Speaking of Fridays, guess what? Lisa got the “thumbs up” from her OB the other day and our little guy is good to go for his “launch” in two weeks. This time two Fridays from now I may be calling myself “Dad.”
Holy shitballs.
Stuff to Checkout Before You Read Stuff
1. I Am Not Afraid to Lift: The Retreat
Save over $300 off registration with the Early Bird rate for I Am Not Afraid To Lift® – THE RETREAT with Artemis Scantalides, Julia Ladewski, and (my wife) Dr. Lisa Lewis on May 5-7, 2017 at the Arizona Grand Resort & Spa in Phoenix, Arizona.
Designed BY women FOR women this weekend retreat is sure to be a treat (<– HA, get it?) covering anything and everything with regards to lifting things (bodyweight, kettlebells, barbells), nutrition, and mindset training.
I’ll be there too, albeit on Daddy Day Care duty with a then 4-month old. Or should I say doody? Anyways, it’s going to be an amazing weekend and a lovely opportunity to surround yourself with other positive, powerful, intelligent, and unabashedly strong women.
Dean Somerset and I will be in Vancouver, BC, Canada the weekend of April 1-2nd, 2017 putting on your flagship workshop.
It may be the only time we’re on the west coast of North America all year so whether you have to hop on a plane, drive a few hours, or take a hovercraft….get there.
Go HERE for more info and to take advantage of the EARLY BIRD rate.
3. I helped contribute to THIS article via BuzzFeed News on Surprising Weight Loss Tips. Lots of other smart coaches and trainers chimed in as well.
It’s the start of a new year, and with it comes an avalanche of information overload and hyperbole when it comes to what you should and shouldn’t be eating.
Kamal Patel of Examine.com sets the record straight on many of the more common myths circulating out there.
“Rules” are meant to be broken. You know, like that one my wife makes about cleaning my dishes when I’m done with them and to not leave them in the sink. Pffffffft, whatever.1
I had a gentleman reach out to ask me to read his article and to tell him what I thought. Well, I thought it was good enough to post on this week’s list.
Sha-ZAM.
In short: YOU are in charge of your own change.
Social Media Highlights
Twitter
A very UNDERrated accessory movement are pause lifts. No better way to get stronger in a ROM you’re weak in than by spending more time there
To be blunt: I don’t feel what I do is all that special or altogether revolutionary. But it’s a topic that came up a lot earlier this week when I asked the Twitterverse for some ideas on what they’d like to see me write about in the future.
@tonygentilcore1 Creating buy-in from your client, how much time you spend on an assessment in the first couple of sessions, break it down!
Much of the time the entire process starts with a swipe right an email. Someone reaches out and expresses an interest in coming to my studio in Brookline, MA so I can take a look at their bum shoulder or low back, or maybe to have me audit their deadlift or squatting technique.
They’ll be a few back and forths and I’ll try my best to articulate to them what my assessment will cover. I’ll ask for a little background information – training history, any current/past injuries I need to be aware of, or whether they’re Team Jacob or Team Edward?1 – and then I’ll break down the general flow of the assessment and what they can expect.
In short, I’ll inform them that I divide the session into two parts: The “poking and prodding part” and the “pseudo training session part.” The part where I incessantly blurt out movie quotes is just a given.
The goal, for the poking and prodding part, is to see if any red-flags pop up from a “is anything I’m doing causing any pain standpoint?” and a “do they have the mobility/flexibility of a rusty crowbar standpoint?”
Likewise, the goal of the pseudo training session part is to ascertain general movement quality and to not bore them to tears.
I explain this to them in a much more professional and succinct manner.
Once we’ve established a date/time to meet up I’ll send them the address of the studio (you would think this is obvious, but I can’t tell how many times I have forgotten to do so), pre-payment options if they so choose (PayPal Button), as well as my Health Questionnaire I’d like for them to fill out prior to coming in (to help save time).
An important point I’d like to note about my health questionnaire (I am not saying you have to do this) is that I consider this an opportune chance to start building a rapport with the client. Most people know what to expect from a standard health questionnaire. Questions regarding their family history, past/current injuries to note, allergies, and what (if any) medications they’re taking are all par for the course. Mine questionnaire is no different.
However, out of nowhere I’ll hit them with questions like:
What’s your favorite movie?
What’s your pet’s name?
Have you ever been bitten by zombie?
Such things help break the monotony and serve as conversation stimulators. Plus they demonstrate I don’t take myself too seriously and that I’m cool as balls.
The Face to Face
Now it’s go time. We finally meet face to face.
I’ve championed this sentiment in the past but it bears repeating:
“The main objective for me when starting with a new client is to not treat the assessment as an opportunity to showcase how much of a walking ball fail they are. It serves no purpose IMO to point out every…single…thing they suck at. Rather, my goal is to do anything and everything I can to demonstrate to them success.”
If they’re coming in with shoulder pain and they lack shoulder flexion, what can I do to 1) help them get out of pain? and 2) demonstrate movements that they can do (pain free)? Moreover, can I use the Test/Retest protocol to see an increase in ROM in shoulder flexion?
If I can accomplish one of those things within an hour, if not all three, it’s a safe bet I’ll likely achieve an easy “buy in” on their end. I’ll also kindly ask them to refer to me as Gandalf from that point on.
I’ll begin each assessment with a 5-10 minute window where we discuss our feelings. Normally I’d rather jump into a shark’s mouth than discuss my feelings with anyone, but it’s about them not me. The best thing I can do is shut up, ask questions, and listen and use the word “why?” a lot.
Example 1
Them:“I want to lose ten lbs?”
Me:That’s cool, why is that? What benefit do you think you’ll receive in attaining that goal?
Example 2
Them:“My goal is to compete in my first powerlifting meet.”
Me (after I high-five them):“Cool. why is that? What benefit do you think you’ll receive in attaining that goal?
Example 3
Them:“I’d like to get stronger.”
Me:“Yeah, that’s cool but it says here your favorite movie is The Matrix Revolutions, is that right?
Them:“Yep, I love it.”
Me:“Get the fuck out of my gym.”
Sometimes people talk for a few seconds, while others go on for several minutes (and then some). Either way, by getting THEM to talk – and asking why? – I’ll get a better idea of where their mindset is at in addition to having a better appreciate of where they’re coming from.
Something else to note here is that, often, coaches will use the interview process to ask about coaches and trainers the person may have worked with in the past and their experiences with them. I think it’s a good idea to ask. However, what I find is all too common is some coaches take it as an opportunity to lambast the other coach.
“Your previous trainer did whaaaaat? That’s so stupid!”
Don’t do that.
Just nod your head, say something to the affect of “huh, that’s interesting,” and move on. You’re not doing yourself any favors by talking smack about other fitness professionals. In fact I think it comes across as very unprofessional.
It’s Time to Poke and Prod
NOTE: Just realized this comes across as slightly creepy. Rest assured things stay 100% PG.
At this point I’ll take out my training table and start the formal assessment. To be honest: while I do have a checklist I work off of, no two assessments are the same. Having the checklist helps, but everyone’s different. While there is some overlap, what I look at and how I assess a 22-year old college baseball player can be quite different compared to a 47-year old accountant with limited exercise experience.
To that end, every fitness pro approaches assessment differently. I’ve taken the FMS and use portions of it all the time. However I’m going to try my best to cater the assessment to match the person standing in front of me. That’s the beauty of having my own spot. I can do whatever the heck I want.
If that means going off the beaten track so be it.
I’d be remiss not to mention it’s inevitable there’s going to be a degree of bias. One’s training philosophy and values will come into play. For example I’m a “strength” guy. I like getting people strong (while also helping them feel a little more athletic). Despite my assessment I’m still going to have people deadlift, squat, press, row, carry, lunge, and perform first pumps x infinity to Annie Mac radio.
Some may be like, “WTF Tony. What’s the point in doing the assessment, then, if all your going to have them do is the same stuff you have everyone else doing?”
Fair question.
The assessment helps me figure out someone’s starting point. More to the point, the assessment helps me figure out what variation of those lifts will be the best fit given their goals, ability level, and movement quality.
As an example, I use the table assessment to perform a hip scour and gauge hip (IR/ER) ROM. If someone has 45-50 degrees of ER and 20-40 degrees of IR (and appropriate hip flexion ROM) it’s a safe bet they’re okay with squatting below 90 degrees (or with most anything else I’d have them perform on the gym floor). If not, well, I’ll adjust.
I can also perform further “screens” to see if the lack of ROM is due to actual “tightness” or if all I have to do is work on someone’s REACTIVE stability:
I can also use the Shoulder Flexion Screen to see whether or not overhead pressing is a good idea.
In the end, I’m not going to sit here and say you MUST do “x, y and z” because I don’t know what you should or shouldn’t be doing. All I know is that there’s no one right way, but that getting people OFF the table is more valuable to me.
The Pseudo Training Session
The poking and prodding part takes, maybe, 15 minutes to complete. 20 minutes tops. Sometimes less.
I don’t want people feeling like a patient and I’d much rather get them on the gym floor doing stuff. I get more information this way anyways.
Here’s where I’ll take a look at their hip hinge, squat, and single leg (front plane) stability. If need be, I’ll regress or progress accordingly. For some a hip hinge is showing them a cable pull-through.
For others it’s an actual deadlift.
Remember: SHOWING THEM SUCCESS is crucial.
Show people what they can do, and don’t perseverate on what they can’t.
At this juncture I’ll also begin to showcase some of the “correctives” I may want them to do. Some may need to prioritize their T-spine mobility or maybe we need to spend some time activating their glutes. Or, maybe we need to show them a good movie, like The Royal Tenenbaums.
I’ll also break down why (and how) I want them to foam roll and do their soft-tissue work, and then I’ll basically take them through a quick training circuit. This may come down to a short-n-sweet A1-A2 circuit for a few sets. Or, I don’t know, maybe we’ll take our shirts off and perform bicep curls for ten minutes.
Either way I’ve done all I can to have (hopefully) given them a positive experience and a better idea of my coaching style, what a typical training session would look like, and how I’m going to help them increase their general level of badassery.
Buy in = they give me their credit card number….;o)
PS: If you’re really interested into diving into my assessment process check out mine (and Dean Somerset’s) resource Complete Shoulder and Hip Blueprint.
Today’s guest post comes courtesy of SUNY Cortland head strength coach and lecturer, Justin Kompf. And speaking of SUNY Cortland, the annual Health and Wellness Conference is this April 8th featuring myself, Dr. Lisa Lewis, Brian St. Pierre, Mark Fisher, and Dr. David Just. For more information go HERE.
It is the easiest thing in the world to sit down after work, turn on the television and eat whatever food is most convenient.
This convenience is inherently pleasurable; for most people, alternative behaviors such as exercise and cooking for 30 minutes are not. There is no immediate reward to experience from this type of behavior.
In fact, the exercise session may actually elicit what is perceived to be painful bodily experiences, especially when compared to sitting on the couch. The chicken and broccoli meal certainly isn’t going to excite your taste buds in the same way that burger, fries, and milkshake would. Thus, there is potential for painful experiences such as bodily discomfort and future soreness when a person exercises and they are also giving up the pleasure associated with unhealthy food.
Change Is Difficult
Due to the general difficulty of change, lifestyle modification to adopt healthier behaviors will certainly result in struggling with some intrinsically negative emotions. Struggling to suppress or avoid thoughts such as “I won’t eat the cookie” or “I won’t sit on the couch and watch television after work” might actually make these thoughts more accessible in the mind and ironically more likely to occur. Additionally, if you are trying to eat healthier and exercise more and happen to have a normal human mind, you will inevitably have negative self-thoughts.
“No matter how hard I work, I will never look like her”
“Exercising every day is challenging with my schedule, is it even worth it?”
“I can’t do it”
“I can’t change”
“I’ve failed at this before, why should now be any different?”
“Acceptance means opening up and making room for painful feelings, sensations, urges, and emotions. We drop the struggle with them, give them some breathing space, and allow them to be as they are. Instead of fighting them, resisting them, running from them, or getting overwhelmed by them, we open up to them and let them be. (Note: This doesn’t mean liking them or wanting them. It simply means making room for them!)”
When these negative thoughts appear in your head ask yourself the question, “Can I work with these thoughts?”. It is not a question of whether these thoughts are true or false since this is all a matter of perspective.
For example, “I didn’t lose weight this week, I’m a failure”. Whether or not your truly are a “failure” is irrelevant. What is relevant is how this thought will guide your behavior. If you let the thought of being a failure guide your behavior will it enable you to reach your goals and help you become the kind of person you want to be?
Acceptance and commitment based strategies may be useful in promoting physical activity. Pilot research on the topic demonstrated that after an acceptance and commitment based intervention college aged women visited the school athletic center to exercise significantly more than those in an education only condition (Butryn, et al., 2011).
Further, after a 10-week study designed to promote increased walking in sedentary individuals, Martin and colleagues found that when participants were taught skills to enable the acceptance of negative feelings and unpleasant sensations that come with physical activity there was a significant increase in cardiorespiratory fitness, estimated VO2max, and a decreased avoidance of the negative internal experiences related to physical activity (no control group for comparison).
One weight loss study showed that after a 12-week acceptance based intervention participants lost 6.6% of their body weight. More impressively, at a six month follow up participants had continued to lose weight (9.6% of body weight) (Forman, 2009).
Two of the most practical tips to practice acceptance and commitment are to identify higher order values and to examine if thoughts are workable.
Let behaviors be guided by values rather than ruminating on negative thoughts
Acceptance and commitment therapy is based on the understanding that people will only continue to engage in behaviors that bring about distressing internal experiences only if these experiences are occurring at the service of some higher order life goal or value.
In their 2009 Pilot study Forman and his colleagues had participants list out the top 10 reasons why they wanted to lose weight. They were then taught to recognize the connection between the values they listed and their eating and physical activity behavior (Forman, 2009). Once higher order values are identified, meaning is now attributed to daily behaviors that once lacked importance.
I believe that this connection between behaviors and values is best exemplified by Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Seaver:
“Pitching…determines what I eat, when I go to bed, what I do when I’m awake. It determines how I spend my life when I’m not pitching. If it means I have to come to Florida and can’t get tanned because I might get a burn that would keep me from throwing a few days, then I never go shirtless in the sun… If it means I have to remind myself not to pet dogs with my left hand or throw logs on the fire with my left hand, then I do that, too. If it means in the winter I eat cottage cheese instead of chocolate chip cookies in order to keep my weight down, then I eat cottage cheese.” (Duckworth)
A value system establishes that low order daily behaviors are in service of higher order long term goals. If you need more help finding strong values to strengthen your resolve for daily behaviors try asking yourself why each stated goal is important to you. For example:
Goal level 1: I want to start exercising more consistently. Why?
Goal level 2: Because I want to improve my health. Why?
Goal level 3: Because I have seen unhealthy relatives lose their independence with age and I want to be able to do all the activities I love for a long time.
Exercising consistently is thus linked to being able to maintain one’s independence throughout a lifetime.
Ask if your thoughts are workable
Whenever a negative thought or feeling comes into consciousness ask yourself if this thought is workable. Specifically, you can ask yourself the following:
“If you let this thought guide your behavior, will that help you create a richer, fuller, and more meaningful life? If you hold on to this thought tightly, does it help you to be the person you want to be and do the things you want to do?”
If this thought is not workable, try practicing an acceptance based skill called defusion. Defusion is the process of observing thoughts and feelings from a ‘distance’ without acting on them or trying to change them. Thoughts and feelings do not need to be believed, acted on, or even suppressed. A negative emotion is not something that will be solved analytically or with scrutiny.
For example, if you are hungry because you are trying to lose weight, that hunger is an inherently negative feeling. However, this negative feeling does not necessitate harmful action such as binge eating. You also do not need to pretend as if this feeling is not currently with you, accept that it is there and recognize that you are in control of how this feeling guides behavior.
Who can use acceptance and commitment strategies in their practice?
It is important to not overstep the boundaries of professional practice. I believe it would be important to consider acceptance and commitment as a paradigm shift in a person’s thinking process. In his book, Russ Harris states that:
“I hope to make ACT accessible to the broadest possible range of professionals- from coaches, counselors, and mental health nurses, to social workers, psychologist, psychiatrist, and all health professionals”
I would recommend that anyone who is trying to change their lifestyle start with working on identifying higher order goals and linking them to their daily behavior. Furthermore, attempt to practice defusion skills if negative thoughts or emotions well up as a result of lifestyle change. Ask if these thoughts are workable for long term goals. If they aren’t, recognize that they do not need to be accepted as truth and do not need to be acted on.
Author’s Bio
Justin is the head strength coach at SUNY Cortland. He is also a lecturer in the kinesiology department at the university. Cortland hosts a health and wellness conference each year, this year on April 8th. Speakers will include Tony Gentilcore, Dr. Lisa Lewis, Brian St. Pierre, David Just and Mark Fisher. For more information go HERE.
Note From TG: The conference linked to above is $60 to attend. That’s a steal considering the quality of presenters coming in and the information that will be shared. Students: you can’t use the excuse of “that’s too expensive” because I know full-well you’re spending that much (if not more) drinking on the weekends. Fitness Pros: this is Cortland, NY, in April, for $60. Shut up and get your butt there…;o)
References
Butryn, M.L., Forman, E.M., Hoffman, K.L., Shaw, J.A., & Juarascio, A.S. (2011). A pilot study of acceptance and commitment therapy for promotion of physical activity. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 8(4), 516-522.
Duckworth, A. Grit: The power of passion and perseverance.
Forman, E.M., Butryn, M.L., Hoffman, K.L., Herbert, J.D. (2009). An open trial of an acceptance-based behavioral intervention for weight loss. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 16, 223-235.
Harris, R. ACT made simple: An easy-to-read primer on acceptance and commitment therapy.
Martin E.C., Galloway-Williams, N., Cox, M.G., & Winett, R.A. (2015). Pilot testing of a mindfulness- and acceptance- based intervention for increasing cardiorespiratory fitness in sedentary adults: A feasibility study. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 4(4), 237-245.
Well, it’s either that or I start breaking down plot points of some my favorite 90’s television shows like Melrose Place, Party of Five, or 90210.
For instance:
I’ll tell you right now, Billy and Allison were doomed to fail. Once you break the roommate-to-lovers barrier it’s all over and stuff starts getting weird. Plus when you throw Amanda (Heather Locklear) into the mix…well, shits bound to go down. (Melrose Place).
Sarah Merrin (Jennifer Love Hewitt): the greatest high-school girlfriend ever? (Party of Five).
Is this a scene from 90210 or an actual video from one of my high school dances?
These are all IMPORTANT QUESTIONS people.
Joking aside (but not really joking), one of the more prevalent snafus with regards to people’s deadlift technique is their inability to get their weight back. This can lead to a few issues:
One’s weight shifting forward (anteriorly) resulting in pulling through the toes rather than the heels.
The barbell, in this case, will often “get away” from the lifter.
Both scenarios resulting in a poor line of pull where the axis of rotation is further away from the barbell oftentimes compromising low back (spinal) integrity.
More to the point: the barbell feels like a goddamn magnet is attached to it.
One trick I often use is to cue people to use the barbell as a counterbalance to get their weight back, as if they’re trying to wedge themselves into the floor:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdQGC-QwyAQ
But Wait, There’s More
However, different people learn shit differently. How’s that for putting something eloquently? While some people are more visual or auditory learners (either showing or telling them what to do), others are more kinesthetic learners. Meaning, sometimes, in order to understand what their body is doing in space, they may need a little more feedback.
This is where using props comes in handy.
One trick I like to use to teach people what it means to get their weight back is to use a box.
The idea is to set a box underneath so that when they grab the barbell they have to “sit back” until they feel the box. It’s important to note it’s more of less a hover than it is actually sitting back onto the box entirely.The objective is to maintain tension throughout. I.e., no relaxing on the box.
I don’t know, I find it works well for some people and it’s always cool to witness the “ah-HA” moment when they finally get it.
My wife, Dr. Lisa Lewis made an appearance on the Push Pull Legs Podcast recently discussing the psychology behind lifting heavy things, getting women to strength train, and training during pregnancy. She’s a superstar!
I was asked to contribute to THISrecent article on MensHealth.com detailing a beginner 3-week workout plan outlined by stud trainer BJ Gaddour with myself taking the reigns on what to do after the initial three weeks.
3. The Lifting Dead
I also had an article go up recently on BodyBuilding.com outlining the benefits of dead exercises. Namely, how the Dead Squat, Dead Bench, Dead Row, and Dead 1-Legged RDL can help you blast through sticking points.
Dean Somerset and I just booked out first speaking gig together for 2017, and it’s in lovely Vancouver the weekend of April 1-2nd. We’ll be putting on our Complete Shoulder & Hip Blueprintworkshop.
And lastly, we’re getting prepped to launch our 6-week beginner course at CORE. Granted I’m biased but I feel this program is going to help a lot of people and help them get over the hump of being intimidated by strength training.
What will differentiate this program from others is that, in addition to the sick techno & house music the stellar coaching on teaching the basics, there will also be a nutrition and mindset component too. The idea is to meet up in 2x per week in a group training format with (optional) nutrition and mindset 60-90 minute breakouts every other weekend.
The course will start in a few weeks and there will only be 10 spots made available.1
For more information please use the Contact function HERE.
And on that note lets get to this week’s list of Stuff to Read…
I need to go crush some front squats in a few, so this one is going to be short and sweet today. Meaning, no long-winded introduction that no one reads or cute cat references.1
I’d like to preface today’s post with a well-timed quote from strength coach, Dr. Joel Seedman:
“When a strength coach says an exercise is “deceptive,” he really means “looks sort of easy but will make you cry.”
I can’t think of any better way to introduce today’s Exercise You Should Be Doing.
Push-Up Plank Hold w/ DB Row
Who Did I Steal It From: Dean Somerset had me doing these a few years ago when he was helping me work through some lower back shenanigans. He was an asshole.
What Does It Do: At first glance it looks like a nice little row variation, and it is. However, the real nuts and bolts of this exercise is the insane core stability that’s involved. There aren’t many exercises that light up my mid-section (RA, obliques, etc) than this one. Too, I feel it in other places: glutes, upper back, eyebrows, you name it.
But for real: this is an excellent core exercise and a lot more challenging than it looks.
Key Coaching Cues: Don’t be a hero. The objective here isn’t to sling around 80-90 lb DBs to try impress the other bros standing around. Trust me, they won’t care. The name of the game her is OWNING body position. Holding a strict 3-point plank will be challenging enough for some people. When you add an oscillatory element with the row, however, it makes the exercise even more challenging as the body has to resist movement during each repetition.
Abs and glutes should be engaged, quads flexed, and foot placement will depend on how bad-ass you are (wider = easier, narrow = Wolverine). With the row component, chest should be up and I prefer to cue people to think of the motion as an “arc” rather than straight up and down. To that end think about “rowing” your elbow towards your hip.
It’s the start of a new year and with it a proverbial reboot or rejuvenation towards one’s health and fitness. Well that, and a metric boat load1 of Facebook statuses of people complaining about all the “newbies” crowding the gym.
I am not one to complain because 1) I don’t typically work out in a commercial gym 2) Nah nah nana naaaaah and 3) I think it’s a good thing when people decide to be more proactive, take an active role towards their health and well-being, and join a gym. I mean, really? Are you that inconvenienced? I can appreciate it’s slightly annoying when there’s a traffic jam at the power rack (made worse when people are using it to perform bicep curls) or that it’s more or less an obstacle course to walk around all the meandering patrons doing this thingamajiggy or that whateverthef***.
Relax. Deep breaths. It’ll all be over by the second week of February…;o)
Nevertheless, as pumped as I am that people take the initiative to begin an exercise regime, I’d be remiss not to cringe – just a little bit – at the overzealousness of some as they begin their fitness journey.
Last week was one of the rare weeks where I trained every day in a commercial gym (my wife was on vacation and I joined her at her gym) and while it was great to observe people getting after it, the coach in me couldn’t help but start to hyperventilate into a paper bag want to be a coach.
For example I saw a lot of people deadlifting. It was cool. I wanted to go over and high-five every single person. However, that would have been weird and possible justification for a restraining order I kept to myself, but past all of that was an insatiable desire to want to fix a lot of deadlifts.
I admired their intent, but I’d be lying if I said a small piece of my soul didn’t die watching a few people doing their thing.
You see, for a lot of beginners what I “think” ends up happening is that they watch a re-run of the CrossFit games on ESPN or watch videos like this:
…and are all like “that’s badass, I want to do that,” not recognizing that 1) a deadlift is much more than just bending over and lifting a barbell off the ground (regardless of whether it’s 1000+ lbs or 50 lbs) and 2) a straight bar deadlift (from the floor) is the most advanced variation of a deadlift there is. Not many people are ready or prepared enough on Day #1 to perform this safely and with proper technique.
So I figured I’d offer a sort of “check-list” for beginners to consider, and what I feel would be the appropriate progressions to follow to work up to a straight bar deadlift.
Note to Internet Hero Trainer Guy/Girl Who Will Inevitably Call Me Out On Why I Didn’t Address This Thing Or That: This is not a dissertation, it’s a blog post highlighting a few candid thoughts and processes. This is no where near an exhaustive breakdown of deadlift technique or programming.2
Checks and Balances
Everyone is different and there’s no ONE right way or variation or cue that applies across the board. People have different leverages, injury histories, and experience levels and it’s important to take all those things into heavy consideration when coaching anyone up on the deadlift.
I will say: I know what I DON’T want to see. This:
That’s pretty much THE golden rule.
Because it makes me do this:
There are any number of reasons someone’s deadlift may look like the above picture:
Lack of hip mobility to “access” the hip flexion required to get that low to floor.
Lack of t-spine mobility (specifically extension).
Lack of ankle dorsiflexion.
Lack of kinesthetic awareness.
The novelty of the exercise.
They were born on a Wednesday. I don’t know.
Obviously step #1 would be to address and musculoskeletal/mobility restrictions that may be present.
Lack of Hip Mobility
Wall Hip Flexor Mobilization
Dynamic Pigeon to Half Kneeling
Shin Box
Lack of T-Spine Mobility
Side Lying Windmill
T-Spine Extension (Done Right)
Lack of Ankle (and Big Toe) Dorsiflexion
This is a component that’s often overlooked. If someone can’t access dorsiflexion it’s going to compromise their ability to get into deep(er) hip flexion to get down to grab the barbell.
Active Ankle Dorsiflexion
Metatarsal Active Squat Drill
Lack of Kinesthetic Awareness
Oftentimes it’s lack of awareness of what the body/joints are doing in space that’s the limiting factor. I like to use the Cat-Camel drill to build context and to demonstrate what I don’t want to see (rounded back) and what I do want to see (neutral spine)
Addressing Novelty (<— This is HUGE)
Here we have the nuts and bolts. Much of time, even though the stuff discussed above is very important, it comes down to the novelty or “newness” of the exercise as to why some people fail. To be blunt, and as alluded to earlier, much of the reason why many fail at deadlifting from the get go (and end up hurt and using the lame excuse that deadlifts are dangerous for everyone) is because they’re too aggressive and end up gravitating towards variations (and loads) they’re not ready for.
They either don’t understand what it actually means to hinge through the hips (which is all a deadlift really is: it doesn’t always have to mean pulling a heavy barbell off the ground) and/or they fail to progress accordingly based off their experience and leverages.
Learning what it means to dissociate hip movement from lumbar movement step #1 in grooving a bonafide hip hinge. One of the most popular drills to do so is the Wall Hip Hinge. Unfortunately, as harmless and innocuous as it looks it’s easily butchered. Here’s how I like to coach it up:
Another drill I like is the Tall Kneeling Handcuff Hip Hinge. Here we can take some joints of the equation and place a KB behind the back, which, for some reason, works. I think Gandalf made it up.
If you’re’ interested in learning some more hip hinge drills you can check out in THIS article I wrote a few months ago.
Assuming I’m comfortable with someone’s hip hinge now it’s time to start adding some load.
Remember: You DO NOT have to use a straight bar, and I’d caution against it for more beginners. The only people who have to use a straight bar are competitive powerlifters and Olympic lifters. Generally the people who say otherwise are those who don’t coach people. So if some Joe Schmo internet warrior tells you otherwise tell him to f off.
While there are always exceptions to the rules my progression series is as follows:
1. Master Hip Hinge Drills.
2. Cable or Band Pull-Through.
3. Kettlebell Deadlift: Elevated if need be. And from there we can progress to pulling from the floor as well as ramping things up to 1-Arm KB Deadlift (which adds an additional rotary component), 2-KB Deadlift, and even Hover Deadlifts:
4. Trap Bar Deadlift: The trap bar (or hex bar) deadlift is an excellent choice for beginners or those with limited experience because of its user friendliness. This is often my “go to” variation for everyone I begin working with.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-sA3PG1kGY
For starters one’s center of gravity is inside the bar, which makes it easier to maintain an upright torso angle and a better neutral spinal position. All of which translates to less shear loading on the spine.
The elevated handles make it easier for those with mobility issues/restrictions – such as limited hip flexion and/or ankle dorsiflexion – to perform in a safe and successful manner.
5. Rack Pulls or Block Pulls: Here we can start adding anterior load. With the barbell now in front of the body the axis of rotation is further away which can result in more stress on the lower back. This is fine so long as neutral spine is maintained.
I’d note here that I much prefer Block Pulls. I find they have more carryover to the actual deadlift as you’re still able to get slack out of the bar (which you’re unable to do with a rack pull). Both are great options, though, when introducing straight bar variations.
Is your spine still attached? Can you still feel your legs? Good. Lets move on.
6. Sumo Deadlift/Conventional Deadlift: Look at you, son! Pulling from the floor now. Whatever variation allows for the most success, feels better, and guarantees proper spinal position is the one I’ll run with.
Sometimes people picked the wrong parents and their anatomy dictates what will be the best fit long-term. Generally speaking those with mobility restrictions, longer torsos, and short(er) arms will prefer sumo style over conventional. I prefer a middle-ground approach for many and often use a Modified Sumo Stance with my clients/athletes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6Xjb72gGTE
None of this speaks to the other particulars I like to go over with trainees with regards to foot placement, hand placement, leg drive, common mistakes with lockout and the descent, not to mention appreciating, getting, and maintaining body tension. You can do a search on the site and find an abyss of other deadlift articles that go over all those things.
The goal today was to showcase my (general) approach to deadlifting with beginners. I hope it helped.
Addendum (Other Stuff I Wanted to Say)
1. Consider hiring a competent coach to show you the ropes. A good litmus test to figure out whether or not they know what they’re talking about:
Ask them if they know who Andy Bolton is.
Have him or her point to their posterior chain. If they point to their abs. Walk away.
They can differentiate between a deadlift and a squat.
They actually look like they lift weights.
2. Stop BOUNCING your repetitions. It’s a DEADlift, not a BOUNCElift. On each rep, when you return to the floor, you should come to a complete stop. “Reset” your air and spinal position, and repeat.
3. I HATE high-rep deadlifts, especially for beginners. Fatigue is going to compromise form. Try to stick to no more than 5-reps per set.
4. Home base – in terms of loading – should be in the 65-80% range of 1-rep max. Not that this means you should test your 1RM right away. The thing to consider is that you don’t NEED to train heavy to start. Beginners or un-trained individuals can train with as low as 40% of 1RM (Hint: that’s super light) and still reap all the benefits and gain a training effect. Honing technique should be the main goal at this point.
Hope everyone’s New Years was fantastic and safe. Lisa and I celebrated our last Holiday as non-parents by being lame and going to bed at 9 PM New Year’s Eve. We figured we’d start a new hash-tag to highlight the fact: #sleepingwhilewecan.
2017 is here and with my first post of the year I wanted to discuss two common mistakes I see people make with their Turkish Get-Up.
Lisa has been on vacation from work since before Christmas and I’ve taken advantage of tagging along in the mornings to train with her at her commercial gym. I don’t make it into commercial gyms all too often, but when I do you can bet two things will happen:
I have to do everything I can to not want to gauge out my corneas.1
I always pick up some good ideas for blog fodder.
During the past week I’ve noticed a lot of people performing Turkish get-ups, which is awesome. I think it’s rad to see more and more people venturing out of their comfort zones. Unfortunately, I’ve also noticed a few common themes with regards to questionable technique while observing the same people. Mistakes that are very subtle in nature, but can make a profound difference when it comes to reduced injury risk when corrected.
1) Rolled Shoulder vs. Packed Shoulder
This is the one snafu I see the most often. When someone transitions from the forearm to the “T” position (to the hand) they’ll allow the shoulder supporting their weight to roll forward. Kinda like this:
Ouch.
With bodyweight or a lighter KB it won’t be that big of a deal. However, it’s a bad habit to fall into (even with light loads) and is going to place a lot of strain on the anterior shoulder, most notably the bicep tendon.
The better approach is to ensure a “packed” shoulder. Like this:
Bonus points for the sick Star Wars t-shirt. Demerit points for pitting out. My bad.
The simplest verbal cue I’ll use in this case is to tell the person to “place you shoulder blade in your back pocket” or maybe to say something to effect of “cork screw your hand into the ground.”
Both work equally well and place the shoulder in a far superior (and stable) position to transition forward.
2) Not Getting Under the Bell
Another common mistake I see often is people not getting underneath the bell when transitioning from the tripod/3-point stance to half-kneeling.
Most will perform more of “teapot” motion cranking through their lumbar spine (<– props to Artemis Scantalides for the teapot analogy) rather than hinging INTO their hips to get underneath the bell.
Here’s a quick 1:15 minute video explaining what I mean:
Learning to use the hips is crucial here and helps with getting a feel for what it means to “control” the bell. Not surprisingly some people struggle with this. Here’s simple way to groove things and get those hips nice a juicy:
Give the above suggestions a try and let me know if they make a difference. If not, I guess I’ll GFM…;o)
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