Yo –
A couple of good articles. And random Goose ramblings. This is the first morning in a while I have had some free time. And why not dish out some Goosethoughts?
First, the deadlift. A big thing Poliquin talks about in the attached article is the progression of the lift itself. For newer folks, setting up is huge. Making sure to get the right position and really finding the sweet spot in terms of distance from the bar. Reset after each rep to build pattern. In terms of full body recruitment, there aren’t many better exercises out there. I think his idea behind low back training is one that we all sort of ‘forget’. He approaches the idea of high volume deadlifts which I am not a huge fan of – mostly because I’d rather throw in some other type of hinging movement like a kettlebell swing. At the same time, I realize high volume deadlift is just something I haven’t done a lot of with my clients. Other than at Crossfit. And that’s all I’m going to say about that…
In our setting we deal with folks who are a little more frail and have underlying issues with the low back. At the same time, we’ve gotta load it to make it stronger…The whole idea of loading to a therapeutic dose is our goal. What number of sets/reps/weight is going to give our clients the best room to get stronger in the next week? I’ve found that every person has to load the deadlift differently…most folks with a neutral spine, some in slight lumbar flexion, some wider stance, some narrow. Some have to squat! The idea is that they’re going to be doing it anyway at home – putting on their shoes, picking up the trash, etc. For folks who have a hard time lifting the weight from a patterning/mobility standpoint, use a higher surface to lift from while cuing hip extension with a neutral/slightly flexed spine if necessary. We need to pick things up from the ground.
I also think the following is one of the biggest things fitness professionals miss out on the most. So much time outside of the gym is spent not thinking about doing things with ‘perfect form’. Of course we want to train perfect but realistically, when Client X goes down to pick up her dog’s crap, she won’t be thinking about pushing her hips back, bracing through her stomach and maintaining a proper Lat position. Nah, she’s just thinking about picking up the poop. So why not train in these ranges? Not all the time, but developing stronger bodies in all planes of movement and motion will help her develop strength even in the ‘crap form’ positions thus decreasing the amount of stress on the joints in the crap ranges.
Sometimes we keep our more challenging clients in a little bubble because we put an emphasis on practicing perfect but it is NECESSARY to prepare ourselves for the unexpected.
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Without further ado, here are ten rules for mastering the deadlift.
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For our more ‘advanced’ groups. Different ways to work the chin up. A lot of good information in here in terms of grip and what is being worked throughout the movement.
http://www.strengthsensei.com/resource-charles-poliquin-compilation-of-chin-up-tips/
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STRENGTH SENSEI Official Website for Charles R Poliquin : Strength Training, Nutrition, Articles, Books, Motivation, Supplementation
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Stella Fitness 