Orthopaedic surgeon reveals 5 workouts that may wreck your shoulders, knees and back

Doctor cautions against 5 exercises that he would not recommend because of the significant risks they pose to joint health.

Hard-hitting workouts help burn calories and get your heart pumping, which are the main goals of any training session. But you also need to make sure they don't backfire and end up injuring you instead. Otherwise, instead of progressing with your fitness goals, your focus shifts to recovering from the injuries.

Certain exercises put a lot of pressure on your joints, like knee or shoulder joints! (Shutterstock)

Georgia-based orthopaedic surgeon Dr Franky Davis took to Instagram to address this issue in an Instagram 16 post, revealing 5 workouts that can put your joints at risk.

1. Kipping pull-ups

Dr Davis called out kipping pull-ups, saying they put too much stress on the shoulder joints. He instead recommended going for strict pull-ups or late pulldowns, which help minimise the risk. The approach also lowers the chances of chronic shoulder pain or long-term joint damage. When the workout is more controlled, Dr Davis reminded you are less likely to suffer shoulder trauma.

2. Behind-the-neck presses/pulldowns

The second type of exercise that the surgeon flagged as a red flag was behind-the-neck presses and pulldowns. According to Dr Davis, these exercises can place your joints in an unnatural position, which increases the risk of injury. So what can you do instead? Dr Davis recommended front overhead presses or standard pulldowns, as they don't force your shoulders into extreme positions and also lower the risk of impingement, which is the term for pinching or rubbing together inside a joint, leading to pain or swelling.

3. Heavy upright rows

Next, Dr Davis cautioned heavy upright rows, calling them ‘impingement city’ because of how adversely they can affect your shoulders, as the exercise places them in unsafe positions. It can be replaced with dumbbell lateral raises as they target the delts without cranking the rotator cuff. This means dumbbell lateral raises do not put excessive strain on the rotator cuff tendons, in contrast to the rotator cuff tendons.

4. Deep ATG squat

There is a type of squat called DEEP ATG (ass to grass) where you squat as low as possible, just as the name suggests. But Dr Davis warned that back and knee problems may occur if you are not careful, especially if you already have existing issues related to mobility. Squatting all the way to the floor without adequate hip, ankle, and knee mobility can put a lot of stress on your knees and lower back.

Dr Davis recommended parallel squats or goblet squats, calling them ‘knee-friendly.’

5. Loaded back hyperextensions

The last exercise that may be a problem for your joint health is loaded back hyperextensions, which, according to the doctor, can ‘crush your lower back in bad ways.’ So what are the safer options? Some of the alternatives are Romanian deadlifts (RDLs) or glute bridges. They don't put too much pressure on your lower back, which effectively strengthens glutes, hamstrings and lower back.

Note to readers: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them. This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice.