6 Strength-Training Mistakes That Are Making You Weaker
Strength training is important for overall health, well-being, and longevity. Most people know that strength training builds muscle and makes you stronger, but they often don't think about how it makes your everyday life tasks easier. Strength training improves bone density, which is especially important as you age to reduce the risk of osteoporosis and fractures. It increases joint stability and lowers your risk of injury and chronic pain. Regular strength training reduces the risk of chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease by improving blood sugar, cholesterol, and blood pressure levels. Strength training promotes longer, healthier lives by helping you stay more physically active and independent as you age, but there are harmful mistakes people can make. Here are six bad strength training habits to avoid and why.
Skipping a Proper Warm-Up
Warm-ups might seem optional, but your muscles don't perform as well without them. Think of your warm-up as a time to prime your muscles for what they're about to do, reduce your injury risk, and get your central nervous system ready to carry the weight. Cold muscles don't contract as effectively either, meaning training without a warm-up could leave strength gains on the table. Start with 5-10 minutes of light cardio, dynamic stretching, and movement-specific exercises (like banded pull-parts or glute bridges) to prep the correct muscles for your workout.
Improper Breathing Techniques
Improper breathing during strength training can negatively impact your performance, safety, and overall progress. Proper breathing techniques (for example, the Valsalva maneuver for heavy lifts) engage your core and stabilize your spine to reduce injury. Exhaling during the exertion phase helps generate more force in a lift. I like to tell my clients, "Exhale with the effort." We tend to hold our breath when things get challenging. However, this reduces our power and strength output during a lift. Improper breathing can also lead to dizziness, lightheadedness, or fainting spells if you're not taking in enough oxygen. Your muscles need oxygen to function properly. Without enough oxygen, your muscles will feel fatigued and tire more quickly, especially during high-rep or endurance-based exercises.
Lifting Too Heavy Too Quickly
Strength is built gradually and progressively over time. Lifting too heavy before your body is ready can result in poor technique, stalled progress, and even injury. Your muscles, ligaments, joints, and tendons need time to adapt to increased weight. Lifting heavier than your capacity can cause strains and sprains or even more serious injuries like a herniated disk. Your progress may plateau earlier because your nervous system hasn't had time to adapt. Focus on controlled, full-range movements that feel challenging but not overwhelming.
Not Resting Enough Between Sets
Resting too little between sets can leave you feeling fatigued and prevent you from lifting each set with full strength and power. It can also compromise your form and lead to injury. Generally speaking, when training for hypertrophy/muscle gain, you should rest between sets for 60-90 seconds. When training for strength by lifting heavy weights for 1-5 reps, your body can need 2-5 minutes between sets, depending on the intensity of the lift. When you rest correctly between sets, your muscles have the time to recover and give their all to the next set, meaning you get more out of the lift than if you rush through them.
Not Following the Principles of Progressive Overload
Your body adapts to what you consistently do, so you need to continue to challenge it more over time. If you continually lift the same weight for the same reps, your body will stop gaining strength. Progressive overload means systematically challenging your muscles to adapt by increasing the intensity, volume, or difficulty of your workouts. When you push your muscles beyond their current capacity, they respond by getting stronger, bigger, or more resilient to handle the increased demand. You can do this in several ways, including increasing the resistance/weight, adding reps or sets, slowing the eccentric (lowering/lengthening) phase of the lift to increase time under tension, and incorporating more advanced variations of exercises.
Not Sleeping Enough
Not sleeping enough can significantly hinder your strength training progress because sleep plays a critical role in muscle recovery, hormonal balance, and overall performance. As you sleep, your body releases growth hormones and synthesizes protein, both of which are essential for muscle growth and the repair of damaged muscle tissue. Lack of sleep makes your body tired, reducing your physical and mental energy. Because of this, your workouts will feel more challenging and be less productive. Sleep deprivation can also lead to mental struggles and lack of motivation, reduced immune system response, increased risk of injury, hormonal imbalances, and poor neuromuscular function, leading to a lack of strength and coordination. And if you enjoyed this article, don't miss How Long Your Walking Workout Should Be To Shrink Belly Fat.
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