POSTURE AND BREATHING

In order to carry out the exercises correctly and limit excessive tension on the joints, it is necessary to adopt an adequate posture; often inadequate positions during physical activity, especially when using overloads, lead to premature wear of the joints and also

risks not stimulating the muscle adequately.

Therefore it is essential to maintain a fairly solid postural attitude, because in addition to the various aspects such as the force of gravity and our body weight, we must also keep in mind the workload used to perform a certain exercise.

The three areas of our body that are responsible for maintaining correct posture while performing the exercises in a standing position can be identified as:

- lower area, mainly represented by the feet and lower limbs

- central area, takes into account the muscles of the abdomen and buttocks

- upper area, concentrated more on the head and shoulder blade muscles.

Even when seated it is important not to lose the physiological curves of the back; the lumbar area tends to flatten very easily when performing the exercises while sitting, it is important to keep it in its neutral position. Often we tend to bring our feet forward or resting on a raised floor; these positions compromise the correct structure of the back, losing its physiological curves. The advice is to bring the feet back to ensure optimal extension of the loins when performing the exercises while seated.

EXERCISES IN A STANDING STATION OR SITTING?

Not always being comfortable is synonymous with health. It is often believed that doing the exercises while seated is less tiring. In part it is also like this, but our back does not think the same way. Performing the exercises while seated tends to lose the physiological curves of our spine, as mentioned previously, and this involves greater pressure on the discs.

The resistance of the spine is mainly given by the physiological maintenance of its curves (cervical and thoracic lordosis and dorsal kyphosis). Obviously performing the exercise correctly while seated will not compromise the health of the back but it must be contextualised well; for those subjects who tend to spend a lot of time sitting and have an incorrect postural structure during the day, the main risk is to overload this area excessively and over time to encounter more serious discomfort and problems. In other cases, however, the execution of some exercises in standing position can be particularly difficult and the lower back can suffer, in this case the sitting position can help improve the stability of the trunk (assuming that you do not have spinal problems and their posture remains perfect throughout the series).

BREATHING

Breathing is another important parameter to take into account. In fact, it is important to breathe well, not only to avoid running out of breath while performing an exercise but also to avoid compressing the venous vessels, excessively straining the heart.

For beginners who find themselves having to learn the correct technical gesture, it can be difficult to have to learn the correct breathing, so for these subjects, breathing in a controlled and continuous way can already be fine, but it is important to avoid the phases of apnea, especially for those who suffer from hypertension and high blood pressure.

Generally during the execution of the exercises with overloads, in the concentric phase the muscle is shortened and there is an exhalation while during the stretching of the muscles, also called eccentric phase, there is an inhalation.

THE VALSALVA MANEUVER

The valsalva maneuver is a tool used when performing exercises such as squats, deadlifts and bench presses, where the loads to be lifted are important. This technique consists in remaining in apnea for a few seconds allowing the trunk to stabilize further. Obviously the latter must be avoided by those suffering from hypertension or high blood pressure, and it is absolutely not recommended even for beginners.

Example of valsalva maneuver: during a squat with a barbell you take a breath before the descent and hold your breath throughout the execution of the movement, and only once you return to the starting position do you breathe out. In addition to greater trunk stability, this technique also allows you to use higher loads.