Technique: little things matter

[massingUP]

Hey guys,

Just a quick note here to marvel about something that most people already know, I'm sure. But time and time again, I'm surprised at how much difference small variations in technique and form make when performing certain exercises, especially the big complex ones like SQUATS.

I've been lifting pretty consistently for about 10 years now, and squats are a regular part of my routine. And my form has always been pretty good -- I keep my weight in my heels, go down to parallel, and keep my head up -- but never what I'd call great. There are those guys who just look so FLUID when they do it... damned impressive.

At any rate, I'm not there yet, but I have taken a big step forward, and it's from a tiny little shift in technique. I've always had various lifter friends -- from powerlifters to bodybuilders to strength athletes -- tell me to "look up" when I'm doing my squat. This is supposed to help align my spine, improve balance, and keep my lower back in a healthy place. However, it's never really done all that much for me.

But recently, a trainer buddy of mine suggested that I forget about "looking up" and think about it as popping my chest up: leading with my chest, as if I'm cresting a wave. And suddenly my squats are a totally different world! My spine finally feels like it's in the right place, I'm more stable, and suddenly I'm activating my glutes and inner thighs in a whole new way. And all this just from a tiny shift in how I THINK ABOUT doing an exercise: which, of course, changes how it happens.

At any rate, this is just a rambling little happy post, but one meant to encourage people to keep trying. If there's an exercise that you've always done but has never felt quite right, just keep at it, ask around, find different ways to approach it, to think about it: and one of these days, you'll stumble on the key that will make it work for you!

Keep growing...

- J.

[inflated]

Proper form is necessary if you have any long term goals. Most injuries occur from improper form over a long period of time. I am always amazed at the poor form and high weights that are being used by teenagers. H.S. football coaches often encourage bad form and ridiculous poundages, I spend a lot of time helping people correct their form. It bothers me to see an accident waiting to happen.

[BigLittleTim]

Good observation, massingUp,

Even serious bodybuilders with long-time experience can find things to improve in their technique and routines. We are always learning from each others' experience.

I've found that my technique on Squats is better when I have a good, reliable spotter at my back. I don't know how much of this is psychological, and how much is physical.

Congratulations, also, on making central an exercise many guys ignore (to their detriment!)

Cheers, big guy,

BigLittleTim

[jukeboxxx#]

Nice I'll keep the tip in mind and try it!
Any tricks for lower abs?

[inflated]

Originally Posted by jukeboxxx#

Nice I'll keep the tip in mind and try it!
Any tricks for lower abs?

Hanging leg raises are one of the best exercises for lower abs--do them to the point of exhaustion--abs seem to respond best to high reps.

[abbraxis]

For abs my friend and I do elevated sit ups between each exercize (note: not each set) on the bench-thing (sorry... don't know if it has a name), and I could only do between 5 and 10 each time.

Near the end of each exercize I was happy to squeek out 5...

But as we kept doing it, I was able to get up to about 15 between each exercize. It's made a BIG difference. I wasn't fat, mind you, but I had a belly... which was weird, cause I was really skinney. I always sucked in cause otherwise I looked like those kids from Africa with the distended stomachs. Basically, it was bad looking.

But now I've got a faint 6-pack going on and it's deffinately noticable if I flex, so I'm happy about that. Soon I'll add some more situps in the beginning and trail off near the end. I hope to be up to about 20 (or more) as we get closer to summer.

Basically, we don't set aside a whole day for them... we just do them consistently... and it has worked for us so far...