How to Avoid Injury When Exercising at Home

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For most people, exercising during the pandemic has meant exercising at home. What it also has meant, according to fitness trainers and physical therapists: things like strained muscles from

warriorlike weightlifting in the basement; sprained ankles from extra-long hikes; and something called “jumper’s knee,” the result of sudden and enthusiastic participation in high-impact

exercise video classes. Here, a few common sources of home-workout injuries — and how to avoid them to stay safe and get fit. 

Yes, you need to strength train, but resistance training is one area with a high potential for injury when done incorrectly, according to Morgan Nolte, a doctor of physical therapy,

specialist in geriatric physical therapy and owner of Reshape Physical Therapy & Wellness. That’s especially true for anyone just getting started.

In particular, hoisting free weights without following the proper form is a classic recipe for trouble, says K. Aleisha Fetters, a certified strength and conditioning specialist and author

of Fitness Hacks for Over 50. Distractions you don’t get at the gym — say, watching the news on TV or juggling loads of laundry — can make matters worse, causing even veterans to get sloppy.

Dani Ticktin Koplik, 65, who heads an executive and leadership coaching firm in New York City, learned this the hard way. Early on during her area’s lockdown, Koplik attempted a new exercise

that involved raising a three-pound weight over her chest with one arm while lying on her back, before passing the weight from one hand to the other, overhead. But when she got distracted

by a sudden noise in the house, she dropped the weight on her chest. Koplik says she was sore for days.

Just do this: Novices should begin by focusing on form and forgetting about the resistance, according to Nolte. Once you have the basic move down, and practiced it several times, you can

start adding a light weight to the equation. And don’t jump to heavier weights until you can perform 15 or so repetitions of a move without feeling at all fatigued.

How to make sure your form is right? The easiest way is to watch yourself in a mirror. “You can see your posture, your form, and course-correct,” says Koplik. No mirror? Any reflective

surface, including a shiny framed poster to the webcam on your computer, will do, according to Sami Ahmed, a physical therapist at the Centers for Advanced Orthopaedics.