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Q: Joe,
I've just recently discovered your website - LOOKS
GREAT!
I've been flicking through some of your past postings
and see that in several of the articles you prescribe
hamstring curls in a few workouts. In a lot of the
literature I've read, hamstring curls and leg extensions
have been reported as very unrelated (unfunctional
- I know you dislike that word) to sports performance.
Enlighten me as to your thoughts on both these exercises
and in what cases they can and should be used.
Thanks.
MICK
A: Mick,
Leg extensions are worthless. Leg curls, on the other hand, are a different story.
Leg extensions put shearing forces on your knee and they have no place in the “training economy” for athletes. There are just too many more productive exercises out there that work your quads. The “quad” exercises that I prefer are step-ups, single leg squats and lunges. As I’ve said time and time again, these exercises work your quads while simultaneously working your glutes, hamstrings, flexibility and your conditioning. That is what makes these exercises “functional”. You just don’t get the same benefit sitting in a chair and flexing and extending your knee.
Leg curls are beneficial because there are not a wide variety of exercises that work knee flexion. Getting strong in knee flexion exercises are important to prevent hamstring pulls. I focus on knee flexion exercises more during the off-season. This is because they have a tendency to make the athlete sore. As the season gets closer, I focus more of my attention on hip extension exercises. The most common knee flexion exercises that I use are glute-ham raises and leg curls.
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Q: Joe,
Our high school football team is doing Pilates for core strength. I don't see the “bang for the buck” as you say!! I would love to hear from you on this one.
Thanks,
Adam
A: Adam,
Your high school football team is going to get their
ass kicked if they don’t find their way back
to the gym! It’s not that Pilates is bad for
you; I just feel that there are too many other productive
things that football players should be doing in the
off-season. Pilates just doesn’t fit into the
plan. Unfortunately, it seems to be the new trend.
Tell your football team to leave the Pilates classes
to the unhappy housewives. Get your team squatting,
benching, deadlifting and sled dragging. These exercises
will make for a much less embarrassing season!
Joe D.
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Q: Joe,
Thanks for not being politically correct. I appreciate
the brutal honesty.
You've mentioned in articles that you read whatever
you could find on training when you were first starting.
What is on your list of "must read books"
for those interested in strength and conditioning
careers? What magazines do you subscribe to?
Continued success.
KC
A: KC,
Good question. If you want to be successful in this
profession, you must have a thirst for knowledge.
You should NEVER stop educating yourself. I still
read and learn something new every single day. Below
you will find my TOP10 list of books that have helped
me develop into the strength coach that I have become
today.
SUPERTRAINING by Yuri Verkhoshansky & Mel Siff
FITNESS and STRENGTH TRAINING for ALL SPORTS by J. Hartmann & H. Tunnemann
THE POLIQUIN PRINCIPLES by Charles Poliquin
SCIENCE AND PRACTICE OF STRENGTH TRAINING by Vladimir Zatsiorsky
THE CHARLIE FRANCIS TRAINING SYSTEM by Charlie Francis
DINOSAUR TRAINING by Brooks Kubik
SCIENCE OF SPORTS TRAINING by Thomas Kurz
MODERN TRENDS IN STRENGTH TRAINING by Charles Poliquin
OPTIMAL MUSCLE TRAINING by Ken Kinakin
ANATOMY TRAINS by Thomas Myers
Besides reading these books, make sure that you speak with as many reputable strength coaches as possible. You will get different views from each coach and then it is up to you to draw your own conclusions.
You should also read everything on
the following websites:
www.DeFrancosTraining.com
www.T-mag.com
www.EliteFTS.com
Best of luck.
Joe D.
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Q: Joe,
Great website! Just listened to your interview with
Chris Scarborough and gained a wealth of knowledge.
As a student majoring in exercise science and a former
college athlete I am constantly searching for useful
information in this field. I have been into serious
strength training for about 4 or 5 years. I have always
had trouble improving my bench press. I would like
to know if you have any good chest exercises that
would really isolate and work my chest?
A: First of all, there is a MAJOR difference between exercises that improve your bench press, as opposed to exercises that isolate your chest. You must decide what’s more important; do you want to bench press massive amounts of weight or do you just want a muscular chest? Obviously, it’s possible to have both; it’s just important to know that they are not the same thing.
Here’s a crash course in lifting biomechanics as it relates to the bench press. It’s not that one of these techniques is better than the other; it depends on your training goal.
Most bodybuilders advocate the “flaring elbows” version of bench-pressing because benching in this (horizontal) plane recruits the pectoralis major to a greater extent. (It’s important to know that joint position dictates muscular recruitment patterns.) So, if your sole purpose for bench-pressing is to put some muscle on your chest, this form is probably your best bet. I have found this version to place more stress on connective tissue and the Acromioclavicular joint (AC joint), though.
Powerlifters originally popularized the “elbows tucked” version of the bench press. This is how I teach all of my athletes to bench press as well. I coach them to lower the bar to just below their nipple line. The upper arms should be at a 45-degree angle in relation to the upper body in the bottom position. I then coach them to accelerate the weight upward in a straight line. Bench-pressing in this manner is less likely to tear connective tissue surrounding the shoulder joint. Benching in this (sagittal) plane recruits the triceps and latissimus dorsi to a greater extent, while the pectoralis major is less involved. It is also more specific to the pushing movements required in most sports – offensive lineman pass-blocking, hockey players checking , etc.
As you can see, your bench press form must vary depending on your specific goal. The exercises that you focus on will be different as well. If you just want a more muscular chest, I would focus on dumbell and cable fly movements, as well as barbell and dumbell bench-pressing movements in the horizontal plane.
For a more powerful bench press, my favorite exercises are rack lockouts, board presses, floor presses, weighted dips and thick bar bench-pressing with bands and chains. Also hit your lats and external rotators hard.
Good luck.
Joe D.
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Q: Coach
Joe,
I just listened to your audio interview with Chris
Scarborough and thought it was great…very informative.
You are definitely THE MAN when it comes to preparing
football players for the season. The thing I found
most interesting was how you manipulate the Westside
Barbell system for some of your younger high school
kids. You said that you substitute the dynamic day
with a repetition day. You are the first person that
I’ve ever heard of doing this. Can you elaborate
a little more on why you do this? It seems like it
makes sense, but I’d like your explanation.
I appreciate your hard work.
Charlie
A: Charlie,
Manipulating the “Westside Barbell System”
is something that I’ve been experimenting with
for many years now. This system has influenced many
of my views on training, but I don’t think it’s
perfect for “mainstream athletes”. This
is a topic that I will be writing about extensively
in the weeks and months to come. I think athletes
and coaches will find my research on this topic to
be VERY helpful. Stay tuned.
Now onto your question: It is true that we substitute dynamic effort days with repetition days with our less experienced high school athletes. One of my reasons for this is that I feel it is unsafe for a young athlete to try and move a weight explosively when they lack adequate size and strength. This would be the equivalent of coaches who teach athletes to power clean before they teach them how to deadlift. It’s absurd.
The repetition method is a great method for adding muscle mass to a young athlete’s frame. Controlled tempos are used and muscle mass is built in a safe and effective manner. (It’s important to know that a bigger muscle has a greater potential for becoming a stronger/more explosive muscle later on in life.) The repetition method compliments the max effort method we use during the other workout of the week. (For younger high school athletes we shoot for a 5-rep max, as opposed to a one-rep max.) The repetition method focuses on the muscular system, whereas the max effort method focuses on the nervous system. This is a great “one-two” punch for a high school kid who is looking to get bigger and stronger. This combination lays a great foundation for the dynamic days that will be implemented later on in their athletic careers.
Although this is a very in-depth topic, I hope this gives you some insight on how we “tweak” the system to better suit some of our younger athletes.
Look for more to come on this very interesting topic.
Joe D.
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We will list past questions here so that you can go back if you miss any advice Joe has given
