How to avoid injury while strength training

Common strength training injuries

Rotator cuff injuries

Your rotator cuff is the group of muscles and tendons surrounding your shoulder joint. Injury causes inflammation or a tear in these muscles and tendons, and it's a common cause of shoulder pain. This can make it difficult to carry out everyday tasks that require arm movement, such as hair brushing or getting dressed.

Rotator cuff injuries are common in athletes who play tennis and baseball, or construction workers, since the injuries are caused by repetitive overhead motions.

The two main types of rotator cuff injuries are a rotator cuff tear, which can develop after an injury or if you dislocate your shoulder, and tendinopathy, which is pain around the tendons of your rotator cuff because they cannot repair themselves. Tendinopathy is usually a result of wear and tear over time.

A doctor or physiotherapist can examine you and ask you to perform certain movements if you suspect you have injured yourself. An X-ray or ultrasound scan might be necessary to diagnose a rotator cuff injury. You might be referred for physiotherapy, given steroid injections, or require surgery, depending on the severity of the injury.

Hamstring pulls

Your hamstrings are strong bands of tissue located at the back of your thigh, and injuring them causes the tendons or muscles to strain or tear. Pulling your hamstring happens when one or more of the muscles gets stretched too far. This is usually a result of sudden, powerful movements, and can occur when you are running, jumping, or lunging.

You are more likely to develop a hamstring injury if you have already had one in the past. While they typically cause relatively little pain and have a short recovery time, there are three grades of hamstring injuries. A pull can take days to heal, but a grade two or three tear might take weeks or months to heal fully.

Disc herniations

A herniated disc - sometimes called a slipped disc - is a common back injury. We have vertebral discs between each vertebral bone in our spine that act as cushions. They help to absorb impact and guide movement in the spine. When they rupture and herniate, it can be painful and may cause symptoms to travel down your legs as pressure is put on your nerves.

This type of injury can be caused by a sudden extreme movement or by repetitive poor movement when weightlifting, which is why good form and correct technique are essential.

Symptoms of a herniated disc include pain or decreased sensation in your back, buttocks, thigh, and calf. You might also experience numbness or a tingling feeling and weakness in your muscles.

Your doctor will be able to examine you and identify which area of your spine has been affected, based on the location of your symptoms. It's important to be aware of the 'red flags' for back pain to look out for - if you have any of these, you should seek urgent medical help.

A herniated disc usually gets better slowly. You might need to rest at first if the pain is very bad, but gentle exercise afterwards can aid the healing process. It's important to start off slowly and gradually increase your physical activity safely. Painkillers can also be prescribed.

Tendonitis

A tendon is a band of tissues attaching your muscles to your bones. Tendonitis is the irritation and inflammation caused by micro tears in your tendons, prohibiting them from performing a smooth, sliding motion as normal.

Tendonitis is commonly caused by minor stress and repetitive motions. However, it may also be a result of sudden impact or injury.

The symptoms of tendonitis include slight pain during or after a workout, which persists over time and after a period of rest. It might intensify to a burning sensation and lead to swelling or redness in the affected area. Tendonitis commonly occurs in the base of the thumb, wrist, shoulder, knee, elbow, hip, or Achilles tendon.

Tennis elbow

Tennis elbow is when you have pain around the outside of your elbow. Its medical term is lateral epicondylitis, and it is often caused by repetitive movements of the wrist and arm.

Despite its name, however, this injury affects more than just athletes, as it can affect anyone whose job includes those types of motions, including painters, plumbers or butchers.

Golfer's elbow (medial epicondylitis) is similar to tennis elbow but the pain is felt on the inner side of your elbow.

The pain from tennis elbow mainly occurs where the tendons of your forearm muscles attach to a bony bump on the outside of your elbow. You might find that the pain spreads to your forearm and wrist.

While anyone can be affected by tennis elbow, it is most common in adults aged 30-50 and those who use poor technique while playing sports.

How to prevent muscle injuries

Ollie Kerr, fitness coach, adds that, as well as happening as a result of performing too much exercise too quickly, these injuries can occur when you lift weights that are not appropriate for your current ability level. Any changes to the intensity level of the workout should therefore be made gradually over time.

Alongside rest, he recommends eating a good diet and remaining hydrated to speed up the recovery process. Ice, compression and elevation can also be effective techniques for the initial treatment of the majority of sport-related injuries.

The importance of warming up and cooling down

"The aim of the warm-up is to increase heart rate and subsequent blood flow, which allows more oxygen to get to muscles to prepare them for exercise, and helps prevent injury," explains Kerr. "It is therefore extremely important to warm up prior to taking part in any form of exercise."

A study with rabbits actually supported the idea that warming up provides a protective mechanism in the muscle, which reduces the chance of injury. The study found that this protective mechanism requires greater length of stretch and force to produce a tear in the rabbit's muscle.

Likewise, cooling down after your workout is just as important as what you do during your workout. It helps to regulate blood flow, giving your heart and blood vessels a chance to ease their way out of physical activity.

Kerr suggests jogging on the spot for a warm-up. Combine this with big, dynamic movements and exercises through which you move your body through its full range of motion. This prepares your body for strength training, while static exercises in which you hold a position are more beneficial at the end of a workout.

Seeking advice

It might be wise to contact your doctor if you have sustained an injury, and pain or discomfort continues despite resting. Kerr also suggests consulting a qualified fitness instructor or personal trainer before starting a new strength-training routine. They can help you develop an effective and achievable strength-training programme and ensure you are doing exercises properly.

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