CategoriesFemale Training Program Design Strength Training

You Need to Lift Shit to Fix Shit: Some Postpartum Considerations

I know, I know…

I’m a dude.

What could I possibly have to say when it comes to the delicate intricacies of postpartum anything?

Well, as it happens, I’ve worked with many women during and after their pregnancies throughout the years, and have had pretty good success with mansplaining the inner workings of a uterus helping them understand that, whether they’ve given birth seven months ago or seven years ago, strength training can help with myriad of postpartum issues.1

*cue the trumpets*

Copyright: nightunter

You Need to Lift Shit to Fix Shit

Just so we’re on the same page…

…when I say “lift shit” this DOES NOT insinuate anything close to maximal effort.

For starters: I’m not an asshole.

Secondly: All strength training is not powerlifting. It’s still feasible to have someone lift appreciable loads – even postpartum – and not assume I’m attempting to turn them into Stefi Cohen.

But more to the point: I’m not an asshole.

I understand, to the best of my Y chromosome having abilities, the intricacies and delicateness that coincide with the months postpartum.

It’s not a time to rush back into things and to race oneself back to pre-pregnancy gym numbers.

The first few months are all about rebuilding the base (specifically to address the pelvic floor and diaphragm, to get the “core” connected again, and to progress from there).

After that, a person’s capabilities and foundation matter more than whatever time frame it takes to get them deadlifting appreciable weight again.

As far as the BIG no-no’s to avoid immediately postpartum:

  • Plyometrics – burpees (please, stop), jumping, stairs, and running.
  • Anything coming close to max-effort loading.
  • Front abdominal exercises (planks, sit-ups, push-ups, leg lifts, or anything that makes the abdominals bulge anteriorly or uses the core to support a lot of bodyweight).
  • FWIW: Any sort of Fight Club is out of the question during this time as well.

It’s Not Just About Kegels

Kegel exercises are amazing, but as Dr. Sarah Duvall notes in her spectacular Pregnancy & Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist 2.0 course they’re often OVER used.

Or, more often that not…the ONLY thing used.

For many women their postpartum approach = kegels (and that’s it).

Alternatively, a more germane (and, not coincidentally, successful) approach to postpartum training is:

  • Kegels
  • Teaching a GOOD breath – focusing on the canister position.
  • Cementing all of the above with “strength.”

Kegels are a fantastic (and proven) tool to use to help with pelvic floor dysfunction. Teaching them the right way (and when appropriate) helps to connect and educate the pelvic floor. As it stands, women who did dedicated pelvic floor training = 17% less likely to report incontinence.

However, when OVER used kegels can lead to an overactive pelvic floor. Compound that with the all too common scenario of very little attention being made toward the efficacy of positional breathing drills – I.e., emphasizing the canister position (pelvis stacked underneath the ribcage; or reduced rib flare)  – and you have a recipe for disaster.

Photo Credit: Inspired Physiotherapy

Left Image = Canister Position (diaphragm stacked on top of pelvic floor)

Right Image = not that.

Positional breathing begins with teaching a GOOD inhale. This entails 3D (360 degree) expansion of the ribcage. With a good inhale the diaphragm contracts down and it able to “let go” and relax. Moreover, as Sarah notes in her course, every (good) inhale can push down on the pelvic floor which is okay.

Bearing down is one thing. This is not ideal.

However, with a proper inhale, the idea is to push the “ground floor of the house to the basement.” In other words: the inhale EXPANDS pelvic floor. Then, a full, accentuated exhale brings everything back to the ground floor.

For the visual learners out there this may help (graph taken from Sarah’s course):

Again to reiterate:

“Inhale = pushes down onto pelvic floor (get it to the basement)….exhale = RELAXES.”

Taking the time to really build context and to hammer home the importance of the canister position will be a home run for many (if not most) postpartum women.

A simple example would be something like a deadbug, performed with a full 360 degree inhale followed by a drawn out, full exhale (without aggressive bearing down of the abdominals):

 

Tony, Did You Forget About Lifting Things?

Puh.

Not at all.

Strength training is the part where we “cement” all of the above into place. It’s crucial to build pelvic floor awareness (kegels) as well as function (positional breathing drills). If someone is unable to do this right, I am NOT going to load them.

However, assuming the work has been done I see no reason not to.

First we start with TIMING of the breath with the bodyweight squat. Inhale on the way down (pelvic floor expands and relaxes).

Exhale on the way down (pelvic floor comes back up and contracts).

 

Once that is mastered, then we can begin to THIS IS SPARTA. BACK SQUAT MAX EFFORT, BABY.

Just kidding.

I just use common sense and progress accordingly with something like Goblet Squats and always remain cognizant that I DO NOT want any aggressive bearing down of the abdominals and to keep IAP in check. The pelvic floor is just like any other muscle and needs progressive overload too.

Being postpartum is not a disease and I find it increasingly frustrating that many women are programmed into thinking that the only approach is with kegels and kegels only.

It’s a far more multi-faceted approach that requires attention to detail and dare I say…

…lifting shit.

Pregnancy & Postpartum Corrective Exercise Specialist 2.0

In recent years whenever I am asked by other health/fitness professionals what course I’d recommend they look into my immediate answer is Dr. Sarah Duvall’s PCES course.

It’s without hesitation the most valuable continuing education resource I’ve come across in recent memory, and it’s also had the most impact on my own coaching.

Every pregnancy is different.

Every woman who is postpartum is different.

There are a LOT of women out there and you WILL undoubtedly need to know this information and know how to apply it.

As it happens, Sarah just opened up access to the entire PCES 2.0 course:

  • 34 hours of content loaded with a tsunami of lectures, videos, and case studies.
  • CEUs available
  • Save $250 off the regular price through May 21st. Access to the course shuts down on 5/25.
  • FYI: Payment plans available.

This course will teach and show you the appropriate assessments/screens to use as well as the corrective strategies to implement to address everything from pelvic floor dysfunction to incontinence to rectus diastasis. In addition, and this is what I dig the most about Sarah’s approach, is that strength training can and should be a part of the process.

Remember: You only have till midnight on 5/21 to SAVE $250 and access to the course ends on 5/25.

👉  CLICK HERE 👈

CategoriesProgram Design Strength Training

Why You Should Lift Heavy Weights. Yes, Even In Season

I tend to avoid certain things at all costs:

  • Making eye contact with my cat.
  • Pineapple upside down cake (don’t ask).
  • Uttering the phrase “looks like someone has a case of the Mondays.”
  • Cocaine
  • Partaking in social media drama, buffoonery, and general hijinks.

For me there’s a cost/benefit to all of the above. Take my cat, Dagny, for example. I love her to pieces. But I still get the feeling, whenever she looks at me for more than three seconds, she’d murder me in a nanosecond with a machete if only she had opposable thumbs.

I have my reasons for the other stuff too.

With regards to the latter, however, I was recently lured in like a moth to a flame when I saw a Tweet from a well regarded and highly respected fitness professional commenting on “lifting heavy” and playing sports…

…and how people should avoid the former if participating in the latter.

Copyright: Jesus Trillo Lago

What in the What?!?!

In the name of full transparency here’s the actual Tweet:

I have to say, before I dive into my own thoughts on Dan’s thoughts, reading the subsequent comments was quite entertaining.

They ranged from people agreeing to the statement2 to what can only be described as a few peacocks spreading their feathers.

I.e., Triggered!

A few coaches read the comment and reacted as if someone informed them creatine was the same as steroids or, I don’t know, one of their athletes didn’t squat to depth.

I could just smell the inflated lat syndrome emanating from my screen.

Admittedly, I too rolled my eyes a bit.

That said, I felt the initial statement was a bit too ambiguous. To me, it was more about garnering eyeballs & drawing attention to his funnel link than providing anything of real substance.3

  • What sports are we referring to? MMA? Lacrosse? Backyard wiffleball?
  • What level of sports are we referring to?
  • What’s the ability level & experience level of the athletes in question as it relates to the weight-room?
  • What’s considered “heavy.”
  • Is there no such thing as in-season and off-season training modifications in this mysterious world where athletes shouldn’t lift heavy things?

To Dan’s credit, he did elaborate further:

“The reason is because both are taxing to the nervous system. Mind you when I talk “sport” I mean one played at a high intensity (ie. basketball, soccer, surfing). Trying to play your best while chasing PR’s will likely cause injury.”

I didn’t quite understand where he was going with his sport examples. I’d make the argument that any athlete of any sport – particularly if it’s being performed at a high level – needs to be prepared for that sport. I don’t care if we’re talking about soccer or bowling.

Okay, maybe bowling is a stretch…;o)

Much of that preparedness comes from a well-rounded, properly progressed IN-SEASON and OFF-SEASON strength & conditioning program.

Off-Season Training = Initially focuses on recovery to combat a long competitive season as well as to address any deficits/weaknesses that accumulated along the way. That then transitions to a more traditional strength & conditioning program catered to helping the athlete improve strength, speed, movement capacity, ROM, ability to run through a brick wall, etc.

In-Season Training = Reducing training frequency/volume – depending on playing time (starter vs. 10th-11th man off the bench in basketball), position (everyday player vs. pitcher in baseball), game schedule (football vs. softball) – albeit under the guise that the objective is to LIMIT as much drop off as possible of the gains made in strength, speed, etc during the off-season.

Not to mention, in-season strength training is a splendid way to help reduce the incidence of injury as a season progresses and fatigue and wear-n-tear on the body accumulates.

KEY POINT: Reduction in frequency (volume), not intensity.

It’s my experience – and that of many other coaches – that intensity (as a percentage of one’s 1-rep max) is far less taxing on the CNS than volume (sets x reps x frequency). In fact, it behooves most athletes to keep intensity somewhat high during SOME of their in-season training.

As Vladimir Zatsiorsky states in his seminal book, Science and Practice of Strength Training:

“Training with weights ~90% of one’s 1-rep max (I.e., heavy, but no anywhere near PR heavy):

  1. Recruits the maximum number of motor units.

  2. Ensures the fastest MU’s are activated.

  3. Discharge frequency (rate coding) is increased.

  4. Activity is synchronous.

  5. Improves coordination between synergistic muscles.

  6. Increases potential for future hypertrophy gains.”

Moreover, Zatsiorsky notes that from a velocity standpoint, it’s been shown that power output increases as the weight lifted decreases from 100% of 1RM to 90% of 1RM. In fact, for the back squat and deadlift, power output for a load at 90% 1RM may be twice as high as the 1RM load due to the large decrease in the time required to complete the exercise with the lighter load.

In other words: Lifting light(er) loads faster = best of both worlds?

Additionally, strength “lingers.”

You don’t have to do a lot of it in order to maintain it.

In his book, Block Periodization, Dr. Issurin notes that maximal strength has a “residual duration” of 30 +/- 5 days.

In non-Klingon all this means is that, in order to maintain strength, you only really need to remind the body every 2-3 weeks (or so) of what it takes to keep it. This is splendid news for in-season athletes.

This means that 2-3 heavy(ish) sets of 2-5 reps (in the 85-95% range) every few weeks is enough to maintain most of their strength levels.

Australian strength coach, Nathan Kiely, sums things up nicely:

“Maintaining neuromuscular strength in-season is critical. And a load that wouldn’t have developed it in the first place, won’t do enough to retain it either.”

To that end, NO COMPETENT COACH is chasing PR’s in-season. I just wish Dan would have said THAT initially instead of the blanket statement of “if you play sports you shouldn’t lift heavy.”

Because, I agree – it makes zero sense to max out or chase PR’s during a competitive season.

As one commenter commented:

“Chasing PRs and 1 RM in season are pointless. But if you program correctly and tailor workouts to your athletes sport intensity, schedule and allow recovery time. PRs are just going to happen organically.”

The statement reminded me of something I heard renowned strength & conditioning coach, Buddy Morris, say during a presentation years ago:

“Tony, can we be BFFs? Whenever an athlete of mine hits a PR – especially in-season – I shut em down for the day.”

Word.

In Short: When dosed intelligently you can do both.

Play sports AND lift heavy.

CategoriesProgram Design Rehab/Prehab Strength Training

Find Your Entry Point: How to Train Around an Injury

If you make a habit of lifting heavy things it’s inevitable you’ll likely experience a few setbacks along the way.

These can range anywhere from the “no big deals” (bloody shins from deadlifting, shoulder niggle) to the dire (disc herniation, explosive diarrhea).

…or worse case, forgetting your squat shoes on squat day.

Suffice to say: Getting hurt is frustrating. Attempting to work around an injury can be even more so.

It bothers me when people default to tossing their hands in the air and surrendering themselves to a two-to-four week window of “rest” and Netflix.

There’s a lot of good that can be done, even underneath the umbrella of injury.

Instead, I’ve long championed the idea of trainees finding their Trainable Menu and focusing more on what they CAN do rather than what they can’t.

Another way to re-frame things is to find your entry point.

Copyright: dontree / 123RF Stock Photo

Find Your Entry Point

Speaking of entry points: I sat down with my four-year old this past weekend to watch Jurassic Park. Now, most coherent parents would start with something a little less scary.

You know, say, Dino Dana or, I don’t know, Care Bears.

Nope, I went with the ginormous, scary T-Rex.

In hindsight, it probably wasn’t the best “entry point” for someone who has no idea dinosaurs aren’t real. Again, maybe Toy Story or, hell, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers would have been a more germane choice?

I gotta say, though…

…Julian handled the T-Rex like a champ.

He didn’t blink once. He giggled when the guy sitting on the porto-potty met his demise.

I didn’t know whether to be proud or scared shitless.

Kid’s the next John Wick in the making.

Okay, Cute Story Tony. But WTF Are We Talking About Here?

Yeah, yeah, yeah…

Lifting heavy things.

Entry Points.

I’ve recently been making my way through Dr. Michael Mash’s excellent resource, Barbell Rehab, and giving credit where it’s due…he’s spends quite a bit if time throughout the course discussing the idea of entry points and how to use the concept to guide anyone’s return back to a specific lift after injury.

Let’s use the bench press as an example.

If someone has pain when he or she bench presses with a straight bar, finding their entry point is nothing more than altering the lift the minimal amount possible in order to gain the minimum desired training effect.

For the visual learners out there it may look something like this:

 

Adapted from Barbell Rehab

TO BE CLEAR: If pain exists in the shoulder the idea is NOT to automatically regress all the way back to a push-up.

I know some people who’d rather swallow a live grenade than do that.

Instead, the goal is to be as specific as possible in order to elicit a (relatively pain-free) training effect.

If someone has pain with a straight bar FLAT bench press, however it alleviates significantly when you switch them to a decline bench press.

Sha-ZAM.

You just found their entry point.

Maybe it’s DB Floor Presses for one person, and yes, maybe it’s a push-up (albeit loaded) for another. The idea is to TRAIN.

Moreover, it also could just come down to tweaking their grip slightly or adjusting some component of their technique.

Rehab doesn’t always have to result in sending someone to corrective exercise purgatory.

Likewise, using the squat as an example, sometimes the entry point is using a different bar (Duffalo or Safety-Squat Bar) if the shoulder is the issue, or maybe it’s having someone squat ABOVE parallel if it’s their knee(s) or hip(s) bothering them.

Sometimes, and hear me out, we may have to combine the two: Not a straight bar AND above parallel.

Tha fuck outta here.

Yes, it’s true.

 

And everything’s going to be fine.

In fact, more than fine.

CategoriesProgram Design Strength Training

1-Minute Deadlift Tip: Use Squats to Build Your Deadlift

I’ve always been painfully slow off the floor when I deadlift.

Like, you could be watching the movie Titanic and I’d juuuuust be getting the barbell off the floor by the time you got to the part where Rose lets go of Jack.

If this sounds like you, you may need some more squats in your life.

Copyright: spotpoint74 / 123RF Stock Photo

Squat to Build Your Deadlift

A few years ago I made a concerted effort to prioritize my front squats (and upping my squatting volume in general) and was finally able to conquer a 600 lb pull.

The additional squatting undoubtedly helped improve my quad strength and ability to push away from the floor when I initiated my pull.

Heed my warning, though. If your deadlift volume is up it’ll behoove you to opt for more front squats or high-bar back squats since both will allow you to maintain a more upright torso (less shearing on spine). If your deadlift volume is on the low end, feel free to implement more low-bar back squatting.

👇👇👇 Check out a sample training split below (after the video) 👇👇👇

Here’s a quick example of how I’d structure the deadlift to squat ratio based off deadlift frequency:

Deadlift 1x Per Week (2 Lower Body Sessions)

Day 1:

A. Back Squat: 5×2 @ 60%, 60s rest

B. Deadlift: 2×2 @ 85%

C1. Deadlift – For Gainz: 4×4 @ 70-75%
C2. Deadbug Variation 4×5/side
C3. Stab Someone in the Face 4×3

D1. Goblet Split Squat 3×12,10,8/leg
D2. 45 Degree Back Extension 3×12-15

E. Carries or Sled Work

Day 2

A. Back Squat: 1×2 @ 85%

B. Anderson Back Squat: 5×1 @ 80%, 60s

C1. Pause Back Squat: 3×5 @ 70-75%
C2. Deadstart DB Row: 3×8/arm

D1. Pull-Throughs: 4×10-15
D2. Reverse Nordics OR Sissy Squats: 3×8-10

Deadlift 2x Per Week

Day 1

A. Pull-Through: 2×10

B1. Deadlift – Rest/Pause: 3×3/2/1  (use a load you KNOW you can do for 5 reps. 3 reps, rest 15s, 2 reps, rest 15s, 1 rep)
B2. Bear Stance Belly Breath: 3×5

C1. SSB Squat: 3×8 @ 60-65%
C2. Stationary Spiderman w/ Reach: 3×5/side

D1. DB Reverse Lunge 3×12,10,8/leg
D2. Pallof Press 3×10/side

Day 2

A1. Front Squat: 3×5 @ 65-70%
A2. Pull-Ups: 3xAMAP

B. Deadlift – Speed/Technique: 6×3 @ 60-65%

C1. 1-Arm, 1-Leg RDL: 3×8/leg
C2. Split Stance Cable Chop: 3×8/side

D1. Barbell Glute Bridge: 3×10
D2. Eat a Ham Sandwich: 3xinfinity

Long story short: Don’t neglect your squats.

CategoriesExercise Technique Program Design Strength Training

Top 3 Single Leg Exercises For Yoked Ass Legs

Coincidentally enough I choose the picture for today’s guest post before actually reading it. 

Oops, a minor editorial mistake.

You see, as you’ll learn below, placing a barbell on your back during single leg exercises – while not a wrong strategy to partake – does have a distinct disadvantage.

HINT: More load isn’t always the “x-factor” with regards to making exercises more challenging.

Suffice to say, lesson learned (but I’m too lazy to go back and find a different picture).

I hope you enjoy this excellent piece by two colleagues of mine – Dr. Michelle Boland (a phenomenal local coach here in Boston) and Tim Richardt (a former coach at CORE who’s now located in the Denver area) – that gave me a few Ah-HA moments.

Copyright: serhiibobyk / 123RF Stock Photo

Top 3 Single Leg Exercises For Yoked A$$ Legs

Quarantine have your legs and butt looking skinnier than Gollum’s?

An excellent example of commitment to a singular goal, but not of muscular development. 

Get your quads, glutes, and hamstrings looking more bountiful than a post-Mordor-crumbling Shire feast with these single leg exercises!

We’re done with the Lord of the Rings references now, we promise.

We’ll explore loading options, body positioning, front versus rear foot elevation, and direction of center-of-mass (COM) movement to help you taste those sweet, sweet single-leg gains.

Let’s get right to it…

#1 Front Foot Elevated Zercher Split Squat

Load Position Advantage 

Holding the weight in the crook of your elbows allows for more relaxation of muscles on the backside of your trunk, enabling increased depth WHILE circumventing grip strength as a potential rate-limiter for loading.

A barbell placed in the traditional “back rack” may rob you of comfortable hip range-of-motion (ROM) due to compression of muscles on the backside of your trunk.

Loading in the Zercher position lets you maintain more VERTICAL displacement throughout the movement, and more pure-up-and-down displacement means more stimulation of muscles that DO vertical displacement (i.e. glutes and quads), leading to more gains and more eventual jealousy from your high school ex after they see your jacked wheels on Facebook.

No barbell? We can accomplish a similar effect with 2 DBs. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlVELvq-ijg&list=PL2C3q7iaQQIVqmCkqxRFaIpiHffq-YcrQ&index=1


Vertical displacement whilst keeping a STACKED position during a split squat, vital to loading muscle tissue (yay!) and minimizing joint strain (boo!), is reviewed, HERE. 

Why Front Foot Elevation?

Elevating the front foot shifts your COM backwards, meaning the muscles of the front leg can relax to a greater degree to allow for more depth during the lowering (eccentric) portion of the movement. Additionally, raising the front foot shifts the trained range of motion into deeper degrees of hip flexion, leading to greater mechanical stress placed on the musculature that extends the hip (dat booty). 

Bonus; Heel Up?


Try elevating your front heel to enable increased loading of the knee and hip whilst maintaining the “vertical stack” during this drill.

Be sure to maintain heel contact and allow your knee to drift forward over the mid-foot to allow for more hip and knee flexion.

#2 Staggered Stance Retro RDL

Why Backwards is Better…

The Staggered Stance Retro RDL allows you to use the front leg to push your COM backwards towards the leg that’ll be doing all the work. This exercise HAMMERS glutes and hammies, and is a great stepping stone towards an eventual unassisted SLRDL.

The KEY distinction between the conventional RDL (or Heels on Wall Variation) and the staggered stance retro RDL is the direction of your COM travels. In the rear foot single leg deadlift, your COM translates forward, whereas in the staggered stance retro RDL, your COM migrates backwards. 

Going front foot supported allows for more of a sit “back” scenario encouraging a more advantageous orienting of the hips to access ROM (remember: more ROM, more loading, more gainz) as well as reducing the challenge of NOT falling forward onto your (pretty) face.

Why Single Arm Loading?

We love a single KB held in the opposite hand (in reference to the back leg), as this encourages rotation of the ribcage TOWARDS that rear leg. Rotation towards the side we’re loading means we’re able to load muscles of that hip to a greater degree, and the combination of an opposite hand reach AND a front foot support ensure we’re loading the back leg’s hamstrings and glutes as much as we possibly can.

Technique 

Some pointers with the Front Foot Supported Single Leg Deadlift:

  1. Position the non-working leg in front of the working leg and use the front (non-working) leg to push the back (working) leg backwards. This results in a hip “shift” TOWARDS that back leg.
  2. The arm opposite the working leg holds the KB and maintains a path over the big toe of the back foot. That reach further supports the shift you obtained in step 1.
  3. Sit your hips back in space, feeling loading on the heel, base of the big toe, and base of the little toe. Reverse this motion by pushing through this “tripod foot” back to the starting position.

#3 Rear Foot Elevated Split Squat

Jack Up That Back Foot

The Rear Foot Elevated (RFE) Split Squat is a variation that places greater emphasis on the front leg. This exercise is also a good progression towards a strict single leg activity, such as a single leg squat. 

While performing a boring ‘ol split squat, the load is fairly evenly distributed between the front and back legs. However, elevating the rear foot shifts your center of mass forward, dramatically increasing the loading of the front leg. Train this sucker and that leg’s getting more yoked than a Marriott Courtyard omelette bar. 

The RFESS is #3 on this list because it trains a little like a cross of exercises #1 and #2.

It’s a vertical movement (like our FFESS), but the forward lean created by the elevation of the rear foot enables some degree of forward/backwards COM displacement (like our deadlift variation). The result is an unholy cross of glute and leg destruction.

Placement of Load

To optimize loading with this drill, we recommend dumbbells in each hand- like THIS. As we mentioned previously, a barbell placed in the traditional “back rack” position tends to compress muscles on the backside of the body, robbing the body of hip flexion availability and trainable range of motion. 

The distance between your front and back legs- your “stride length” during a split squat- also matters.

A short stride length (front foot closer to back foot) will bias hip musculature (glutes). If you elongate the stride length you’ll shift the loading to more quads, leading to more yoked legs with which to better fill out those new early-Christmas jeggings. 

And Now, This…

You can check out these three extra loading variations that target different planes of motion in the RFE split squat: RFE Split Squat Planes of Motion Variations

Bonus Yoked-Worthy Exercise: Walking Toe Touch Lunges

Muscle Recruitment 

Walking Lunges with an opposite arm reach facilitate more high hamstring recruitment by biasing a posterior tilt of the pelvis. High hamstrings fix the position of the pelvis, enabling greater loading of the hip extensors (butt), making this drill an excellent choice for a “finisher” after your main exercises. To quote our good friend, the wise and powerful Tony, after performing a set of these, “I FELT it in my soul”!

DISCLAIMER; Michelle and Tim are NOT responsible for any Soul-Delayed-Onset-Muscule-Soreness (SDOMS) experienced after performing this drill.

Technique

Big pointers with the Walking Toe Touch Lunges

  1. Maintain up/down motion by keeping your head stacked over your chest and stacked over your hips… put simply “mostly elevator, a little escalator”
  2. Reach your opposite arm to your front big toe keeping your breastbone pointed straight ahead and letting your shoulder blade reach around your ribcage
  3. “A little” hinge at the hips is necessary to stay moving FORWARDS, but “a little” is all you get
  4. Be nice to your back knee, a soft surface is ideal with this drill
  5. Focus on turning into your abs on the same side as the front leg 
  6. Stand up by pushing the ground away with the front foot (that same tripod foot as we discussed previously)
  7. You get no bonus points for lunging LONG- keep your stride length short and controlled

Summary

  • Choosing single leg exercises that will allow you to achieve the greatest ROM while moving heavy loads are key to targeting more muscle mass. Gettin’ more yoked than a 12th century plow animal is all about moving load over ROM. 
  • Intelligent holding positions, such as DBs at sides and zercher, beget more motion availability. 
  • The positioning or elevation of your feet relative to one another is VITALLY important in ensuring we’re loading the target tissue through as large of an available range as we can muster.

Now go get those legs so HUGE that grandma’s gonna have to buy you new Christmas stockings.

About the Authors

Michelle Boland

Tim Richardt

CategoriesAssessment continuing education Strength Training

How to Effectively Screen the Squat

Today’s guest post comes courtesy of Dr. Michael Mash.

I have a legit man-crush on him ever since I’ve started diving into his online resource Barbell Rehab. As the name implies: Its mission is to help barbell athletes (and aficionados) overcome pain and improve performance WITHOUT being forced into “corrective exercise” purgatory.

In a sense, it’s designed to use barbells (and lifting stuff) to help fix shit. What’s more Tony G than that? Okay, maybe Jason Bourne fight scenes.

Or dragons.

Or an endless cheese plate.

Regardless, Barbell Rehab speaks to my strength coach love language, and as it happens Michael is offering his course to all my readers at $50 off the regular price for this week only.

All you have to do is click THIS link and enter the coupon code TONYG50 to receive your $50 credit.

And even if you’re not keen to saving money (weirdo) you should still give his blog post below a read because it’s riddled with common sense and practical applications you can use TODAY to improve your squat screen or assessment.

Copyright: saamxvr / 123RF Stock Photo

Do You Really Need to “Screen” the Squat?

When it comes to effectively screening the squat, many personal trainers and strength coaches have different approaches. From not utilizing a screen at all, to performing dozens of assessments prior to implementing a bodyweight squat, what is the best way to screen the squat?

Before we answer this question, let’s first talk about the function of a “screen” in general.

What is a Screen and Should We Use it?

According to John Hopkins…

“…a screening test is done to detect potential health disorders or diseases in people who do not have any symptoms of disease.”

If we apply this definition to the squat, one could say that a squat “screen” is a test performed to detect potential joint, muscle, or movement impairments in those who don’t have any pain.

In order for a screen to be effective, a “failed” test must be highly predictive of future injury or pain. If it’s not, this could create a lot of false positives results (a.k.a telling someone they’re doomed for injury if they really aren’t). So on one side, you want to make sure your client is “safe” to squat before loading them up, but you also don’t want to prevent them from squatting if they don’t really need to.

Oh the dilemma!

It’s Tough to Really “Predict” Pain and Injury

As mentioned, in order to analyze the efficacy of a screen, we need to know if it can indeed accurately predict injury. As it turns out, the research isn’t so sure about this.

In fact, it has been shown that one of the most common movement screens, the FMS, is only slightly better than a 50/50 coin flip at predicting injuries. This doesn’t mean, however, that you need to throw the baby out with the bathwater. While both myself and the authors of this paper note that the FMS can be used to see HOW a person moves, it shouldn’t be used as a way to predict injury.

If the FMS can’t reliably predict injury or pain….what can?

Because pain is a multidimensional experience driven by biological, psychological, and sociological factors, it is really a reductionist mindset to blame pain solely on “tight hamstrings” or “poor form” in general.

 

In fact, factors such as stress, anxiety, depression, lack of social support, job dissatisfaction, and poor sleep and nutrition can ALL affect a person’s pain experience. This is why we need to zone OUT when it comes to “predicting” injury and really take a comprehensive approach. The WAY someone moves is certainly important, but it’s just one tiny piece of a much larger puzzle.

What is an Effective Movement Screen?

So how should you effectively screen the squat? In order for a screen to be effective, it needs to be SPECIFIC, and there’s no better way to be specific than to actually perform the movement itself. Yep, that’s right. The best way to “screen” the squat, is to actually have the client perform a squat.

 

This process will give you ALL of the information you need in order to make a decision on whether or not they are “safe” to proceed forward with loading the squat.

And guess what?

It doesn’t involve any kind of joint-by-joint assessment, specific muscle flexibility testing, or any other long drawn out processes either.

While the aforementioned approaches can be beneficial to “dig deeper” if someone already has pain, they’re rather unnecessary as part of a screening process in asymptomatic individuals.

For those without pain, here’s a simple process I recommend in order to determine if they are safe to squat.

Step 1: Show Me Your Squat

The first step of our world’s simplest squat screen is to simply ask the client to “show me a squat.” I like to do this for a few reasons. First, it will give you an idea of what they “think” a squat is and how they move in general. Two, it will also give you an idea of how hesitant they are to move.

Some will just drop it low into a perfect squat and others will hesitate to start and move really slowly. You may see the latter example if someone has a history of pain or has fear with movement in general.

This is all useful data to collect on this important first step. If the squat  looks good, congratulations!

Your job is easy today, and it’s time to load them up!

If it needs some work, it’s on to the next step.

Step 2: Coach the Squat

After asking the client to show you their squat, it’s time to coach it. While everyone is going to squat with a different stance width, degree of toe out, and torso angle, it helps to at least have a frame of reference to start from.

I recommend cueing them into a heels shoulder-width stance with a moderate 20-30° toe out, and then asking them to squat as far down as they comfortably can. While this foot placement won’t work for everyone, it’ll work for the majority of people. In this initial bodyweight squat coaching phase, some people may have discomfort or won’t be able to quite get to parallel…and that’s ok.

That’s why we have Step 3.

Step 3: Modify Stance and Depth if Needed

If you coach the client into a shoulder-width slightly toed out stance, and they have pain with this, or they can’t squat very deep, all is not lost yet. Two of the most common pains you’ll see with a bodyweight squat are hip and knee pain. And just because they have pain, doesn’t mean they are injured or need to be referred out to a rehab professional.  It may simply just be the way they are built.

For example, if you take someone with highly retroverted hips, and have them try to squat with a narrow stance with minimal toe out, they may get a “pinch” in the front of their hips at the bottom. This can usually be remedied by widening the stance a bit and turning the toes out more. This doesn’t mean anything is wrong with them…it’s simply the way they are built!

Tying it all together, if someone has pain when you coach them into a bodyweight squat, see if it’s relieved with a simple stance adjustment. This is 100% within your scope to do as a personal trainer or strength coach, as you’re not diagnosing, assessing, or putting your hands on the client at all.

Step 4: Change the Exercise and/or Refer Out

Sometimes the squat pattern itself is so sensitized, that a stance or form adjustment isn’t enough to eradicate pain. If this is the case, I’d recommend NOT proceeding forward with having the client squat, and instead, finding a similar exercise like a rear foot elevated split squat or a lunge variation that they can tolerate.

If the client’s goal is to squat, it would also be best at this point to refer out to a qualified rehab professional as well. This is why interdisciplinary care is so important in the health and fitness world. At this point, as the personal trainer or strength coach, you can continue to train your client with what they can tolerate (full upper body workouts and modified lower body exercises) while the rehab professional addresses the pain itself.

A Quick Note on Squat Depth

Sometimes no matter how much you modify stance, degree of toe out, or hip position, your client won’t be able to squat to “depth.” Depth is defined as when the greater trochanter of the hip goes below the top of the patella from a side view.

In this case, you need to find out if it’s simply because they feel “tight” or if it’s limited by pain.

If it’s limited by pain (even after stance adjustments) then you may want to refer out. If they just feel “tight,” then you can proceed forward with loading them up to tolerance….even if it’s not quite to depth. That’s right. There is no evidence to suggest that squatting above parallel is inherently dangerous.

Rather than spending six months working solely on mobility to increase squat depth, you can work on BOTH simultaneously. Train the squat to the depth the client is comfortable with and tease in mobility drills at the same time.

This one-two punch of increasing mobility and loading through it, will help your clients squat deeper (if that’s their goal) much quicker than not squatting at all.

Tying it All Together

The squat is one of the most beneficial lower body movement patterns to coach your clients through. While everyone will squat with a different stance, degree of toe out, and variation, there’s no need to take clients through an extensive “screening” process prior to loading them up.

Instead:

1️⃣ Ask them to “show me a squat” to get an idea of how they move to begin with

2️⃣ Coach the squat. Cue them into a moderate stance with slight toe out and ask them to squat as deep as they can

3️⃣ If they have pain, see if you can find a stance width, degree of toe out, and depth that is tolerable for them. If so…it’s time to load them up!

4️⃣ If they still have pain after a stance adjustment, it’s probably best to hold on squatting for now and to refer out to a rehab professional for further assessment.

About the Author

Dr. Michael Mash is the owner and founder of Barbell Rehab, a continuing education company dedicated to helping fitness and rehab professionals improve the management of barbell athletes. Check out his CEU approved online course, The Barbell Rehab Workshop at this link and use coupon code TONYG50 for $50 off.

Categoriespersonal training Program Design Strength Training

1-Minute Deadlift Tip: The Power of the Slow Start

Copyright: tktktk / 123RF Stock Photo

Slow Start Deadlift

Whenever someone rounds their back on a deadlift two things happen:

  1. A baby seal dies.
  2. I have to fight off the urge to throw my face into a fire.

Caveats exist, however.

Everyone at some point will round their back.

Elite lifters will do it – sometimes on purpose – to lock out a max effort lift.

Newbie and intermediate lifters will do it – almost always not on purpose – to lock out any lift…🤪

The difference is that elite lifters are strong (and knowledgable) enough to know how to self-correct when teetering with a precarious position (end-range spinal flexion), and mostly everyone else is not an elite lifter.

As I’ve noted repeatedly, if your goal is to become a deadlifting Terminator then the bulk of your accessory work should address either a weakness or technique flaw.

The SLOW START deadlift is a superb choice for those lifters who have trouble with their hips coming up too early and/or have a difficult time with maintaining upper back tension. I’ve been using this with a my clients and it’s been magical to see the progress they’ve made with their technique.

Performing 3-5 sets of 3-5 reps using 50-70% of 1-rep max should do the trick.

Categoriespersonal training Program Design Strength Training

The Missing Key to Conquering Your First Pullup: Stop Focusing on Eccentrics and Do This Instead

Shots have been fired.

Shots have been fired.

Some people will read the title of this post and see what they want to see…

“…Tony G has lost his mind. He’s telling people that doing eccentric only pull-ups to help build their actual pull-up is wrong. He also hates kittens.”

Others will know better and actually continue reading.

Copyright: diy13 / 123RF Stock Photo

The Missing Ingredient to Conquering Your First Pull-Up

I’d be remiss not to note that most competent programs designed to help people become pull-up badasses either emphasize or incorporate eccentric only variations.

Hell, one of the most baller programs out there (and one I reference often myself) – Meghan Callaway’s Ultimate Pull-Up Program (ahem, it’s its 3-year anniversary this week and it’s on sale for 50% OFF the regular price hint, hint, nudge, nudge) – incorporates a bevy of eccentric only pull-ups…

…among many, many other things.

I mean, it’s well established that the eccentric (or lowering) portion of any exercise is generally where a trainee is strongest, can handle the most load, and, potentially, leads to the most muscle growth.

 

All the above being the case, when it comes to BUILDING the pull-up, I still feel too many trainees (women AND men, mind you) miss the forest for the trees.

Despite it being an excellent choice, performing 5 to 10 lackluster eccentric only pull-ups week in and week out does not a pull-up make.

It’s akin to me posting a shirtless pic on my Match.com profile – and only a shirtless pic – and then underneath that pic typing…

…”come get it ladies.”

Sure, it may work in netting me a few dates.

But I doubt it.4

First of all: I’m a happily married man and don’t have a Match.com profile. It’s just a metaphor. But, coincidentally enough, I did meet my wife there…;o)

Second: I’d like to think my superior writing skills and uncanny wit was what won her over and led to us meeting for our first date four days after crossing paths digitally.

Third: In the age of Tinder, Bumble, and the litany of other dating apps at society’s disposal, do people even use Match.com anymore?

Where was I?

Right, what else to focus on other than eccentric only pull-ups.

Do More

I think one of the biggest mistakes I see most people make with their pull-up/chin-up programming is that they simply don’t train the pattern enough.

Most people will train their pull-up once, maybe twice per week.

This isn’t enough.

Pull-up badass, Artemis Scantalides, will often advocate a frequency of 4-5x per week.

However, this approach only works well for those who can already perform 3-5 pull-ups and are looking to level up that number.

If you can’t even perform one this would be a daunting prospect to say the least.

That said, I think staying cognizant of total VOLUME is an often overlooked component of pull-up progress.

As in: A metric fuck ton (which is just a tad below a metric boat load) of pulling volume is undoubtedly going to result in some cool things happening.

I like to incorporate the following (hybrid) vertical pulling progressions when working with an individual working toward their first pull-up

1️⃣ Suspension Trainer Vertical Row Thingamabobber – Level 1

Trainee is allowed to use his or her’s feet to help push off the floor and to assist as much as needed.

2️⃣ Suspension Trainer Vertical Row Thingamabobber – Level 2

 

Legs straight (less help)

3️⃣ Suspension Trainer Vertical Row Thingamabobber – Level 3

 

Feet Elevated – more ROM.

4️⃣ BONUS: Rack Pull-Up

 

This is hands down one of my favorite accessory “pull-up builder” exercises (and upper back exercises in general).

I LOVE the lat stretch in the bottom position.

If someone is looking to conquer their first pull-up I’d be more inclined to include one of these exercises as part of EVERY training session aiming for 2-4 sets of 5-15 repetitions

  • The “easier” drills are assigned more sets and reps.
  • The “harder” drills are assigned less sets and reps.
  • Sick beats optional.

Ultimate Pull-Up Program & Ultimate Push-Up Program

All this week you can purchase Meghan Callaway’s Ultimate Pull-Up Program at 50% off the regular price. Meghan is one of the best coaches I know and this program is without hesitation THE “go-t0” program if you’re looking to take your pull-up game to the next level.

Moreover, you also have the option of purchasing both the Ultimate Pull-Up Program & the Ultimate Push-Up Program at a heavily discounted price.

You can check out that link HERE.

Nevertheless, given many people have lost access to their regular gyms due to COVID-19 and have been regulated to training mostly at home these two programs couldn’t come at a better time.

Act fast, the offer ends this week!

CategoriesProgram Design Strength Training

1-Minute Deadlift Tip: Pause Reps

Copyright: spotpoint74 / 123RF Stock Photo

Do Paused Deadlifts

I’m a firm believer in many things: The Earth is round. The Bourne Ultimatum is the best Bourne movie. And most accessory work should address a weakness or technique flaw with one of your main lifts.

Enter paused deadlifts.

There’s no sugar coating here: these can be absolutely brutal, but they accomplish a few important things:

  • They help synchronize the shoulders and hips (namely the latter) from coming up too fast.
  • They help improve upper back (lat) tension.
  • They get people stronger in ranges of motion where they’re weakest.

For programming purposes, aim for sets of 3-5 reps using 50-65% of 1-rep max, pausing 2-3 inches off the floor (or at mid-shin level depending on the individual and where the bar tends to stall) for a 2-3 second count each rep.

If you want to up the ante even further, perform a full pause in the same spot on the way up AND the way down.

You psychopath.

CategoriesProgram Design Strength Training

Do Not Cross Doesn’t Really Mean You Can’t Cross: Fitness In a Nutshell

Two weekends ago I had the opportunity to make a cameo at John Rusin’s Pain-Free Performance Specialist course that was held at AMP Fitness here in Boston.

My good friend – and currently #7 on my list of Top 10 man crushes – David Otey was in town to teach the course.

It was lovely to spend time with my friend whom I hadn’t seen in several months. But too, after an equal gap in absence, it was downright biblical to finally be amongst a group of fitness professionals in a learning environment. I didn’t realize how much I missed in-person continuing education until I was marinating in it for a few hours.

I took home a bounty of insights and ideas in the few hours I was there, however there was one analogy in particular David used that really resonated with me

Copyright: maximkabb / 123RF Stock Photo

Do Not Cross Doesn’t Really Mean You Can’t Cross: Fitness in a Nutshell

Anyone who lives in a large city is familiar with the throng of “Do Not Cross” signs peppering the sidewalks and streets.

Pedestrian life is controlled by their never-ending playlist counting down when it’s safe to cross a street and when it’s not.

They’re there for a reason; for our safety and the public good.

Not surprisingly, most people ignore them and cross the street anyway.5

And 99.9999% of the time…it’s fine. We survive. Not a scratch.

…but your head better be on swivel.

The same theme applies to lifting weights. As David noted during his talk on squat assessment and squat technique, people can back squat with a straight bar (often considered at the top of the pyramid in terms of most advanced squat variations), but it only takes that one time using too much load or being too overzealous where something goes awry.

Likewise, think about the conventional deadlift.

I’d argue the conventional deadlift – particularly when performed from the floor – is the most advanced variation of deadlift one can perform:

  • Axis of rotation is further away from the barbell.
  • More shear load on the spine.
  • More likely your soul will leave your body.

It requires a fair amount of mobility (access to requisite hip flexion, thoracic extension, ankle dorsiflexion) as well as picking the right parents (short torso, long arms) to be able to get into and maintain the proper spine position to perform safely.

NOTE: I believe Dr. Stuart McGill has noted in his research that something like 93% of the people he’s assessed during his career could not perform a conventional deadlift from the floor without compensating through their lumbar spine in some fashion (I.e., loaded spinal flexion).

NOTE II: Maybe it’s 91%. No, wait, 87%. Either way, it’s a lot…;o)

All of this to say: Yes, back squatting is fine. As are conventional deadlifts. But they’re both examples where the bulk of trainees are crossing the street when the “do not cross” sign is flashing.

Most can do them.

And most will probably be fine.

However, this is why it’s imperative to assess your clients/athletes and be more cognizant of “fitting” any program to THEM – and their injury history, their goals, their ability level, and yes, their anthropometry – rather than the other way around.

We can vastly reduce the risk of injury with most trainees by utilizing safer alternatives that tend to be a better fit across the board anyway – like the Trap Bar Deadlift, Front Squat, or even a SSB Bar Squat.

It’s still squatting and deadlifting…

…you’re just, you know, less likely to be taken out by a moped.