| Every time you got injured in the weight room, you ignored a warning sign that came before. It might have been subtle, but it was there. It's always there. I'm not talking about freak accidents, like dropping a weight on your foot or the bench breaking, but injuries caused by poor technique, failure, or something else in your control. It's always something like a little voice telling you to take the day off, a sharp shooting pain you get that mysteriously disappears in the middle of the set, or a strong sudden desire to cut the workout short. We all get those from time to time, and we all ignore them. And that's when an injury happens—not every time, of course, but all of those injuries happen after we've ignored a warning sign. Looking back at my own injury history: There was the time I hurt my shoulder hitting a max bench press, even though my shoulder wasn't feeling right and the previous sets ended with a shooting but relatively minor pain. I should have stopped. But I didn't. Or the time I tweaked my back doing deadlifts after a long hike in the Malibu hills where I had the bright idea to carry a log with a buddy of mine. My back was clearly exhausted, and I could feel the tightness before I even touched the bar. But I didn't listen. Again, every injury I can remember was preceded by some warning sign I proceeded to ignore. You have to learn to recognize those warnings when they happen before you get in too deep. Have you noticed this before with your injuries? What warning signs have you ignored, or heeded? Let me know in the comment section of New and Noteworthy. | 
