Image Credit: Cronfeld
Deadlifts, if they’re done properly, can be one of the best exercises for developing overall muscle mass on your body.
If you’re not careful to use proper form, however, deadlifts can also be one of the most dangerous exercises. Don’t let that scare you too much – if you start out with a light weight and perfect form and then slowly work your way up, you’ll be just fine.
In addition, the deadlift is going to help you avoid future injuries. It will strengthen your lower back and stabilizer muscles in a way that will make other lifts safer. Even every-day activities such as lifting heavy items, doing yard work, and other tasks will become safer as you strengthen your back and other muscles.
Let’s walk through the deadlift and discuss the proper form every step of the way:
1. Start light: Light is a relative term. Light might be 95 pounds for one person or 135 pounds for another. No matter where you are at, don’t do any more than 135 pounds for your first try. Building muscle (more…)
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Doing squats is one of the best ways to increase your overall lean body mass and power. Squats involve more muscle groups than almost any other exercise, and if you’re not already doing squats, adding them to your routine can help you to add strength quickly.
Learning the correct squatting stance will go a long ways in helping you to avoid injury. Lower back and knee injuries can happen if you’re not careful to use correct technique, and having the correct stance is necessary to help prevent these injuries. If it’s done correctly, the squat can be a very safe exercise.
Taking the correct stance
One mistake that you should avoid is to place your feet directly forward when you take a shoulder-width stance. This causes your knees to travel directly forward and makes it very difficult to squat all the way down. Take a look at the picture below.
This is about as far down as you’ll probably get with a narrow stance and the knees straight forward. The awkward stance causes the weight to shift forward and away from your correct center of balance. This is bad for both your lower back and your knees. (more…)
I saw something interesting the other day at the gym.
I saw an average-sized guy in his mid 20’s who was obviously trying to build up some muscle. He looked like he had some padding (weight) on him, but he didn’t look too out of shape. The thing that caught my eye is what I saw him doing.
He was using the cables to do cable crossover flyes. I watched as his arms wildly flapped up and down in an uneven way. His upper body lurched forward and downward with each rep as he strained to move the weight at all costs. I watched him move on to other exercises and perform them with a similar style.
Who knows, maybe he really didn’t know how to lift weights. But then again, like a lot of other people out there, maybe he was just too embarrassed to lift the proper amount of weight for his strength level.
If his goal was to avoid looking silly in the gym, he certainly didn’t achieve it. Honestly, I thought he looked a lot more like a monkey trying to figure out how to fly than someone who’s serious about getting in shape. (more…)
Continue reading about I Respect the Little Guy with Good Form
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