4 of the Most Common Gym Injuries

We all know that injuries happen at the gym, but which are the most prevalent? By knowing which injuries are the most common, we can be extra vigilant when doing exercises that could cause those injuries. Now, of course, there are a ton of common injuries and you should ALWAYS be safe at the gym no matter what, these are just four that happen a lot and you yourself may have even experienced some of them before.

1. Rotator Cuff Injuries

(source: coachmag.co.uk)

The rotator cuff is made up of four different muscles and these all work together to stabilize and support the shoulder joint. And if you think about it, you are using your shoulders at the gym much more than you may think. When you reach overhead, behind you or do any “press” exercise, you are putting stress on the shoulder. And a bad rotator cuff injury can make it extremely painful to move your arm in any way, so do your best to avoid them.

2. Lower Back Injuries

(source: webmd.com)

A lot of lifts and machines at the gym often cause you to bend and lean forward and, if proper form isn’t employed, this can lead you to injure your lower back. The exercises where you really have to watch out for lower back injuries are squats and deadlifts as those require you to lift heavy weight and if bad form is used, it will wreak havoc on your back.

3. Sprained Ankle

(source: gymjunkies.com)

Out of all the machines people use to be fit, the treadmill is probably the most popular. And as with running outside, sometimes you can twist or maneuver your ankle in such a fashion that the muscle with sprain. This can happen for a number of reasons such as slipping, not paying attention or a laundry list of other things. To prevent this, just stay focused on the task at hand, get in a rhythm and use the safety clip if the treadmill has one.

4. Knee Injuries

(source: gymmembershipfees.com)

These can be some of the worst injuries and injuries such as ACL tears can take upwards of a year to fully recover from, so watching how your knees are situated and positioned are key. And with most of us being fairly sedentary all day, our hips don’t get a ton of work and thus, our knees are often used more for stabilization than they should be, which can increase injury risk.