For a full life, exercise

As the temperature drops, many people are heading to local gyms to get their exercise. Some switch from running and swimming to weight lifting in the colder months. Weight training is an extremely effective way to lose weight, increase bone density, improve balance and improve your quality of life. Unfortunately, there is a lot of confusion when it comes to lifting weights and this confusion leads to people avoiding this type of exercise.  The following are some pointers that I used during my time as a personal trainer and continue using today in my chiropractic practice.

Ages 5 to 18:

I see many children in my practice who have pain because they’ve started lifting weights or because they are involved in far too many activities.    Parents now allow children to exercise every day in many different sports and some even allow their children to weight train. These parents believe they are helping their children, but what they don’t know is that they may be doing harm to the growing body of their youngster.

The problem with children lifting weights is that they have open growth plates. These growth plates can remain open up until the early 20s for some children, and these plates are how we grow.  Children who lift heavy weights run the risk of damaging these growth plates and altering how they grow. These problems are relatively rare but the incidence is increasing as parents have their children training as though they were adults.

 I always have children avoid heavy weight training until we know their growth plates are closed.  If teenagers begin to lift weights I usually have them use less weight and do more repetitions. This decreases the stress placed on the growth plates and moves the stress onto the muscles, which makes children stronger and prevents injury.  If you do wish your child to weight train, I urge you to research the topic, find a professional to help  and take things slow.

Adulthood

Most people can see great benefit from weight training in adulthood.  It’s a time when your muscles are in peak form and bone density is at its greatest.  Unfortunately, many women won’t go to the gym because they don’t want to get big muscles. This is a belief that I must put an end to. If anyone could walk into a gym and lift a few weights and have huge muscles then every guy out there would have huge muscles. Believe me when I say that building muscles is a very difficult and time-consuming thing to do. Lifting weights a few times a week will by no means give you huge muscles, but it will give you more strength and muscle tone.

The majority of exercise-induced injuries seem to occur in this age group. I see many people come into the office for back pain after extensive weight training. The most of the time it is because they have overdeveloped their chest or abdominal muscles and neglected training their backs. This causes their posture to start to slump forward and put strain on the back. The back, upper and lower, should be the focus of any weight-training program to prevent injury. I see people developing their chest and abs excessively because those are the muscles that  people can see, which brings me right to my next point. Your abdominal muscles are not the only part of your core!

 Most people have heard that training your core can prevent back pain. This is true, as long as you train your entire core and not just your abdominal muscles.  The most important and most neglected part of the core is the low back. The low back is vastly stronger than the abdominal muscles and is used much more often.

I urge you to start performing back extension exercises. Lie on the ground on your stomach; hands can be to your sides or behind your head.  Now, using only your low back muscles, lift your upper body off the floor and let it back down again. Perform only a few repetitions in the first week and then add more repetitions until you can do three sets of 15 repetitions.  This one exercise may save you from having a bad back.

60s and beyond

The main problems this population experiences is lack of movement and falling down. Many people of this age haven’t ever exercised or have limited experience with exercise.  

Weight training for this group should focus on balance. Movements should focus on being on your feet and moving around, not lying on a bench or sitting at a weight-lifting machine.  Although machines are easier for people to use, they don’t develop your stability muscles and will do nothing to prevent falls. These movements can be staggering in the beginning, which is why it’s always a good idea to use the services of a trainer.

Heavy weights should not be the focus of your routine; the joints can’t handle that type of activity. The focus should be on lighter weights and more functional activity. I see people on a weekly basis who have used weights too heavy for them and torn rotator cuff muscles or thrown their back out.  If you use higher repetitions and lower weights you can easily increase strength and stability, which will improve your quality of life.  

The easiest way to do weight-bearing exercise is to walk. Our area has numerous track facilities available for the public. Start slow and build up to 30 to 60 minutes a day.

Then I would look in your cabinets for cans.  Almost everyone has soup cans in their homes that can be used as weights. Bring them along for your daily walks to exercise your upper body. Lift them in front and to the sides of the body a few times during each lap. Other things such as carrying your own groceries and cleaning the yard are good ways to incorporate weight-bearing activities into your everyday life.  

The second exercise is more for balance and should always be performed with someone watching you to prevent falling. Balance decreases rapidly as we age and like anything else, if you don’t use it, you lose it, so we need to train our bodies to be stable.

This can be done by standing in front of a mirror, with both feet on the ground. Now slowly lift one foot off the ground and see how long you can stand on one foot. Repeat on the other side. The goal is to work up to a few minutes on each leg. Once you advance past a few minutes you can add other movements into the routine.  It’s helpful to have a trainer create a balance program for you if you are new to the gym.

The most important thing to remember about exercise is that movement keeps us young and healthy and we all can do it. If we want to be vibrant and alert to see our children and grandchildren grow up, then we have to keep moving throughout life.  

In the beginning of any exercise program there will be some muscle soreness and achy joints, as your body gets used to the new activity.  But after a few weeks you will notice increased energy and strength that will trickle into every aspect of your life.  Of course, before beginning any exercise program you should consult your physician so that any other health issues can be monitored.  

Luke Piretti, D.C., is a chiropractor practicing in Lakeville. He specializes in back pain, sports medicine and nutrition/vitamin therapy.

His Web site is DrLukePiretti.com.