The Bent over rear fly is a simple movement and will help develop a strong upper back, balanced shoulders and keep those shoulder blade muscles moving well. It is a very simple movement to do and will help you develop good control of the scapula which is the foundation for any movement through the shoulder. If you struggle to keep position then use an incline bench to lie on until you become comfortable.
The Squat Jump is a great exercise for power development but this is the first one that I’d classify as intermediate to advanced. It is really only appropriate if you are training for sports or athletic performance as your primary outcome. More advanced athletes looking to develop power and particular how fast they can develop power will find the loaded squat jump a very useful tool. You must make sure that you have a strong squatting pattern and sounds jumping and landing mechanics before even considering loaded jumps like these as the forces start to multiple putting you at a higher risk if you are not in control.
The lunge pattern can be a tricky one to learn, it is essentially a single leg version of a squat so a lot of strength and control is required before you are able to do them unassisted. When you are ready, the reverse lunge is a great place to start. It sets you up square and encourages you to load the right muscles and keep good alignment throughout. There are many variations to how you can load it from using suspension straps to assist the movement all the way to loading weight through a barbell on your back.
The Snatch Deadlift is not only for Olympic Weightlifters, it can be utilised to challenge the back and legs more than a conventional deadlift allowing you to get stronger while lifting lighter loads. That said, if you struggle to get into a good position to deadlift with a normal grip then chances are you are not ready for the Snatch Deadlift. The wider hand position makes it more like a deficit deadlift in terms of positioning as you effectively shorten the arms having them out wide.
The box jump is a great introductory plyometric and power exercise. It is growing increasingly popular but is often done poorly or with inappropriate and excessive risk. Once you have mastered a bodyweight squat and can control your body through the full range you are able to progress to introductory plyometric like the box jump. The focus should be on controlling the landing before progressing to jumping onto higher boxes. The box jump forces the muscles of the lower body to work together rapidly to develop the force to get you flying into the air. This makes it great for power development, speed of movement and for intermuscular co-ordination (how well your muscles cooperate).
It is easy to cling onto certain ideas and let our biases shape what we do. This is particularly true when it comes to training for strength. We can end up on a very narrow and focused path and if we just take a step back to look at the bigger picture we might notice that we add or exclude certain things which aren’t necessary or even helpful for our original goals.
I’ll share 5 of the things that I see people with the goal of getting stronger clinging on to which are not necessary and sometimes even detrimental. The more you can dig down into the why of your goal - Why do you want to get stronger? Why have you chosen these particular lifts to define your strength? Then the easier it becomes to guide how you go about achieving that. Remember you are individual and you have your own motivations for doing what you do, you can set your own path and don’t have to get stuck to the ideas that others have had before you. Keep reading to find out 5 of the things you thought where non-negotiable when it comes to get stronger but you might actually be better off without. In this blog I’ll share 5 benefits of Olympic Weightlifting that are either unique or at least more apparent than for other forms of weight training or exercise. As usual, these benefits are multi-faceted and extend beyond simply physical benefits to psychological and social.
The aim of this is not to tell you that you should try or take up Olympic Weightlifting but merely to share the benefits and give you some insight so that you can make the decision yourself if it is right for you. Like any high-skill movement, Olympic Weightlifting should be performed with the expert guidance of a coach. In-person is always better but there is guidance, tutorials and advice available online which means if you aren’t able to find a local coach then there are still options to get involved. The Bench Press is probably the single exercise that most people who have set foot in a gym have performed. That said, it is often done poorly or without much thought. Read on to find out some key tips and to see if it is something that will benefit you. It doesn’t require a great deal of mobility or pre-requisite strength. If you can lift the bar in a controlled manner for the bench press then you are ready to get started.
The Bent Over Row is a major upper body pulling compound exercise. It’s easily performed with a barbell the muscles in the upper back like the lats and rhomboids as well as the biceps and forearms. As far as skill goes, this row is pretty simply to get to grips with. The toughest part generally for beginners is simply maintaining and holding the bent over position. When this is the limiting factor, I’d use simpler more supported variations of the row while working on the hip hinge position and strength through the hips and back. Requiring minimal equipment, the Bent Over Row is effective in building a strong back that will serve as your solid base for benching from, will help with developing the strength to bang out those chin-ups you have been working on and will generally strengthen those often neglected and dormant postural muscles of the back.
The Barbell Deadlift is undoubtedly one of the best all-round gym exercises however it gets a bad name as we all know someone who has hurt their back doing it! With a bit of know-how or guidance and some attention to detail you can master your technique and keep making safe, low risk strength gains. It gets your full body working in co-ordination to generate really high force outputs. It effectively trains the lower body, particularly the hamstrings and glutes. It gets your core working hard to keep tight and transfer the force you generate from the ground to the bar. You are normally able to use the most amount of weight so there is the potential to create a huge hormonal stimulus and accelerate the rest of your strength work.
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AuthorAllan Young is a Personal Trainer and coach educator in Glasgow who operates Strength Coach Glasgow and is a 4x Scottish Champion Olympic Weightlifter. Archives
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