Body maintenance for people who workout regularly

[Anonymous]

Those who are into fitness, how do you take care of your body for those achy joints and muscles and for preventive care?

For me, I lift weights regularly and what I do is foam roll, stretch as much as I can before and after a workout (when time permits), have a warmup routine prior to a workout. Sometimes I get one of those acupressure massages at shopping malls to get at those deep tissue massages, they are basically trigger point massages to me.

My shoulder and hips seem to be constantly tight from squats and deadlifts. And basically from sitting at work contributes to it too.

I also like to roll on a lacrosse ball to get at trigger points. The foam roller has it's limitations, I think.

So I go to great lengths to take care of my body to prevent injuries and increase range of motion especially in my 40's.

Please share your maintenance routine if you have any.

[Anonymous]

Add yoga once a week. Your yoga teacher would tell you to do it more often, but once a week helps keep me limber.

[Anonymous]

Bikram yoga

[Anonymous]

What is the difference between active and static stretching?

[Anonymous]

Warm bath with Epsom salts

[Anonymous]

I work out pretty heavy, averaging 1.5hrs 6xs a week.

Twice a week I do pliates for an hour....so I'm basically at it 11 hours a week and (no longer) have injuries.

I've also scaled back my running because I feel like more than 15 miles a week is abusive. I basically now just run 2 or so miles to warm up and maybe to a 4 miler here and there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is the difference between active and static stretching?

Basically active stretching is holding the stretch for about 8-10 secs and static stretching is a deeper stretch 30 secs or so. AS should be done before workout and SS after. Nothing is set in stone of course, some studies say AS may not be useful for muscles and just warming up is good enough. There is no real conclusive evidence that AS will prevent injuries or increase range of motion prior to working out. SS is more important at the end of the workout as studies have shown.

[Anonymous]

Whenever you do a max lift, have someone watch or spot you to make sure you don't fu. Even knowing how to do an exercise correctly isn't enough for a max effort set.

The alternative could be injury, as I did when I attempted a 3rd rep of a 205 lb dead lift.

I had already been lifting for at least 30 min so I was plenty warmed up. Pulled a lower back muscle/ muscle strain. Day 3 of rest, Advil and ice.

Sux to be out.

[Anonymous]

I hate deadlifts, they are terrible on your lower back. I can do the RDLs, but the dead lifts are horrible…my PT agrees!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hate deadlifts, they are terrible on your lower back. I can do the RDLs, but the dead lifts are horrible…my PT agrees!

I disagree. You have to have very good form. Obviously, if you are trying to just stay in shape it may not be the best lift but if you are an athlete or you want to gain maximum strength and muscle mass then the deadlift is the perfect lift for that.

[Anonymous]

A few things on Deadlift, if you have long arms and short torso you may be suited for sumo DL instead of conventional DL. I am the opposite with short arms and Sumo isn't for me and I stick to Conventional.

And I use to think DL doesn't lend itself to high reps because form breaks down due to fatigue, and some prescribe to no more than 5 reps. I have to disagree because if you can master the form and keep the spine neutral at all times, push the hips back, you can bust out high reps galore. Personally, I aim for mostly hypertrophy so I mix up my rep/weight schemes. If you are going heavy for PR or 2 or 3 sets, you can't help but to round your back a little, so it's not a big deal, if you suffer constant lower back pain then something is off. Try "good morning" exercises before you DL if your back is taking over, it will help you use the hips.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hate deadlifts, they are terrible on your lower back. I can do the RDLs, but the dead lifts are horrible…my PT agrees!

I disagree. You have to have very good form. Obviously, if you are trying to just stay in shape it may not be the best lift but if you are an athlete or you want to gain maximum strength and muscle mass then the deadlift is the perfect lift for that.

I know form. I am a fitness competitor.

The best form cannot trump body mechanics and doing something the human body is not meant to do on a repeated basis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
And I use to think DL doesn't lend itself to high reps because form breaks down due to fatigue, and some prescribe to no more than 5 reps. I have to disagree because if you can master the form and keep the spine neutral at all times, push the hips back, you can bust out high reps galore.

I couldn't agree more. I HATED DL'ing when I first learned it. I hated it because I couldn't quite get it down and it frustrated me. I had to sumo lift for months. I incorporated hi rep (4 sets of 25) along with some low rep-high weight days. It is now, by far, my favorite exercise. I've never had a problem with hi rep as I have perfect form, but as with every exercise, form is key. Saying DL'ing, done correctly, is bad for your lower back sounds pretty ridiculous.

My birthday is this Saturday and I'm already looking forward to a dead lifting session to kick it off

[Anonymous]

I am the poster who complained of injury and side-tracked the thread. Sorry abiut that!

I am slowly healing, prob will not dl for a for months but i wanted to say i appreciate the perspectives offered and have 2 things to add:

1). I know what a good form dl looks like- but i still got injured bc when you are fatigued- all bets are off, you cant necessary tell with certainty that all the boxes are checked.

Perhaps i didnt even know i was getting fatigued or ignored the warnings due to some masculine defect.

Thats why its good to have a partner, trainer or if neither are avail- just a fellow gym rat who knows watch you. Dont be shy about asking for help w a high risk lift.

2). Takes total focus when lifting heavy. If you lose your focus- thats another injury waiting to happen.

Perhaps this advice is more relevant to males as i dont see a lot of women doing max effort lifts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
And I use to think DL doesn't lend itself to high reps because form breaks down due to fatigue, and some prescribe to no more than 5 reps. I have to disagree because if you can master the form and keep the spine neutral at all times, push the hips back, you can bust out high reps galore.

I couldn't agree more. I HATED DL'ing when I first learned it. I hated it because I couldn't quite get it down and it frustrated me. I had to sumo lift for months. I incorporated hi rep (4 sets of 25) along with some low rep-high weight days. It is now, by far, my favorite exercise. I've never had a problem with hi rep as I have perfect form, but as with every exercise, form is key. Saying DL'ing, done correctly, is bad for your lower back sounds pretty ridiculous.

My birthday is this Saturday and I'm already looking forward to a dead lifting session to kick it off

Congrats on the DL! And you know what, there's really nothing in the gym that you can't go high reps with as long as form is spot-on. I do BB hip thrusts and i use to think the same with that exercise but after some adjustments and practice one can easily do high reps. Single leg RDLs too.

I'm the OP, glad DL is working for you and happy birthday!