Your Grip Strength is Limiting Your Other Lifts

Have you ever played that game at an arcade where you squeeze these metal handles as hard as you can and it determines how strong your grip is?

One of the most understated elements of training is, in my opinion, grip strength.

Whether you're gripping a baseball bat, holding onto the pull-up bar, or picking up a heavy deadlift, you need to have strong forearms.

I find it so unfortunate that many people use and abuse straps for their lifts. Yes, straps have their time and place, but as I've said before, I'm a minimalist when it comes to lifting. I believe the more you are able to learn to create tension, and the stronger you get, the better off you will be. You can deadlift more weight with straps, but you are using a crutch. If your forearms are the limiting factor in a deadlift, then maybe you just need to strengthen them!

The muscles in the forearms connect all the
way up to the neck and shoulders.

According to Thomas Myers's Anatomy Trains, the whole arm and shoulder functions under one fascial web. The fascia is a thin, protective layer of connective tissue that surrounds the muscles. When one part of this fascial web is activated, so too, is the rest of it. With this, we can deduce that a better grip on the bar will allow for a stronger press.

Let's take, for example, a strict press. This is a shoulder exercise, right? Well, yes, but that doesn't mean we don't need to recruit other muscles in the body! Creating tension from the feet, all the way up through the hands, will activate more muscle fibers, and thus, make the weight fly up faster! One cue in particular that helped me was to think about actively squeezing the barbell as hard as possible.

Charles Poliquin notes,

"when your grip strength improves, less neural drive is needed for the forearm and hand muscles to perform other exercises. That is why many trainees report breaking training plateaus in a host of lifts, ranging from dead lifts to curls, after doing a grip specialization routine."

All of the big lifts require you to create a tremendous amount of tension in your body. The "tighter" you get, the better. Any areas of weakness will make a lift that much more difficult. Strengthen your forearms, and you will be able to get a better grip on the bar, which can result in more weight. A+!

Aside from improving total body strength and motor control, training the forearms may prevent pain in the wrists and forearms.

"There are 35 muscles involved in movement of the forearm and hand, with many of these
involved in gripping activities," notes Jason Shea, CSCS. He then continues on to talk about how inadequate grip strength may result in injuries like tennis elbow, UCL tears, and other elbow and wrist-related issues. If the forearms are weak, you will place an unnecessary amount of stress on your tendons and ligaments around the elbow and wrist joints. Charles Poliquin also mentions that

"these ailments are often caused by improper strength ratios between the elbow muscles and the forearm muscles. If the elbow flexors, like the biceps and brachialis, are too strong for the forearm flexors, uneven tension accumulates in the soft tissue and results in elbow pain"

Therefore, if you're spending a ton of time strengthening the muscles in your upper arm (biceps, triceps, etc.), but minimal to no time strengthening the muscles downstream, you're setting yourself up for injury.

Additionally, some studies have linked rotator cuff health to the integrity of the forearm muscles. When your grip is activated, so too are the muscles of the rotator cuff (teres minor, infraspinatus, supraspinatus, and subscapularis).

You need to have some strong freaking forearms to pull that kind of weight!

Now, for the exercise portion! Here are eight of my favorite ways to make you a pro at grabbing things:

1. Plate pinches
2. Farmer carries (unilateral and bilateral)
3. Plate flips
4. Hangs from the pull-up bar (for an extra challenge, try unilateral)
5. Rock climbing (no video necessary)
6. Fat bar deadlifts or pull-ups
7. Heavy kettlebell swings
8. Finger board (used for climbers)

Note that grip strength is going to be positional, meaning that your forearms may be very strong holding a very small or narrow object, and weak holding thicker objects. It's important to vary the width of the equipment you use every once-in-a-while.

You may have noticed that wrist curls and extensions are absent from this list. I'm not much of a fan of training the grip in this way, because it has less of a carry-over to other activities. We want to train for function, not necessarily for size!

Now go find some heavy objects and grip them! Open pickle jars for your friends, or swing from branches like Tarzan. Build your forearms and reap the tremendous benefits from all of this newfound strength.

Works Cited:

1. Czitrom, Andrei A., and Graham D. Lister. "Measurement of Grip Strength in the Diagnosis of Wrist Pain." The Journal of Hand Surgery 13.1 (1988): 16-19. Web.
2. Dhutia, Maitri, Tara Ruttley, and Sudhakar Rajulu. "Elbow Strength in Reference to Various Shoulder Positions." (2001): n. pag. Web.
3. Myers, Thomas W. Anatomy Trains: Myofascial Meridians for Manual and Movement Therapists. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone, 2001. Print.
4. Poliquin, Charles. Winning the Arms Race: The Ultimate Training Program for Arm Size and Strength. Place of Publication Not Identified: Www.CharlesPoliquin.net, 2001. Print.
5. Shea, Jason. "THE IMPORTANCE OF GRIP STRENGTH." (2011): n. pag. Web. 8 July 2015.

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Breathe Your Way to Bigger Lifts (Part 2)

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post on breathing properly for your lifts. This week, my friend Nate Henry, a competitive powerlifter, wrote a wonderful follow-up article. His strongest lifts include a 523.5 pound squat in competition, and a 535 pound squat in the gym, weighing 206 pounds. His best meet total is 1,372 pounds! He is also currently pursuing a bachelors degree in Kinesiology and an NSCA CPT. If you want to move big weights like this guy, follow his advice.

I mean...look at this guy.

Brief Squat Overview (Kinesiology)

Before I get into anything, let's review all of the primary muscles that are used within the squat because a lot of people overlook them.

When you’re lifting or doing anything and figuring out what muscles are being utilized, you have to analyze the dynamic (moving) joint to be able to identify the muscles worked. The muscles being worked are the ones that are fighting against the load.

As you squat there is movement in these joints:

• Hip (femoral acetabular joint, femur connects in the acetabulum in the coxal bone) 
• Knee (tibio-femoral joint, where the femur connects to the tibia)
• Ankle (taleo-tibula joint, where the tibia meets the talus)
• Spinal column (vertebral column)
•  Sacroilliac (SI, or lumbo-sacral) joint which is where the column connects to the illiac.

Analyzing the movement against resistance, standing up when you squat, we can identify the action of the muscle taken. In this case:

• Hip extension
• Knee extension
• Plantar flexion (ankle)
• Spinal extension (and depending on the lifter, there can be a posterior or anterior pelvic tilt in the SI.)

Rather than listing out all of the muscles involved, here are some nifty graphs I made to show what muscles are responsible for what movement:

Keep in mind these are only the primary muscles and these do not include the statically loaded muscles or the secondary muscles involved in the movements.

Now what?

Now that we’ve identified all the muscles we can get into this cueing business, the muscles will come into play a little later. Outside of reminding everyone reading this that their set up is the most important part of the squat (don't rush it, set up every set the same, etc.). I’m going to assume you’ve squatted before in your life, and I'll get right to it.

One of the biggest things that helped me advance my own squat was learning to properly brace and learning to “breathe into my lower back.”

A lot of lifters rant about “getting tight” and “getting your breath,” but what the heck does that even mean? It’s one of those things that if you know it, you get it. If you don’t, it’s hard to explain fully.

The whole point of getting “tight” or bracing is to prepare your body to handle load. Usually in the form of the Valsava Maneuver (holding your breath). However, a lot of people can’t even breathe correctly without load, so getting your breath and bracing properly is hard to do if you’re just starting out.

Rather than explaining it further, Arianna has written an awesome article already!

That breath and bracing is the most important and overlooked aspect of the squat next to having a proper unrack/walkout.

The reason this is so important is because if you’re not bracing completely you’ll put a lot of pressure on different muscles. We talked about spinal extension as one of the movements in a squat right? Well, when you’re just bracing the frontal core (the rectus abdominis plays a huge role in stabilizing the muscles responsible for spinal extension), you’re leaving your back completely unprotected, even with a belt! When you’ve got something heavy on you, that weight will zero right in on your weakest part of the back and that’s how back injuries happen and why.

This cue is especially important for low bar squatters who tend to use more extension in the back to leverage heavier weight on the way up.

To add to that, a lot of lifters might get the back tight (flexing it rather than creating the tension through the diaphragmatic breathing) and then tip forward because there is no brace on the front. This can also create some havoc within the muscles being worked. The quads may try to take proportionally more load than needed and the hip extensors try to pick up the slack. Things can get weird.

The point is, you need to brace and create that pressure. This is how I learned to do that.

Why breathe into my lower back?

Your core musculature wraps all the way around. A lot of lifters just breathe into their stomachs, creating little pressure, and not getting 360 degrees of tightness throughout all the musculature, extrinsically, nor intrinsically. They lack the understanding of what full abdominal expansion feels like; that’s where this cue comes in handy.

Put your hand on your lower back. Breathe into your stomach with a proper breath (fill it like a balloon). Not much going on in the lower back right? Or the sides, really, correct?

Now, do the same thing but try to breathe into the back while still trying to fill in the balloon (if that’s not helping, try to breathe into the lower back lying on your back and try to focus on pushing against the ground). If you’re doing this correctly, you should feel your back, stomach, and sides fill with air. Put your hands on your sides as well, you’ll feel it.

This is what I mean by breathing into your lower back. Proper inhalation helps your muscles in the core/lower back get tight/brace. Think of your core musculature as your body's own belt.

Using this, let's go over a quick squat without getting too much into the whole process:

1. Approach the bar, get your hand placement. 
2. Without rushing, get under the bar and get your placement down (high/low/hybrid). Dig into the bar, get the hands set, get everything nice and stable. 
3. Get your hips under you (both feet, not split stance this will prevent injuries in the back as well)
4. Breathing into your lower back, and getting the full breath first, unrack the bar.
5. Take your first step back, settle. 
6. Bring your other leg back, settle. Adjust this foot if need. 
7. If you’re squatting really heavy and the bar is whipping, let it settle. Good walks, make good lifts.
8. If you let out some air during the walk, retake the breath but make sure you create pressure during the walkout phase because even though you’re not squatting, you’re still having to move around that weight. 
9. Squat
10. Stand up
11. Retake the breath (don't descend without completing the breath!)
12. Repeat

I like using Chad Wesley Smith as an example, since he’s the one who introduced me to this cue. Here he is squatting 825 for a double.

Notice the control, the time put into the set up, and how he breathes. Now, Chad is an Elite Squatter. He’s quick about it. Take your time.

The cool thing is this applies to all disciplines: CrossFit, Powerlifting, Strongman, Weightlifting, Bodybuilding.

Try these tips, and add serious weight onto your lifts.


Works Cited:

1. Nuckols, Greg. "Squat Mechanics – The Red Pill." Strengtheory. N.p., 23 Feb. 2015. Web. 02 June 2015.
2. Smith, Chad W. "10 Steps to Great Squatting Technique." JTS Strength. N.p., 20 Aug. 2014. Web. 02 June 2015.
3. Smith, Chad W. "Squatting Specifics - What Technique Is Best for Your Sport?" JTS Strength. N.p., 22 Aug. 2014. Web. 02 June 2015.

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To Belt or Not to Belt?

Part of assimilating into the "lifting culture" means geeking out over new purchases like shoes, wrist wraps, straps, and belts. It's easy to fill up your shopping cart pretty quickly on Amazon.com or other similar websites. The question is, how much of these items are necessary, and what is extraneous and perhaps counter-productive?

I've been hesitant to write this post, because I know many people hold very strong opinions on this issue. There are plenty of people at an elite level who are using lifting belts to deadlift 800+ pounds, so it's natural to want to copy what those guys are doing and hope that all of this gear will lead to similar gains for you. If only that were the case...

Personally, I am not an advocate of belts (and most other "accessories" for that matter, but I'll save that for another post) in many circumstances.

First of all, it's important to understand why you're using a belt in the first place, because I believe a lot people have a great misunderstanding of the purpose of a belt. Some people are under the illusion that the belt will magically prevent back injuries. At the moment, there isn't a lot of evidence to support that belts reduce injury rates or lower back pain in any way. According to the CDC, "although back belts are being bought and sold under the premise that they reduce the risk of back injury, there is insufficient scientific evidence that they actually deliver what is promised."

Stuart McGill also notes that "[individuals] who have never had a previous back injury appear to have no additional protective benefit from wearing a belt," and "those who are injured while wearing a belt seem to risk a more severe injury."

A belt is meant to provide additional support and stability for the muscles of the trunk. Basically, the tension of the belt increases intra-abdominal pressure, activation of the spinal erectors and rectus abdominis. All of these things are clearly important in lifting heavy weight. So why do I have such a conceptual problem with using a belt?

A lifter needs to learn to create intra-abdominal pressure sans belt. When one becomes too reliant on a belt to stabilize his core, the risk of injury without one may increase. Essentially, a belt becomes a crutch for poor bodily awareness and motor learning. If you constantly step under a loaded barbell with your belt on, it's going to be much more difficult to move without it!

A belt will create a false sense of security in a lifter, and thus potentially stunt the growth of postural muscles like the erector spinae, multifidi, external obliques and rectus abdominis, as their roles become more limited with equipment.

In my opinion, a belt is most useful upwards of about 85% of your 1 rep maximum on a squat or a deadlift. That's it. Heavy weights require a greater degree of tension in the body, and that's where the belt will come in handy. You should not be warming up with your belt, and you should not wear it all of the time. When you are working up to a heavy single, or doing a ton of high volume work at high intensity, the use of a belt may be warranted and helpful. If you are not, however, training for a sport that requires you to be stronger than your competitors (such as Strongman, CrossFit, powerlifting or weightlifting), then I don't think using a belt is necessary at all. Instead, you could stand to benefit from a ton of practice in maintaining intra-abdominal pressure without the aid of equipment. Both your intrinsic and external muscles will get stronger in the process.

Again, this is my personal philosophy. Obviously for sports like powerlifting, a belt is going to be necessary after a certain point, but make sure you're strong without it as well. I rarely use belts unless I'm approaching 100% on my lifts. I prefer to train organically, when I can. I feel more accomplished knowing I was able to move a certain amount of weight without the aid of a belt around my waist. Some people like the security of having a belt, but I think it's always better to teach your body how to create that strength on its own.


Works Cited:

2. McGill, S., Norman, R.W., and Sharratt, M.T. (1990) The effect of an abdominal belt on trunk muscle activity and intraabdominal pressure during squat lifts. Ergonomics, 33 (2): 147-160. 
3. Reddell, Cheryl R., Jerome J. Congleton, R. Dale Huchingson, and John F. Montgomery. "An Evaluation of a Weightlifting Belt and Back Injury Prevention Training Class for Airline Baggage Handlers." Applied Ergonomics 23.5 (1992): 319-29. Web.
5. Reyna, J.R., Leggett, S.H., Kenney, K., Holmes, B., and Mooney, V. (1995) The effect of lumbar belts on isolated lumbar muscle. Spine, 20 (1): 68-73. 

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A Guide to Better Oblique Training: The Transverse Plane

Humans have the capacity to move freely and seamlessly through three different planes of motion: the sagittal plane, the frontal plane, and the transverse plane. Many strength programs utilize several different exercises in the first two (sagittal and frontal) planes, but neglect the transverse plane altogether. In order to perform well across a broad range of tasks, we must prepare our bodies for movements in all three planes. The transverse plane employs the smaller, stabilizer muscles, rather than the big prime movers. It is is equally important (if not more important) to focus on the development of these stabilizer muscles as that of the bigger muscle groups.

Chill with the side raises and try some new exercises.

CrossFitters, bodybuilders, Strongmen weightlifters and powerlifters become tremendously strong in the sagittal and frontal planes as the result of their training, but movements like burpees or barbell curls will do virtually nothing to strengthen rotational movements. The obliques, and their synergists, work to laterally flex the spine. The prime action of the internal and external obliques, however, is spinal rotation. A thrower of any sort will have extremely powerful obliques (on one side, at least). An athlete who predominantly participates in one of the aforementioned sports should incorporate more exercises in the transverse plane into his routine.

Enter the transverse plane. Rotational movements are very common in everyday life and in sport. Anytime we stop short and turn around, or any time we have to stabilize ourselves on one side (e.g. single leg Romanian deadlift) we are moving in the transverse plane. For athletes who participate in sports like tennis, soccer, baseball or tennis, adequate training in the transverse plane is crucial in order to perform well and prevent injury.

A study in 2008 published in the Journal of Orthopaedic Sports Physical Therapy found that individuals who had decreased function in the muscles responsible for movement in the transverse plane experienced a greater strain on their achilles tendons while running.

Training in the transverse plane may also be beneficial in preventing ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) injuries. According to orthopedist Dr. Boden, "young women are two to eight times more likely than their male counterparts to injure [the ACL]." A study in 2003 attempted to find out why this is the case. Researchers carefully analyzed the gaits and knee angles 20 female recreational runners. They found that the female group's hip and knee mechanics in the transverse plane were vastly different from those of the male group. The necessary protocol, researchers concluded, was a training program to develop strength of the lower extremities, with particular focus on strengthening external rotation.

Image of the Functional Line from Thomas Myers's "Anatomy Trains"

While squats, deadlifts, and shoulder presses are all fabulous exercises for increasing strength, those will only get you so far. If you're serious about improving your athletic performance and you want to avoid injury (which I would imagine you do), then add some exercises in the transverse plane into your routine. So what type of exercise can you do in the transverse plane? Any single limb exercise will work wonders: single arm shoulder presses, single leg Romanian deadlifts, single leg squats, single arm push-ups, and so on. In all of these exercises, your stabilizer muscles are working hard to prevent you from rotating or falling over. Jumps in which the athlete much change direction in the air are also beneficial, as this directly mirrors the demands of many sports. Last, but not least, are the "chopping" movements. Get creative here! You can use cables to resemble chopping wood, or you can actually chop some wood! Use a sledgehammer and hit a tire or stand sideways and throw a medicine ball at a wall. All of these exercises will make your stabilizer muscles (your obliques, your gluteus medius, your piriformis, and so on) fire like crazy.

Now, you might be wondering what type of movements you can do in this plane. Here are some of my favorites:

1. Single leg Romanian deadlifts (preferably barefoot)
2. Turkish get-ups
3. Cable chop (upper to lower)
4. Cable chop (lower to upper)
5. Sledge hammer chops
6. Lateral medicine ball throws
7. Single arm overhead squats
8. Punches or kicks on a punching bag
9. Zig zag sprints
10. Single leg 180 degree jumps

A good training program is one that is all inclusive, and machines can only get you so far. If you utilize exercises in the transverse plane at least 1-2 times you week will you take your training to the next level and simultaneously prevent injury. Remember: just because you can't see a muscle in the mirror doesn't mean you don't need to activate it and strengthen it!



Works Cited:

1. Lafiandra, M., K.g Holt, R.c Wagenaar, and J.p Obusek. "Transverse Plane Kinetics during Treadmill Walking with and without a Load." Clinical Biomechanics 17.2 (2002): 116-22. Web.
2. Myers, Thomas W. Anatomy Trains: Myofascial Meridians for Manual and Movement Therapists. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone, 2001. Print.
3. Nyland, J. A., D. N. M. Caborn, R. Shapiro, and D. L. Johnson. "Fatigue after Eccentric Quadriceps Femoris Work Produces Earlier Gastrocnemius and Delayed Quadriceps Femoris Activation during Crossover Cutting among Normal Athletic Women." Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy 5.3 (1997): 162-67. Web.
4. Shimokochi, Yohei, and Sandra J. Shultz. "Mechanisms of Noncontact Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury." Journal of Athletic Training 43.4 (2008): 396-408. Web.

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Breathe Your Way to Bigger Lifts

Check yourself: as you read this, are you taking deep, full breaths, or is your breath shallow and inconsistent?

I've found that my clients have the tendency to forget to breathe as the they lift. They're getting ready for a max back squat and they step under the bar with a completely unstable abdomen.

You take, on average, over 20,000 breaths per day, yet somehow, in today's stressful society, breathing is not always automatic. When people are anxious or preoccupied, they may forget to breathe, or their breathing may not be of adequate depth.

The respiratory system, courtesy of www.philschatz.com.

Now, above I've placed a photo of the respiratory system. As you can see, there is a lot going on there. Many people who are stressed or are in the sympathetic nervous system response (fight or flight), will breather primarily through the neck and chest--this is usually easily visible. Someone who is calm and in the parasympathetic nervous system should breathe through the diaphragm, and you will note that their bellies and lower ribcages will expand as they inhale.

The respiratory system obviously provides our brains with oxygen, but it also helps to stabilize our abdomens. When we inhale, the diaphragm contracts and presses up against the lungs, and as we exhale, the diaphragm relaxes.

A proper diaphragmatic breath helps us create intra-abdominal pressure. On a compound movement like a squat, deadlift or bench press, maintaining that intra-abdominal pressure is imperative for safety of the spine and maximal power output.

He may be cute, but we certainly don't want to emulate his physique!

My friend Wileen, a Licensed Massage Therapist and practitioner of NeuroKinetic therapy, gave me this wonderful example--she said that without sufficient intra-abdominal pressure, the body is much like the Slinky Dog in "Toy Story." Essentially, the abdomen will be soft and unprepared to handle a sufficient load.

Would you rather lift with a body like that of Slinky Dog or that of Buzz Lightyear? I have my money on Buzz Lightyear any day of the week.

A heavy lift requires a substantial amount of tension in the body, from the feet, all of the way up to the torso. Without that necessary rigidity, the risk of injury is exponentially higher, and the amount of energy we are wasting comes in droves.

A strong core creates bigger lifts. We can't optimize the strength of the thorax without proper spinal bracing via the breath, so therefore, a stronger breath means more weight on the bar! You follow me?

Now, down to the nitty gritty. You may be wondering how you should breathe on these big lifts. There is a technique that many lifters employ called the Valsalva maneuver. This is just one way to breathe to take advantage of the intra-abdominal pressure. I will warn, though, that anyone who has a history of high blood pressure should not breathe this way, as it does raise the blood pressure even more. Ideally, we want to inhale through the nose, which facilitates a full contraction of the diaphragm. Then, we should engage the abdominals. I tell my clients to imagine like I'm going to punch them in their stomachs. Once they have that down, they may begin the movement. During the hardest part of the movement, or the end of the concentric phase (think of standing up on a deadlift or squat or locking out an overhead press), they should forcefully exhale through the mouth. If they are doing a set with multiple reps, they should repeat this before each repetition.

This photo of the Valsalva maneuver in action demonstrates an iron clad core. As you can see, the airway is cut off and the diaphragm is contracted abdominal cavity expands. This individual is ready to move big weight.

Many people use lifting belts to enhance this effect. The belt acts as somewhat of a tactile cue to improve that core stabilization. I won't get into that too much today, though, as that is enough material for an entirely new post.

As you can see, the way you breathe has a profound impact on your performance, both in and out of the gym. It's is extremely important to learn how to maintain intra-abdominal pressure throughout a heavy lift for both efficacy and safety.

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"Neutral Neck:" How to Avoid Straining the Neck While Lifting

It's relatively common knowledge that during the big lifts, you should keep your back flat--some refer to this as a "neutral spine." Despite this, many people forget about the cervical part of the spine, or the neck.

Ideally, on a clean, snatch, deadlift or squat, the neck should stay in line with the rest of the spine. Once the weight gets heavy, however, one may start to compensate by hyperextending his neck as a lifeline. Instead of engaging larger muscles like the latissimus dorsi and the erector spinae, his cervical extensors are now taking the brunt of the work; compensatory patterns like these can lead to big problems over time.

Do not deadlift like this guy. 

To rectify this, I will have my clients find a spot about 3-4 inches in front of them. I will tell them to focus on this point throughout the entire lift. I will also place a PVC pipe behind their backs to help them find a more neutral position: this cue gives them tactile feedback of where their heads should rest.

Maintaining a neutral position of the head will allow you to properly engage your posterior chain while keeping your neck free from overexertion. Stop cheating yourself and find true strength. Movement efficiency is the key to longevity.

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Squats: the King of All Exercises