Online-educated lifters overutilize bracing.

The demands of a heavy deadlift are different than a high rep deadlift. If you brace every rep on a set of 12, it’s going to take you a minute and a half to finish the set. Plus, you’re spiking your blood pressure more than you need to.

A way to think about it: use as much as you need. Don’t lift 45lbs like it’s 405lbs.

Here are a few videos where I talk through more of the differences.

Humans are complex, and movement can be complicated. Why does your client always bend over when they do squats? Why do they do that weird thing with their back on some days? How can they understand it more simply?

Fixing movement is simple: make the wrong stuff look right.

Okay, smart guy, but how do I know what is wrong?

THAT’S the hard part.

Fixing movement is simple for me now that I’ve coached for roughly a decade. But that’s only because I’ve meticulously dissected thousands of reps. Now I can identify what I like and what I don’t like.

• That squat looks like a deadlift. I don’t like it for this person.
• That push up looks like they’re doing The Worm. I don’t like it.
• That deadlift looks like it hurts. I don’t like it at all.

Deciding what you DON’T like is easy… but only once you know what you DO like.

For example, there might be three dozen different squat faults you could identify…

1. Forward shift
2. Right shift
3. Right-forward shift
4. Left shift
5. Left-forward shift
6. Backward shift
7. Right-backward shift
8. Left-backward shift
9. Knee collapse
10. Knee splay
11. Foot collapse
12. Arching back at the top
13. Never neutralizing back position
14. Arching back at the bottom
15. Rounding back at the bottom
16. Collapsing chest at the bottom
17. Looking too far down
18. Not setting eye gaze
19. Wearing poor shoes for squatting
20. Limited ankle mobility
21. Squatting too deep
22. Squatting too shallow
23. Shifting forward only at the bottom
24. Shifting backward only at the top
25. Shifting forward only at the top
26. Spinning everything on the way up
27. Squatting with the bar too low
28. Collapsing one foot but not the other
29. Collapsing one knee but not the other
30. Not finishing with glutes
31. Not driving out of the bottom with the legs
32. Losing ab tension on the way up
33. Losing upper back tension on the way up
34. Looking too far up
35. Thinking about too many things
36. Being weak out of the bottom

That took me about 6 minutes to list. But how long did it take to build that database of squatting mistakes?

It takes a long time.

And that’s necessary. Experience begets competence. That’s how you can become a master of your craft.

But there is a quicker way. It’s not easy, but it is quicker.

You want to understand what “normal” looks like.

Think about how much simpler it is to simply say, “That doesn’t look right. If I do _________________, then it might look right.”

That’s it. It’s not, “You’re losing your upper back at the bottom of the lift. I want you to keep your upper back tight. Oh that didn’t work. Well… think about squeezing your shoulders together while you squat. Squeeze harder! Yes yes yes! Eh, no. That’s no better.”

Hey! Some of that is just coaching. It’s an art. You play with cues you like and sometimes they don’t work.

But let’s say you have a group of twenty people. Can you cue them?

Some would say no, but I think you can. I’ve done it. But your cues have to be dialed in. So does your exercise selection, but that’s a talk for another day.

But now the burning question: how in the world do you find out what “normal” looks like?

THAT’S the hard part.

And that’s also why I put together this mentorship.

I think I can teach you most of what you need to know is roughly 24 hours of hard work. NOT 24 hours of daytime, but 24 hours of focused, deliberate practice. 24 hours of nose to the grindstone. 24 hours of well slept, highly caffeinated attention.

At least, I think we can do that if you’re a somewhat experienced coach. You have some coaching reps under your belt. You’re already familiar with the process of seeing movement and giving cues. You probably just need some re-focusing. And more coaching reps never hurt either.

How does it work?

I think most people get into the fitness industry because they learn well by doing. We have to get our hands dirty. We have to coach each other. We have to look at movement in a new light. And we have to have reasons for the cues we give.

You can say, “Chest up!” But if the problem is in the hamstrings, that cue probably isn’t going to work.

So we work together to identify “normal”. Then we can use our instincts, harness our creativity, and come up with cues that work for us.

First, we become scientists. Then, we become artists.

Will you join us?

Sleep

Chair Dip Debauchery

So I asked people to like the Indianapolis Fitness and Sports Training page in exchange for 5 office chair dips per like. It was much more difficult than expected.

#VIDSORITDIDNTHAPPEN can be found below.
Part I- http://youtu.be/LiLw9AP2Q0M
Part II- http://youtu.be/-l2_LcClTGE

Zac Cupples at the Hruska Clinic, Part 2

Very excited to read Zac’s chronicles at the Hruska Clinic. THE PUBLIC WANTS MORE.

Variability and Having Options

One of our interns Brandon Brown wrote a post about system variability. Very worth the short read, especially for the comparison between different athletes’ needs.

Don’t Let Your Squat Suck

Lastly, I published this monster earlier in the week. This is my most shared post to date, and it’s only been up since Tuesday! If you haven’t read it, be sure to check it out.

Oh, and my state finally said gays can get married.

That’s it for now! Bob Ross and I wish everybody a happy weekend! Don’t forget to wash your brush.