While we all know about the benefits that different forms of exercises provide us, we are mostly unaware of the health complications and injuries posed by them. Most of us are also oblivious to the fact that workouts yield benefit to the body only when done in a proper duration and in the correct technique.
Weightlifting is one of the best forms of workout. There are several types of weightlifting exercises like push-ups, chest press, squats, deadlift, rows, curls, dips, shoulder press and more. However, there are several risks of injury when it is not done properly.
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Common injuries that can happen during weightlifting
As per a research report, “Weight-training can cause significant musculoskeletal injuries such as fractures, dislocations, spondylolysis, spondylolisthesis, intervertebral disk herniation, and meniscal injuries of the knee.”
Pectoralis tendon ruptures: Incorrect way of weightlifting can lead to pectoralis tendon ruptures. The pectoralis major muscle is the bulk of the anterior chest mass. Rupture in this mass is also seen during boxing, and windsurfing sports.
As per a study majority of pectoralis major injuries are the result of bench pressing, which is a very commonly performed exercise, especially by novice weightlifters.
Distal biceps tendon rupture: Distal biceps tendon rupture is also commonly seen among weightlifters. This is usually treated through a surgical repair. Chronic distal bicep tendon ruptures may require the patient to have allograft reconstruction of the tendon.
Capsulolabral injuries: Injury to the capsulolabral complex of the shoulder is commonly seen among athletes but its occurrence in weightlifters is considerably high. A 2017 research study published in the Journal of Orthopaedics
says that, “Upper extremity resistance training exercises place emphasis on large muscle groups to create strength and hypertrophy while neglecting smaller muscles responsible for upper extremity joint stabilization. Specifically, exercises that emphasize larger muscle groups may create an imbalance of the internal versus external rotator cuff musculature, rotator cuff-deltoid force couple, and periscapular musculature. These imbalances have been associated with shoulder injury in various investigations.”
How to prevent such injuries from happening
Experts say chronic ruptures and tears are due to the fact that the trainer focuses only on the large muscle groups neglecting the smaller groups which are actually responsible for joint stability.
Though no workout is complete without any injury, chronic injury can mar the progress that an individual is expecting from a regular workout.
When the discussion is about management of injuries the first and the foremost thing that can help in this is the modification of the training regimen and having a guided physical therapy.
Injury should not be ignored and muscles should not be strained when they are injured. Let them heal first.
To obviate surgical intervention take medical assistance and avoid high risk exercises.
