NEW ARTICLE - WEAK: Five Lifting Problems Solved!

[Joe Black]

In the end, we’re all lifting for a specific goal, right? Whether it’s to look better, feel better, or be stronger than your ex-girlfriend’s new boyfriend so you can kick his ass, we all have a goal we’re trying to achieve.

When it comes to your training, the smarter you train, the faster you’ll reach your desired results.

So, let’s get into some common mistakes trainees make, how to correct weaknesses you may have developed, or how you’re going to prevent them from happening if you’re not dealing with them now!

READ HERE - WEAK: Five Lifting Problems Solved!

[camelCaseSucks]

Great article, as usual. Videos don't seem to work.

"This is a private video. If you have been sent this video, please make sure you accept the sender's friend request."

[Joe Black]

I always screw that up goddamnit - fixed!

[Ryumexicano]

Many people don't realize the huge help from stretching before any heavy lifting. I will never bench press without the proper warm up and stretches! Thanks WBB. This article was just awesome! Thank God I got all my back exercises down with great form. Even if you lift moderate weight with very good form, you will be punished better than if you want to "show off" and lift very heavy. It's not about the "plates", it's about the form guys!! It took me two years to understand all of this, but I now get it and I don't plan to waste my time at the gym trying to lift tons of weight. If you train your back, for example, make sure you hit it really good with strict form and moderate weight, than lifting with huge weight and using all your body!! Then you ask yourself the next morning, sh...itt, I did back but my neck, arms, legs, hip, lowerback, shoulders, traps, and everything else you can name is hurting!!! WTF!!!


This article was tremendous!!!

[Joe Black]

I hear ya - unfortunately these types of articles are never quite as popular as the hypertrophy/routine type articles but they are so, so useful.

The worst thing is that you only start to research this stuff WHEN you have a problem, whereas if more people took notice of stuff like this they would probably breeze through things in their 30's and 40's without much trouble.

[Behemoth]

Awesome article. Awesome vids. Definetly smart to evaluate ourselves and our egos.

Mikes a big dude too...

[mchicia1]

Many people don't realize the huge help from stretching before any heavy lifting. I will never bench press without the proper warm up and stretches! Thanks WBB. This article was just awesome! Thank God I got all my back exercises down with great form. Even if you lift moderate weight with very good form, you will be punished better than if you want to "show off" and lift very heavy. It's not about the "plates", it's about the form guys!! It took me two years to understand all of this, but I now get it and I don't plan to waste my time at the gym trying to lift tons of weight. If you train your back, for example, make sure you hit it really good with strict form and moderate weight, than lifting with huge weight and using all your body!! Then you ask yourself the next morning, sh...itt, I did back but my neck, arms, legs, hip, lowerback, shoulders, traps, and everything else you can name is hurting!!! WTF!!!


This article was tremendous!!!

A lot of people out there against static stretching...

I am like you though...I cannot even touch a weight unless I do the bike, foam roll, and then stretch my hamstrings and hips. I have the worst squat workouts if I do not static stretch before hand.

[ThomasG]

Great article.

[Runty]

Good article. Definitely a lot of mistakes in there that I used to make frequently and can tell when I slip up and make them now. Properly warming/loosening up can make or break a workout.

One thing that confused me though was part of the range of motion during the first tip, second bullet point.

"Always lift with a complete range of motion relative to your body’s ability. If you’re squatting and your hips don’t allow you to move “ass to grass” without rounding your lower back, then you’re well beyond your proper range of motion. Start the squat higher and gradually reduce the distance you travel. When pressing and pulling, always maximize the range of motion. You’ll recruit more overall muscles, even though you may have to significantly reduce your weight."

Shouldn't that say gradually increase the distance you travel as you increase range of motion? Unless I'm reading it wrong, it seems like it counters the other points being made in the same paragraph. Can somebody please help to clarify?

[Mike Scialabba]

Runty - That is absolutely what it 'should' say, good catch, my mistake!

I'm glad you guys liked the article. It is unfortunate that we don't see more weight lifters spending adequate time prepping their bodies for the training sessions. The problems that would be prevented are unreal, along with the tremendous increase in performance. Too many of us choose to learn the hard way, or to never learn at all.

[Joe Black]

Runty, thanks for catch - its now fixed.

Mike, good to see you on here buddy - I am gonna call you this week I have some ideas to run by you on the content front!

[Mike Scialabba]

Sounds great Daniel! Call anytime, I'd love to chat!

[Behemoth]

I woke up with some back pain shooting into my right glute this morning. Decided what the hell and pulled up this article. I ran through the first three videos... First off I was suprised by how challenged I was by these. Upon finishing my pain feels 90% relieved. Which is awesome. Hope this stay away as I continue these exercises. Thanks Mike.

[RichMcGuire]

"Consistently reducing the range of motion of a specific movement pattern over and over again for a course of several weeks, months, or years can have a devastating effect on the length of the muscle(s), and the way that the muscle functions and repairs itself.

Over time, these muscles may become shortened while opposing muscles become overly elongated or atrophied. Obviously, this results in poor stability across the board and makes an individual much more prone to injury."

I'm a bit interested in this. Are there any journals that show this happening or any scientific reasons? I know there was a study on rats with resistance training and their resting muscle length showed no difference from rats without resistance training. (They climbed a ladder with weights attached to their tail, so it wasn't exactly a full range of motion type of deal..but either way)

I enjoyed the article. Lot of good info for people.