If you have started a new exercise routine or perhaps are aching from a regular workout, it could be that you are doing the exercises incorrectly. Without the benefit of a personal trainer, you could be doing more harm than good to your body, or possibly doing permanent damage to your bones and muscles. But you do not need a personal trainer to guide you through every workout. Doing your workouts in the proper manner can be the result of several things.
First, if you are following a workout on a DVD, usually the instructor will guide you through the proper sequence. Or, you may find a section on the DVD that explains all the moves. Do not skip it! Second, maybe you tore out an article on special exercises from a magazine. In that case, be sure to read the article that goes with the photos in it. That is where you will learn what not to do. Third, if you belong to a gym, check with the trainers to make sure you are using the equipment properly and doing the exercises correctly. If you are copying someone else on a piece of equipment, that person may not be using the proper form; so keep that in mind.
To give yourself a head start on preventing that morning-after achiness that can come with improper form, check out Bob Greene’s exercise tips for working out safely. Greene, you may recall, is the personal trainer to Oprah. He has right very short videos that cover the basic strength training exercises: squats, lunges, chest press, shoulder press, butterfly, dumbbell fly, biceps curls, and triceps extension. These are all exercises you can do also do at home with an inexpensive basic dumbbell set.
If your regular workout routine only includes aerobic exercise, you will want to vary it on the off days with some strength-training workouts.
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