I came across this article by Charles Poliquin and thought it was a pretty interesting concept. I have always been a big believer in Metabolic Typing, so if you are a protein type or mixed type, check this article out!
The Meat and Nut Breakfast by Charles Poliquin
If you are like me, you train alone. No distractions; no one bothering you; just you, in your world. If this is you, check out this article by Corey Sias for some great tips on how to stay motivated and break PR's.
The Seven Components of Getting Stronger While Training by Yourself by Corey Sias
Let me ask you a question: What is the main difference between a dumbbell fly on a flat bench and a dumbbell press on a flat bench?
Now, there are a multitude of directions you could go with your answer, so for some semblance of direction we will say this question is to be looked at from the perspective of the joints involved in creating the respective motions.
Okay, that doesn't exactly narrow it down, either, because it could be correctly argued that every joint in the body is involved in both motions, but some joints have motion occurring at the joint while at other joints there isn't any motion occurring. SO, for sake of this post, I will once again narrow down the focus of my original question to say, "What is the main difference between a dumbbell fly on a flat bench and a dumbbell press on a flat bench from the prospective of the joints involved, with limiting the discussion to joints where there is motion at said joint?"
Longer than I had originally intended, but alas, hopefully my idea has been conveyed appropriately. So how would you answer this?
At first glance, almost everybody is going to cite the difference in elbow flexion and extension between the motions, and I would agree that is the main difference. Now, what would you say the second biggest difference is?
Here's the reason I bring this up: When looking at movements, don't just take into consideration the muscles that are allegedly working during said movement; look at the stress placed on the joints, as well. When you perform a flye on a flat bench, there is a tremendous about of stress placed on the gleno-humeral (GH) joint of the shoulder. The reason for the increased stress on this joint is because the moment arm of the applied force is significantly longer when the humerus is at 90 degrees of abduction and the elbow is in a position of 0 degrees of flexion (as is the case during a flye on a flat bench) than when the humerus is horizontally abducted and the elbow is flexed at approximately 90 degrees (as is the case during a dumbbell press on a flat bench).**
**Side note: An appropriate precursor to this post probably would have been along the lines of defining a moment arm and defining what abduction is in relation to the humerus. If you are confused, Google it, or drop a comment below and I'll make sure to post on these subjects in the future.
So, how much greater is the stress on the GH in this position? Well, this is going to vary completely on the individual. BUT, for the sake of this post, let's say the three divisions of pec major attach 1" away from the axis (the GH, in this case). We'll say the person's humerus is 10" long (the distance between GH and elbow) and the distance between the elbow and where the weight (length of radius and ulna plus some--RU+) is in their hand is 10". That means that at a position of 90 degrees of humeral abduction and 0 degrees of elbow flexion (flye) the length of that lever is 20", whereas at a position of 90 degrees of humeral abduction and 90 degrees elbow flexion (press) the length of that level is 10". There is also a component of external rotation, among other things, in both of these scenarios.
Let me stop here and say that this is an INCREDIBLY simplified model, with many, many assumptions, not the least of which is that the person in question can both achieve enough elbow extension to allow for a full ten inches of distance between the weight in their hand and the elbow joint as well as actually be in this much elbow extension at the bottom of their flye rep. Also, I would like to say that for this example we will not be taking into consideration the stress upon the joint at all of the infinite number of positions throughout the flye and press motions, nor will we be considering what is actually happening during the motions. I will simply (or not) be explaining the scenario from the two positions described--90 degrees of humeral abduction with 1) 0 degrees of elbow flexion and 2) 90 degrees of elbow flexion.
Okay, back to the numbers. First, let's look at the press.
At a position of 90 degrees of humeral abduction and 90 degrees of elbow flexion, there is a moment of resistance that is 10" long. The moment of effort is, as stated before, 1". Assuming the person is holding a 5-pound dumbbell, the fibers that horizontally adduct the humerus will have to generate 50 inch-pounds of force to horizontally adduct the humerus from that position. The 45-pound difference between the weight that is being held and the force that has to be generated to move it is what is placed on the GH.
Now, looking at the flye.
At a position of 90 degrees of humeral abduction and 0 degrees of elbow flexion, there is a moment of resistance that is 20" long. We still have the same 1" moment of effort and are using the same 5-pound dumbbell, BUT there will have to be 100 inch-pounds of force generated to horizontally adduct the humerus from this position. This will result in an excess of 95 pounds of force being placed upon the GH, over twice as much as with the press.
One could argue that you use less weight with a flye than with a press, so that might make the stress on the GH equal. True, but once we talk about actually moving the weight there are too many other variables to take into consideration because now we are talking about a moving resistance instead of a static resistance so inertia and other variables will come into play.
What is my point of writing this? It is not to say flyes are bad, or even that presses are superior or something along those lines. Quite frankly, the hierarchy of good and bad regarding different exercises is 100% based on the limitations of the individual performing them and his or her goals, so I could not logically talk about this in a blog post. My reason for writing this is to get you to think in a different light about the movements you are performing and the toll that they may or may not be taking on your body.
If we all can begin to take a more educated approach to our training, one in which we actually understand what we are doing, we can begin to truly manipulate these variables to our advantage to create positive adaptations in a safe and effective manner instead of randomly flinging our bodies and weights in different directions and assuming the intended outcome will be the actual outcome.
Also, I am by no means an expert on the terminology I used in this post today, and this way of viewing movement is very new to my thought process. If you are and notice I have messed something up in my verbiage or explanation, please let me know via the comment section or e-mail at charlie@selfmadefitness.com. Many thanks!
Like, Tweet, drop a comment below, or share the knowledge!
Charlie Cates, CSCS
Self Made®, Owner and Founder
Charlie Cates is a strength and conditioning specialist and the owner and founder of Self Made® (http://selfmadefitness.com/) in Chicago, IL. He has worked with competitive and everyday athletes of all ages and ability levels, from 9-year-old kids to NFL MVP’s. He can be reached via e-mail at charlie@selfmadefitness.com.
This article may be reproduced with biographical information intact.
For "a collection of various awesome pointers, by various awesome people" check out this article by Matt Brown.
The Top 7 Musts For Success by Matt Brown, et al.
Wanting to know the difference between a box squat and a squat to box? Check out this post by Tony Gentilcore.
Box Squat vs. Squat TO Box by Tony Gentilcore
Is your waist wider than your shoulders? Are you a little soft around the edges, and always have been? Check out this article by Anthony Mychal to turn your physique around.
11 Training Tips for the Skinny Fat Ectomorph by Anthony Mychal
Over the past year I have posted a lot of articles containing cues to keep in mind while you deadlift--"pack the neck", "put your shoulder blades in your back pocket", "bar at or against the shins for the set-up". One cue I haven't written or posted about, though, is that of firing the glutes. While this may seem obvious to an advanced lifter, the more mediocre lifters tend to miss this point. And it isn't just firing the glutes in general that is important, but timing it out for when the bar is at the base of your patellas.
I could, and should, dedicate an entire post to deadlifting technique, but something to point out for this article is that a deadlift, when pulling conventional style, is not the same mechanically as a squat. The hips start higher and the chest lower, causing greater hip flexion and allowing for greater potential cross-bridging of the hip extensors: the three divisions of glute max, adductor magnus vertical fibers, semimembranosus, semitendinosus, and biceps femoris long head as the major players. What this means is, because you are starting in a position of greater hip flexion than knee flexion, there is a greater potential to generate force by the hip extensors than the knee extensors based on their current cross-bridging potential. The longer a muscle fiber is, the greater potential is has to cross-bridge and generate force.
A side-angle view would be more appropriate to illustrate my point, but hopefully you can tell what I'm talking about as far as relative hip and knee flexion are concerned from this photo.
Okay, so it is clear that hip extension is going to play a pretty huge role in somebody's ability to deadlift both safely and effectively based on the mechanics of the lift. As the bar is first traveling up there will be a fair amount of knee extension to accompany the hip extension. Once the bar gets to your patellas, though, you should be getting closer to maxing out knee extension while still having a good amount of hip extension to perform. This is where the cue comes in.
Once the bar gets to the bottom of your patellas, concentrate on squeezing your glutes as hard as you can and firing your hips through into extension. The first time I tried this, I noticed two things: First, I thought I had fired through too late in the lift, meaning I thought I was already near-lockout by the time I fired my glutes. The reason was, the bar traveled up so fast over the last third or so of the lift that I thought there was no way the bar could have traveled that distance in that short of time. The second thing I noticed was that the bar felt virtually weightless as soon as I cued myself to fire through. It was a pretty crazy experience, to be honest.
So if you are looking for a new cue or technical change to help you pull more, make sure you are firing your glutes as the bar hits your patellas.
Comment, Like, Tweet, and Share the Knowledge below!!
Charlie Cates, CSCS
Self Made®, Owner and Founder
Charlie Cates is a strength and conditioning specialist and the owner and founder of Self Made® (http://selfmadefitness.com/) in Chicago, IL. He has worked with competitive and everyday athletes of all ages and ability levels, from 9-year-old kids to NFL MVP’s. He can be reached via e-mail at charlie@selfmadefitness.com.
This article may be reproduced with biographical information intact.
If you do not own a monolift or squat with one, the set up of the bands for this lift is of the utmost importance to ensure your safety and an effective lift. Check out this article by Tom Lowder for information on how to do so properly.
Squatting with Bands by Tom Lowder
A very, very solid article by Ben Bruno on possible problems that may arise while front squatting. I highly recommend you check this out if you are planning on incorporating this exercise into your training routine.
Troubleshooting the Front Squat by Ben Bruno
I'm not going to lie, Martin Rooney's latest article was a lot more powerful (no pun intended) than I thought it would be. It is DEFINITELY worth your time to read.
The Power Of A Pushup by Martin Rooney
As those of you who follow my Twitter account or are a fan of the Self Made® Facebook page know, two weeks ago was my testing week for all of my lifts. The week started with squat on Monday, then progressed to military press and push press, deadlift, hang clean, and bench press as the week progressed. By the time Friday came around I was pretty gassed, but still wanted to hit above 300 for bench.
As I went through my priming sets, I felt like I was in a great groove and was prepared to move some nice weight. When it came time to put 295 on the bar, I decided I should have a spotter. I was testing at a time in the day when the gym was pretty bare and the few other trainers that were there were working with clients. There was a bigger guy, though, who I had seen at the gym almost every day. I hadn't talked to him much, but he was looking to be like my only option for a spotter.
I asked and he kindly agreed to spot me, but I should have known from the moment he asked what a lift-off was that it was a mistake to have him back there. The bar got unracked, I brought it down to my chest, and then popped it up. As soon as the bar speed slowed down, though, this man grabbed the bar with both hands and pulled it into the j-hooks.
I immediately sat up, stunned and in disbelief of what had just happened. Not only had this man robbed me of my time, energy, and a clean lift, but I wasn't sure if I could hit that weight again, let alone go up in weight now that there was CLEARLY no one to spot me.
Fuming, I thanked him for his time and sent him on his way. I proceeded to sit on that bench, music blaring, head raging, adrenaline pumping for about the next five minutes. Finally, I decided I was not ending on that note. I got up, put ten more pounds on the bar, and got ready to lift it. No spotter.
I unracked the bar, brought it down to my chest, and started to push it up. I felt the bar slow down, and I closed my eyes. In my head I was going through all of my cues--"Drive your back to the ground!", "Rip your hands apart!", "Squeeze that bar!!!"--and I felt the bar start to move a little more. I had no help, no spotter, no safety net, and I had NO choice but to get that bar up.
We all have built-in safety nets in our lives--things that make us feel more comfortable and confident in what we are doing. Some may even allow us to do what we do. But what if these feelings of comfort are actually holding us back from accomplishing what we really want to accomplish; from allowing us to achieve greatness? I would be lying if I said there hasn't been a time when I haven't pushed quite as hard on a lift as I could have because I knew I had a spotter, or a time when I relied on a spotter a little too much to help me through a sticking point. Are the safety nets in your life preventing you from giving your all?
I hit that lift, 305 on bench, which is the most I have hit on bench since last February. No spotter, no help. Just me and everything I had to give.
Charlie Cates, CSCS
Self Made®, Owner
Charlie Cates is a strength and conditioning specialist and the owner of Self Made® (http://selfmadefitness.com/) in Chicago, IL. He has worked with competitive and everyday athletes of all ages and ability levels, from 9-year-old kids to NFL MVP’s. He can be reached via e-mail at charlie@selfmadefitness.com.
This article may be reproduced with biographical information intact.
**Note: Lifting without a spotter is something I would never recommend to another. Please use spotters and other common safety techniques whenever you train.
Interested in diving a little deeper into how bands and chains work? Check out this article by Rob Haan for more information.
The Science Behind Bands and Chains by Rob Haan
