The exercises everyone ignores that protect your body long-term

Most people who train consistently do not end up injured from doing too much. They end up injured from ignoring a small group of muscles that exist specifically to protect the joints they are loading. Jeff Cavaliere of AthleanX and Andrew Huberman identify four specific areas — the glute medius, the rotator cuff, the neck, and the tibialis anterior — that are undertrained relative to their role in long-term physical function. Getting these right is the difference between training hard for decades and spending years managing avoidable pain.

The glute medius

Most people train their glutes with squats, deadlifts, and hip thrusts — all of which primarily target the gluteus maximus. The gluteus medius sits on the side of the hip and controls lateral stability of the pelvis. When it is weak, the pelvis drops on one side with every step, placing compensatory load on the lower back, IT band, and knee.

Hip drops during running, lower back pain that persists despite core training, and IT band syndrome are often symptoms of glute medius weakness rather than the structures that hurt.

Training the glute medius:

Side-lying clamshells: Keep the hip stacked and the pelvis stable. Most people rotate forward, which recruits the hip flexors instead.
Standing hip abduction with resistance band: Maintains tension throughout the range of motion. Focus on the lateral hip, not the lower back.
Single-leg balance work: Any unilateral exercise that challenges hip stability recruits the glute medius under functional load.

Two to three sets, two to three times per week is enough to build meaningful stability. The goal is not size — it is motor pattern and endurance.

The rotator cuff

The rotator cuff is four muscles (supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor, subscapularis) that anchor the head of the humerus in the shoulder socket. Without a functioning rotator cuff, the scapula cannot position the socket correctly for overhead pressing, bench pressing, or any pulling movement. The result is impingement, labral wear, or acute tears — injuries that frequently require surgical intervention.

Conventional shoulder training (overhead press, lateral raises) does not train the rotator cuff. These exercises load the deltoids. The rotator cuff needs direct work.

Key rotator cuff exercises:

External rotation with cable or band: Elbow at 90 degrees, held against the side. Rotate outward against resistance. This trains the infraspinatus and teres minor — the two most commonly injured muscles.
Face pulls: Combines external rotation with scapular retraction. One of the most effective shoulder health exercises available.
W-Y-T raises: Performed prone or on an incline, these activate the lower trapezius and reinforce scapular control.

The rotator cuff should be trained before heavy pressing sessions, not skipped when time is short.

Neck training

The neck supports between 10 and 14 pounds of skull and brain. Most people never train it directly. The consequences range from poor head posture to chronic cervical pain to increased concussion risk — a well-trained neck absorbs significantly more impact force than an untrained one.

Neck training is also one of the simplest interventions in this list. Isometric neck exercises take less than five minutes and require no equipment.

Basic neck training protocol:

Isometric resistance in all four planes: Apply gentle resistance to the forehead (flexion), back of the head (extension), and both sides (lateral flexion) with your hand. Hold each for 3-5 seconds. Avoid rotation under load at first.
Neck curls (supine, without weight initially): Lift the head off the floor as if nodding. This trains the deep cervical flexors, which are often extremely weak.
Progressive loading: As strength builds, add light resistance with a towel or weighted cap. Volume and progressive overload apply to the neck like any other muscle.

Three to four times per week is sufficient. The neck adapts quickly.

Tibialis anterior

The tibialis anterior is the muscle that runs along the shin and controls dorsiflexion — the upward movement of the foot. It decelerates the foot on every step and absorbs ground reaction force during walking and running. When it is weak, shin splints, plantar fasciitis, and knee pain are common downstream effects.

Training the tibialis anterior:

Toe raises against a wall: Stand with heels on the floor, back against a wall, and lift the toes toward the shins. Add a resistance band for progressive load.
Tib bar raises: A specialized piece of equipment that loads dorsiflexion directly. Increasingly popular in functional training settings.
Slow downhill walking or stair descent: Trains the eccentric function, which is the primary role of the tibialis anterior during normal locomotion.

How to fit these into your training

None of these exercises require a separate training session. They can be integrated as:

Warm-up activation: Glute medius work before lower body sessions; rotator cuff work before upper body sessions.
Accessory finishers: Neck and tibialis at the end of any session, two to three times per week.
Recovery days: Low-intensity and injury-preventive, making them appropriate for days between heavy sessions.

The cumulative effect of consistent minor muscle maintenance is the ability to continue training without the forced rest periods that come with injuries. Over a 20- or 30-year training career, that difference is enormous.