You’ve been thinking about strength training or you’re already doing strength training, but you heard that so-and-so hurt his/her shoulder, and so-and-so hurt his/her back while strength training. So how do you do it safely (and no, I’m not trying to break the world record for the most number of times I type in the word “so”), without hurting your joints in the long-term?
First and foremost, you want to balance out your body. What does that mean? If you have poor posture, fix it. Why? Because if you’re doing conventional strength training programs, you’ll make your posture worse, and increase your risk for joint issues. For this type of person, if we see that their posture is bad, they have rounded shoulders, etc., we won’t do any strength exercises for the chest and abdominals, and instead, do a lot of exercises for the back. In addition to that, we’ll use other strategies to improve their posture. That’s our top priority with this type of client. It’s beyond the scope of this article to write about how to correct your posture, but I’ve written about it before right here.
Original source: here.
Assuming you already have decent posture to begin with, then make sure the exercises that you use for different muscle groups are balanced. In other words, if you’re doing to do 3 sets of 10 repetitions for your chest, do the same thing for the back. If you’re doing some sort of a vertical push (like an overhead press), make sure you do an equal number of repetitions of a vertical pull (like a lat pulldown).
Although there are exceptions, a frequent template that we use for our clients in terms of their exercise program is this:
Lower body exercise (like a one-legged deadlift)
Upper body vertical push (like an overhead press)
Upper body vertical pull (like a lat pulldown)
Another lower body exercise (like a squat)
Upper body horizontal push (like a pushup or a bench press)
Upper body horizontal pull (like a row)
Of course, based on the clients’ individual needs and goals, it’s important to tweak these, or have a completely different program. This is a template that we typically use for 4-12 weeks before we switch their program.
Notice that last sentence? Before we switch their program. You should not be on the same exercise program for many months on end. In my public speaking engagements, I make a point of saying “as your body changes, so should your exercise, nutrition and supplementation.”
Short Summary
- To prevent long-term joint issues from strength training, vary your exercise program periodically.
- First, correct your posture.
- Once your posture is good, keep a balanced exercise program. For each movement, include an equal number of repetitions in an opposite direction (pull vs. push)
