Burn Calories Smarter & Safer

By:
Catherine Censor

A gym is a great place to see the adage "a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing" brought to life. Every day, I see well-educated, competent adults injuring themselves in pursuit of fitness. And while their exercise mistakes may cause them pain and even serious injury, they're not the only ones feeling discomfort. You have no idea how unpleasant it is to watch someone blithely wrecking her cervical spine while the thought-bubble over her head reads, "I'm flattening my abs!"

The following are some mistakes that will send me flying across the room to intervene. Unfortunately, I can't be everywhere so I'll share a few of the more common mistakes I've seen:

Just Say No to Neck Crunches!

When performing a crunch (or curl, as we now call them), do not yank or your head. Do not pull firmly on your head. Do not initiate motion with your head. In short, leave the chiropractic adjustments to the licensed professionals. Violently yanking your head forward is not only lousy for your cervical spine (the upper portion of your spine); it also makes for a crappy ab exercise.

If you're a chronic head-puller, here's my fix: Clasp the palms of your hands together, interlacing the fingers. Place your clasped hands under your chin and against your throat. Perform your curl with the hands never leaving this position. Aha! Harder, isn't it? Now that you're not yanking on your head, your abs have to do the work. I can hear you asking, "But now that my head isn't supported, won't my neck be straining?" The answer is, "Not really." While your neck will indeed be supporting your head, it ought to have no problems doing so. And even though you are asking your neck to contribute, you're being far kinder than when you snap it forward by "supporting it" a bit too enthusiastically.

Help! I've Squatted and I Can't Get Up!

Unlike toes, which are happy to forge boldly ahead, knees like to hang back a little where it's safe. So when you're squatting or lunging, don't put your knees ahead of your toes. When you look down in a squatting position, you should be able to see your toes. If you don't see your toes, your knees will take it badly and (ahem) get all out of joint.

Here's the right way to do a squat: Keep your knees over your ankles and scoot your butt back and down as if reaching for a chair behind you. You should never see your knees shoot over your toes. If you do, you're putting too much stress on your knees. While we're on the topic of squats, try to keep your eyes forward or up. This will help you keep your back straight, instead of rounded (another squatting no-no).

Attack of Big Foot

If you make a loud, pounding noise when you run on the treadmill and you're not a yeti, you're probably landing with too much force and beating up your joints. Sometimes, a little mindfulness is all it takes to correct the problem. Think of running through a puddle and trying not to splash. If this doesn't do the trick, you may have something wrong with your stride. While I've seen some wacky gaits in my time, one of the most common mistakes is running on one's toes. As your foot lands, your heel should hit the treadmill first and then smoothly roll through the ball of the foot.

It's All in the Wrist!

Last week, I saw some guy waterskiing on the treadmill. He had the speed and the incline cranked while he held on for dear life to the console. I advised him to slow down a little and swing his arms but he refused. "I burn more calories this way," he insisted, pointing to the LED display. I tried to point out that the treadmill didn't know he was waterskiing instead of running but I don't think it registered. The fact is, if you're leaning on a console when using a stair-climber or hanging off a treadmill, you're not getting the exercise you programmed into the machine. Your arms ‑- and wrists and elbows ‑- are bearing more than their fair share of the load. If you lean over on the stair-climber or treadmill, you're also straining your lower back.

So stand up straight and burn some calories safely, darn it! Don't make me come over there!