It’s recommended that you perform at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise or 75 high-intensity movement each week.

Exercise is extremely beneficial to your physical and mental health. It helps to protect your heart, lungs, and brain from disease, and it is known to elevate your mood.

When you exercise, it stimulates the release of happy hormones, such as serotonin and dopamine. It also causes the release of endorphins, which can make you feel happier and act as natural pain killers.

Studies show that those who perform regular exercise have a lower risk of disease and live a longer and more fulfilled life. The important thing is to do exercise that you enjoy.

When you’re doing what you love, you’re more likely to stick to doing it. You’ll find it easier to achieve the recommended 150 minutes.

Although exercise is vital to maintaining a healthy mind and body, it can be dangerous if not performed correctly. You can get injured if you exercise with poor form or you overtrain.

Injuries can set you back and cause you to lose progress with your workouts. They can also cause long-term problems if you’re not careful, so staying safe is important during exercise.

No matter what form of exercise you’re doing or whether you’re doing indoor or outdoor exercises, injuries can occur. They’re not always avoidable, even when you take as many health and safety precautions as possible.

Medical alert systems can connect you with the emergency services team as quickly as possible if you sustain a nasty injury. Getting medical help is vital to a quick recovery when you’re bleeding or if you’ve got concussion.

But if you can avoid getting injured in the first place, that’s obviously a much better option. Here are some top tips to help you stay injury-free during any form of exercise, including resistance training, running, and sports.

Warm-Up Properly

Some people skip their warm-ups and go straight into heavy lifting or intense running. They see the warm-up as a waste of time and they would rather get straight into their workouts.

However, your warm-up is just as important as your workout. It helps to prepare your body for the training session by increasing blood flow into the muscles.

Cold muscles are more injury-prone and they’re less pliable, meaning you could end up with a nasty tear or strain if you’re not careful. Your warm-up can include some dynamic stretching, light jogging, or bodyweight movements to let your body know that you’re about to do some hard work.

Avoid performing static stretching before your workouts. Holding a muscle in its lengthened position while it’s still cold can cause injuries, even before you’ve started exercising. Stick to dynamic movements instead.

Perfect Your Form

Most people associate having good form with weight lifting. If you’re into resistance training, you will know that using the right form is vital to avoid injuries when you’re lifting heavy weights.

But your form is important with any type of exercise, whether it’s running, sports, dancing, or even walking. If you use the wrong form, it can place excess strain on your muscles and joints, and this is a recipe for disaster.

Before you participate in a new type of exercise, spend some time looking at how others do it. Look at their form and educate yourself on the proper techniques for each movement.

There are lots of great educational videos online nowadays that you can use to perfect your form before you get into the gym or onto the pitch. Every aspect of your movement during exercise is important, and just one wrong movement can result in an injury.

If you think you would find it helpful, get in touch with an expert in the field. They will be able to give you some form cues that you can follow, to begin with. Once you are comfortable with the different movements, you might not need to think very much about the exercise cues, but this will come with practice and time.

Stay Hydrated

When you exercise regularly, you lose more water in your sweat. It’s important to replace the water that you have lost in your sweat after every training session.

Even on the days that you don’t exercise, you will still need to stay hydrated. Exercising when your body lacks adequate hydration can increase the risk of injury.

When you sweat, you also lose electrolytes. Replacing these electrolytes is important to keep your brain, heart, and muscles functioning properly. Lost electrolytes can be replaced by eating a healthy diet or by having electrolyte drinks.

The recommended intake of water is around eight cups a day but you may need more than this if you exercise a lot.

Dress Appropriately

Depending on the type of exercise that you are doing, you might need specific clothing and shoes. Failing to wear the right kind of clothing can make using the correct form much harder, resulting in injuries.

If you wear clothing that is too baggy, it can cause you to trip over. Clothing that is too tight can be uncomfortable and might distract you from what you are doing. It could also hamper your movement.

Choosing the right sneakers is also essential when it comes to exercise. They should fit your feet perfectly and they should be comfortable. If you’re weight lifting, choose a shoe that is flat. This will make movements like deadlifts and squats easier and safer to perform.

If you’re running, choose a sneaker that is made specifically for runners. It should be light weight, breathable, and supportive. When you’ve got the right shoes for the job, your risk of injury significantly decreases and your exercise performance gets a boost.

Dress appropriately for the weather conditions too. If it’s boiling hot outside, don’t wear three layers of clothing to try and ‘sweat out’ more calories. Similarly, if it’s the middle of a frosty winter, don’t forget to put on a breathable jacket to keep your core warm.