Each type of strength training requires an individualized approach. After all, too intense exercises can lead to a painful injury. Check what to keep in mind when planning your workout with dumbbells.
Each workout, regardless of the sport, frequency of training units or their load, should be preceded by a meticulously planned warm-up. Failure to do so will contribute to an increased risk of injury. Muscles and joints are better prepared when properly warmed up before the actual workout.
The warm-up should not be neglected, and unfortunately this is still very often the case. When we exercise, we focus all our attention on making sure that the workout goes as planned, completely ignoring the warm-up and the final stage of training, which should be cooling the body and stretching the muscles. Missing these elements can result in serious injury.
Why is it important to warm up joints and muscles well before training? Reducing the risk of injury is only one reason. The second reason is that the warmed up body works more efficiently during training, so you can count on faster progress in sports performance.
First of all it should be properly planned. It’s surprising how much time we are able to devote to precise specification of number of repetitions of each single exercise in proper training, and we don’t have time for meticulous preparation of warm-up. Secondly, the warm-up itself, in order to be properly conducted, must include warming up all the muscles and joints that will be subjected to high loads during the training proper. During the warm-up, it is a good idea to gradually increase the load.
If we are already talking about the load, when performing strength training with dumbbells, it is important to keep in mind that the weight should be adjusted to the body’s capabilities. Exaggeration in either direction is not good and can do far more harm than good. Too much load, especially during the initial training, is the shortest way to overtraining and painful injuries. On the other hand, too light a training load will cause the next levels of training to be reached much slower, which may even have a deadly effect on your internal motivation.
Training with dumbbells is so universal that you can easily perform it both at the gym and at home. No special clothing is required, the main thing is to be comfortable. Decide what you feel best in and what does not restrict your movements. Depending on the temperature, it may be short shorts or long sweatpants. A loose T-shirt goes well on top. Always carry a towel with you. Your palms sweat quickly during exercise, and then holding dumbbells becomes much less comfortable.
A cardinal mistake of almost every person who discovers a passion for a sport is the lack of moderation in the initial training. Wanting to achieve the greatest progress in the shortest possible time, we add to the proverbial stove and the workouts are much too heavy. They are also too frequent – if you are just starting your adventure with the gym, initially set yourself two days a week to train.
Why not more often? All because of the time your body needs to recover. Overtraining can eliminate you from sport for several long weeks – think whether it’s worth the risk. Gradually building up your endurance, you can increase both the load during training and their frequency. If you are not quite sure how to lay out the exercises during a training unit, then consult a personal trainer – you will receive from him a set of information that will make your training not only effective, but above all safe.
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