Tip of the Month -- April 2007

Technique over Reps

Why is it so important?

By Ryan Donahue

More common than not individuals will deviate from proper form to achieve an extra repetition. What these individuals do not understand, is how that extra rep will affect them in the future. Ignoring the proper technique can lead to numerous injures and developing bad habits. Four common barbell exercises that individuals tend to experience a “break” in form are the bench press, back squat, dead lift, and seated military press. Here are some common mistakes to try to avoid.

Bench Press

Common mistakes:

Lifting your glutes off the bench: Too frequently, individuals arch their back as a technique to push the weight or when fatigued to utilize other motor units. Some individuals proceed even further to lift their glutes off the bench to gain more of an advantage during fatigue.

Moving the feet:  Shuffling your feet and trying to find more motor units to stimulate during this exercise will break the 5 points of contact, reducing the total amount of power generated.

Bouncing the bar of your chest: One of the most common mistakes, this can cause severe injuries to the sternum depending on the load.

Placing feet on the bench: Engaging in this technique is widely thought to improve stabilization. The truth is it flattens the normal curvature of the spine, causing shearing forces.

“Sitting on your scaps”: A common “cheat technique” employed by many combine preparation specialists. It involves pinching your shoulder blades together, which raises your chest increasing your mechanical efficiency in raising and lowering the bar.

Back Squat

Common mistakes:

Heels come off the ground: Athletes are great compensators and will tend to drive through their toes, raising their heels off the platform.

Rounded back: Results from individuals not keeping their chest up and back tight. This can lead to many lower back injuries.

Taking hands off the bar: Never take your hands off the bar to push off your leg or any outside apparatus. Relinquishing your grip can cause the bar to roll off and injure yourself as well as the spotter.

Knees over toes: Allowing the knees to move forward of the toes induces shearing forces and increases the risk of knee injury.

Good morning squat: Results from the hips moving first during the ascent part of the lift. This places more strain on the lower back, requiring it to lift the heavy load, leading to injury.

Thighs parallel with the ground: Most common of back squat mistakes. Individuals thighs’ tend to not reach a parallel level with the ground. This can be a result of any of the aforementioned back squat mistakes. Ignorance of such a technique can result in bad habits as well as a lack of flexibility at the hip.

Deadlift

Common mistakes:

Rounded back: Most common deadlift mistake. Can result from individuals not keeping their chest up and back tight. This can lead to many lower back injuries.

Knees before hips: Similar to the “good morning squat.” The deadlift should be one fluid motion with the knees and hips extending as one, not one before the other.

Bar too far away from body: This can increase the stress on the erector spinae. Proper technique would elicit the bar staying close to the legs during the entire lift.

Seated Military Press

Common mistakes:

Arching back: Such a technique can change the angle of the exercise to the extent where it could be classified as an Incline Bench Press, which leads to activation of the pectoralis major and decreased reliance of the anterior deltoid. This can also lead to lower back pain.

Moving the head: Turning your head to look in different directions while performing this exercise can lead to pulling a muscle in the neck, such as the sternocleidomastoid and the upper portion of the trapezius.

Moving the feet: Shuffling your feet during this exercise will break the 5 points of contact, reducing the total amount of power generated. This in turn will shift the balance of power to the lower back, leading to injury.

References

1993: ROUNDTABLE: Common Technique Errors in the Back Squat. National Strength & Conditioning Association Journal: Vol. 15, No. 3, pp. 20–27.

Baechle, Thomas R., Roger W. Earle. Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning. 2000.

Kraemer, William J. Personal Interview. 20 March 2007

Wilson, Andrew. Personal Interview. 20 October 2006