The New Rules of Lifting For Life by Lou Schuler & Alwyn Cosgrove

Author:Lou Schuler & Alwyn Cosgrove [Schuler, Lou]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781101580677
Publisher: Penguin Group US
Published: 2012-04-26T04:00:00+00:00

The basic bench press is also a problem for lifters with a naturally narrow torso and long arms. Lowering a weight to your chest means your upper arms sink below your torso, potentially straining the biceps tendon. That tendon crosses your shoulder joint between the upper-arm bone and a bony structure called the acromion, the part of the shoulder blade that connects with the outside edge of your collarbone. It’s also where a couple of rotator-cuff tendons converge, and it’s all topped by a protective pad, called a bursa. The biceps tendon, stuck on the bottom of that dog pile between two bones, takes a hit when you overuse or misuse the biceps or the muscles surrounding it. That produces inflammation, and any swelling in that tiny space will produce pain.

Now that we’ve covered the things that hurt, let’s talk about the exercises you’ll actually do in this chapter. Or, rather, let’s talk about the exercise you’ll do. It’s singular for a reason. The push-up and its many variations cover levels 1, 2, and 3.

I know what many readers are thinking: “Push-ups? Me? I want to lift weights!” Men reading this tend to assume the push-up is too easy. Women often assume it’s too hard. Neither is true; this chapter includes both entry-level push-up variations and some that will humble advanced lifters.

Because you do so many push-up variations throughout Alwyn’s program, it’s really hard not to use lifts for variety, if nothing else. That’s why Alwyn includes dumbbell bench presses (Level 4) and shoulder presses (Level 5), as well as the barbell bench press (Beyond Level 5), an exercise I can’t even do anymore. As you’ll see in Chapter 17, even beginners probably will need to do bench presses in Phase One. So you may wonder why Alwyn puts the “advanced” label on exercises that beginners have been doing since the dawn of the commercial fitness industry, and will most likely use throughout this program.

It’s not that he hates chest and shoulder presses (although he doesn’t think beginners have the strength and stability to do the latter with solid form). He just really likes push-ups. “It’s such a superior exercise for metabolic purposes, time management, core stability, and shoulder health,” he told me. That said, most male lifters, and some women, will get beyond the point at which they can increase strength and muscle size with push-ups alone. Alwyn and his trainers can load their clients up with weighted vests and chains, but you probably don’t have access to either. Thus, bench presses are an important part of Alwyn’s program for all lifters, even if push-ups are the more important and valuable exercise.

Here’s how you decide which push-up level to start with:

Get down on the floor in the push-up position. Lower yourself to within an inch of the floor or until your upper arms are even with your shoulder blades, whichever happens first. (This protects the shoulders of those with longer arms and narrow frames, while allowing those with shorter arms or thicker frames to use a full range of motion.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.