health risks Archives - Fit Fiddle Fit

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The Top 4 Health Risks for Athletes and Power Lifters

Athletics of most kinds can be vigorous activities that require a little conditioning and common sense to avoid injury.
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Hard, steady training only compounds the risks. Strength training, or resistance training, can especially put stress on the body.
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Building muscle requires first breaking down the tissue, and the exercises necessary to do so can lead to strains. .
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Below are four of the top risks of intensive training.

1. Accidents

Many serious injuries come not just from collisions during play, but accidents during practice. A slip on sand or wet grass can easily turn an ankle or knee that would be a serious setback to any athlete.
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It’s important to have someone else present in case there is a sprain or break that proves incapacitating.
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This is especially true when training with free weights that could slip from your control. Lifting heavy weights alone can be dangerous, and weight-lifting equipment should not be accessible to unsupervised children.

2. Strained and Pulled Muscles

Putting sudden or extreme pressure on idle muscles can lead to tearing of the tissue.
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You should always make an effort to warm up the muscles for at least five minutes or so before engaging in strenuous exercise, and another five minutes to stretch and cool down after you’re done.
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Healthy workouts should also allow for healing. Medical professionals, such as one who has completed an RN to BSN nursing program, can give you more advice on safe exercise practices.

3. Lack of Cardio

Sudden cardiac arrest causes more than 300,000 deaths each year. Cardio should be an important part of your regular training. This particularly affects power lifters, who may lifting at slow rhythms that are more focused on heavy weights with few reps.
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Struggling to knock out one more bench-press when you’re close to your limits also puts strain on the heart. Establish a healthy, comfortable tempo, and don’t make the entire workout purely about maximum weights.

4. Wear and Tear on the Joints

It’s also important to focus on using the correct form during any exercise so that you aren’t stressing ligaments from unnatural angles. Repetitive strain injuries and minor sprains, even if they aren’t bad, can grow steadily worse if exercises are being performed incorrectly.
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Make sure you’re doing exercises through the full range of motion. Don’t rush through any part of your routine. Stop immediately if you are feeling pain in the elbows, wrists, or knees.
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Improving your performance requires constant and effective training. Unsafe training, however, could lead to injuries that end your athletic ambitions.

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Article by Anica Oaks
anicaoaks@gmail.com
Freelance writer and web enthusiast
Read some of my published work on my Google+ page
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