+ 1 PROPER FORM
It kills me sometimes when I look around my gym and see what some of these knuckleheads are calling a "routine"... I saw this guy this morning doing curls and it looked like he was doing standing sit ups : /
To the new guys who hit there first cycle and then come back bashing their source because "their gear didn't work" you really need to understand what it is you are doing!PROPER diet and training is where the growth come from. Not to say you can't make Dirty gains and maybe that is all some of you are looking for and can get away with a sloppy diet but if you are not sure what a proper diet looks like... RESEARCH! RESEARCH! RESEARCH!
Form on the other hand... well, if you don't know how to properly execute an exercise or routine then you really have no business messing with AAS just yet... but still... RESEARCH! RESEARCH! RESEARCH!
I used to workout with Kickboxer Dick Kimba. He has some MASSIVE shoulders and when I asked him how he got shoulders like that, he replied "Improper curls"
Don't just assume you know what you're doing if you don't have the background. Its ok not to know, just ask... or you will not only jeopardize your optimal gains but you will look foolish in the eyes of the guys "in the know"
my .02
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yeah there is a gray area there for sure...branch warren is an example of "not perfect" form, but it clearly doesnt matter in his case that he doesnt lock out his reps. Now as for the assholes in my gym who do a full body convulsion during standing bicep curls, where they are swinging their arms and shit...those guys need some help. Theres one guy who is in there every day and does chest and biceps EVERY DAY. I have never seen him EVER to legs or back or delts. He also likes to prop up a fixed position FLAT bench machine using a few aerobic step platforms and thinks hes doing decline bench. I tried to explain to him that because the path of the lifting bar is fixed and stays perpendicular to the bench regardless of how he props up the machine, that its not decline at all. He responded by telling me that decline bench was good for your lower chest. I gave up, and said "oh, thats good".
I wasn't sure if I shold bring this up but here goes anyway. Form can be such a touchy subject. Some people brutalize those who use what you could say is loose form at times. Then the other side of the coin is using form that is too strict doesn't allow you to use heavy weight. Now I feel that you can use cheat reps to enhance your training. When you can no longer move the weight using strict form then you can loosen up your form to over load the muscle on the negative part of the rep. Now this being said the main point to this is that I USE THESE TO ENHANCE MY TRAINING. It is not done as a primary way of training. Use cheat reps sparingly to overload muscles. Then the most inportant part is DIET. Not sure if the peeps know this but diet and rest is 70% of the growth process and training is a measly 30%. So if you train like a maniac and do eat and sleep with the same conviction then you are doing your self an injustice. Train hard, Eat smarter and rest properly. Then you have no option but to GROW
Standing sit ups? Lmao smfh
56tooMy all time fave is the guy that goes up to the squat rack and loads up 225 then proceeds to squat a full 4 inches for reps.Yeah....... that's got to take the cake
well, sometimes I will test myself and attempt to go with a higher weight and only get 4 reps....but not every time. And in the case where I only get 4 reps, then I would turn it into a drop set, pull some weight off and keep going.
C'mon man he's just isolating the Glutes. Its a lady pleaser. jk LOL ;-P
hey at least the guy is working legs. In my experience that's pretty rare.
I see ppl every day in my gym using shitty form. Mostly curls and tricep pushdowns. I see ppl put way too much weight on these things. Guys that are 160lbs and don't have much of a bicep are putting 2 45s on a 35lb easy curl bar and curling that with their back, legs and everything els but their bi's. Then guys get on the cable machine and do tricep pushdowns with everything els but their triceps. These are the same ppl that do what I call "the runing man" when trying to do hammer curls. They do them way too fast with no squeeze at the peak, twisting their body side to side with no proper form at all. Most of the guys in my gym go to Mc d's all day long and don't care about proper nutrition, all they care about is pre workout drinks, intra workout drinks, and how many grams of powder protien they drink after what they call a workout. These are the ppl that a year or even two years later look exacly the same with absolutly NO RESULTS.
I gotta be upfront here, i still can't get my form on bench down pat. I feel I hit my shoulders a lite too much and have tried widening and shortening my grip which has helped but every week i find myself trying to locate that sweet spot on the bar :/. Any advice is appreciated as always
Try pulling your shoulders back, chest out, and don't flare your elbows out, turn them in towards your sides. Its more a powerlifting setup and takes a lot of the stress from the shoulders. Its the only way I can flat bar bench. Or just go with dumbells, you'll get better ROM. It just gets tough to maneuver the big ones into position though as the weight goes up.
Yea my form with barbells is fine but really wanna get my bench up as the weight I can push on bench is not very much haha
I think that's a decision you have to make. Do I want to use form for Power and High weights or do I wanna use more of a BodyBuilding form/approach and build my Pecs. You would think the 2 are the same but not really. For max bench you see them all use a shoulders back approach which limits (ROM) and distance traveled for a full lift and they bring in Lats to hit those heavy ass loads. Bodybuilding for size is more isolation and rep range changes to increase sarcoplasm, mitochondria, myofibrils..... The increased size will increase strength, but lifting for power is a different training appproach. Good Luck!
I agree with you. Mind going into more detail with the positioning of the hands? Width and the way the bar is even held
I learned a lot of this from this site. Of course they want to sell you routines and such but you can also get a lot of free information without buying anything. Here is a good video on a power setup. It takes practice and your bench will go down at first but this set up will allow you to come up past where you were before without the pain in the shoulders.
http://www.criticalbench.com/bench-secrets.htm
I think alot of us, myself included are guilty of using our shoulders to much on the bench press. We all want to pile on the weight and look like a bad ass in the gym and we start using other muscles shoulders and back just to get the weight up. I hate to say it, but i find that i really isolate my chest on the smith machine. Also, try bringing the bar down to different areas of your chest, just not the lower part.
chest is tough bro, the rotator cuff has 9 points of rotation as well as dealing with the "natural" unnatural degree of angle to the push. Pay attention to your body, you won't always get the "max" benefit from "max" weight. I am still dealing with a cuff injury while "deloading" on my press... wasn't even heavy weight, I was concentrating on breathing and form. For now my chest workout consists of dumbells and cables
I'm having trouble with chest exercises. I'm not certain if it's my form, hand position, or if my front delts just take the brunt. It's happening with flat bench, decline, and incline. I've tried lowering the weight to practice form, concentrate and isolate the target muscle. I slow down the reps. Squeeze at the end. I've even gone ahead and tried all of the above with the smith. My left shoulder gets very irritated and uncomfortable. I get a pump in the left peck that seems more prominant than the right. I've started using dumbells to concentrate on one side at a time. I don't seem to have much trouble with the hammer strength machines (peck deck/dip / cables). I dont have a very powerful chest. My back seems to be my strong suit. My shoulders are also much stronger than my chest. I don't know if this is why i'm having this trouble or if it's just my form. It's getting to the point where i'm afraid i'll tear something in my shoulder. Any suggestions?
Ya man I been going through the same shit for months if not over a year now
Have you ever tried pre exhausting your shoulders with front and lateral raises before bench?
I have not bro. I'm afraid that if I do I won't be able to handle the chest workout. I should try next chest day. I'm willing to try anything at this point. Thanks for the suggestion. Any tips on burning them out?
You'll be able to handle it just lower the weight a bit and concentrate on the pecs. I'd do 3 sets front then lateral raises and pre exhaust them so your pecs and tris have to take the load. Don't know how big you are but I'd say 15-20lb DBs strict, not swinging them should put a pump to your shoulders. Or you can do them together which really puts the work on em. Front raise (both arms), lower, side lateral (both arms), lower, front raise..... 3 sets of 10 each way 20 total reps per set and they ain't gonna help bench much right after! If your self concious practice at home with 5lbs, cause the 20s make me cry by the end! They used to be my wrap up cause I couldn't lift my arms after. Hell of a pump though! LOL ;-P
Thank you bro! I'll try this next chest day! I'm up to 200lbs now. 20lb DB should suffice wit lateral raises. I could probably do 25 reps before they start burning. Maybe 15's will be better. I don't want to hurt myself. Thank you again bro for the help.
May also want to consider the multi-press... I hit it up this morning to gauge my rotator cuff (with good results) and its a good way to get slow and deliberate movement
What is a multi-press, a machine?
yes sir... The Smith, its a guided press machine for squats, shoulder, bench etc... Looks alot like the squat rack
This is exactly what I was talking about. I have used the smith machine to ensure proper balance just to attempt to isolate the pecks. I have less shoulder discomfort but it's still there. I'm going to try to burn out the delts prior to my next chest workout. Hopefully this helps. I'll decrease the weight drastically and take baby steps. I don't want to injure that shoulder. I think the repedative movement from boxing may have played a part in why I favor my left peck /shoulder. I'm a south paw and I always commit when I throw the left hand. I'm taking it easy with the boxing until I figure this shoulder thing out. Thanks or all the help gentlemen!
Ok, I have a smith machine, that also has pec deck, and hi and low cables. I like it. lets me test myself without a spotter!
EXACTLY
Ahh a smith machine good for shoulders and chest and even shrugs but it kills my back on squats just doesnt work for me on a fixed plane
I found a good foot placement (marked it on the mat) and sit down into the squat its working for me. I know I could go heavier free though. It is the only way to go for feet forward squats though. I do my calf raises on it also with the safeties up so I don't have to get the hooks in. I have the one I bought first, the uprights actually pivot 15 degrees front or back. I'm gonna re-sell it.
Its a whole new pump when you go front, then side, front, then side. Just stay strict the weight is not important its the affect your looking for. Good Luck!
Thank you Pat. Now I usually do my shoulders two days after my chest. How will this effect my routine? Do the front delts need more time to recover? I love doing shoulders. Oddly enough, my shoulder pain only happens during chest workouts. Shoulder day is problem free (for the most part). If I have to I'll put 3-4 days between chest & shoulder workout. What do u think?
I'd say you know your recovery time better than me. When I first started lifting again last year I would do a full body routine eod. Right now its 1-2 body parts/d working major once a week. Delts get a lot of assistance work on almost everything you do. Be careful though, once you blast those delts and see how big they get your gonna have to work harder on other parts to catch up! LOL ;-P
Lol, tell me about it. My shoulders , backhand arms are much more developed than my chest and legs. I'm working on it.
Almost the same for me, except the legs are coming along. I've never had a chest, I keep trying to make it grow though! LOL ;-P
I have the same problem just keep working dumbells ive been using them religiously for about 2 months and i see a huge diff in my chest which is by far my weakest bodypart. My front delts over power my chest big time using barbell i can put up decent weight just never get the isolation like dumbells give
This is what I've tried to stick with. It's frustrating to not be able to use a bench but until I figure it out, I need to play it safe. Thanks Carn.
Try bringing in your hands a little bit. Also, make sure you are bringing the bar down to the "nipple line"
Do not let your wrists bend back.
When you do push ups, do you feel it in your chest?
Thank you
keep your back arched, even when lying on it.
Excellant brother,we are singing from the same hymm sheet here,all about research if there is ANY real interest in improving yourself,everybody seens to be more interested in doing all the fancy shaping movements before they have built anything to shape in the first place.
All we can do is keep preaching bro and hope they listen or they are gonna be sick in a few years and look the same as when they started
My favorite is when some retard brags about how much he benches and doesnt go down to his chest with the bar same for squats just annoys me