5 top gym tips

KZN fitness and wellness expert, Lisa Raleigh, tells us what to do, what not to do and what we should never do at the gym…

When practising sit ups, don’t relax your abs on the way down. This means you’ll only get half the effect of the move, so keep your tummy tight throughout. Pulling your stomach in towards your spine as you crunch will also have a direct effect on your belly shape.

When it comes to crunches, put your tongue on the roof of your mouth as you move. This will align your neck and head, helping to reduce neck strain.

During your strength session, use dumbbells, barbells, and machines - in that order. The smaller, stabilizer muscles you use with dumbbells fatigue before your larger muscle groups. When you’re feeling tired, move on to machines, which don’t work your smaller muscles as much.

Test the gym bench before lifting. Press your thumb into the surface, and look for another one if you can feel wood. Hard benches can cause T4 syndrome – a misalignment of your thoracic spine that weakens arms and negatively affects their nerve function.

If you want to buy sports shoes that fit, shop later in the day. This is when your feet are at their largest. Make sure there's a half inch of space in front of your longest toe, and that you can easily wiggle your toes. Then slip off the shoes and compare them with your bare feet. If each shoe isn't obviously wider and longer than your foot, go half a size bigger.


Catch Lisa Raleigh on Wellness in the WorkZone every day, Monday to Friday