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Dave:
Mirror muscles are the muscles you see when you flex in front of the mirror. They include the biceps, triceps, shoulders-front delts, chest and abs. Although these muscles may come in handy when trying to impress girls at the beach they are not the only body parts that should be trained. 

Most lifters spend too much time working these muscles because they are the first thing people notice when you enter a room. After all what guy wouldn’t want a bigger chest, larger biceps or broader shoulders? Therefore many people work these body parts 2-3 times a week while neglecting other important muscle groups such as upper back, lower back quads and hamstrings.  

There are many injuries caused by over training mirror muscles.  In my opinion, shoulder, back and knee injuries are the most common.

Many Shoulder injuries occur because people constantly train the front part of the body-chest, biceps, and shoulders while neglecting to work the back of the body- upper back, lower back and the back of the shoulders or rear delts.

Think about it, how many front pressing movements do you do? Do you do dumbbell chest press, shoulder press, incline press, decline presses, front shoulder raises or chest flies? All of these exercises work the chest and front of the shoulder while neglecting the back and side of the shoulder. After a while the front of the body becomes so out of proportion that the shoulder joint no longer functions correctly, your posture begins to suffer and injury is more likely.

Back injuries are also common because many people concentrate on working abs but never work the lower back. Everyone wants ripped abs but very few people worry about the shape of their lower back. In fact many people assume they have bad backs when they are just weak due to neglect. Constantly training abdominals while failing to include any lower back exercises will guarantee that your back will continue to stay weak and your chances of getting hurt are much greater.

Knee injuries can also be caused by constantly working the front of the legs or quads while neglecting the ham strings. If the front of the leg becomes too strong pressure will be put on the knee joint instead of the muscle. This imbalance could destabilize the joint causing serious injury to the knee. Weak hamstrings can also cause lower back injuries as well.

Preventing injuries such as the ones I mentioned above is simple. All you have to do is create a balanced approach. A good rule of thumb is to always do an equal amount of sets and repetitions for the front of the body as well as the back. Target your weakness by working them early in the weak when you are fresh and full of energy. Don’t fall into the trap of only working the muscles you see when you look in the mirror. You will be much bigger, stronger and well balanced by training your body equally.

 

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