Exercise Equipment Injuries Up 45%
Exercise equipment Injuries are a real risk for people seeking fitness at a home or gym. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission there were 1500 visits to the emergency room from gym fitness equipment related accidents and 50,000 visits from home fitness equipment related accidents in 2009. Injuries caused by exercise and exercise equipment increased almost 45 percent between 2007 and 2010, according to the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS).
Treadmills are the most common cause of injury causing falling and tripping injuries each year. Treadmills can be dangerous to people of all ages but it should be noted that in 2010 there were more than 10,000 treadmill injuries to children under the age of 4. This suggests that parents with home gyms need to be careful to keep rooms with treadmills inaccessible to little ones. Between 2005 and 2008 almost 42,000 treadmills were recalled due to various malfunctions.
Weight lifting machines account for over 79,000 exercise equipment accidents each year. Some of these accidents are due to errors in usage but design flaws could also be a factor.
A products liability lawyer can help you determine if you were injured due to a defective product and fight to get you the compensation you deserve.
Common Exercise Equipment Injuries
- muscle pulls and strains
- sprained or broken ankles
- shoulder injuries
- fractured arms and legs
- knee injuries
- shin splints
- fingertip amputations
- tendonitis
- wrist sprain or dislocation
Many gym equipment related injuries occur due to distraction from headphones, cell phones or reading. Working out too hard or too soon after a period of inactivity or not being properly familiar with new equipment also increases injuries. The most common causes of exercise equipment injuries are by customer misuse including bad posture, lifting weights beyond their physical capacity, or other poor techniques.
Personal trainers oversee technique and therefore reduce the risk of exercise equipment injuries. Many gyms offer a free personal training or orientation session for new members to help familiarize them with the equipment. A lot of gyms also provide a complete fitness and health evaluation to assess their client’s readiness for working out. Men over the age of 50 tend to be the least aware of their health issues and can therefore push themselves too hard. A fitness evaluation can help personal trainers tailor exercise programs to particular needs and goals. In addition to testing and preparing individuals, convenient holders for phones, magazines and water bottles on exercise equipment can help to prevent fitness injuries.
If you were injured in an exercise equipment accident you may want the help of a products liability lawyer to help you determine if a design flaw caused your accident.
If you or a loved one were injured in an accident, you have enough to deal with. Let an experienced accident attorney fight for the full compensation that you deserve. It is not uncommon to receive a settlement from the insurance company that is five to ten times bigger with the help of a lawyer. Call the caring accident attorneys at Tario & Associates, P.S. in Bellingham, WA today for a FREE consultation! We have been representing residents of Whatcom County, Skagit County, Island County and Snohomish County since 1979. You will pay nothing up front and no attorney fees at all unless we recover damages for you!
