15 Weight-Lifting Mistakes that Could Ruin Your Workout

You don’t warm up

It’s important to properly prime your body before you lift a single weight. “Warming up your body gets blood flowing to help lubricate your joints, which can help prevent you from tearing something,” says William Suggs, a certified personal trainer and licensed sports nutritionist in New York City. Limber up your shoulders, hips, elbows, and knees by walking on the treadmill at a brisk pace for 10 minutes; while you walk, actively move your arms. You can also rotate your arms backward like you’re doing the swimming backstroke. “This gives you ample rotation, you’ll get a good stretch of your chest, and it will really wake up your rotator cuffs,” he says. If you work out in the morning, these are good stretches to try.