I just had a moment (read brain dump) on my Indigo Kinetics page in regards to the linked article and I think its an important moment, so Im copying it for more to see... Full disclosure, this is a blog post masked as an article link and articles that basically say NEVER DO X, Y, Z sort of set me off, because theyre not getting to the root of the problem, which typically is not the exercise itself, but how the exercise is being applied and performed. Some of these exercises like the lat pull down behind the head are admittedly not very smart. However, I think the bigger offender with some of these moves is more improper application. For instance, the crunch is really not all that different from a pilates ab prep or a roll-up. The problem is that people do them repeatedly and quickly with poor form and shearing at the spine, so instead of learning pelvic differentiation and segmental control of the spine, they just give themselves a lot of spinal compression. The same goes for the machine versus free weight debate. Clearly, we want our exercises to translate into functional movement and the open chain of a free weight exercise is going to best translate to movement in daily life. However, there is a time and a place for a machine. If youre a bodybuilder (and Im not and nor do I care to be), you may want the ability to push that extra weight and IF you can use the machine with good biomechanics, who am I to judge you? Additionally, some people dont have the strength or the mechanics to do certain exercises in an open chain environment, so a machine may facilitate progress. So yes, if you flail around, pound out reps and put too much weight on a machine, you are more likely to hurt yourself than you would if you flailed around in a bodyweight exercise. However, to simply say dont ever do this does not solve the problem. The problem here is education. We need to be smarter in how we perform exercise. We need to ask why am I doing this and am I doing it correctly? We need to ask, does this exercise feel good on my body or am I feeling joint strain or pain after performing it? To say never do high intensity/crossfit/machine exercises/whatever will not stop the injuries from happening, because the people who are doing these things are getting something out of it. You DO get results from pushing a heavier weight. Unfortunately, you also get injured if you never mastered the mechanics at a lesser load. Master good movement patterns and learn how to utilize recovery and self-care and you can have the best of both worlds. You can do high intensity and make physical gains without pain. The trade off it is it takes longer. And if you want to be shredded with 8% bodyfat and that requires you to max it out every day all day and you dont care about the pain or the surgeries headed your way in your golden years, thats your choice. I cant stop you. However, most of us dont need to be shredded and we wouldnt choose it over chronic pain in the long run. We just want to feel good, look good and not hurt. You dont have to kill yourself to get there. You just need to patient and willing to educate yourself and be consistent in how to administer diet and nutrition. #endrant huffingtonpost/2014/08/04/exercise-fitness-expert-pet-peeves_n_5641513.html
Posted on: Tue, 30 Dec 2014 19:07:10 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015