Correcting Muscle Imbalances

Nothing is more upsetting than working hard in the gym and ending up with muscle imbalances. Imagine putting all the effort and hard work and having a muscle imbalance as your reward— it's terrible, but it's inevitable.

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What Is Muscle Imbalance?

Muscle imbalances happen when one group of muscles is stronger or larger than the opposite muscle group. Suppose one muscle is weaker and the other is hyperactive. In that case, it pushes your body into improper postures, such as hunched shoulders or a lower back that is overly arched, limiting the joint range of motion and making particular muscles stiff.

Muscle imbalances are most common in parts of the body that are intended to be flexible, such as the hips, shoulders, and thoracic spine, although they may occur practically everywhere.

Moreover, these inconsistencies in muscle function can hinder your gym activities and result in severe injury.

Now that you understand muscle imbalances, here are proven easy ways to correct muscle imbalance.

Switch To Unilateral Exercises

When you have a muscle imbalance, the stronger muscle groups will be more dominating when you exercise both sides simultaneously. The best way to correct muscle imbalance is to switch workouts that engage both sides of the body simultaneously with unilateral routines that train each side independently. That way, both sides of the body may exert equal effort without the stronger muscle taking control and minimizing effort for the weaker muscle group.

Begin On The Weaker Side

Many of us are not ambidextrous by nature and hence favor one side of our body. When working out, expect that you'll unconsciously favor the stronger side of your body since it is more convenient for you. Also, when you perform unilateral exercises, you'll likely develop your stronger side preferentially without even realizing it. Conversely, your weaker side will gain far more if you start working it out first. Remember to exercise your weaker side first if you want to correct or even avoid a muscular imbalance.

Allow Your Weak Side To Set The Workout Volume

Fitness professionals recommend letting your weaker muscle group set your workout volume. That way, you can let it decide how much work your stronger side performs, and at the same time, avoid overworking your weaker side.

Do More With Your Weaker Side

When you concentrate more on pushing motions for the chest over pulling actions for the back, you're more likely to create imbalances. You can bring your lagging bodily components up to speed by increasing the overall volume of your workout. Add workout for the weak area, or if that isn't possible, use a few more movements around your routine to get this result. Whether you want to use heavier weights, cut rest time, or intensify repetitions or sets, it's up to you. The aim is to boost the out-of-balance body part's work capability to keep it in sync with the rest of your body.

Fix The Cause Of The Problem

While one of the approaches listed above can typically correct any muscular imbalance, digging into the underlying problem is essential. You may focus on strengthening mobility and flexibility in that place after you've identified the root of the problem, which will help guarantee the imbalance doesn't pop up after you've corrected it.

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Correct Your Muscle Imbalances With Next Level Fitness

Muscle imbalances are an awful aspect of the training process. Although everyone has a slight imbalance across their strong and weak sides, it's very typical for muscle imbalances to develop due to various activities.

If you have muscular imbalances, you can correct them with focused training. More importantly, consider working with a personal trainer or a training specialist from Next Level Fitness. We can help you in identifying and correcting any imbalances you may have.

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