Any bench-pressing variation can be a double-edged sword. On one hand the advantages are numerous:
Builds upper body strength.
Pecification of pecs.
And that’s pretty much it.
So maybe not as numerous as I thought. But there’s no denying the importance of horizontal pressing movements (barbells, dumbbells, people, etc) with regards to building and developing a well-rounded physique and/or athlete.
To their detriment, however, some people take the “well-rounded physique” idea to the extreme and often perform waaaaaaaaaay more pressing movements compared to anything else. Just walk into any commercial gym (literally, any one, just pick), and try sit there for more than five minutes and not see someone start to bench press.
As a result we often see an uptick in shoulder ouchies due to muscular imbalances (over-developed pecs compared to under-developed upper back muscles) and wonky scapular mechanics.
The latter is not an absolute: You’ll often find shoulder blades that are “glued” together or stuck in downward rotation in people who bench a lot. This is good thing in that you WANT the shoulders to be retracted and depressed in order to move a lot of weight.
It can be bad in that you still should be able to “access” upward rotation, protraction, and all the other motions the scapulae are designed to perform in order to keep the shoulders healthy.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the case for many people.
What Does It Do: Pressing variations involving a bench are open chain and don’t allow the shoulder blades to move. As noted above: this is fine. In order to heave a significant weight off your chest you need to set a stable base. And in order to do so it’s crucial to retract and depress the shoulder blades.
The thing is, over time, this can produce less than stellar scapular mechanics and result in shoulder pain or discomfort.
The scapulae (shoulder blades) need to be able to move.
This variation allows such a thing to happen.
Not only is the shoulder blade now able to move through a more diverse ROM, but this exercise, too, is a great rotary stability exercise (you have to fire your core musculature to maintain a straight torso as to not fall off the bench) in addition to nudging a bit more glute activation.
Key Coaching Cues: There’s not much to it. Lie on bench and scoot over to one side or the other so that the shoulder blade of the pressing arm is off the bench.
And then, you press.
Try to avoid lowering the DB so low that your shoulder “rolls” forward. Also, I like to cue a bit of a PLUS or protraction movement at the top.
Bonus Tip: Make a fist with your free hand to aid in developing even more full-body tension.
Perform 8-12 repetitions and then switch.
Wrap Up
Will this movement help you press 300 lbs? No.
But it will help keep your shoulders healthy in the long-run, and I see no harm in peppering it into programs sporadically just to remind trainees/athletes that it’s okay to let their shoulder blades move and breath a little bit.
Moreover, you know and I know that when someone’s shoulder hurts and you tell someone to stop pressing, that they’re likely going to be an a-hole an press anyways. At least with this variation you can help keep them sane and still press while addressing all the other things they may need to be working on to solve the issue(s).
In my career as a strength coach I’ve worked with numerous athletes and non-athletes alike dealing with back pain. And while much of the time my initial “go to” exercises are things like the McGill curl-up, birddogs, deadbugs, and various planks I also recognize that, after awhile, some people would rather wash their face with broken glass than perform another rep of any of those exercises.
Curl-ups, birddogs, and planks work. There’s no denying that. Coaching people up on those three movements alone and having them perform them on a consistent basis will clean up a lot of aberrant movement reduce pain in a symptomatic back.
However, it’s just, you know, they get boring after a while. As much as I’m a fan of those movements (and could care less how bored someone gets if it’s what they need to be doing to get better), part of my job as a coach is to help people not feel like a patient and to find other means to elicit a training effect.
I mean, raise your hand if this sounds familiar:
Athlete/Client:“Ready to train coach. What are we doing today?”
Coach:“You’re in for a treat. We’re getting after it with birddogs today. Holla!”
Like I said, it’s not to bemoan the birddog – it’s lovely exercise – but it’s not to say we can’t toss in alternative exercises that are just as conducive to working through low back pain AND more palatable for those looking to actually train.
HBT Front Squat March
Who Did I Steal It From? – a combination of Dr. Joel Seedman and MA based strength coach, Ryan Wood.
What Does It Do? – I’ve discussed the concept of HBT before in THIS article, but to reiterate:
“HBT = Hanging Band Training.
It’s exactly what is sounds like. You take some bands, hang some stuff off them, and do stuff. Because, science.
While at first glance it comes across as a bit gimmicky, HBT training does have a fair amount of efficacy. As Dr. Seedman explains in the article linked to above, the oscillatory characteristics of this brand of training provides a unique training stimulus that challenges stabilization, increases core demand, helps “excite” the CNS, and also has a bit of carryover to muscle gain due to the increase in time under tension.”
Germane to this exercise, the oscillatory effect of the kettlebells (or plates if you don’t have access to KBs) works wonders with regards to challenging the core musculature to stabilize and in helping to build a more resilient back.
The exercise itself can work in one of two ways:
1) If you have the space to do so, you can have someone unload a barbell from a rack and have him of her walk a specific distance.
2) Or, if you’re like me, and have a smaller studio, you can just as effectively have someone stand in place and march it out, like my client Dima is doing in the video above. Like a boss.
Key Coaching Cues: This is a fairly intuitive exercise. The KBs hanging from the bands is going to jostle the individual every which way if they’re too lazy and not CONTROLLING the barbell. The objective is to resist the movement of the KBs.
I like to tell my clients to “keep the KBs quiet.”
Some other things you want to be on the lookout for is too much leaning back and/or any excessive lateral flexion (side bending). The idea is to “stay tall” as one alternates back and forth from foot to foot.
You can either shoot for a specific time (say, 30-40seconds) or a specific number of steps. Give it a try and let me know what you think.
Having a newborn at home = I’ve been waking up on the wrong side of the bed lately. A lot. I’m cranky AF and my brain waves aren’t firing on all cylinders this morning so you can blame this lame introduction on that.
Cool?
Awesome. Lets discuss abs. Specifically, lets discuss one of the more common ab exercises out there: the abdominal rollout.
The Abdominal Rollout: A Complete History (But Not Really)
I’d like to sit here and pizzaz you with some interesting factoids and trivia about the abdominal rollout, like, say, I don’t know, its roots can go all the way back to Mesopotamia and that every male had to perform strict repetitions for 17 hours straight before he was allowed to mate. Maybe the History Channel can back me up on that one?
Who knows, for all I know some guy named Phil was the first to perform the exercise while training in his basement in 1968 while jamming to Hendrix. Phil was cool as shit.
Either way, all I can really tell you is that it’s a staple exercise that trains the anterior core musculature – upper and lower rectus regions in addition to the internal and external obliques – and has long been a “go to” exercise for anyone looking to shred their mid-section.
Specifically the abdominal rollout is an excellent variation that trains ANTI-EXTENSION, and, well, many people tend to miss the boat in this regard.
I see a lot of common mistakes when I watch trainees perform this exercise. In fact, most would be better off pumping the brakes a little bit and mastering something like an RKC plank first.
RKC Plank = a plank (albeit learning appreciate tension).
The set-up is more or less the same a regular ol’ plank, except here you’ll want to flex everything – your abs, glutes, quads, eyelids, everything.
An important cue I use when teaching the RKC plank is to tell the person doing it to pretend as if they’re trying to drag their elbows towards their toes. When done right, it increases the “holy cow, this is really hard” factor by a large margin.
Also, when done right, 10 seconds will feel like torture.
But I’m getting a little off-track. What are those common mistakes of the rollout I was referring to above? The two most common are:
People falling into excessive lumbar extension (<– remember: the rollout is an exercise that helps train anti-extension; it defeats the purpose of the drill if you allow your lumbar region to “fall” into extension). The idea should be to maintain posterior pelvic tilt of the pelvis throughout.
Not allowing the hips to follow the shoulders.
In Case You’re Too Important to Watch the 2-Minute Video Above
1. I like to cue people to start the exercise in a bit more of a lumbar flexed posture (PPT). Relax, it’s unloaded flexion, you’ll survive. By doing so, most will end up in spinal neutral as they draw closer to the floor.
2. My triceps look jacked in that video.
3. Oftentimes as people break toward the floor their shoulders will lead and the hips will tend to lag behind. A cue that often works for me is to tell the person to pretend there’s a rope or chain connecting their hips and shoulders and that the shoulder are “towing” the hips behind them. They should move simultaneously.
Address those two things and technique will clean up nicely.
How About Progressions?
Assuming you’re already pretty good at the standard rollout, what are some ways we can progress the exercise?
Some less sexy alternatives would be:
Add a pause at the bottom.
Use a slower tempo on the way down and up. Think: three seconds down, pause, three seconds up.
We all know you’re going to skip those however, so maybe consider these options?
Level 1: This Is Kinda Cool, I Guess – Elevator Ab Wheel Rollout
Here, the idea is to include some pitstops or “speed bumps” along the way to make the movement more challenging and to increase time under tension.
With the Elevator Rollout I’ll tell people to rollout to three different lengths:
1/2 way out, then back.
3/4 way out, then back.
Full ROM, then back
THAT’s one rep.
Aim for 5-6 repetitions (which is really 15-18 repetitions when you count all the additional stops).
Level 2: Alright, Now We’re Talking – 2-Way Ab Wheel Rollout
All we need to do to make something a little more challenging is to add a change of direction. With the 2-Way Ab Wheel Rollout the idea is to alternate between veering off to the left and to the right. But, really, you can add as many directions as you want. And, if you’re really feeling frisky you can combine this with the elevator variation above.
I like to shoot for 6-8 repetitions per direction with this one.
Level 3: Ohhhhhhhhhhhh, Snap – Band Resisted Ab Wheel Rollout
To up the ante even more we can add resistance in the form of a band. With this variation I wrapped two bands around the corner of a squat rack and wrapped the other ends around each handle of the abdominal wheel.
The band will “assist” with the yielding/eccentric component, but you will need to fight and overcome the concentric portion. It’s a pretty nasty progression, so don’t take it lightly.
Aim for 8-12 repetitions.
Level 4: “Whoa, I Know Kung-Fu” – Standing Band Resisted Barbell Rollout
^^ Bonus points for The Matrix reference.
Admittedly, this isn’t that baller…but it’s a nice variation for those who aren’t quite able to perform a strict standing rollout (which is next level Jedi shit). With this variation you have to overcome the band as you roll out, however on the way back the band will accommodate or assist you back up to the starting position. Pretty nifty.
Aim for 5-8 repetitions.
And that’s that. I hope those tips to clean up technique help and made sense, and I also hope you now have a few new exercises to try.
Speed ladders, parachutes, BOSU balls…it’s all nauseating at times. There’s a time and place for all those things – I guess – but when they’re added to an athlete’s (especially young athlete’s) training repertoire I have to wonder if they’re in there because the coach feels it’ll make him or her better, or if it’s the novelty they’re after? Today’s guest post by strength coach, David Otey, tackles the idea of sport RESTRICTIVE exercise and sport ASSISTIVE.
In fitness, finding your niche is a major part of making an impact on an individual. Over the last few years, Instagram celebrities and fitness magazines are guiding people on the best “sport specific” exercises for athletes.
If you want to be great at throwing, do this!
If you want to play cornerback in football, do that!
The whole process is very demanding of precise movements. The only issue is, details enhance, they don’t create. Just like a nice tie doesn’t make a cheap suit look better, detail work without a foundational set of athleticism, doesn’t change the athlete.
We can all remember our first intro to lifting weights, like a first date. The first interaction is the most impactful so a shit program can really compromise your results for years to come if you don’t find the right direction.
Ever meet that 50 year old guy that is still doing his HS football team’s lifting routine?? I meet that guy all the time. The issue with this idea is young athletes usually get thrown into a specific rotation of exercises that may be helping tiny details but neglecting overall development.
The fact is, the first 6 months to a year of working out is the most crucial from a muscle mass, neuromuscular awareness, and overall gym knowledge standpoint. Those initial days and exercises really set the table for your future accomplishments in the gym.
Sport specific exercises have been used for years with the intent of developing a particular athlete in their respective competition. Ever hear of the SAID principle? If so, makes sense right?
Sport restrictive exercises is a term I use for any exercise that could hinder the natural athleticism of an athlete.
If we are using sport specific exercises, they should be a compliment to some natural big lifts that are the foundation of our program. Thousands of athletes, right now, are practicing how to make one hand catches like Odell Beckham Jr. While focusing on that, they are neglecting speed, power, route running, catching fundamentals, and more
Athlete programming has two overall objectives: Maximize potential and minimize injury/restriction.
If you are not getting better, you are competing less.
If you are hurt, you are competing less.
We want athletes to compete more, work more efficiently, and stay in the game longer. The idea of sport restrictive exercises is to change the thought process from what things can I do for specific movements to what things should I REALLY not be doing to hinder my development in that sport.
I would argue that the majority of exercises are good for all athletes with a strong foundational level of athleticism (assuming no major injuries). There are a subset of exercises for each sport which should be avoided if you are looking to max out your potential. Here are four of the more common situations we may run into which are holding back our athletes.
Restricted Hip Drive
Restricted Shoulder Mobility
Loss of Rotational Power Generation
Loss of Multidirectional Movement
These four basic areas are really what encompass the attributes that set an athlete apart from the field.
Lacking in one or multiple of these either place you behind the curve or place you on the injury reserve. These for characteristics are also seen in every sport just in varying quantities. Let’s dive into how we can distinguish and avoid sport restrictive exercises going forward. As sport specific exercises are truly movements seen in game situations, I will refer to the exercises below as “sport assistive.”
Hip Drive
Hip drive is one of the most powerful and common strengths of any athlete. Whether you are throwing, blocking, sprinting, hips dominate the motion. Hip drive can be used in many ways but explosion and stability are the key responsibilities of the Glutes. To get the most of your hip drive, it’s important to work in areas that are similar to your sport. The weight room opens us up to a long list of activities that can work on a more powerful looking lower body. Key word is LOOKING. How can we adjust to just flat our powerful.
Sumo Deadlift – Sport Restrictive Movement
Note from TG: Noooooooooooooooo (sad face). I’m still posting a video of myself.
Traditional Deadlifts are becoming more common in weight rooms everywhere which is a great thing. The movement is based on full body strength and developing power. With regard to the Sumo Squat, it’s inherently unique set up is unfamiliar to almost any sport we see on a regular basis. Now I know, some people are going to say, “But what about the extra muscles used in the Sumo Deadlift?”
I certainly can understand that, my argument is this is more suited for the athlete geared towards weight-room competitions and less towards indoor/outdoor traditional sports. Building a foundation should be based on movements that are going to directly impact performance, not just look sweet in your Instagram post.
Broad Jump – Sport Assistive Movement
Without hip mobility, you are leaving yourself with a quick road to injury. Restricted hip mobility leaves you in a position to rely on areas to gain mobility that aren’t meant to have mobility. This extra strain, either placed on your knees or lower back, can quickly turn into chronic issues.
To avoid this, don’t work on exercises with unique demands that are uncommon to your everyday activity. The broad jump for any athlete is a way to specifically focus on hip and lower body explosion with the outcome of “project myself as far as humanly possible”. All out power is what we strive for. The hip extension utilize in the broad jump mimics almost all lower body locomotive movements we will see more commonly.
Shoulder Strength
Shoulders are the second most impactful joint in the body. Where the hip is mainly responsible for power generation from the lower limbs, the shoulders have the main juncture of the upper limbs. In all throwing sports, the chain reaction between medial foot all the way through the throw, is either amplified or diminished because of shoulder (scapular and glenohumeral) strength and mobility.
Barbell Military Press – Sport Restrictive Movement
The traditional Military press is no argument a solid movement for building muscle mass, but not ideal for working with the general athlete. The fundamental difference between athletics and barbells is the level of predictability.
Barbell movements confine the body to accommodate muscle growth and patterning to a restricted path due to the bar. In sports, all movements are unique and the body is better prepared when trained to be strong through its own control of its path (Example: Dumbell Press).
With respect to athletes with large wingspan, shoulder movement independent from one another is also safer than fixated movement. Increased muscle mass restricts in some sports and helps in others, but overall, the barbell is counterproductive for the athlete.
Landmine Shoulder Press – Sport Assistive Movement
The Landmine Shoulder Press is a great method to strengthen the muscle while focusing on glenohumeral rhythm.
To build in the body’s capabilities to work at its highest demand, we need to reinforce the body’s desire to work in collaboration with coexisting parts of the system. The Landmine’s free pivoting base allows you to control the weight independently. Along with this, the path of the bar promotes scapular upward rotation along with force angle more appropriate for one of our most unstable joints.
Rotational Power
Power is only as good as it can be transferred. Its tough to turn on a light with a frayed power cord (don’t try that at home). The anterior and posterior core’s primary functions are to maintain spinal stability and transfer power. The inherently awesome part of rotational power is the body’s ability to work together and coordinate multiple segments to maximize output. This doesn’t happen without the core, and doesn’t happen without training the body in its full capacity rather than in isolated segments.
Power Cable Twist – Sport Restrictive Movement
Cable twists are commonly seen in gyms around the country as a method to great sick abs. Unfortunately, they aren’t great at that and are more detrimental to spinal integrity. Just as I wouldn’t swing a baseball bat without pivoting my feet, rotation without lower body rotation creates increased stress on the discs, vertebral columns, lumbar spine, hips, damn near everything. Creating rotational power generally starts at the medial foot and transfers up, so training in that manner is most appropriate.
Med Ball Throws – Sport Assistive Movement
The Med Ball Throw is one of the most similar movements to translation of rotational power. One key factor of power is the ability to go full throttle. Just like doing sprints on a treadmill is definitely not the same as doing full sprints outside, there is no restriction of full potential. Proper Med Ball throws can teach an athlete full power output, safely!
Multidirectional Movement
Side Shuffles – Sport Restrictive Movement
One of the hardest things for me to watch is a coach teaching an athlete to side shuffle. Usually, with the side shuffle, the athlete is instructed to keep their back foot in contact with the ground. This concept is generally contradictory to natural lateral movement. Try running while keeping one foot on the ground at all times. Chances are you are going to lose your race.
Lateral Skiers – Sport Assistive Movement
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOI1exR6pSk
The medial foot is one of the primary points of the body where power starts. Stealing a base, juking a tackle, initial drive in the baseball swing, all start from medial foot. Lateral work is a great translator to rotational power and lower body reactive capability. Lateral Skiers allow you to focus on single leg accommodation and the ability to propel from that loaded position. This is a movement that every athlete should build do and practice.
Summary
Every program is going to be unique because of the athlete and specific coach writing the program. The purpose of this article isn’t to blast certain exercises but to bring up arguments to why other movements may be more appropriate for your athletes.
You don’t need a speed ladder to be sport specific.
The best sport specific movements are those done in practice. Unfortunately, as coaches, we may only work with certain athletes in a weight room setting. It is important to identify which exercises can translate, and which in the long term, could be holding back our athletes. Bottom line: don’t restrict your athletes by refusing to adjust from the status quo.
Author’s Bio
David Otey is a Strength and Conditioning specialist based out of New York City. David is the 2016 Fitness Manager of the Year for Equinox and has been featured in several major fitness publications on the topics of strength and Conditioning.
I hate the term “girl push-up.” I hate the connotation it breeds; that girls are weak and that they should do these kind of push-ups instead (performed from the knees). Coaches who use it are 1) lazy and 2) are definitely worthy of the stink eye.
But what about squats? Is there such a thing as “squatting like a girl?” Does the term equally make me want to toss an ax into my face? Well, not exactly. In today’s excellent guest post, NY based coach, Meg Julian, provides some insight on why, sometimes, there is such a thing as squatting like a girl.
I’d like to start off by saying that I’m truly honored Tony named his firstborn child, Julian, after me. I hope to inspire the masses as much as I’ve affected Tony. But I’m not here to talk about Baby Julian; I am here because of Baby Julian (yay!).
We are here to talk about why “squatting like a girl” can be different than squatting like a boy.
After working in a female-only gym for five years and training many females clients during the past seven years (not to mention being a woman myself), I’ve found that we often don’t hear about how tips for men might not work perfectly for women, because our bodies (shocker!) are different.
This is one major reason why when I ask new clients to squat, they often struggle to squat, or even look back blankly (really!) Why? Because squats can be complicated, and most exercise science was developed for men by men.
Photo Credit: T-Nation.com
And that’s no way to live, as a great squat can help women with overall strength and weight-loss, which are frequently among the goals I hear from clients.
So, whether you want to put an Olympic barbell on your back or just get in and out of a chair, you’ll want learn how to properly squat. Here are four important ways that women can improve their squat:
#1: Use Your Butt
Squatting is widely considered a phenomenal exercise for building your butt, but many women don’t effectively engage their glutes when they squat. Counter-intuitive, right?
That’s partly because most people sit for much of the day and thus over-stretch their posterior chain, which is the butt and hamstrings; we also tend to over-work the front of our bodies, rather than the posterior.
It’s no surprise, then, that the little elves in your muscles don’t stand a chance.
This condition is called “glute amnesia,” and it’s a term coined by back specialist Stuart McGill — I’m not kidding! If you don’t engage your glutes when you squat, the connection between your muscles and brain will fade, which will make it even harder to use your bum when you want to. In other words, if you don’t use it, you lose it.
To remedy this, the cue we often hear when squatting is to “sit back.”
But this often turns into a balancing act of:
Gripping the ground with your toes and hanging on for dear life;
Sticking your butt back;
Leaning forward and hoping to not fall over; AND
Doing nothing positive for your body.
Instead, I tell clients to pick their toes up off the ground.
Picking your toes off the ground, and putting the weight in your heels, makes the connection between the brain and posterior chain stronger. This is often what is meant by “sit back,” but our bodies tend to take the path of least resistance, so instead of truly using your glutes, it’s common to become a bit of a surfing expert.
Note from TG: Nice cue to get people to “feel” their glutes work and to understand their role in squatting. While I don’t want to speak for Meg, it’s not one I’d use long-term, especially if the goal is to lift more weight.
If this seems weird and awful, or you topple over, you’re probably not doing it incorrectly; you just haven’t built the strength yet. Keep trying. And you might want to practice over a bench until you get the hang of it.
#2: Redefine the Relationship Between Your Knees and Your Toes.
The misinformed cue we often hear is “Don’t let your knees come past your toes.”
The idea, again, is that your weight should be in your heels and mid-foot instead of being perched up on your toes. The cue has it’s heart in the right place, but it’s just misdirected, much like this meme:
But I love home; that’s where I keep my bed, food and dog.
The problem? Again, everyone is built differently. For example, if you have long femurs (thigh bones), it’s going to be better for your squat to let your knees come past your toes.
The focus, instead, should be on having your shoulders go straight up and down as you squat.
So instead of focusing on your knee placement, double-down on your efforts to keep your weight back, barbell over mid-foot, and your back upright.
#3 And One More Thing About Your Feet.
It’s common to be told “Squat with your toes facing forward,” but most women will feel more comfortable turning their toes out a bit when they squat. The female hips and the way the leg bones fit into them are built to be a little wider; you know, “birthing hips” and all.
So instead of focusing on your feet facing forward, focus on aligning your knees above your toes, and for women, this likely means turning your feet slightly outward — and your knees along with it.
Trying to force a more narrow stance or twist the toes in a direction they don’t naturally want to go will cause a lot of tension in the knees. It’s like trying to jam a drawer shut that’s off its runners — not pleasant.
This may be perfectly fine for some and even how most assessments are done, but it’s possible that this is not the ideal form during every workout. Just look at the way a little kid naturally sits in a sandbox (do they still have those?): knees are wide and toes are turned out.
Not sure how wide to point your toes? I recommend standing barefoot with your heels together on a smooth surface like wood, and squeeze your glutes. Then, separate your feet until your heels are under your shoulders. This is likely the most comfortable position for a squat for your body. Play around and see what feels best.
#4: Show Your Ankles Some Love.
Tight calves can lead to a lack of dorsiflexion, which is the ability to flex the toes up toward the shins. It’s a problem I often see in women who wear high heels or flip flops and never stretch.
Lacking range of motion in your ankles is terrible for nailing a squat. By limiting the bend, your body will find a way to compensate by flattening arches, caving knees in toward each other or leaning too far forward.
Here’s a simple test of ankle mobility: Place your toes four inches from a wall. Without lifting your heel, can you bend your knee until it taps the wall. If yes, you’re good! If no, keep practicing twice a day until you can. Keep it up until you can consistently hit a wall. In a good way.
Wrapping It Up
Most women have goals of losing weight, improving their backsides and getting stronger. While these goals are a bit vague, I do have a specific answer: Squat as much as you can handle — after you master squatting like a girl.
Author’s Bio
If you enjoyed what you read, want to learn more or just need to know where to send the hate mail, visit me HERE, where you can subscribe to my weekly email dedicated to tips like these and improving technique and strength for obstacle course racing. You can also follow me on Instagram HERE.
Megan Julian is a New York-based NASM Certified Personal Trainer, with additional certifications such as, FMS L2, NASM-CES and CFSC. She specializes in preparing brides for the big day, helping obstacle course racers improve their times and working with clients of all ages overcome injuries. In her free time, she enjoys running through the woods, jumping over walls and crawling under barbed wire — sometimes at events such as the World Championship Obstacle Course Race in Canada.
It was 1:30 AM, maybe even 2:17 (it’s always a blur, sucky, and when it’s that late doesn’t it even matter?) as my wife nudged me to see if the baby was alright. I turned over to my left, peeled my eye open just enough to press the button to turn the screen to the monitor on, and indeed it was our newborn, Julian, making his case for one of the two of us to get our asses out of bed and ascertain the situation.
Julian, during one of his non-Gremlin moments
Our little guy passed the 4-week old mark earlier this week and in that time Lisa and I have had a crash course in sleep deprivation training (I’m basically a Navy SEAL by now) in addition to learning baby-speak, or what I like to call “What are you trying to tell me? Please stop crying. I’ll do anything. No, really, anything………”
[Jumps off roof]
We don’t have much to complain about in the grand scheme of things. Julian has been awesome. Much like any baby in the history of ever, and as any parent in the history of ever knows, when your newborn starts crying it’s indicative of one or two factors to get them to (hopefully) settle back down:
They need a diaper change.
They need to be fed.
They need to be swaddled,
They need their binkie.
They need to be swung or need movement (or maybe they’re overstimulated).
WILDCARD: They need more cowbell.
As time passes you learn to not panic, run through the checklist, and before long you’re a first class baby-calmer-downer.
It’s funny, though.
Since I’ve been neck deep in baby shenanigans the past few weeks it’s been a trip to see how I make connections and correlations between that and stuff I see and come across in my professional life… training and coaching athletes/clients. One of the purest examples is something I witness on an almost weekly basis.
Many of the new people who start with me are beginner or intermediate level meatheads (male and female) who, for whatever reason(s), have been dealing with a pissed off shoulder that inhibits their ability to train at the level or intensity they’d like. It’s frustrating on their end and it’s my job as the coach to try to peel back the onion and see what may or may not be the root cause or causes.
Most commonly people will note how bench pressing bothers their shoulder(s). Working on their technique is the baby check list equivalent of blow out explosive diarrhea.
I.e., It’s code mother-fucking red.
Following the mantra “if it causes pain, stop doing it” is never a bad call, and I am all for nixing any exercise or drill that does such a thing. However, I don’t like to jump to conclusions too too quickly. Sometimes making a few minor adjustments to someone’s technique or setup can make all the difference in the world.
Almost always I’ll have to spend some time on their set-up. I like to cue people to start in a bridge position to drive their upper traps into the bench and to set their scapulae (together AND down).
We can make arguments as to what this is actually doing. Some will gravitate towards it improving joint centration. Cool (and not wrong). I like to keep a little simpler and note that all it really does is improve stability.
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Another thing to note is many people tend to flare their elbows out too much when they bench which leaves the shoulders out to dry and in a vulnerable position.
MINOR NOTE: Since recording that video above (two years ago), I have since changed my views slightly thanks to some cueing from Cressey Sports Performance coach Tony Bonvechio. Elbows tucked on the way down is still something I’m after (albeit some are too aggressive at the expense of placing too much valgus stress on the elbows). However, when initiating the press motion, in concert with leg drive, allowing the elbows to flare out a teeny tiny bit (in an effort to keep the joints stacked and to place the triceps in a more mechanical advantage) will often play huge dividends in performance.
In the end, much of the time it comes down to people not paying any attention to how crucial their set-up is. It’s amazing how often shoulder pain dissipates or disappears altogether with just a few minor adjustments.
2) What People Don’t Want to Hear: Stop Benching, Bro
This is where the Apocalypse begins. Telling a guy (usually not women, they could care less) that he should probably stop benching for the foreseeable future is analogous to telling Donald Trump he can’t Tweet.
The thing about holding a barbell is that it “locks” the glenohumeral joint into internal rotation which can be problematic for a lot of people and often feeds into impingement syndrome.
[The rotator cuff muscles become “impinged” due to a narrowing of the acromion space.]
NOTE: I hate the term “shoulder impingement” because it doesn’t really tell you anything. There are any number of reasons why someone may be impinged. Not to mention there are vast differences between External Impingement and Internal Impingement….which you can read about in more detail HERE.
If bench pressing hurts, and we’ve tried to address technique, I’ll often tell them to OMIT barbell pressing in lieu of using dumbbells instead. With DBs we can utilize a neutral grip, externally rotate the shoulders a bit more, and open up the acromion space.
Or, maybe they can still barbell press, albeit at a decline. When you place the torso at a decline the arms can’t go into as much shoulder flexion and you’re then able to avoid the “danger zone.”
Something else to consider is maybe pressing off a foam roller. Sure, you won’t be able to use as much weight, but as Dr. Joel Seedman explains in the video below you’ll be able to work on better joint centration AND the scapulae can actually move (an important variable discussed more below).
If all else fails, sadly, you may have to be the bearer of bad news and tell someone that (s)he needs to stop benching for a few weeks to allow things to settle down.
3) Let the Scaps Move, Yo
Above I mentioned the importance to bringing the shoulder blades together and down in an effort to improve stability.
If you want to lift heavy shit, you need to learn to appreciate the importance of getting and maintaining tension. That said, if lifting heavy shit hurts your shit, we may need to take the opposite approach. Meaning: maybe we just need to get your shoulder blades moving.
When the scaps are “glued” together and unable to go through their normal ROM it can have ramifications with shoulder health. Push-ups are a wonderful anecdote here.
Unlike the bench press – an open-chain exercise – the push-up is a closed-chain exercise (hands don’t move) which lends itself to several advantages – namely scapular movement.
4) More Rows
This one will be short and sweet. Perform more rows. Many trainees tend to be very anterior dominant and spend an inordinate amount of time training their “mirror muscles” at the expense of ignoring their backside. This can lead to muscular imbalances and postural issues.
This makes me sad. And, when it happens, a kitten becomes homeless.
You sick bastard.
The easy fix is to follow this simple rule: For every pressing motion you put into your program, perform 2-3 ROWING movements. Any row, I don’t care.3
5) Address Scapular Positioning
I’m going to toss out an arbitrary number and I have no research to back this up, but 99% of the time when someone comes in complaining of rotator cuff or shoulder issues the culprit is usually faulty scapular mechanics. Sometimes people DO need a little more TLC and we may need to go down the “corrective exercise” rabbit hole.
The scapulae perform many tasks:
Upwardly and downwardly rotate
Externally and internally rotate
Anteriorly and posteriorly tilt.
AB and ADDuct (retract and protract).
Will clean and fold your laundry too!
They do a lot. And for a plethora of reasons, if they’re not moving optimally it can cause a shoulder ouchie. Sometimes people are too “shruggy” (upper trap dominant) with overhead movements, or maybe they’re stuck in downward rotation? Maybe they can’t protract enough and need more serratus work? Maybe they lack eccentric control and need a heavy dose of low trap correctives?
It dumbfounds me the number of times I have had people come in to see me explaining how they had been to this person and that person and NO ONE took the time to look at how their shoulder blades move.
I don’t like to get too corrective too soon (as I prefer to not make my clients feel like a patient), but if I’ve exhausted all of the above and stuff still hurts….it’s time to dig deeper.
If only there were a resource that dives into this topic in a more thorough fashion.
Now, before anyone gets their panties in a tissy….I am not against box jumps. I implement them into my training as well as into the programs I write for other people and think believe they have a time and place (as does most any other exercise in existence4).
I mean, any strength coach or trainer worth his or her weight in paleo brownies understands their role in helping to train explosiveness and athleticism. And, if we were to peel back the onion a bit further, we’d note the REAL benefit(s) of box jumps are:
Force summation, Rate of Force Development, or learning to put force into the ground.
Landing mechanics: or, learning to absorb force.
It’s not to try to jump onto a box at the highest height possible or to perform them for endless repetitions.
Dumb
Really Dumb
Dumber
Commentary on Video #1
Before the record button was pressed you know those two guys were thinking to themselves “Dude, if you hit this jump it’s going viral and you’re totally going to get laid tonight.”
He’s lucky he didn’t break his back or neck.
Commentary on Video #2
Considering the number of banged up knees and scraped shins I’ve come across I really wish CrossFit would begin to understand that box jumps aren’t a great conditioning tool, and that there’s an abyss of better options.5
Hell, running over your right arm with a Honda Civic would be better than high-rep box jumps.
Commentary on Video #3
Yeah, yeah, I get it: It’s JJ Watt, it’s an old video, he’s an elite professional athlete, he nailed it, quit belly aching Tony.
Admittedly that was a baller jump and I too would have full confidence in JJ’s ability to jump over Mordor and then some. However, from a cost-benefit standpoint…..as a coach who’s worked with plenty of high-level athletes myself, I wouldn’t touch that with a ten-foot pole.
I have to wonder, though, did the coaches in that video prescribe or allow this to happen because they felt it would make their athlete better, or because they were chasing YouTube views and likes?
Not worth the risk. Refer to video #1.
My Real Beef: Not Box Jumps, But HIGH Box Jumps
A few months ago I watched a stellar video by Nick Tumminello where he went into detail on why he didn’t like HIGH box jumps, and he made a brilliant point I had never thought of before.
High box jumps reward those people with excellent hip mobility, particularly those with great hip flexion. Here’s an example:
Stand next to a high box and lift your leg in the air.
The distance from the bottom of your foot to top of box is the “real” distance you’re jumping. Not so impressive now, huh?
And this is what the same jump looks like when someone doesn’t have the ability to clear ample hip motion:
They start cranking through their lumbar spine, over and over and over and…..”awwwww, goddamit I blew out my back again.”
“Ma, meatloaf! We want it.”
And speaking of the lumbar spine, how many times do you watch someone perform their box jumps and it ends up looking something like this:
Box Jump: Poor Landing
Happens all the time right?
Yuck.
If your box jumps look like this you’re using too high of a box and are reaping ZERO benefit from doing them.
How you start (chest up, knees slightly bent and not caving in, athletic position) is how you should end. Like this:
Box Jump – Good Landing
Another not so great thing thing many people end up doing is landing too loud on the box. Remember: one of the main benefits of the box jump is absorbing force.
Box Jump – Loud Landing
If someone can hear your box jumps in Idaho you’re doing them wrong.
Instead, you want to make sure you land softly, or what I like to tell my clients “like a ninja.”
Box Jump – Who’s the Ninja? You Are That’s Who
A Few Other Random Thoughts
Even with a (seemingly) low box height, the idea is to cue your clients to jump as high as they can (and then to land soft). External cueing works wonders here:
Try to hit your head on the ceiling.
Jump away from the ground.
OMG, there’s a snake!
I like to program box jumps for low reps. Sets of 1-3 are ideal.
Moreover I LOVE performing box jumps on lower body days prior to squatting or deadlifting as it serves as a nice way to potentiate or wake up the nervous system.
Perform 3-4 sets of 1-3 reps and you’re good to go.
NOTE: the term “Porcelain Post” first came to fruition last year between Brian Patrick Murphy and Pete Dupuis. Without getting into the specifics, it describes a post that can be read in the same time it takes you to go #2.
Huh, I guess that was more specific than I thought.
The Birddog Exercise: Please, Start Coaching It Right
The birddog exercise is a common drill used in many components of health/fitness. It’s most commonly utilized within yoga/pilates circles and referred to as either the donkey kick or chakaravakasana. Which, as we all know, is Elvish for, “doing something poorly and making my corneas jump out of their sockets into a fiery volcano.”
Okay, that’s not true.
But we all know that the bulk of people performing this exercise, whether they’re in a yoga class, performing it on their own, or following the tutelage of a strength coach or personal trainer, end up looking like this (not always, but enough to warrant an intervention in the form of this brief post):
The birddog exercise not only targets the back, but also the hip extensors. It also, and more importantly, teaches the discipline of using proper hip and shoulder motion while maintaining a stable spine.
The picture shown above is the complete opposite of that. What we see instead is a gross exaggeration of lumbar (lower back) extension and a lengthening of the rectus abdominus compounded with excessive rib flare and cervical extension.
Essentially this person is tossing up a ginormous middle finger to any semblance of spinal stability.
Now, in fairness, maybe the woman pictured above was coached into that position for a specific reason:
Prepping for the World “How to Eff Up Your Back” Championships?
Because it’s Wednesday?
I don’t know the true details. Maybe I should lighten up.6 But what I do know is that I find little benefit in performing the birddog, and it’s likely doing more harm than good.
And when I see it performed this way it makes me do this:
What’s most frustrating is the reactions I get from some people when I ask them to perform the birddog. I’ll get someone coming in with a history of low-back pain, and after taking them through a series of screens to see what exacerbates their symptoms I’ll then have them demonstrate this exercise.
What follows is typically a few eye-rolls and a seemingly crescendo of “come on Tony, really? I’ve been doing this exercise all along, can we please turn the page?”
Low and behold 9/10 (if not 10/10), the same person who has been complaining of weeks/months/years of low back pain in addition to a bevy of other fitness professionals espousing the merits of the birddog, when asked to demonstrate it, ends up looking exactly like the second picture above.
Case in point. I had an eval with a new female client last week. She was a referral from another trainer located here in the Boston area and she informed me that this client had been battling some chronic low-back shenanigans for the past few years. To the other trainer’s credit: much of what she had been doing with this client was spot on (and I have zero doubts this client was coached very well). However, the birddog lends itself to be one of those “hum-drum, don’t worry, I got this” exercises where people (I.e., the client), when left to their own devices, becomes complacent and lackadaisical in its execution.
Play close attention to the before and after videos below:
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Before = her execution of the exercise was “feeding” into her symptoms and most likely resulted in a kitten dying.
After = ticker tape parade for coaching!
With a just a few subtle cues and a “molding” of the exercise to better fit her current ability level, we were able to significantly clean up her technique and the exercise not only felt more challenging, but she felt better.
The difference maker was placing a ValSlide underneath her moving leg so that she’d be less likely to fall into extension.
From there, with the leg fully straight, I then had her lift her foot off the ground an inch or two and then “OWN” the movement/position.
She then held for a 3-5s count, performed 3-5 repetitions per side, and we then fist pumped to some Tiesto.
Coaching oftentimes involves paying closer attention to the details, even with the more mundane exercise that we often take for granted. With the birddog it often behooves us to slow people down, get a little more hands on with them (provide more kinesthetic awareness), and hold then accountable to be SPOT ON with their technique each and every rep.
This is what separates correctives and programs that work (and serve a purpose) and those that lead to less than exemplary results due to haphazard execution.
Happy Valentine’s Day everybody. This is mine and Lisa’s first V-day as parents (two weeks in). Her Mom is in town this week helping out with our little guy, and this is the sort of dichotomy is going down.
I went to BU to get a quick lift in, and Lisa headed down to Newbury St (downtown Boston) to hit up a fancy hair salon. HA – who says romance is dead?7 Thanks Grandma for babysitting.
No wordsmith foreplay today, lets get right into things….
1-Legged Glute Bridge Floor Press
Who Did I Steal It From: My man, Ben Bruno. He mentioned these a few years ago in a few blog posts of his and I immediately thought to myself 1) was a brilliant idea and 2) I’m an idiot for never thinking of something like this myself.
What Does It Do: I refer to this as a “hybrid” exercise in that it combines two exercises into one and trains several key functions:
The Floor Press component is a great fit for those with cranky shoulders or where pressing with a full ROM may be problematic. The floor prevents the shoulders from “rolling” forward (from too much glenohumeral extension) and is a nice way to provide some kinesthetic feedback so trainees know when to stay out of the “danger zone.”
The Floor Press also serves as a nice tricep accessory movement.
The Glute Bridge component obviously serves as a prime way to train the glutes. Holding the isometric hold increases time under tension.
Additionally it helps improve hip stability (the idea is to keep the hips “level” throughout. I like to cue people to pretend their hips are headlights and that they shouldn’t dip or move).
Maybe most important of all…the exercise just looks bad-ass.
Key Coaching Cues: I gave one away above (keep the hips level). By and large I believe this is a pretty self-explanatory exercise. Start with the DBs on your lap and then bump/scooch them up as you lower yourself towards the floor. Even though you’re on the floor, you still want to practice proper scapular positioning (down and together). Bridge up with BOTH legs (then decide which one you want to elevate).
From there press away. I like to force people to come to a complete stop when their upper arms touch the floor. Another thing to considers is to try to keep the elbows at a 45 degree angle in relation to the body. You don’t want to have the elbows too close to the torso (crowding) as that will increase the chances of the shoulders rolling forward, and you also don’t want the elbows flared out too much as that will often place the shoulder in a vulnerable position in terms of overall stability.
Elbows at 45 degrees tends to be the Goldilocks position. Just right.
Of course, I love the Goblet squat. As you should too. It’s a wonderful little exercise that serves as a “catch all” to groove a better squat pattern. And on top of that…it’s super versatile. As you’ll come to realize after reading this excellent guest post from Shane McLean.
The Goblet squat has revolutionized the way the squat is being performed and taught throughout the world. If don’t know what a Goblet squat is, I’m getting Dan John to come over to your house and slap you upside the head.
If you don’t know even who he is, I suggest you Google him. Pronto.
Dan John stumbled upon this excellent exercise by chance.
“Years ago, I was faced with teaching 400 athletes to squat correctly. I attempted move after move and lift after lift, yet I failed every time.
I saw glimmers of hope from teaching one kid the Zercher squat and a few picked up the pattern when we lifted Kettlebells off the ground but nothing was really working.
The answer was somewhere in between a Zercher and a Potato squat. It came to me when I was resting between swings with the weight held in front of me like I was holding the Holy Grail.
I squatted down from there, pushed my knees out with my elbows and behold, the goblet squat.” (1)
I guess you can say he choose wisely.
Thanks to Dan’s discovery people in gyms everywhere have discovered the joys of squatting. The Goblet squat is an exercise that’s great for beginners and advanced exercisers alike.
But what makes the Goblet squat so good?
Holding the weight anteriorly encourages you to stand up straighter, get that upper back tight and puff out that chest which sets the table for good squat. Furthermore, the weight acts as a counter balance that encourages you to sit between your legs and not over your knees.
For most gym-goers, the Goblet squat may be the only squat you’ll ever need. It beats squatting on a stability ball by about a trillion. Why do people do that?
Now that I’ve established the Goblet squat is the bomb, let’s look at some variations so you can squat like a boss.
1. Goblet Box Squat
If it’s been a while since you’ve squatted or you’ve never done a Goblet squat before, this variation is a good starting point. Reducing the range of motion combined with a reference point with the box will help you groove proper technique.
Pairing this with single arm press/pull combined with a mobility drill works like a charm. For example:
1A. Goblet Box Squat
1B. Single Arm Row
1C. Half Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch
2. KB Goblet Squat with Lowering
Tony calls this lowering but I’d prefer to calling this a biceps curl. Any excuse to work on the guns, right?
The pause at the bottom of the squat with the ‘curl’ helps you ‘own’ the bottom position and creates extra tension in the anterior core and the posterior chain. It’s going to tickle the legs a little also.
Pairing this with a suitcase carry will provide a greater challenge for your lungs and grip strength. Try this little finisher that I borrowed from Dan ‘the man’ John.
How do you make Goblet squats more enjoyable? By adding a looped resistance band of course. Adding a band to the kettlebell helps you control the eccentric portion of the movement and provides extra resistance on the concentric portion also.
Furthermore, some gyms don’t have big enough kettlebells to challenge advanced lifters and adding a band helps…… or hurts depending on your perspective.
This exercise can be done for straight sets but if you’re feeling ambitious you can pair this with a little exercise called the Goblet lateral walk. For example
1A. Goblet squat with band 8-12 reps
1B. Goblet lateral walk 8-12 steps each side
1C. Your grip will love you
4. Goblet Squat 1 ½
Adding a half a repetition to this exercise will make you hate life but will increase tension in your legs, anterior core and the posterior chain. These factors will give you a lower body of steel.
This exercise can be used as a finisher at the end of your leg training or can be super-setted with a core exercise for a rousing good time. For example:
1A. Goblet squat 1 ½
1B. Push up position plank
5. TG Addition: Goblet Elevator Squats
A nice progression for 1-1/2 rep Goblet squats would be elevator squats. I learned this one from my good friend Ben Bruno.
Here you’ll squat down into the bottom position, come 1/2 way up, back down again, then 3/4 of the way up, back down, and then stand tall. This is a great option for those who A) can’t think of any other way to make them hate life more and/or B) have limited options in terms of load you can use (the increased time under tension is a leg killer).
Wrapping Up
The Goblet squat makes it possible for most people to squat with good form and to reestablish the squat pattern for those who have ‘lost’ it. This also doubles as an excellent mobility exercise for the lower body.
Start choosing squats wisely. Incorporate the Goblet squat into your routine pronto and make Dan a happy man.
About the Author
Shane “The Balance Guy” McLean, is an A.C.E Certified Personal Trainer working deep in the heart of Texas. Shane believes in balancing exercise with life while putting the fun back into both.
