If your bones are not strong or if your joints are weak, you are going to have a hard time living the healthy and active lifestyle that you want to live. Here are three exercise tips that will help you ensure that you are taking care of your bones and joints when you exercise.

#1 Always Warm Up Before You Work Out

Before you start a serious workout, you should always warm up. To really warm up, you need to break a sweat before you begin to seriously work out. Simple exercises such as jumping jacks, a quick brisk walk or running in place before you start to work out will get your circulatory system moving and active.

Once you get your heart going, take a few minutes to stretch your arms, legs and back. This doesn't have to take a long time; three to five minutes of stretching will work. Stretching is often more effective when you have already started to warm up your body. Once you're warmed up and stretched out, its time to begin your real exercise routine.

#2 Wear The Right Safety Gear

Wearing the right gear when you work out will help protect your bones and joints. Make sure that you are wearing the right type of supportive shoe for the activity that you are engaging in. 

If you are engaging in a more physical sport, make sure you have the proper padding on. For example, if you are riding a bike, put on a helmet. If you are going skating, put on knee, elbow and wrist pads.

Wearing the right gear and the right protective equipment is an easy way to ensure that you don't hurt your bones and joints while you work out.

#3 Increase Your Routine Gradually

Don't try to change your workout routine all at once. Instead, work on gradually changing your workout routine. If you want to increase your intensity, build up a small percentage at a time.

For example, if your big goal is to run 10 miles at once, but you are currently only running 2 miles per session, increase your goal a little at a time. This week, run 3 miles in each workout, then next week increase by another mile. Don't push yourself too hard all at once; this could damage your joints and muscles. Instead, gradually increase the intensity of your workouts until you make it all the way to your goal. 

In order to take care of your bones and joints when you work out, always warm up and stretch, wear the proper gear, and gradually increase your intensity all at time, not all at once. For more information, contact a business such as Tedder Sports Medicine & Orthopaedic Center.