A Weakness-First Approach to Improving Your Health and Fitness

Failing to address areas of weakness remains one of the most common personal health pitfalls, persistently plaguing countless individuals, regardless of our perceived level of fitness. Rather than recognizing the health segments in need of a slight tune-up or drastic overhaul, we stubbornly and proudly continue to exert our effort towards our areas of strength. Leaving our comfort zone and making positive adaptations towards the "weakest" components of our individual fitness, nutrition, and wellness remains essential to create lasting, sustained progress within the realm of personal health.

Far too many exercisers (new and experienced alike) routinely fail to address muscular imbalances, poor flexibility, balance, and coordination, inadequate functional strength, postural concerns, and limited range of motion prior to "progressing" their exercise regimen. Ignoring the physiological foundations of fitness merely compounds our problems, by dangerously manifesting themselves in the form of future injury, rapidly deteriorating muscular imbalances, and visible physical digressions. Unfortunately, our bodies do not adapt to become stronger through our daily routines, when weaknesses become prevalent. On the contrary, our bodies travel through the path of least resistance (where our bodies are weakest), causing the gap between ideal function and weakened function to continuously widen, as we ignore the telltale signs of muscular imbalance, limited range of motion, and improper posture.

Strengthening our "strengths" at the expense of our weaknesses may serve as a more enjoyable way to exercise, but without question, does not serve in our body's best interests. Common examples of a skewed approach include the avid runner who fails to strength train, the no-nonsense weightlifter who refuses to incorporate cardio movements, the committed dieter who aptly ignores exercise altogether, or simply the non-exerciser, in general. If you fall into one of these categories, I sincerely invite you to attack your weaknesses and reap the aforementioned benefits of a "balanced body."

Enlisting a qualified fitness professional remains the most advantageous method to establishing the proper foundations for present and future health and fitness. A proper trainer will help recognize the areas of greatest concerns to develop a comprehensive approach to strengthen those weaknesses. A balanced, progressive training approach towards increased flexibility, functional strength, and range of motion should then be utilized to remedy our problem areas. During that initial assimilation phase, I prefer to mainly focus on bodyweight-only exercises to train ourselves to functionally move our bodies successfully before adding external means of resistance. Ultimately, each movement presents endless possibilities for progression, facilitating positive adaptations throughout our muscles and joints, in the process. Joining a group yoga or pilates class also serves as a great source of increased flexibility, range of motion, and postural correction.