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By Stéphanie Mansour
The American Council on Exercise sets the High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) as an organization system for cardiorespiratory training with repeated periods of time intervals. Short exercise and intense intensity intermixed with periods of active recovery interval of lower intensity. When you're done, you'll have the feeling of having done a great workout – your muscles may feel tired and sore, but hurting is another thing.
HIIT workouts involve a lot of jumps and Kim Kelly, personal trainer and HIIT instructor, says "may be a specific problem when people come off the ground and land". And the knees and joints are the first victims of the impact. "It's perfectly fine to be in any class, especially in a HIIT class, but you need to know the difference between 'good pain' and 'bad pain'," he says. she. The pain is good when you feel the burn – as your muscles work. The pain is bad or dangerous when you hear something slam, jump, crack or feel sharp pain.
Knowing what not to do can help prevent bad shape and reduce your risk of injury. Here are some common mistakes to know – and how to fix them.
(As always, do not forget to always consult a doctor before starting a workout routine and if you feel pain.)
Error # 1: Skip a correct warm-up
When he is pressed for time, an instructor can jump or condense a warm up to get straight to the point. But it's a crucial mistake: "A warm up is the way your body is preparing for what's going to happen. Therefore, neglecting the preparation that your joints and muscles need to provide power only exposes you to possible pain in the near future, "says Nathalia Ferreira, FORT by Zumba's master instructor.
Although we usually associate a warm-up to the preparation of muscle, joint and tendon movements, it also serves to prepare our brains, explains Jeffrey Duarte, Performance Specialist at the NY Sports Science Lab. "Our brain's number one priority is to make sure our body is safe. If we finish a warm-up, our brain will recognize movement and allow our body temperature to gradually increase to help our heart pump blood more efficiently to work our muscles, "he said. "Warming up gives your muscles time to fill with blood, which will help reduce stiffness," Duarte explains.
Correction # 1: Warm up in class
Pay attention to how the class begins; If you go directly to hardcore moves, slow down and do dynamic stretching.
If you need to slow down and get ready for warm-up, try this: stand in the lunge position with the right foot forward and stretch the flexor left hip for 2 seconds; then, straighten your right leg and lean forward to stretch your hamstrings for 2 seconds; move from the bent leg to the right leg a few times. Repeat this with the left leg forward. For the upper body, make circles of arms and rotate your shoulder and wrists to relax. Then walk in place and extend your arms to the ceiling 20 times.
Fix # 2: Make your own warm up before class
If you know that your HIIT class is diving straight without dynamic stretching or a slight cardiovascular warm-up, take charge. Arrive five minutes earlier than expected in class, set your seat in the room, then head to the treadmill or the elliptical. Go at a moderate pace for 3 minutes and swing your arms forward and backward to move your upper body while warming your lower body.
Mistake # 2: Inadequate Landing
If you are jumping, running or doing plyometrics, a common mistake is to keep your knees tense or even blocked instead of bending them gently. This can wreak havoc not only on the knees but also on the hip and ankle joints. Jumping and landing then puts a lot of pressure on your joints. It is therefore important to pay attention to your shape, especially if you do exercises quickly. "We naturally have these dampers in our knees called menisci; Their main role is to absorb the forces we impose on our knees, whether walking, running or jumping, "says Duarte. However, our muscles are supposed to absorb some of this shock. He explains that if you have tense knees, all this force will be applied to these menisci and none of these forces will be controlled or toned down by the muscles, which are significantly stronger than a piece of cartilage.
Correction # 1: Land softly
Concentrate on keeping your knees slightly bent when performing movements such as burpees and jumping squats. "Landing gently with gentle knee flexion will allow the muscles in your legs to activate and control the forces exerted. [on the knees and joints]Duarte said.
A soft landing with a slight flexion of the knees will allow the muscles in your legs to activate and control the forces exerted. [on the knees and joints].
Two ways to practice landing softly: Remember to jump on a hardwood floor with someone sleeping under you – your goal is to try not to wake them up. Another tactic is to listen to the sound you sound when you land: if you hear a loud "thud", it is likely that you are exerting too much force on the knee joint and that you are not recreating enough leg muscles to soften the shock. Try to land without making noise.
Fix # 2: Change your juMPs
If you have trouble eliminating this "thump", try halving the height of your jump. If you are jumping slots, jump lower on the ground so you can keep your knees bent and control your movements better. If the jump is not an option, put it at your fingertips. Still bending your knees as if you were going to jump, just stand up and press your toes while raising your arms. This is your modified jump. For even more modifications, bend your knees as if you were going to jump, then stand straight (without putting yourself on tiptoe) and extend your arms over your head.
Mistake # 3: Speed breaks the correct form
In HIIT training sessions, one of the goals is to act quickly. If you combine speed and fatigue, you may begin to sacrifice your fitness, which increases the risk of injury, says Monique Crous, founder of HOT HITT.
In addition, when your body is used to performing a certain exercise, you start paying less attention to the mechanics of the movement. This can lead to mistakes such as squatting with the knees too far from the toes, which can cause sags and strains around the knee joint, and forget about abdominal engagement during the squat, which can stress the lower back. Similarly, if your front knee moves too far forward, you put more pressure on the knee joint and do not fully exercise. Instead of the quads and glutes that do the work, the knee joint is performing too well.
Correction # 1: slow down
When the music is turned on and your classmates are moving at full speed, it can be difficult to slow down and focus on your form. However, at the beginning of each new circuit or exercise, commit to doing the first reps more slowly than usual. Get the right form, then increase the speed. "Focus on moving from the center – if you move more consciously, even if you have to slow down, you'll avoid injuries and get results much faster," says Crous. Keep reminding yourself to pull your navy toward your spine all the exercises during the class.
Correction # 2: Check for yourself
Instructors can not monitor everyone at all times, so watch yourself in the mirror to keep an eye on yourself. "Sometimes people find themselves in a group environment and feel the need to" match "their neighbors' abilities or push themselves too far," says Kelly. This is a problem because everyone's abilities and fitness levels are different. In addition, your neighbor may not use the correct form either. Therefore, copying them is not always the best choice.
If you are really concerned about the intensity of a HIIT class, Crous recommends that you take a low impact HIIT class, as opposed to a high impact class. In this way, you will avoid the risk of injury while you get used to the movements.
Do not forget to talk if something seems too intense or if you do not know how to modify the exercises according to your needs. "You can always ask your instructor for low-impact modifications on high-impact exercises," says Crous.
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