The exercises that you should avoid in the gym
SIT-UPS
There are many exercises and gym myths that I am going to debunk in the following blogs so that you can get the best out of your gym workouts and more importantly, not injure yourself.
First of all, if you are doing sit-ups to strengthen your core-STOP!
I will not go into great detail in this post about the correct way to strengthen your core but if you would like to call me or email me I will be happy to tell you exactly what you should be doing instead. The main reason you should not be doing sit-ups is because it damages your back! The posterior forces that are produced on your lower back discs are enormous! What this means is, do enough sit-ups and you will be on a short course to lower back pain and if enough damage is done you will more than likely get sciatica. Sciatica is where the nerve is being pressed or ‘impinged’.
The National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety recommends that no more than 3400 newtons should be placed on the lower back because this or more than this amount of force is harmful to the lower back. Well guess what, a sit-up produces 3413 newtons of force. This means that every sit-up that you do is potentially damaging your back!
There are much better alternatives to doing sit-ups that will strengthen your stomach muscles without the harmful effects to your back.
But for now,
I will be out there watching your back…