Working out regularly is a great way to stay in good health, build strength, and stay slim.
However, it can also be quite dangerous if you aren’t careful. Even when you are careful, accidents happen.
Still, many injuries are preventable, so here are some tips to avoid some of the most common injuries sustained during workouts.
- Be attentive
Plenty of injuries occur when people are not paying attention. For example, if you’re on a treadmill watching a show, it’s easy to get distracted and lose your pace, which can cause you to trip and fall.
Unfortunately, if you’re injured at the gym, you probably won’t have any recourse to recover funds for your medical bills. Most gyms require guests to sign waivers that don’t allow you to sue for injuries sustained while working out.
There are exceptions, but it’s up to the court to decide. For instance, if a gym knows a piece of equipment is faulty, but continues to allow guests to use it and you get injured, you might be able to sue for negligence despite signing a waiver.
Courts often uphold waivers as protection against negligence claims, but that doesn’t mean your personal injury case won’t settle. Many cases do settle, and some people have successfully sued their gym for negligence, but don’t count on that being your experience, too.
- Always use a spotter
No matter how much weight you’re lifting, it’s going to hurt if you drop a barbell or weight plate anywhere on your body, especially your feet. If you’re benching with free weights, use a spotter. If you’re at the gym alone, ask someone nearby if they’ll spot you.
Never lift heavy alone. If you get stuck with a heavy barbell on your body that you can’t lift, and you’re alone, you might end up injuring yourself even more trying to get it off.
- Replace worn tubular bands
Bands are a game-changer when it comes to workouts, but they aren’t always safe. You’re stretching massive amounts of elastic material over and over, and they’re basically a slingshot waiting to strike if something goes wrong.
If you use tubular bands, there’s a chance the handle might snap off, causing the band to hit your body and create a painful welt. It happens more often than you might think, usually with lower quality bands.
It’s crucial to get high-quality bands that have reinforced handles and safety technology built into the bands to prevent them from snapping.
For example, Bodylastics bands have a patented nylon string running through the core of every band that will stop the snap reaction if a band were to break.
However, other high-quality bands that don’t have this type of safety technology are still a risk, and you should replace bands that have been well-used.
- Switch to looped bands
Instead of using tubular bands, it’s worth making the switch to looped bands. While they’re still technically slingshots capable of causing injury, they’re less likely to snap because the pressure isn’t on a tiny connection on the handle. There are no handles. They are literally just a loop, like a giant rubber band.
Looped bands are used with handles, bars, and a footplate. The pressure is more evenly distributed, and the strength of the band is much higher than tubular bands.
Although there are some exercises you can’t do with looped bands, you can still get a full body workout with them and/or use your tubular bands less.
- Wear the proper clothing
Proper clothing is essential for avoiding workout injuries. Generally speaking, this includes wearing non-slip shoes that fit and clothes that aren’t too loose. You should also avoid wearing any type of jewelry, even your wedding ring. Injuries sustained from accidents involving rings can be devastating.
Although there are ways to look good at the gym, you really don’t need to wear fancy clothes or look good while working out. You’re going to get sweaty and it’s not the time or place to be fashionable.
Sure, there are a lot of people who insist on looking fabulous at the gym, but it’s only going to cause you trouble if you’re serious about your workouts.
- Only use equipment the right way
There are always reasons why certain pieces of equipment come with warnings not to use them in specific ways. Many people have been injured from using equipment incorrectly, so don’t take that chance.
Workout injuries are preventable
Even though accidents happen, many injuries can be prevented by simply paying attention, wearing the right clothes, and using equipment properly. Avoid being careless during your workouts and you’ll be less likely to experience an injury.
