How to develop the habit of moving correctly in everyday life

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

The correct technique of movements is needed not only in the gym, but also in everyday life. Learn how to lift weights, walk on high ground, and do other normal activities without risk of injury.

Standard movements in and out of the gym

Someone thinks that exercise in the gym is very far from the stress in everyday life. Probably confusing all those barbells, dumbbells and weights. The human body is, of course, complex, but always in the same way.

During the deadlift, the same muscles work as when lifting a heavy box or stroller. It doesn't matter if you are walking on a curbstone with weights in your hands or climbing a high curb with two bags of groceries.

And just as improper exercise technique in the gym leads to joint pain, sprains and spinal problems, the habit of moving incorrectly in everyday life leads to problems with the musculoskeletal system. Maybe to a lesser extent if you exert irregularly and not with such heavy weights as in the gym, but still.

Nobody wants to get hurt. Nobody dreams of back pain at 30. Therefore, learn to move correctly.

Here's a quick guide on how to properly perform gym exercises and their counterparts in everyday life. I especially recommend it to those who have never been to a gym and are not going to.

Lifting weights off the floor

We will analyze this movement using the example of the deadlift - an exercise that involves lifting the bar from the floor or from a small elevation.

In everyday life, we often have to lift weights, and after that, the back usually hurts. With improper lifting, the main load falls on the lumbar spine and untrained muscles cannot cope with such mockery.

To protect yourself from injury, you must follow several rules during the ascent:

1. Keep your back straight. The natural position of the spine is straight. When you round your back, slouch, or bend over, your vertebrae become unnatural, and the extra stress increases your risk of injury. Therefore, remember: you need to lift weights only with a straight back!

2. Transfer the main load to your legs. There is a wonderful addiction here: as soon as you tighten your quadriceps and buttocks during the lift, the load is removed from the lower back and transferred to the legs. In addition, the lower the pelvis is during lifting, the greater the load on the leg muscles. Therefore, before lifting the weight, you need to do a small squat (with a straight back!) And only then, straining your legs, lift the weight.

3. Keep your weight close to you. It is unlikely that someone will lift weights on outstretched arms in front of them, but still it is worth saying that the closer you hold a heavy object, the less load on the lower back. Lift very close to you, practically touching your body.

Lifting with support on one leg

In the gym, lifts with support on one leg are lunges or steps on a curbstone. They are often performed with weights: lunges - with dumbbells or weights, strides - with a barbell on the shoulders.

In everyday life, we also quite often perform such movements, for example, when we step onto a chair with a heavy box or bag to throw it on the closet, or get up from the floor with a heavy object or a child in our arms.

The main mistake in this movement is the incorrect position of the knee joint. When you place your leg on a dais and then transfer your body weight onto it, the knee should not be turned inward. This reduces the stability of the position, so that when lifting weights or careless movement, you can stretch your ligaments or simply lose your balance and fall.

To prevent this from happening, while stepping or lunging, watch the position of the knee: it should be slightly turned outward. If, despite your best efforts, it continues to roll inward, then you have taken too much weight.

It also affects posture stability and knee extension. In any analysis of the technique of lunges, you will hear that the knee should not go beyond the toe. Ideally, the angle between your thigh and lower leg should be 90 degrees.

One more point: you can't round your back. As with the deadlift, a rounded back will put stress on the lower back, which must be protected. Therefore, any lift is performed with a straight back, so that mainly the muscles of the legs work.

Squat

This is a basic powerlifting exercise performed with a barbell on your shoulders or chest. Where can it be found in everyday life? Climbing from a low surface, such as a low bench.

Here's the correct technique to follow in and out of the gym:

1. Keep your back straight. Probably, you will not find a single exercise that is performed with a stooped back. Remember this at least at the moment of lifting weights. The dependence is direct: stooped back during the rise - a sore lower back.

2. Unfold the socks and knees. If the socks are slightly turned to the sides, and the knee looks at the toe, during lifting, the pelvis twists forward, and the extensor muscles of the back rigidly fix the spine. This relieves stress on the lumbar spine.

In addition, as with the deadlift, the knees should not be twisted inward, otherwise the joint will be loaded in an unnatural position, which is fraught with injury.

Weight walking

I think everyone occasionally has to walk with heavy objects in both hands. In the gym there is an analogue of this load - the exercise "farmer's walk": the athlete moves around the gym with barbells, weights or dumbbells.

Let's look at a technique for performing this exercise, which will also come in handy in everyday life if you have to endure especially heavy things without prior preparation:

1. Lift the weight correctly. Do this with a straight back and a small squat to release the load from the spine and transfer it to your legs.

2. Straighten your shoulders. Slouching can lead to strain and injury to the shoulder joint. Therefore, while walking, bring your shoulder blades together - your shoulders will automatically straighten. It is also advised to raise the shoulders a little to relieve the load on the joint.

3. Don't step wide. Farmer's walk is done in small steps, but since in real life we rarely lift such heavy objects, you can walk in medium steps - this way you will move more steadily.

Concentrating on movement

I think the main cause of domestic injuries is a lack of concentration on movement. If, while lifting a heavy sofa, you are thinking about how it will fit into the interior of the room, the risk of injury increases greatly.

Therefore, when performing complex movements in the gym or in everyday life, concentrate on the sensations of your body: what muscles are tense, in what position are the joints, what is the main load during lifting, and how you can change your body position to make you more comfortable.

Feel your body and move correctly.