your arms in a neutral position, thus reducing the load on the structures. Our body is not adapted to lifting weights with the arms in internal rotation, which leads to dangerous overloads. Unfortunately, many gyms follow a training scheme that recommends performing exercises on the shoulders with an unfavorable arm position. These are three exercises: side dumbbell raises, front raises and raises along the body. All of them cause internal rotation in conjunction with lifting the arm, which leads to irritation of the supraspinatus tendon. The greatest risk occurs when the arm is abducted between 60 and 120 degrees and in people with a strongly curved acromion. If you perform the mentioned exercises, it is important to know what to change in them to maintain their effectiveness while minimizing injuries.

Inadequate technique or limited mobility can lead to overloading of the spine. However, there are exercises in which proper technique does not protect you from overloading the spine. One example is the traditional sit-up, which is performed by lifting the back in the spinal column. This exercise has been removed from the exercise catalog for the U.S. Army due to its negative effects on the spine. Stuart McGill, an expert in the biomechanics of the spine, warns athletes against performing this exercise for health purposes. During this exercise, the intervertebral discs are compressed with a force of 3300 N (approximately 330 kg), which is considered a critical value in terms of potential risk of spinal injury. By doing sit-ups, you additionally strengthen the hip flexor muscles, which are overly stretched in most of us due to a sedentary lifestyle. A better option would be to replace this exercise with McGill sit-ups. Russian sit-up is an exercise that overloads the lumbar spine by combining compression, flexion, and rotation in a single movement. Such a combination of loads significantly weakens the intervertebral discs, which can lead to a rapid injury. Alternatives to this exercise may include: - Pallof press; - Full contact twist; - Side plank. Superman is a popular exercise that requires performing a maximum arch in the spine. This causes pressure on the intervertebral joints and ligaments in the lumbar spine with a force of 590 kg. Such a large force can cause damage to these structures. A similar effect can be achieved by performing back extensions of the torso on a fitness ball or bird dog, but without the risk of spinal injury.

These group activities that are constantly growing in popularity can contribute to issues within the hip-pelvic-spinal complex. Often, pregnant or overweight women participate in them, who have very weakened and stretched pelvic floor muscles. If you take part in these activities and have difficulty controlling your abdominal muscles, your pelvic floor muscles can become significantly weakened. This can lead to their dysfunction and related problems, such as urinary incontinence, deterioration of sexual life, and other complications resulting from muscle structure disorders. It is evident that there is a certain group of exercises that can potentially be dangerous. When incorporating them into your training plan, it is important to be aware of the associated risk. The decision of whether to take the risk or choose the safe version of the exercise that gives you a good health experience is up to you.