How to avoid hurting yourself at the gym:
Because exercise involves moving the body and, often, lifting heavy metal things in a variety of directions, there are multiple ways to injure yourself, especially at the gym. Doing too much too soon, using bad form or playing with your MP3 player while on the treadmill are just a few culprits and, of course, there are plenty of other ways to embarrass yourself that don't involve injury at all.
Aside from the more obvious causes of injury, there are a couple of other situations to watch out for:
Proximity Induced Resistance Psychosis - PIRP is a phenomenon that commonly occurs in the free weight section whereby you increase the amount of weight you're lifting in direct proportion to either A) The size/strength/muscles of the exerciser nearest you and/or, B) The level of attractiveness of the nearest person of the opposite sex. It also includes the willingness to injure one's self in order to look stronger than anyone else in the gym. My husband informs me that this is an involuntary response in most males, although females are not immune.
Sudden Group Fitness Ambition Syndrome - SGFAS often affects males and females equally and occurs when you join a group fitness class in which the majority of exercisers are, A) More advanced and better conditioned than you are, and B) Have a clue as to what they're doing. This sudden impulse may cause you to go beyond your limits and could lead to torn ligaments, pulled muscles, severe head trauma or immutable embarrassment. Some examples include trying an advanced posture during yoga class (e.g., Bird of Paradise) and accidentally poking someone's eye out, puking in a corner trashcan after going all out during your first spin class or pulling a muscle after trying a rotating jump kick in your first kickboxing or martial arts class.
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