It’s best not to take any chances: 10 dangerous exercises at the gym

There are some exercises in fitness that put too much strain on the body. If you do them incorrectly, at best you will waste time, and at worst you will leave the gym crippled. Therefore, such activities should be avoided or proceed with great caution. Mostly dangerous exercises involve free weights.

Bench press from behind the head

The barbell press from behind the head is an exercise for training the shoulders. At the lowest point, our elbows are in an unnatural position and overloaded. And if we work with heavy weight, the muscles are easily injured. This exercise is dangerous for the shoulder joints.

French bench press

The French press is very popular among gym-goers and is good for working out the triceps. But it is dangerous, and often athletes have inflammation in the elbow joints. In this exercise you do not need to chase large weights. It is better to do it with less weight, but qualitatively.

Squats with a barbell

Squats are a powerful exercise for the development of leg muscles. It has a positive effect on the overall body weight gain and develops quadriceps well. But many athletes avoid it for fear of injury. Squats first of all require proper technique, otherwise there is a risk of injuring the back or knees.

Forward bends with a barbell (“good morning”)

Forward bends with a barbell are good for strengthening the lower back, engaging the glutes and the muscles of the back of the thigh. But nowadays this exercise is rarely seen in gyms because of its traumatic nature. It’s dangerous in terms of axial loading. If done incorrectly, the lumbar spine can be affected. If you have back pain, it is better to avoid weight bending altogether.

Leg press in an exercise machine

This exercise works the leg muscles well: it affects the thighs, quadriceps and buttocks. But if you do it incorrectly, you risk injuring your knees or lower back. Try to keep your pelvis tightly pressed against the machine and do not lower the platform too low, so that the technique is not disturbed.

Standing pull from the floor

The floor pull is probably the most effective back exercise. But it is also one of the most dangerous and unpleasant.

Its usefulness lies in the fact that it contributes to the rapid buildup of muscle mass. Pulling is performed with weight, so it should be approached with extreme caution. Poor warm-up, crooked technique and sharp movements during the exercise can lead to a torn lower back. Rounding the back while lifting weights is often the cause of pain. Another cause of injuries in the lumbar region can be the wrong grip. It is better to use a classic or straps.

Upper block pull behind the head

This exercise is aimed at working the broadest muscles of the back. The traumatic nature of such training, unfortunately, is high, because due to the incorrect position of the shoulders, a breaking load is created. But if you approach the exercise with the correct technique, you can avoid problems. There are a few rules to follow: do not let go of the block handle too low, and do not take the bar too wide.

Pulling the bar to the chin

The barbell pull to the chin is, on the one hand, an excellent basic exercise for shoulders, which can give them volume and improve their shape. On the other hand, it is the vice-champion in creating shoulder girdle injuries, second only to the barbell press from behind the head. The reason for this is the pressure of the shoulder blade on the capsule of the shoulder joint when lifting the arm up. There are two ways to avoid this unpleasant injury:

• Hetis necessary to warm up the shoulder muscles well, which will increase the result in all pressing exercises.
• It is not necessary to use heavy weights in the narrow grip pulling. To pump delts, you can do 12-15 repetitions, and the exercise will give a return.

Leg curls in a training machine

This is an isolated exercise aimed at developing leg muscles. It mainly involves the front part of the thigh. But you should realize that leg curls in the trainer is extremely traumatic for your knees. Especially the cruciate ligaments are at great risk, and this is already serious.

Only a correct approach to execution will help you not to think about health problems. It is necessary to set the right weight to cope with the load without jerky movements. And it is important to remember that the knees should not form an acute angle when bending. This will only increase the load on the joints – there is a risk of injury.

Negative angle barbell press

The last exercise on our list is not so popular, and in some gyms there is a layer of dust on the benches for it. The obvious disadvantage is the prohibitive risk. You can drop the barbell on your chest or even on your neck. If you are alone in the gym, you need to properly use small weights, and also in no case allow the barbell to swing. The range of motion here is shorter, and some athletes feel they can’t work their muscles this way. For this and other reasons, many people prefer to do push-ups on the bars to pump the lower chest.

By and large, many gym injuries come from inattention and complacency. If you do exercises with proper technique and adequately select the weight, you can avoid injuries. And remember that there is always an alternative: you can replace the conventional standing pull from the floor with the Romanian pull. If you decide to do dangerous exercises, it is better to perform them under the supervision of a trainer or an experienced comrade. Do not forget to warm up and correctly select the working weight.

Besides, the expert of “Championship”, wellness coach Andrei Semesjov repeatedly repeats that often it is not a specific exercise that leads to injuries, but the load, during which unknown old injuries come out.

Andrei: In the fitness center we create such conditions when the body has to literally start working. And then various unpleasant news come out. For example, a person had a herniated disc, but he didn’t even know about it. And then suddenly he started doing bent-over exercises with a barbell. And his back just shot up. But it was not the barbell that gave him this herniated disc, but many years of “strenuous” lifestyle.