If you’ve experienced muscle shaking during a workout, it’s a signal you shouldn’t ignore.

Learn why experts view this as a “yellow light.”

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Barre teachers often promise that muscle shaking is a good sign.

woman sweating in the gym

exercise physiologist at theHospital for Special Surgery

Some revealed that pushing through shaking left them with torn ligaments.

Others were not so sure.

So, to shake or not to shake?

Woman walking on a treadmill at the gym.

First, your muscles might be tired.

If youre trying out a new move, you might expect shaking.

This physiological explanation is what informed Myers TikTok advice.

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exercise physiologist at theHospital for Special Surgery

Your bodys sending you a signal that the muscle is fatiguing, Myers says.

Should you stop doing an exercise if your muscles start shaking during a workout?

Myers agrees that the yellow light analogy is the perfect way to put it.

Healthy female training in the gym, performing a hip thrust.

She says, Its saying dont go any further than where you are right now.

The problems (and injuries) happen when people speed up and initiate the red light.

If you push through the yellow light, you could crash and hurt yourself, Acetta says.

A young black woman doing post-run stretches in the park on the road amidst green grass and trees.

The red light is complete and total exhaustion and fatigue.

We want to be able to catch ourselves and slow down before we blow through that red light.

What happens if you keep going after your muscles start shaking during a workout?

The consequences of blowing through the yellow can be both mental and physical.

Acknowledge that you probably only have a few more reps in you, and then give yourself a rest.

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