The choice of personal equipment has a huge amount of imponderable subjective factors. I always tell people who ask me what “the best” wrap is, that there is […]
Lifting / Technique
How to overcome your fear of squatting
1. I understand you are frustrated and I am with you on your quest. It is ok to see the bar as a strange object and feel it […]
Lifting / training
How to improve your bench press – an algorithm
Why do you want to improve your benching? Because I’m a powerlifter (go to 2) Because I’m a competitive athlete from another sport (go to 7) Because I […]
Lifting / Technique
How to, and when to fix (and when not to fix) the bench press grip width
Originally published at the Elitefts website, authored by me A long time ago, when I was still experimenting with technique and using whatever I found useful in the […]
Lifting / Research
How do we know stuff is real?
Some people ask me what is the difference in “knowing” that the sticking point, overtraining or CNS (central nervous system) fatigue or overtraining is real. Let’s go simple […]
Lifting / Technique
How to Fix Your Bench Press: Programming Issues and Assistance Work
This is the third and last part of this series on how to fix your bench press. Let us start by repeating one of my half a dozen favorite sayings in powerlifting coaching: “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” This said, understand that this series is not about teaching the bench press or offering a new protocol; it is about solving a problem or several problems.
Lifting / Technique
How to Fix Your Bench Press: The Execution
Let us just review the concept of “fixing a lift.” We decided in How to Fix Your Bench Press: The Setup that fixing included having learned the lift and having issues that make it less than optimal. We also agreed that it could include a number of approaches, but that in this series we would restrict our focus to form or technique, which includes setup (part one), execution (part two) and programing and assistance work (part three).
Lifting / Technique
How to Fix Your Bench Press: The Setup
A lift is not exactly “a” movement. It is a complex of movements sometimes called a sport gesture or, for simplicity, a compound movement. A compound movement is just a movement that engages more than one joint. The bench press could be seen as an exercise with more than one compound movement, for example.
Lifting
Why do I read the “keep your hips down” recommendation all the time for any deadlift?
(originally published on Elitefts, authored by me) I received this question a few days ago. The answer is “I don’t know”. I don’t know because I don’t read “tips” […]
Equipment / Lifting
The Barbell: What It Is and How to Take Good Care of Yours
Read on and you’ll understand why those folks weren’t too friendly with you and how to help the gym community take care of this important equipment.