Jumping into Fitness after Quarantine

We are in a rare situation that has prevented many people from going to the gym, Receiving the professional help that they need, and is leading many to experience injuries and pains that they might not have otherwise dealt with before. 

This can include pain in the shoulders, the knees, the hips, the ankles, and where I myself feel it most, the back. Many have taken off a couple months from lifting serious heavy weight, being restricted to what we had at home, whether it be resistance bands or some light kettlebells and dumbbells. 

But nothing in comparison to the weight that can be placed on a barbell. If you are anything like myself, you were excited to return to the gym, jumped under the barbell, and learned that doing high reps of goblet squats does not replace nor protect your back from injury with a plate on each side. A plate on each side prior to quarantine would have been a warm-up, but it is what injured my left hip flexor due to me jumping right in and causing too much strain on my body.

I am not alone in this, clients that had injuries under control, limitations that they were slowly progressing, are now seeing that they not only have lost some of the progress, but many are becoming more injured than they were before.

Why is this and how could this be?

It is always surprising to people how much muscle one can lose and how fast things can regress given a sedentary lifestyle, even for as short as a couple weeks. And this is exactly what has happened, the quarantine forced people indoors, where they did not actively work out and work towards improving their health. Many waited for the gyms to open back up, and the damage has already been done.

The way that people were used to loading the weight, the mobility they were used to controlling, and the cardiovascular ability that they were used to having, are all now diminished, but that does not stop people from jumping back in 100%. And it is there that people will overextend themselves and cause an injury.

The ideal way is to slowly integrate exercise back into one's life, increasing the intensity over time, and building back up to the Work capacity that they had prior to quarantine. However, to do that takes the knowledge of a skilled professional that understands the concepts of training safely and effectively, the progressions and regressions of each exercise, and an understanding of how to assess the current level of fitness of each individual and where they should begin. 

A skilled and certified trainer is able to meet you where you are at and progress you to where you want to be and towards the goals you have. One of the best ways to start receiving some coaching is to attend a group fitness class. Many personal trainers are able to coach individuals in these classes and provide tips and tricks on form, provide visuals for the exercise, and provide proper cueing for the technique. From here, many will still choose to have an entire individualized hour with the trainer, working on specific limitations, mobility, or specific goals of the individual. 

Okay Alec, that all sounds great and nice and cool and stuff, but where then, do you recommend I take a class? 

Great question, and I got your answer, random anonymous submitter. 

You come see me in a couple weeks when MyFitness Suites has their grand opening September 26th!

Of course, throughout the month leading up to it there will be numerous ways to get involved, and I would love to meet you and help you along your journey! 

Stay safe, be kind, and get strong!