If you've ever had a grueling workout in your garage, you're well aware that home workouts are no walk in the park, despite what some people may think. Depending on the exercises you're doing, they aren't necessarily safer at home either.
While home workouts have a reputation for being easier and safer than gym workouts, that's not always the case. During your next workout, avoid these common mistakes to stay safe and injury-free.
5 mistakes that can jeopardize your training at home
You skip your warm up
If you're used to working out at the gym or attending group exercise classes, it's easy to have a good time or completely neglect your warm-up. But that can leave you sore or even injured.
One of the most common mistakes is the absence of proper heating. Warming up is essential to ensure that the body is primed and ready to perform the movements in training. Without a proper warm-up, you are at a higher risk of injury.
Performs at least two minutes of light cardio to get your heart rate up and get your muscles ready for work. Then follow up with some mobility exercises. If you're not sure what you're supposed to do during your warmup, start with some slow, controlled bodyweight movements, similar to the exercises in your chosen routine.
You don't have a training plan
For some, staying motivated is a big challenge when exercising at home. But your lack of ideas can be even worse if you don't have a solid plan.
Typically, when people walk into a training session without a plan, they go back to an exercise routine they've done in the past. Over time, doing the same movements over and over again can lead to overuse injuries. Also, you probably won't see much progress if you stick with the same routine over and over again.
Consider dividing your routines by body part. For home workouts, it's best to alternate between upper body and lower body each day. Have a plan at the beginning of each week and vary your exercises over time.
Your workouts are too complex
Exercising at home with limited equipment can definitely get monotonous. But just like not having a training plan, you also don't want to go too far in the other direction and create a complicated program.
A little creativity in your exercise routine isn't a bad thing, but you don't want to fill your entire routine with complex exercises inspired by social media, especially if they're beyond your current fitness level. If these movements are too complex for you or if you lack specific technique, this can quickly lead to injuries or accidents during your training.
Instead of looking for complex moves to experiment with, try changing up your reps or adding intensity. Instead of doing 10 reps of squats, try a AMRAP one minute (as many repetitions as possible).
Your technique is not up to par
If you normally attend training classes with a monitor that corrects your posture, it can be difficult to transition into training on your own.
Practicing and monitoring your own posture takes practice, particularly if it's not what you normally do in the gym. But even performing bodyweight exercises with poor technique can lead to a inadequate joint loading, which can cause joint or muscle pain over time.
If you're not sure of your technique, try practicing each exercise in front of a mirror. This will help you pay close attention to your movement patterns. Or consider hiring a virtual trainer.
You are using homemade materials
There are many creative and safe ways to use household objects in your training. Don't have a bar? Fill a backpack with heavy items. No weights? Soup cans will work in a pinch.
But you also don't want to experiment too much with your home workout material alternatives. sorry but pressing the sofa with your legs is probably not a good idea, despite what social media influencers may be leading you to believe so.
Lifting objects with an irregular technique or different weights can cause asymmetries in your body and irregular loads on your joints.
Try to find items that are similar in shape and weight to use during your exercises. If you're doing bicep curls with a water bottle, make sure each bottle is filled with the same amount of water. Also, make sure that the items you use are stable and won't break while you use them.