Move Better in 2017

As 2016 begins to wind down, we are in the throws of the holiday rush. In the midst of all the chaos of shopping, holiday parties and traffic jams, you realize that your once ‘free’ time has been hijacked by the annual commitment to the season. Perhaps you’ve needed to skip workout or worse, used this time of year as an excuse to not start the program you promised you would. Regardless, when ‘ball drops’; we all pause to convince ourselves of resolutions to start the New Year off right. Before you jump in (or back in) to a workout routine, it’s so important that you do the exercises correctly. Failure to follow the old adage of ‘form before function’ will likely result in unnecessary stress on the body that will inevitably lead to an injury.

The funny thing about injuries we see at The Boston Bodyworker are that patients seldom realize that these injuries are commonly a result of poor form prior to loading the tissues. There are undeniable prerequisites to movements that should always be met before engaging in any exercise. When you incorrectly load the tissues of the body (muscles, ligaments, joints), you won’t always experience pain or any discomfort. However, when these movements are performed over a prolonged period of time and weight/reps are increased, you are increasing the demand on these tissues. This is when injuries can begin to reveal themselves. In a nutshell, everything you are doing right now, your nervous system is getting better at doing it. But what if you are doing it wrong? Your nervous system is getting better at ‘bad’ movements. Take the time to perfect movements before increasing the loads you place on them if you want to avoid injuries.

Check out some videos that demonstrate the proper movements associated with common exercises such as kettle ball swings, lunges, side-planks, dead lifts and more.

If your plan is to make 2017 the best year yet, I encourage you to take the time to move well. Pain is never a resolution anyone puts on his or her list.

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