I see folks performing these exercises and /or behaviours in the gym and always take the time to inform them of the danger or ineffectiveness. Then I provide a better alternative.

1 – Behind the neck lat pull-downs (danger: cervical spine strain)
2 – Behind the neck military (shoulder) press (danger: ditto)
3 – Upright rows (danger: shoulder nerve impingement)
4 – Lying leg press machine – deep knee (danger: lumbar spine compression)
5 – Squats using the Smith machine – feet too far forward (danger: thoracic spine muscle strain)
6 – Bad form on cardio machines - particularly leaning forward (danger: spine erectors muscle strain)

7 – Trying to “spot” reduce – endless reps working a “problem” area (time-waster: science just doesn’t work that way)
8 – Using a weight belt (danger: jeopardizes important core strength)
9 – Bad shoes; and I’m not talking fashion (danger: Achilles, arches, ankles, knees, hips… all affected negatively by bad shoes)

Helping you do it well and get better results.

Doug at MyTrainerSays dot com

As promised, here are 10 ways to improve your posture:

1. Learn what “neutral” spine feels like.

Recognize what neutral spine alignment looks and feels like (it’s that natural “S” curve of the spine that you’re familiar with seeing in pictures). When people first reform into a neutral spine position, most describe it as feeling “unnatural” – only because our muscles have become so trained to hold the spine in mis-alignment. And remember, your neck is a very important part of your spine to hold in alignment.

2. Keep reminding yourself.

When you catch a glimpse of yourself in a window reflection, or in the bathroom mirror, or even in your shadow on the sidewalk, remind yourself to become posture-conscious. Postural muscles that are responsible for holding their contraction will soon do so more easily and naturally.

3. Shift position frequently.

Science is identifying more and more negative health effects of too much sitting. Counter the damage as much as possible by standing whenever you can.  Standing with proper spine alignment is far easier than sitting with proper spine alignment.

4. Strengthen your hips.

Weak hip muscles that attach to your pelvis can affect posture. Particularly if you sit a lot, make sure you’re following an exercise program that includes flexibility and strength training for the hip flexors, extensors, abductors, adductors and rotators.

5. Do appropriate core exercises.

Learn exercises that train the abdominals to hold the pelvis in neutral alignment. Active core stabilization training (like stability ball roll-outs and planks) is really effective for postural correction. Remember to keep your scapulae retracted.

6. Extend your spine to increase its range of motion.

Learn how to correctly perform back extension exercises. On the floor, using a machine or while standing, back extension exercises can significantly reduce or eliminate back pain.

7. Remember to work front AND back sides of your upper body.

Work muscles that you can’t see in a mirror as frequently as you work those that you can. Look around the gym, you’ll easily see what I mean. You need balanced upper body strength front and back to exhibit good posture. Rear deltoids, infraspinatus, rhomboids, latissimus, lower trapezius.

8. Shift exercise style.

Don’t dismiss the occasional yoga or Pilate’s class from your overall fitness program. After all, you’re going to be working out for the rest of your life, so vary it up a bit to keep from getting bored. Full range of joint motion is a key element of good posture.

9. Visualize good posture.

Imagine a hook placed just under your sternum lifting you gently. Notice how your thoracic spine responds to that. Or a puppet string gently attached to the crown of your scalp lifting you straight up. When you walk, concentrate on your posture and imagine yourself moving with a coordinated, symmetrical alignment. Imagine Royalty. Practice your wave.

10. Get checked out.

Besides muscular weakness and muscular imbalance, postural problems can arise from other factors and conditions. Yes, I can help with muscle training. I can also put you in touch with other specialists who can help diagnose and treat any skeletal issues that may be impacting your posture.

Stay strong and upright well into your future.

Doug

MyTrainerSays.com

“Stand up straight!”  ”Quit slouching!” “Get your hair out of your face!” During my long-haired teens, I certainly remember my mother repeating those phrases quite frequently.

But now that we’re adults – how can you tell for yourself if your posture needs some improvement?

Here are tell-tale signs:

• collapsed arches in your feet
• an elevated hip or shoulder
• one side of the body rotated forward or back
• pelvis and hips tilted to the front, back or side
• rounded back
• drooping chest and shoulders
• head jutting forward

These subtle deformations indicate that your body has got locked into poor movement patterns over the years – and for any number of reasons:

• muscle imbalance
• compensation for injuries
• ergonomic problems at work and home
• poor alignment during fitness and sports activities.

It is possible to change bad postural habits.

By learning the proper postural exercises specific to your situation, you will develop postural habits that build a fit body that functions effectively.

In an upcoming post I will teach you 10 simple, easy to implement, tips to immediately improve your posture.

Doug

MyTrainerSays.com

Here are 10 great Ab exercises that you should be LEARNING and DOING to create a firm, strong core.

Pair these with a healthy, complete, low fat diet and you’ll be uncovering that hidden 6-PACK before summer’s gone!!

1. Plank with your arms on a Stability Ball (works the core 360 degrees).
2. Progress to Plank on Stability Ball in & outs.
3. Stability Ball Roll-outs.
4. Hanging Knee Raises (done correctly to protect the lower back).
5. Push-up Plank with 1-arm Row (great for obliques).
6. Jackknife in-outs on a Stability Ball (push-up form, feet on the ball).
7. Progress to Jackknife in-outs with a Rotation.
8. Progress to Jackknife in-outs with a Push-up.
9. Mountain X-Climbers (diagonal knee-raises) on Bench. low bar or floor.
10. Progress to Stability Mountain X-Climbers on Stability Ball.

If you’d like further explanation or more thorough instruction about these 10 exercises – just drop me an email.

[email protected]

MyTrainerSays…

Again and again I am reminded what a perfect lower body exercise the Deadlift is.

Right up there with squats and lunges, the move is a common motion that you use over and over in your ADL (activities of daily life).

Deadlifts make your body strong for so many activities. It works directly on your booty, also involving your quads, hamstrings, lower back, abs and most every other muscle in your body.

Good, safe execution of the deadlift requires full range of motion in the hips, knees and ankles – all of which can be trained progressively through proper warm-up, lead-in exercises and post-workout stretching.

Take the time to learn how to do a Deadlift properly, using strict form. Either with dumbbells or with a barbell.

Stay strong. Stay Young.

Doug
MyTrainer Says…

When I’m not with clients in the gym, I’m usually researching the continually evolving field of exercise physiology and its affects on health and aging. Among many measurable health benefits, good fitness levels also help to sustain a body image to be proud of – especially in summer when you get to show it off a bit more.

A tight mid-section with strong core muscles generally signals a pretty fit individual and new research findings confidently report how to achieve accelerated results. By combining dynamic core exercise like medicine-ball slams and land-mines with endurance core exercise like stability ball planks and roll-outs, you can firm your mid-section MUCH more effectively (and functionally) than by doing old-school ab work like crunches and sit-ups.

A word of caution however, before attempting ab exercises that you have not done before – be sure that your lower back muscles can withstand the extra demands that are required to stabilize your spine, particularly during endurance exercise like the plank. Remember that one of your objectives is to strengthen muscles on EACH side of a joint. For the spine, that includes abs and lower back /hips.

TIP: Learn the PROPER method of doing a plank (ask any of my clients who an edge on that one)! Too often I see planks being performed in ways that do nothing to strengthen the core.  KEEP THOSE HIPS DOWN and maintain a disciplined straight line from your ankle bone to your ear.  Think cantilever, not arch.

Keep up the good work everybody.

Doug

P.S. – If you know someone who would appreciate knowing about this web-site, and who might benefit from the fitness tips and information that I freely distribute, why not pass a link to MyTrainerSays.com along to them?  I cross-post to Facebook, so you could also send them to my page - Facebook.com/MyTrainerSays . (While you’re there, leave me a message to say Hi.)

MyTRAINER says…

FACT: Your muscles’ main functions are to keep your joints properly aligned (erect posture), AND to move your bones into flexion or extension (move you). For those purposes, muscles are directly attached to your bones – and always cross at least 1 joint in order to move parts of your skeleton around.

Think: Puppet strings.

FACT: Muscles can excessively shorten (become tight) through vigorous activity (e.g. how the pecs tighten after a bench press), OR through static positioning (e.g. hamstrings lose length from sitting too long, traps shorten from holding tension).

FACT: Muscles can also excessively lengthen through vigorous activity (e.g. running hurdles, swimming lengths) OR through static positioning (e.g. poor posture, awkward sleep positions).

I have written several posts in this blog about body posture, particularly “rounded shoulders, forward neck” syndrome.

The culprits in this type of DYSFUNCTIONAL POSTURE are the smart phone, cell phone, laptop, computer screen, car seat, soft couch, airplane seat, yada, yada, yada – ADLs (Activities of Daily Life) that put us into positions that accentuate a slouched upper back, shoulders rotated forward, protruding belly, chest caved in, neck poking ahead.

Think about it –  here you have the spine, the chest, the neck, the shoulders – all doing the same thing – muscles at the front (pecs, sternos, abs, front delts) passively being shortened - while muscles at the back (traps, rear delts, rhomboids) are passively being lengthened. And gravity really sucks when you’re off kilter.

That’s why, when I watch most people go through their ritual of  ”pre-exercise” stretching at the gym, I must say that RARELY DOES WHAT THEY’RE DOING MAKE SENSE!!

From this day forward I want you to stop and ask yourself  WHAT you’re stretching and WHY you’re stretching it.

Get personal with it:

Are you stretching a muscle that’s already spent half of its day in a stretched out position?

Are you stretching a muscle and lengthening it just before you’re about to ask it to lift a 55 pound dumbbell? (Think: stretching the heck out of a bungee cord, then expecting it to shorten and hold something tight.)

1) DON’T stretch what you don’t need to stretch: Muscles that are already stretched out. Muscles that are about to do their job.

2) DO stretch what you need to stretch: Muscles that have been in a shortened position all day. Muscles that have completed their job.

3) DON’T CONFUSE muscle “warm-up” with muscle “stretching“. They are distinctly different.

Do you have questions about anything you read or hear – either on this blog or elsewhere?

Write to me at > [email protected]

Looking around the gym, I’m sure that you’ve frequently seen individuals contorted in some very odd positions while performing their cardio workout on a stair-master, elliptical, or treadmill.

So, just as it’s important to be true to form while squatting or performing a weight exercise, it’s also important to use good form while doing cardio. Think about it – you’re doing thousands of reps in one exercise while running, cycling or stepping.

My advice to you today is stay True to Form while you do your cardio workout:

• watch your posture; maintain a neutral spine and centre of gravity in order to minimize lumbar stress
• don’t slouch forward or round your shoulders as you walk, jog, run, or bike
• on a treadmill, try not to hold on to the machine (except while checking your heart rate – better still, buy an HR monitor)

Remember – being effective and efficient in your workout is always an important goal. That’s how results are achieved.

Cheers,

Doug