Do you experience pain in your wrists while doing exercises like bench presses or planks? If so, then read on!As I've mentioned 1,000 times (and you're probably sick of me saying it already), we always have to look distally (farther away) from the area in question. Think of your entire arms as a train....
Corrective exercise etiketine sahip kayıtlar gösteriliyor. Tüm kayıtları göster
Corrective exercise etiketine sahip kayıtlar gösteriliyor. Tüm kayıtları göster
The 4 Exercises that Your Shoulders Hate
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 13:03
Bodybuilding, Corrective exercise, exercise, Fitness, injury, Movement patterns, pain, powerlifting, Shoulder
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It is common for a lifter to seek boulder shoulder status. While having protruding, rounded shoulders certainly looks nice, the shoulders are very vulnerable to injury. The demands of a sedentary, desk-ridden society already makes our shoulders unhappy, and if you translate this dysfunction into the...
Debunking the Myth of the Vastus Medialis
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 11:23
Corrective exercise, exercise, Fitness, injury, Knees, pain, quadriceps, squat, squats
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The quadriceps complex is comprised of four main muscles: the rectus femoris, the vastus intermedius, the vastus lateralis, and the vastus medialis (which seems to have become the most buzzworthy muscle of the four). The vastus medialis obliquus (commonly referred to as the VMO) is the middle “tear...
How to Train Your Weaker Side
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 10:23
Corrective exercise, exercise, Fitness, Muscle imbalances, Weakness
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Approximately 90% of the world is right handed. Those people are writing, brushing their hair/teeth, throwing, reaching, and grabbing almost exclusively with their right hands for their entire lives. With this unilateral dominance in dexterity comes deficits between the halves of the body. Obviously,...
5 Exercises to Strengthen Your Neck
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 20:05
Balance, Breathing, Corrective exercise, exercise, Neck, stability, Tension
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In the prequel to this post, I explained why so many of us carry a lot of tension in the neck. Stress, poor posture, and breathing can all contribute to elevated shoulders and a heavy head. I taught you a few quick movements that will strengthen the muscles of the chest, back and shoulders, and today...
Train Your Brain, Not Your Muscles
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 09:08
Anatomy, Brain, Corrective exercise, exercise, Fitness, Movement patterns, Muscle, Physiology
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The most common questions a client or friend asks me are "what muscles does (fill in the exercise name here) train?" or, "what exercises can I do to lose fat in my (fill in muscle group name here)?" My answer will always be, "no muscle works in isolation."The answer is all of them.You are one single...
3 Reasons Why Your Neck is Always Tight
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 11:35
Corrective exercise, exercise, Fitness, Mobility, Shoulder, stability
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If you had to pick one place where you regularly carry the most tension in your body, what would you choose? I'm willing to bet you chose your upper trapezius muscles.The upper trapezius muscles seem to be (in my experience) some of the most overused and abused muscles in the human body. Many people...
The Muscles You're Forgetting to Train
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 10:31
Barefoot training, Body weight exercises, Corrective exercise, exercise, Mind and body, shoes, Sneakers
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Whether your training consists of a bodybuilding split-type schedule, you're training for a sport (basketball, weightlifting, powerlifting, etc.), or you're just doing total body workouts to get stronger, you might be forgetting some of the most important muscles in your body.
When you do any type of exercise, whether you're running, jumping, performing a deadlift, or throwing, it all starts with your point of contact to the ground. Your feet are your foundation, and, therefore, training your feet, or training barefoot, will build a rock solid base of support equipped to handle any task.
Let your feet breathe! |
Barefoot training has slowly started to make its way back into the mainstream media. Five-finger toe shoes or other types of minimal shoes have been touted as the "optimal" footwear for runners everywhere. I'll be the first one to admit that those toe shoes look absolutely ridiculous. Despite their horribly unfashionable nature, I do believe that barefoot training is an excellent addition to any training protocol.
There are plenty of naysayers in the minimal footwear movement: many people say that barefoot training can actually cause more harm than good. First of all, humans have been performing great feats of athleticism long before Nike was telling us to "Just Do It." In fact, we were "just doing it" with no shoes or maybe thin sandals that would protect our feet from sharp objects or hot sand. We were climbing trees, running away from wild boars, walking back to camp with livestock slumped over our shoulders, and climbing mountains without buying specialized footwear for those tasks. There are numerous civilizations today who are still doing all of those aforementioned tasks without the help of sneakers. Instead, those people have learned to harness the power of their own feet.
Now, I'll step away from the more anthropological talk and shift more into physiology. First, let's discuss the term "proprioception." I've mentioned this term in my blog before, but for those of you who don't remember, proprioception refers to "the sense of the relative position of neighbouring parts of the body and strength of effort being employed in movement," as per Wikipedia. Proprioception helps you adjust to uneven surfaces, understand how much pressure you're applying to said surface, among other things.
Shoes can limit the proprioceptors in our feet. Although your feet are proportionally small in comparison to other parts of the body, each foot has about 20 muscles, 26 bones (about 1/4 of the bones in the body), 33 joints, and over 7,500 nerve endings! Think about that: such a small part of your body includes a quarter of the bones in your body! Now, if you're cutting off the proprioceptors in your feet, you're cutting off a very sensitive and responsive area of your body.
One study done at the German Sport University of Cologne measured the activity of several muscles in and around the feet using Electomyography (EMG) while participants walked on grass barefoot, using minimal footwear and in traditional running shoes. They found that
I have cited several other studies in the Works Cited below, if you're interested in reading more into these studies."The use of minimal footwear was related to changes in musclestrength and morphology. It was demonstrated that thefootwear increased mechanical stimuli on the tendon muscleunits. The muscle strength capacity of those muscles whichwere more intensively used by the minimal shoe increasedsignificantly. Muscles which were similar activated in bothconditions did not respond. One can conclude that footweartechnology impacts the mechanical loading as well as thebiological response of the loaded tissues. "
While many of these studies involve running/walking, I believe that barefoot training carries over into lifting as well. I will have my clients roll out their feet with a golf ball or lacrosse ball before exercise. This will improve the sensory input and also improve their range of motion. Try this: Stand with your feet together and try to touch your toes. Now roll your feet out for about 5 minutes and then retest. You will notice that you are more flexible afterwards.
I know, these look pretty freaking silly... |
I will also have them do their activation/warm-ups barefoot; single leg RDLs, high skips, Bulgarian split squats, kettlebell swings, etc. can be done without shoes. Deadlifts are also an excellent exercise to try barefooted as well. You can see what you're doing with your toes: are you flexing your toes or "gripping the ground?" These actions are not ideal and should be corrected.
Now, if you want a great brand of minimal shoes that don't look absolutely obnoxious, I'd recommend the brand Inov8. Their shoes are comfortable and pretty sexy (in my opinion), and I'm absolutely obsessed with mine! There are several other minimal brands out on the market, so find a pair that you like!
If you're looking to get the most out of your training and avoid injury in the process, try taking your shoes off whenever you can. It feels pretty nice to let your feet spread out and breathe a little bit!
Works Cited:
- Bruggemann, G. P., et al. "Effect of increased mechanical stimuli on foot muscles functional capacity." Proceedings of the ISB XXth Congress-ASB 29th Annual Meeting: 31 July-5 August 2005; Cleveland. Vol. 553. 2005.
- Hart, Priscilla M., and Darla R. Smith. "Preventing running injuries through barefoot activity." Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 79.4 (2008): 50-53.
- Nigg, Benno. "Biomechanical considerations on barefoot movement and barefoot shoe concepts." Footwear Science 1.2 (2009): 73-79.
Is Stretching Really Helping You?
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 10:18
Corrective exercise, exercise, Fitness, Muscle imbalances, Stretching
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Of course, for every great workout, you need to make sure you have a solid warm-up and cool down--I've written about why both of these things are crucial in any exercise routine. Foam rolling, stability exercises and activation work are all necessary to help you recover and keep you injury free. What about stretching?
There are a few different types of stretching:
- Ballistic stretching
- Dynamic stretching
- Active stretching
- Passive (or relaxed) stretching
- Static stretching
- Isometric stretching
- PNF stretching
For the purposes of keeping this article short and sweet, I will only be covering static and passive stretching today. A static stretch is when you hold a position for a significant amount of time (30 seconds or more): think of your quad stretch, pigeon stretch, etc. A passive stretch is somewhat similar, but it involves the help of someone else who is forcing you into a greater range of motion.
Please, don't ever stretch like this... |
One study in the Journal of Athletic Training found that "both static and proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation stretching caused similar deficits in strength, power output, and muscle activation" on the leg extensions machine. Similarly, another study tested the effects of stretching on balance, reaction time and movement time. They found that "[an] acute bout of stretching
impaired the warm-up effect achieved under control conditions with balance and reaction/movement time."
Before exercise, stretching may actually have a negative effect of a wide range of performance markers.
Another problem I have with static stretching is that it does not really address the cause of the muscular tightness. Tension in a muscle is the result of weakness and instability somewhere else. For example, someone who has chronically tight upper traps probably has weak lower and middle traps, under-active lats, and poor shoulder stability. An athlete with tight hamstrings likely has weak glutes and a dysfunctional core. Stretching your hamstrings into oblivion is never going to strengthen your core. Instead, you must find out what those weaknesses are and address them as necessary. Stability exercises would be much more practical in alleviating hamstring tightness than yanking on your leg for extended periods of time.
While stretching does have its place, it is important to consider why you are stretching that area, and make sure it doesn't hinder your performance.
- Behm, David G., Andrew Bambury, Farrell Cahill, and Kevin Power. "Effect of Acute Static Stretching on Force, Balance, Reaction Time, and Movement Time." Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise 36.8 (2004): 1397-402. Web.
- Shrier, I. "Acute Effects of Static and Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation Stretching on Muscle Strength and Power Output." Yearbook of Sports Medicine 2006 (2006): 158. Web.
6 Ways to Overcome a Plateau and Start Getting Stronger Again
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 10:19
Activation, Corrective exercise, Dehydration, exercise, Fitness, food, Fuel, Goals, hydration, Intensity, Motivation, Muscle imbalances, plateau, Programming, Progress, recovery, Rest
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In fitness, as in life, we are always looking to move forward. If you're putting in the hard work in the gym, you should only continue to progress, right? Well, ideally, yes. Many, unfortunately hit a plateau somewhere along the way that may leave them feeling unmotivated or discouraged. If you approach your workouts the right way, however, you will only continue to progress and grow.
Here's a really helpful (not) diagram of a plateau for science. |
Here are 6 reasons you aren't progressing in the way you want:
- Intensity- Are you giving your workout your all, or are you texting in between sets? Each week, you should try to add more weight or increase the number of reps you're performing. If you just continually squat 135 lbs week after week, how do you expect to get stronger? If you're not gasping for air at the end of your sprints, you're not pushing yourself hard enough. The only way we can create adaptation is to give our bodies something to which it can adapt! It's important to make sure you enter your sessions in the gym with 100% effort. (Well...most days, anyway. We all have our "off" days...)
- Variation- It's nice to have a set split or program and follow that week after week, but if you're only doing the same handful of exercises ad nauseum, it can get pretty dull. Every once in a while, add a few new exercises into your routine and get rid of a few of the older ones. Not only will it keep your workouts interesting, your body will find a completely new way to challenge itself with a new task.
- Muscle imbalances- A weak or underactive muscle might be preventing you from advancing as you'd like. Let's say you have really strong quads, and you can squat 300 pounds for reps. Just imagine how much more you could squat if you actually learned to use your butt! When our muscles work together in force couples as they're supposed to, beautiful things happen.
- Program- Maybe it's time to either ask a friend for help programming your workouts (preferably one with lots of experience) or do some research online. Unfortunately, strength doesn't progress linearly, so it's important to make sure you account for that when you write out your program. Play with the number of sets, reps and the amount of weight you're using and find out what works best for you.
- Planning- My father always tells me "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail!" You need to set real, tangible goals for yourself. For example, one of my goals is to deadlift 300 lbs before the end of the year. As you can see, I gave myself a set number and a date by which I want to achieve it. Your goal might be to lose 10 pounds by June. Whatever those goals may be, make sure you've clearly articulated them to yourself and written them down so you can hold yourself accountable.
- Recovery- Perhaps you're not giving yourself enough time to recover between workouts. Make sure you're eating enough food to sustain your activity level and drink a lot of water. A lot of people I meet have a tendency to deprive themselves of the food their body so desperately needs to rebuild and repair itself. Remember: food and water are fuel!
When you start to see a flatline in your progress, it's time to step back and reassess your approach.
"Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
-Albert Einstein
Test Your Squat
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 09:45
Core strength, Corrective exercise, exercise, Fitness, Midline stability, Posture, squat
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“Trust that the body is a self righting organism. Our job is to guide the process.”
-Norene Christesen, PT, DSc, CLT, OCS
Why You Need to Have a Big Butt
By Fitness ve Body Blogçusu at 11:27
Activation, Corrective exercise, exercise, Fitness, injury, Low back pain, Midline stability, Muscle imbalances, pain, Posture, Power, Prehab, Sitting, Spine, squat, stability, Strength
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Having a big butt is certainly preferable for models twerking in rap videos, but it's also extremely important in athletic performance. Weather you're a soccer player, a running back or just simply working out to maintain a healthy lifestyle, you need to make sure you're giving your butt the attention it deserves.
I know what you're thinking: "But Arianna! I can squat 250 pounds. My glutes are really strong!" In a perfect world, you would achieve glute activation in the back squat, but many of the back squats I see people execute in the gym make use of the anterior quadriceps muscle and recruit minimal activation from their posterior chain. The truth is, if you are a predominantly sedentary person (meaning you sit for 4+ hours a day at home or at work), you probably don't know how to correctly activate your glutes because you're not using them for the majority of the day. Fear not--you are part of the American majority who sits at a desk job all day. It's no wonder that we don't know how to activate the right muscle groups considering we don't use them as often as we should.
Underactive or weak glutes can cause a ton of problems, including lower back pain, knee pain, IT band syndrome, and a whole slew of other maladies. Your quadriceps may be strong enough to squat 250 lbs, but guess what? If you learned how to activate your glutes properly, you would easily squat over 300 lbs.
The gluteus maximus (one of three muscles that make up what we collectively call the "glutes") is the biggest muscle in your body. Now, if we learn how to properly employ the strength of this tremendous group of muscles, we are going to see some real magic happen. Whether we're doing a deadlift, a squat, a box jump or a clean and jerk, we need to learn to properly harness the power from our glutes in order to move the most amount of weight and avoid injury.
In order to utilize the strength of the ever-powerful gluteal muscles, we must focus on activating them. Some great exercises can be found in my previous article about warm-ups, but I'll list a few more that I really like here:
- Single leg or weighted glute bridges
- Banded walks
- Reverse hyper extensions
- Single leg Romanian deadlifts
- GHD raise
- Bulgarian split squats
- Reverse lunges
- Side plank with abduction
Once you learn to properly engage your posterior chain, you will see tremendous gains in strength while simultaneously protecting your body from injury. If you have humongous quadriceps and a small butt, that should be a red flag to you that your glutes needs some more attention. Channel your inner Nicki Minaj and start building a bigger booty!