Why do box squats? By- Ian Soderqvist

There are many advantages to performing a box squat one being that it is the safest way to squat. The actual exercise places more of the load on the hamstrings and glutes taking stress off the knees. Second, using a box provides additional seconds to the stretch reflex at the bottom allowing a higher rate of force development. Lastly the box squat will aid building a bigger deadlift because of the actual pause translate to the concentric movement performed in the deadlift. So how do we perform a box squat? Executing a box squat is almost exactly like a regular squat.  In the preparation phase of the box squat the lifter must stand in with feet beyond shoulder width, hips tucked in, shoulder blades pinched together, hands gripped tight around the bar, and neck pressed back into the bar. Here the spine is in perfect alignment witnessing the only forces acting now is gravity. Next, the wind-up begins with the hips pushed backed simultaneously forcing the lumbar to arch creating contraction of the posterior chain (from hips to the upper back) sustaining tension and proper position of the torso. This movement of the squat is where many lifters don’t understand that the hips have to move back first then down not vice versa (Simmons). Pushing the hips back will develop more torque giving the ability to because of the horizontal displacement of the femur in respect to the imaginary center line in the preparatory phase.  If the hips were to drop first then the weight would shifted towards the balls of the feet placing tremendous amount of stress on the knees, deactivating the hamstrings and placing more emphasis on the quadriceps.  The lifter would lose all kinetic energy and failing before the lift ever begin. Moving on, a point needs to be made when you descend, the knees must be pushed out to the sides and in doing so would activate the hips but more importantly keeping proper alignment. If the knees were to turn inward the torque would rotating in an awkward direction increasing a huge risk of tearing ligaments stabilizing the knee. The back motion forces the glutes and hamstrings to fully stretch, using maximal force potential of the stretch shortening cycle. During the actual contact with the box, the sitting motion is more of a sitting back motion very much as if you were going to sit back into a chair, preserving constant tension on the hamstrings and glutes. It’s been a common mistake of one will plop on the box; this happening will cause a jarring effect on the spine potentially causing a loss of form and kinetic energy (Rippetoe, 2011). When the individual sits down on the box the knees will be beyond the perpendicular creating an obtuse angle of the shin and tibia. The actual execution phase begins with performing a leg curling action to pull oneself off the box. Continuing up the lifter needs to imagine that feet are spreading the floor which will maintain the knees to turning outward and posture.  Rising to the finish point the knees and hips must extend to their original starting position creating the imaginary straight line going through the top of the head and straight down the spine. The box squat is the safest and most effective tool that can be implemented allowing faster recovery from workout to workout to build a bigger squat.

References

Simmons, L. (n.d.). Box squating. Retrieved from http://www.westside-barbell.com/westside-articles/PDF.Files/04PDF/Box Squatting.pdf

Rippetoe, M. (2011). Starting strength. (3 ed.). Witchita, Texas: The Aasgaard Company

Author info- Ian Soderqvist, iansoderqvist_3@hotmail.com

Proper Deadlift Technique- by Ian Soderqvist

Since the beginning of powerlifting in its early forms the deadlift has been the trade mark as the true test of strength. Compared to the other two lifts, the deadlift begins with dead weight. There is no rebound or stretch reflex to aid in lifting the weight off the floor, just plain grip and rip and hopefully you break floor level…or is that all there is to it? Like the squat and bench press, it all depends on what leverages you have to work with. In the best of situations you’re blessed with having a short torso, long arms, and lower limps, giving you the greatest leverage. There are two styles to deadlift; the conventional and sumo style. The conventional way will primarily use the hamstrings and glutes in contrast to the sumo will place more emphasis on the lower back, inner thighs, and glutes. Either or is primarily based preference and success can be witnessed in one or both. Typically you will see the bigger lifters (because they have bigger bellies) will use the sumo style to be able to reach the bar. For the benefit of explaining the form and how the mechanics work I will go into detail using the conventional style. Many lifters are successful by using this style because it allows the feeling of driving the feet through the floor as one is actually “pressing” the Earth down, unlike the other school of thought “pulling” the weight up. The positioning starts with the feet and aligning the bar anywhere from the mid foot and back (Rippetoe, 2011). An imaginary line can be drawn from the bar straight up under the scapulae when in position. Have the scapulae directly over the bar will help close any horizontal displacement because if the bar were to start further away from the body would increase the difficulty of the lift and chance of injury will increase (American Psychological Assoc.). When lowering yourself to the bar you must not mimic a motion as if you were going to squat the bar up. You must lower yourself down enough to where you can grip the bar and literally pull your body down dropping the hips and stopping above parallel. Anymore lowering of the hips will bring them to far back and one can lose their balance at the beginning of the lift. The body is in position and next you must arch the lumbar just slightly so that you may pull in an optimal position with the spine almost in straight alignment. Before beginning the lift fill the abdomen full of air not the lungs. This will enhance your leverage in the lift by keeping the back short and not completely extended. Remember a short back is desirable not a long back. After the inhale of air you perform the Valsalva maneuver to keep the air trapped during the entire pull. Last but not least we contract every muscle so that our body may be like compressed spring ready to explode and extend. An important note must be taken, the lats are especially contrasting not to keep the scapulae in place but to protect them from over adduction when pulling the bar. Beginning the lift you must push the feet through the floor and continue to follow through until the bar has reached the hips. Then hips must be extended forward optimizing the glutes full potential.  When the hips are fully extended the lift has finished, return the bar with a slow and controlled descent to avoid injury. That is the whole deadlift and it takes time to develop a strong one but using the right mechanics and leverages will help lift heavier weight with ease.

References

Hancock, S., Wyatt, F., & Kilgore, L. (2012). Variation in Barbell Position Relative to Shoulder and Foot Anatomical Landmarks Alters Movement Efficiency. International Journal Of Exercise Science, 5(3), 183-195.

Rippetoe, M. (2011). Starting strength. (3 ed.). Witchita, Texas: The Aasgaard Company.

Author info- Ian Soderqvist, iansoderqvist_3@hotmail.com

The Bench Press- by Ian Soderqvist

The number one exercise seen in every commercial gym no matter where you are is the bench press. It’s always the question among the gym rats “how much you bench?” Really and truly if you took a good look around it is rare to see someone perform the bench press correctly. Most will spend the good part of their years trying to lift as much as they can and yet never achieve their true potential. The bench press is the most complicated and most difficult lift to master because it consists of the most conscious coordination. Too really to start to understand we must begin with the initial setup prior to unracking the bar. Laying down on the bench the lifter must decompress the shoulders and retract the scapulae as much as possible. This is referred to as “tucking in the shoulders” because this will create a more stable base and can transfer all the weight from the shoulders to the lats and as it is done the lats will be flexed throughout the entire lift.  In this position the lats can bear the weight much better than our shoulder joints and if not done so shoulders problems will be develop and sometimes more severe injuries take place over a long period of time. Next the person must arch the back as high as possible without putting stress on the lumbar area and be detrimental to the entire lift. Furthermore enough space should exist between the lower back and bench where someone could be able to place their arm straight through. Now in following foot position is a personal choice but yet must be explored to discover where one benefits the most power from the leg drive and yes your legs do help you bench press. Let me explain this in further detail later. Now foot position can seen placed under the bench with only the balls of the feet touch the ground or feet spread out and away having the whole foot in contact pressing the floor out and away from you. For the sake of this piece we will have the feet placed out and away (my personal choice). The set up is prepped and now we’re ready to take the weight into our hands. Right before the weight is unracked the lifter is must contract every muscle in the body providing a stable foundation, especially the lats so that they can sustain the arch in the bench by pulling the lower back to the shoulders (Rippetoe, 2011). Now with your wrist straight you must grip the bar as tight as possible as if your life depended on it and exaggerate as if you’re ripping the bar in two. This action not only ignites the triceps much more but will keep the kinetic chain straight delivering all the energy vertically traveling the shortest distance (Simmons).Uunlike having bent wrist will break the energy and undermined your maximal potential output. The weight is unracked and guided to the precise position where it will travel down and touch under the imaginary line drawn across the nipples or just at the bottom edge of the chest and top portion of the abdomen. Here the bar is above you and now we must start simultaneously descending while inhaling as much air into your chest as possible. By inhaling, the chest will rise ever so slightly but it will decrease the distance the bar has to travel before it touches the chest. The bar finally reaches the chest and must be reversed immediately before all stretch reflex is lost. Here is where the leg drive comes into play, by driving your feet in the ground and away, the force will be transferred through the legs, aver the arch, and into the bench where itself is directed vertically through arms. The drive should be so powerful that the bar should explode off your chest and aid the triceps to finish the lift to the lock out. Finally the bar is racked and that is how to perform the bench press correctly. 

References

Simmons, L. (n.d.). Box squating. Retrieved from http://www.westside-barbell.com/westside-articles/PDF.Files/03PDF/How to Bench Press 500 Easy.pdf

Rippetoe, M. (2011). Starting strength. (3 ed.). Witchita, Texas: The Aasgaard Company

Author contact: iansoderqvist_3@hotmail.com