1. Holding your breath
Holding your breath while you strain pushes your blood pressure up sharply. Breathe out during the hardest part of the movement (standing up from a squat, pushing in a press) and breathe in as you lower. This is especially important if you have high blood pressure.
2. Rounding your back when lifting from the floor
In a deadlift, or when picking a dumbbell up off the floor, your back should stay neutral. Think about pushing your hips back, as if closing a door with your bottom, and keep your chest proud. If you can't reach the floor with a straight back, raise the weight onto a step.
3. Knees caving in
In squats and lunges, your knees should follow the direction of your toes. If they tend to drift inwards, lower the weight and think about "spreading the floor" with your feet. A resistance band around your knees helps you feel the correct position.
4. Fast, bouncing movements
Dropping the weight quickly and bouncing out of the bottom shifts the load onto tendons and joints. Lower the weight with control over two or three seconds. On the way up you can add some speed: training power is useful for preventing falls.
5. Shrugging your shoulders when pressing
During shoulder or chest presses, your shoulders tend to creep up towards your ears. Keep them down and slightly back. If you feel a pinch in your shoulder when you raise your arm, shorten the range or lower the weight.
6. Using more weight than you can control
The sign that a weight is too heavy is that your technique changes on the last few reps. Choose a load that leaves you feeling you could do one or two more good reps at the end of each set. On a scale of 1 to 10, that's a 7 or 8.
How to know you're doing it right
- Film yourself from the side and compare with a reference video.
- Train in front of a mirror for the first few sessions.
- One or two sessions with a qualified coach at the start can save months of mistakes.
Sources
This article is for information only and does not replace an assessment by a doctor, physiotherapist or other health professional.