Weight loss is no cakewalk, it is a sum total of various factors. Some people are just plain lucky to have a good metabolism. No matter what they eat, their body is able to burn it all. And then there are people for whom shedding even a kilo is a mammoth task due to their medical condition or ongoing medication. In most cases though, excessive weight gain is largely a result of poor dietary and lifestyle choices. Light to moderate exercises are crucial part of weight loss. If done correctly, exercises can improve your physique, body movement, joint strength and much more. But people tend to make minor mistakes in their body posture while working out which can even cause harm to health, say experts.
Aashish Chaudhry, Managing Director and Orthopaedic Surgeon, Aakash Healthcare Super Speciality Hospital has pointed out some of the mistakes:
1. Letting your knees cave in: This can cause knee injury due to stress on knees usually when doing weight lift exercises like squats. The knees must bend outwards to avoid stress. Also clench the side muscles of your hips to keep the knees from buckling under the weight.
2. Raising elbows too high on the bench press: This puts stress on your shoulders and causes injury. It also makes the exercise harder as the bar has to travel longer distance. It's better to keep the elbows close to the chest to reduce some stress from shoulders and improve chest and triceps.
3. Taking small steps when lunging: This puts the knee ahead of the front foot placing pressure on the knee. You should instead take wider steps and push your heel into the ground to ensure your knee doesn't move ahead of your heel.
4. Jogging on your heels: This tires you out easily. It also shakes your ankles, knees and hips which over time could develop into shin splinters, knee pain and other leg injuries. It's better to run on the balls of your feet to absorb the shock.
5. Bad neck positions: People tend to look down or straight ahead when doing squats, push ups or deadlifts. This strains the cervical spine. It's better to pack the neck, point chin down, make a double chin and keep it that way while you do your squats.
Archana, trainer, Anytime Fitness, lists out few suggestions:
1. Always take light breakfast half an hour before exercising as empty stomach may make you feel dizzy and lethargic.
2. Stretching and warm-up is must before exercise to avoid any injury.
3. During exercise, heavy lifting is advisable with trainer's instructions only.
4. Exercising has to be in limit and as per capacity. Over exerting yourself may do more harm than good.
5 . After exercise, warm-up and stretching is advisable.
Here Are Some Common Diet Mistakes To Look Out For:
1. Not all fats are bad: Ruling out any food group would be a major blunder. Fats are essential for functioning of body. A balanced diet is a key to weight loss. Include good fats like cheese, avocado and ghee in your diet.
2. Try Having 90 Percent Of Your Food In Home: It is hard to resist temptation when you are out. Try and have majority of your food at home. Since, home food is not only made with good quality ingredients, you can also keep a track of your portion sizes.
3. Eat Fruits Over Fruit Juices: It is always a good idea to eat fruits over drinking fruit juices. Fruits are filled with fibre. Juicing the fruit may make you lose out on fibre.
4. Don't Skip Breakfast: Breakfast literally means 'breaking' the 'fast'. It is the first meal you have after your eight hour sleep; hence, it plays a huge role in your metabolic rate. Skipping the breakfast, may indulge you to binge more later in the day. Make sure your breakfast is rich in protein and fibres, so that you are well satiated until the lunch.
5. Maintain Portion Control: Eat everything but in smaller portions. Be smart with what you eat too. Increase the portion size of the nutritious food on your plate like vegetables or dal, and cut your dessert by half.
Take note of these tips and shed kilos in a healthy way.
(With Inputs IANS)