SFU PROFESSOR WARNS

25 - Sunday, January 5, 1986 —- Nacth Shore News

Watch your weights

IF YOUR Christmas stocking included a set of
weights, you could have a good start on am effec-
tive fitness training program.

But Dr. Eric Banister, direc-
tor of the Simon Fraser
University Institute for

Human Performance, warns’

that unless those weights are
used properly, they can cause
serious problems.

“One of the main things

about weight training is that
the weights must be controll-
ed. We prefer to see weight
training devices controlled on
racks and moved up and down
by pulleys. Many gyms and
fitness centres have these Sorts
of machines.

**Bul they are usually
beyond the range of what peo-
ple are willing to pay for a
fitness equipment to use in
their own homes.

“Free weights, such as bar
bells, call for careful use so
they don’t get out of control.

A falling weight can be pain-
ful if it lands on you ~- and
can do serious damage if it
lands on the head or the back.
And even quite experienced
weight lifters can lose control
of a bar when they work at ex-
treme lifts."

Banister is concerned about
the recent upswing in
popularity of wrist and ankle
weights as well,

FORGET PHYSICS

“People tend to think that
because they are light, the

§ wrap weights will just add a

little to a workout. But what
they forget is the physics of a
lightweight over a long
distance.

“The normal place to wear
one of these wrap weights is at
the end of an extremity — at
the end of the leg, for ankle
weights, the end of the arm,
for wrist weights. :

“The force that ankle or

-wrist weight can generate ona

hip or shoulder can be quite
large, and musculature that is
unaccustomed to weights or
strain can be easily torn.””
Wrap weights don't mix
well with aerobic classes, ac-
cording to Banister. “When
you combine the torque ona
joint with the sudden move-

ment caused by jumping or
bouncing, the muscles can be
stretched further than they are
ready to go — or a joint can
be damaged by the sudden
strain.

MORE PEOPLE

“We're finding a steady in-
crease in the number of peo-
ple turning up at sport
medicine clinics.”

Banister suggests the: best

way to begin any workout is
with a gentle warmup and
some stretching. ‘‘Some pea-
ple start stretching when their
muscles are cold, but that isn’t
very productive. Cold muscles
don’t stretch well. Get the cir-
culation going first and the .
muscles, ligaments and ten-
dons used to moving, before’
beginning any kind of exer-
cise. *”
**Once you have begun your
training session, vary the kinds
of exercise you do. If you are
doing aerobics, intersperse it
with something else instead of
just concentrated j jumping up
and down. In weight training,
vary the muscle groups.

‘*Training is always a
gradual process — and the
secret of success in weight

‘training or any other kind of

exercise is to train gradually so
don't injure yourself.”

BLINDS ’N DRAPES

; NEWS anole lan Smith

EXPERTS know that the body cannot handle a sudden onstaught ¢ of physical activity. The body. must be warmed up and

ready to bend, stretch, pull, jump and run. Like anyone seriously interested in weight-lifting and training, power lifting expert
Tom Magee, above, slowly works up to his maximum effort. “

jcega ,
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