High intensity workouts, without the injuries

As you look into the new year with refreshed exercise goals, beware the dangers of injury.

We often 'underestimate the power of exercise to help people achieve fitness and wellness goals,” said Dr. Devin Smith, physiatrist at UnityPoint Health Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Center.

But we also underestimate the risks.

'People want to lose 50 pounds before their reunion next month, so they train like they're 16 again, and that puts them in harm's way,” he said.

High intensity programs such as Cross Fit, Farrell's or Body Pump, for example, yield quick and impressive results, but if exercises are not performed correctly, the intense workouts can pose a serious threat to the body.

'These programs work - there's no question that people become stronger and healthier,” said Tom Cahalan, a physical therapist at Mercy Medical Center.

But no matter the program, the fact is, 'you're not going to look like Arnold Schwarzenegger after two weeks,” Smith said.

The problem with intense workouts is overuse - 'doing a particular activity over and over again to the point that the tissues of the body break down,” Cahalan said.

The tissue will 'literally fall apart,” and if you don't give your body ample time to heal the damaged tissue, 'you set yourself up for chronic tendinitis issues,” he said.

Although muscle soreness 24 hours to 48 hours after exercise is normal, if you're not careful, you could strain or sprain your tendons and ligaments or even develop rhabdomyolysis, a condition in which the muscles break down to the point of kidney failure.

'Before you try to do five sets of 100, it's important to really understand how to safely exercise,” Smith said. 'People don't understand the gravity of it.”

Gravity, quite literally - unexperienced gym-goers might be lifting too much weight too quickly.

'You're not going to bench 500 pounds unless you've successfully done 100,” Smith said.

'The more weight you put into an exercise, the more likely you'll have bad technique and therefore a bad result,” Cahalan agreed.

The key is to start slow, gradually increasing the intensity and complexity of the exercise.

'You don't want to rush it,” Smith said.

Instead of starting with 'sophisticated techniques,” like Olympic lifts, 'master the simple techniques first,” like squats and dead lifts, he said.

'It would give me pause if I was a novice lifter and the first day they asked me to start lifting weights overhead,” he said. 'It's a red flag.”

At Cedar Rapids CrossFit, owner Dmitry Altshul said they 'don't let anybody jump into class and start doing these movements.”

'That would be very irresponsible,” he said.

Instead, progressions are the key.

For example, 'you can start out with a push up from the knees, then work up to the toes and then maybe a handstand push up if you're strong enough,” he said.

The health experts said another issue is the 'macho mentality” that surrounds some of these programs, emphasizing quantity instead of quality and encouraging pushing through the pain instead of stopping to evaluate.

'A big problem that people can get into is having an instructor that comes across as the marine corps drill sergeant, beating the tar out of people,” Cahalan said.

'You need to know your limitations,” Smith said.

At Altshul's gym, athletes are encouraged to stop 'if something doesn't feel right,” before it becomes a serious injury.

They're also taught proper technique, which may be the biggest issue of all.

Although the programs themselves are not inherently dangerous, inadequately trained or inattentive coaches can pose a real threat.

'Every gym is different,” Altshul said, suggesting those starting out with fitness find someone to teach them proper technique in a smaller setting before jumping in.

Smith and Cahalan also recommend researching the credentials of facilities or trainers before joining, to make sure they're certified by recognizable organizations, such as the American Academy of Exercise, for example.

Although there is risk in high intensity programs - or really any exercise - the alternative is to sit on the couch, 'and that doesn't work very well either,” Altshul said.

'Sitting actually slowly kills you,” he said. 'By not doing anything, you're very weak, so the next time you go to do something like shovel the snow or play with your kids, your ligaments and muscles don't have proper range of motion, so you're far more likely to injure yourself... . But if you have the right technique, you can dramatically minimize and prevent injury from happening.”

And look on the brightside, even if injury occurs, 'Your body has an amazing ability to recover and it's far better than doing nothing,” he said.