Fisticuffs - Georgetown

One of the most frequent corrections we make in the gym is, "Drawing" or pulling the Elbows back from the shoulder blades during rows instead of just thinking about pulling the weights up with your hands.

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The same goes for Lat pull-downs and pull-ups. By initiating with the back muscles and pulling Elbows back (or down, depending), upperbody pulling motions will go from giving You Elbow pain to actually helping shoulder and neck issues.

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No matter the type of row or pull-down, start light, squeeze the handle/bar tight with your pinky finger/fingers and, "draw" your Elbows back from your shoulder blades. You'll feel the exercise far more in your lats/upperback and you'll save yourself some elbow/shoulder wear and tear in the process.

5x5 Deadlifts. Old school. Not flashy. Good dumb strength workout. What's dumb strength? Any activity that involves picking things up and putting them down.

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Deadlifts get a bad bad rap because people often perform them with poor mechanics and too much weight. However, with good mechanics, bracing and a proper weight, Deadlifting in the gym will keep you less likely to hurt yourself with less weight outside of the gym. If you can deadlift 200lbs for 5x5, those stepping stones you have to move won't be as big of a deal.

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If you want to build your Deadlift (or any lift), start slow. Think 5 years instead of 5 months. A good way to manage how much weight you can lift is to use a double-overhand grip and no chalk. You won't be able to lift as much, but that's often a good thing. Training that way will also help to build your grip along with the rest of you.

Nice morning. Enough said.

On the go training is $30/month.
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4 strength workouts/ week (3 during our reload week).
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Conditioning/general movement templates included for non-lifting days.
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Mobility/stretching also included.
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[email protected]

Tempos can be great for teaching basic technique, but also trouble shooting. If you make yourself slow down in a tough lift like a front squat, any weaknesses will show. That illumination can be a great tool to figure out what weaknesses you may have so those areas can be attacked in later sessions.

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Just like the vehicle you drive needs to have diagnostics ran from time to time, that meat wagon you ride around in needs the same.

Glutes are often one of the toughest muscles for people to use effectively. Once we're able to get someone's glutes to fire, the 45 Degree Back Extension is one the best builders around.

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First, a prerequisite of the exercise is to understand how to stabilize your spine. Without that, your glutes will never effectively activate. If you want a healthy back, learn to stabilize your spine ("keep a flat back").

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Second, by pressing your heels into whatever platform you're standing on, you will learn to, "lift with your legs" by initiating the movement from your lower body/legs, instead of from your lower back.

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Lastly, though the exercise is generally called a, "45 Degree Back Extension," the glutes should be doing a massive amount of the work to, "pull" your upperbody back up. This teaches the important skill of hinging from your hips and not your lower back.

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Additionally, by changing foot positions (Toes pointed in, out and forward) the areas of the hamstrings/glutes affected can change significantly.

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Begin the above exercise with toes forward (2x8-12) and slowly build your capacity to 2x25, adding 3-5 reps/week, generally. You can certainly repeat a rep count for more than 1 workout. Once capacity is built, start experimenting with different Toe positions. You may find that certain foot positions challenge your body in a more significant way than others. Moving Toe positions is a great way to find/build weaknesses.