Avoid These Common Exercise Errors

When you strike out to do something new in your life, it’s not unusual to make a few mistakes while you’re trying to get it right.  That’s how we live and learn.

And exercise is no different.  If you’ve resolved to change the way you feel with exercise, you’re eager to enjoy the benefits and to transform your health outlook and lifestyle for the better.  Your enthusiasm has you vibrating with anticipation!

I get it.  It’s exciting.  It’s new.  But your very enthusiasm can undermine you.  It can lead you to injure yourself, for one.  There are common mistakes everyone makes when they start out exercising and I’d like to share some of them with you.  Avoid these common exercise errors and get the most from your new, healthier lifestyle.

Too Much, Too Soon

A common problem I see with new fitness enthusiasts is an almost manic focus on “getting there”.  Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither was a healthy body.

That’s especially true if you’ve been sedentary for a while.  I see people take up walking to get started (which is a good strategy).  But when they feel that’s not enough, they add weights.  And that’s where they can quickly get derailed.

Using hand and/or ankle weights may seem like a good way to build yourself up, but you need to concentrate on how you’re walking.  Your posture is important here.  Engaging your core is important.  When you’re thinking about the weights and how you’re using them, you’re distracted from the rest of your body and that’s how people get hurt.

Ease into it and pay attention to what you’re doing with your body.

It’s Not All About Burning Calories

Watching what you eat is a good thing to do but it’s not all about the calories.  It’s about the quality of your food.  Eating well and exercising is what keeps your body balanced – intake and outtake, working together.

And a lot of new exercise fans tend to get stuck on “cardio” because of their eating habits.  They want the weight off – now.  But cardio isn’t enough if you’re serious about building yourself up, physically.

You also need strength and resistance training.  If, for example, you have a lot of weight to lose, you’ll find that the muscles supporting your skin aren’t equal to the task of absorbing the weight loss.  Your skin will sag as the weight comes off.

Cardiovascular exercise is important, but again, balance is everything.  Building your muscle mass not only supports healthy weight loss, but it helps you burn those calories you’re so obsessed with.  Muscle also weighs more than fat, so keep that in mind, if you get frustrated about the weight loss.

More Too Much, Too Soon

Strength training, like working with weights, or with the weight of your own body, is a crucial part of a fitness regime.  But again, take it slow.  Build yourself up gradually.  Attempting to do too much too soon can lead to injury and elevated blood pressure.

Injured?  I’ll straighten you out!  Just reach out.

Dr Shan Sivendra MD

Dr Shan Sivendra MD is the founder and medical director of Back and Body Medical in Midtown Manhattan. A board-certified medical doctor, certified acupuncturist, and Director of House Physicians at St. Barnabas Medical Center, Dr Sivendra has been practicing in New York since 1995.

He completed his residency in Internal Medicine at Saint Barnabas Medical Center (affiliated with Mount Sinai School of Medicine) and received the Resident Research Award for three consecutive years.

Dr Sivendra has a background spanning internal medicine, pain management, and conservative spine rehabilitation, and was licensed in both the US and the UK.

At Back and Body Medical, he leads a multidisciplinary team of chiropractors, physical therapists, and acupuncturists dedicated to helping patients recover from pain without surgery or unnecessary medication.