The Reverse Band Bench Press and How to Know How Much Help You Receive from the Bands

 

Given there are a bevy of variables affecting the amount of assistance you receive from the bands in a reverse band bench press - the thickness of the band, how high above the bar the bands are attached, how many times the bands are looped around, how old the bands are, to name a few - one of the most common questions among people looking to reverse bench for the first time is, "I have know idea how much the bands are helping me....so where do I start poundage-wise for X number of sets and reps?"

See the video below to find out:

The reverse band bench press is a fantastic tool that I like to employ for four primary purposes:

1. As alluded to in the video above, there is less eccentric stress compared to a normal bench press - and way less eccentric stress compared to a bench press against bands - during the lift due to the fact that the bands are pulling in the opposite direction of gravity. In general, this makes it much more shoulder and elbow friendly, and it also doesn't "tax" your body and central nervous system as much as a normal bench press would.

2. Because of point #1, the movement tends to be a bit easier on the joints. As such, I've been using it more and more with some of our athletes that either have shoulder pain, or are coming off of a surgery or rehab program.

3. It teaches the lifter to actively row, or pull, the bar down to him or her. One of the most common flaws I see in amateur lifters is failing to do just that, and it's a technique I discussed in further detail in THIS post; basically, it's going to engage the upper back more (always a good thing) and give you a more stable platform to press out of in the bottom. How you enter the tunnel affects how you exit the tunnel, if you will.

4. It helps improve the top half of your bench. Since the bands provide less assistance as you press up (the band becomes more slack) you are responsible for lifting a greater percentage of actual bar weight toward the end range of the lift.

There are a number of other reasons one would use it during a training cycle, but I'll cut it there for now.

Oh, and I believe this goes without saying but, be very careful when loading and unloading the bar when it's hanging from the bands. Things can get very chaotic really quickly if you're not careful.

When You're Feeling Beat Up

If you’ve been training for a while, you’ve surely had those days, maybe even weeks, where your joints are crankier than usual, your shoulders and back are sore, and you get out of bed to realize gravity turned it up a notch.

When you load the bar up with 70% as you work up you get confused because it’s heavier than it should be. Did you miscalculate? Is it the wrong bar? Wrong plates? Are you using 70% of your deadlift max for your single-arm bottoms-up kettlebell floor press?

When you rule out all other factors, you may come to the conclusion that you’re probably just beat up from the training you’ve accumulated. This is especially true if you’re an athlete. It’s important to train hard at practice and train hard in the weight room, but you also have to remember to take note of how your body is reacting to all of it. Here are some tips for those dark times when your body is beaten and walking up the stairs feels like max effort step-ups.

Deload

I don’t believe that everyone needs to schedule a strictly consistent deload in their programming (e.g. every 4th week) but they certainly have their place. I see more benefit in scheduling a deload with specific regards to competition. However, sometimes an unscheduled deload is necessary if you feel super banged up. Rather than stay at home drag yourself to the gym and hit a few movements with lighter weight, for a FEW sets of a FEW reps (50%-75% for 3-5 sets of 3-5). You don’t have to hit 10x10 just because you’re going light. Deload weight AND volume.

Cut Back on Assistance Work

Does your training log tell you to do 4x8 Bulgarian split squats after your back squats? Cut it to 2x8. Or 2x5. Or 0x0. Rest assured, your beloved assistance work isn’t going anywhere, so cut back on it for a session or two and hammer it hard when you come back fresh.

EAT

Eat.

Epsom Salt Bath/Contrast Shower

Try some new recovery techniques! The idea behind an Epsom salt bath (basically soaking in a tub of magnesium sulfate) is that magnesium will soak into your body through the skin, restoring a huge list of body cell functions in the muscles, nerves, and other soft tissues. Magnesium is also inhibitory to the muscle cells, which will help you relax.

Contrast showers are (in my opinion) not as relaxing. I think they are actually pretty brutal. Enjoy a few minutes of a nice warm shower, then quickly slam the dial from H to C and suffer through 30 seconds to a minute of an ice-cold blast. Repeat several times. It takes some discipline, but you will be rewarded with increased blood flow and recovery throughout your whole body.

Soft Tissue Work Whip out the foam rollers, PVC pipes, lacrosse balls, and go to town. Or pamper yourself with a visit to a reputable ART practitioner. Or do what I do and go to Brookstone to sit in one of those super massage chairs until somebody kicks you out.

With Spring sports starting up, all you athletes know what you're in for: Months of hard training, tough competition, lots of fun, and your body taking a pounding!  Just keep a handful of strategies to help you dust off your shoulders and get back in the game when you get beat down.   Those of you with try-outs this week, best of luck!

You're Doing It Wrong: Split Squats (lunges) and Knees Edition

I haven't done one of these posts in a while so I thought it was high time we had another "You're Doing It Wrong" post.

Diving right in, a common complaint we hear at SAPT is knee pain during split squat or lunge variations. Typically it's pain in the front of the knee, though sometimes it's on the sides as well.

*Disclaimer* Please remember that I'm not diagnosing anything and if these general fixes in this post don't help your knees feel better, I'd say there's probably an underlying issue that needs more digging either from a coach (for the easy, common problems like tight or weak glutes) or a therapist of some sort (assuming the coach refers you to someone if your pain is outside of their scope of practice).

Ok, so two of the most common errors we see during split squat/lunges are:

1. Pitching forward into the front knee with the shin angle less than 90 degrees to the floor. Typically, the front heel rises off the floor as well, thus limiting glute involvement in the movement (mostly of the front leg). Glutes don't like that; they like to be involved with exercise so don't leave them out!

2. Shifting too much of the body's weight to the back leg and crumpling into a ball of poo in the back. The front shin will often drift past 90. Again, this position takes out the glutes' involvement and puts too much emphasis in the quads. This causes more pressure to be exerted on the knee joint, which makes it cranky.

Here's a video to distinguish the two errors, followed by a correct split squat. Note that these form corrections carry over to the lunge variations as well.

So how do you do it right?

1. Keep a 70/30 weight distritbution of front to back leg.

2. Keep your front heel down and push through it (as if you were squishing a bug) as you straighten your legs.

3. Squeeze your butt and abs (hmmm.. that sounds familiar.)

4. Don't let your front knee stray over your toes. Your knees will be happier that way.

That's it! Follow those simple guidelines and split squats and your knees should work together like the Harry Potter Trio!

50/50 Video Highlights: American University Wrestling and Georgetown Prep Lacrosse

Over the past couple months I've had a tremendous opportunity to partner up with mental coach Brian Levenson through providing day-long "camps" for athletic teams looking to take it to the next level with respect to their physical AND mental performance. These camps are appropriately titled "The 50/50 Challenge," as they encompass a grueling combination of physical and mental challenges to help teams improve cohesion and learn to handle and overcome adversity. Brian is extremely good at what he does - he has a tremendous track record with amateur and professional athlete alike - so these events are particularly rewarding for me, being a "physical preparation specialist," as I get to work right alongside an accomplished mental coach to help athletes improve not only the physical component of their sport, but the mental element as well.

In general, what we've been doing with the teams thus far is pairing up series of physical challenges with mental ones, and sitting down to "debrief" after each pairing in order for the athletes to see how what they just learned/accomplished can help them improve in their sport, both as a team and as individuals.

The primary themes we focus on are:

1. Focus and Concentration
2. Team Cohesion
3. Preparation/Routine
4. Energy Management
5. Controlling Controllables

Just yesterday Brian decided to get his Quentin Tarantino on and compile some video highlights from two of the teams we've worked with: American University Wrestling and Georgetown Prep Lacrosse. It was super enjoyable to work with both these teams as each team was made of not only athletic, but also intelligent and extremely driven individuals. Enjoy!

American University Wrestling Team

Georgetown Prep Lacrosse Team

**Note: If you'd like to schedule a 50/50 Challenge for your team, please don't hesitate to contact either Brian (Brian@capeperformance.com) or me (Steve@studentathletept.com)**

For the Overextended Part II

A few months ago I wrote a post on warming up for those with a chronically overextended lumbar spine. Since then I’ve gotten a few requests for a sequel post, so... Without further adieu…

For the Overextended Part II: The Lift

In my first post I discussed “prepping” for the lift for those with exaggerated lordosis.  I babbled about targeted stretching, mobilizing, and activation exercises used in conjunction with the idea that it would help “tuck” the hips under a bit more and reduce that ridiculous curve in the lower back that ails us.

For many that'll do the trick. After the warm-up they can feel their abs and glutes engage a bit more throughout their lifting session and they feel much more secure about their lower back health.

However, there are those that need more than a 15 minute warm-up to relieve them of their discomfort caused by the overextension. These might be the people with hip flexors that refuse to let go, erectors in constant spasm, and glutes that seem to have tragically passed away from years of desk work.

For these people with symptoms a bit more severe than the rest, some careful consideration should be taken into not only their warm-up but the structure of the lifting program itself. Here are a few exercises I like to use to fight against the overextension apocalypse.

Lower Body

Front Squats

For improved posture I tend to favor front squats over back squats mainly because it really helps to emphasize t-spine extension. Like I mentioned in my previous post, a hyperlordodic posture is often accompanied by significant kyphosis in the upper back. By focusing on keeping the upper back tight and the elbows up and in, front squats basically become a good way to practice good posture under resistance. (Practice makes permanent!)

Split Squats

Remember to do your split squats with all of the knee health rules in mind (keep the knee tracking straight ahead, try to keep a vertical shin), but add this one: squeeze the glute of your rear leg HARD the entire time. If you really flex that rear buttcheek you will feel a good stretch in that hip flexor as you descend to the bottom position.

Pull-Throughs and Glute Bridges

Keep hammering away at your posterior chain strength and emphasize the “tuck under” with your hips. Pull-throughs with a band or cable column is a great way to train the backside while avoiding any compression on your spine. Also throw in some glute bridges into your actual lift! They shouldn’t be reserved for just the warm-up.

Glute bridging variations are endless:

-Double Leg -Single Leg -Double Leg Concentric with Single Leg Eccentric -With a Barbell -With Chains -With a Barbell AND Chains -Back Elevated -Feet Elevated -Back AND Feet Elevated

Get to 'em!

KB Swings

Same idea as above: POSTERIOR CHAIN WORK. Perfect the hinge and develop incredible hip thrusting power. I recommend getting Kelsey or another well-qualified coach to supervise if you haven’t done them before. A correctly performed swing session can do wonders for your posture, but a bad swing sesh can wreak havoc on your lower back!

Upper Body

½ Kneeling Work

Do standing overhead presses and barbell rows make your lower back cranky? Fear not, and enter the ½ kneeling realm of pushing and pulling. Getting into the ½ kneeling position does a great job of positioning overextended spines back to neutral. Replace some of your pressing movements with single arm ½ kneeling landmine, kettlebell, or dumbbell presses. Then make sure to get your pulling in and grab a band or a cable column to do some ½ kneeling rows as well.

Push-Ups and Inverted Rows

Easy enough right? If you take away the movement from the upper extremities, these exercises become a plank or an isometric glute bridge, respectively. What I mean by that is you MUST make sure you keep your abs tight and your hips (NOT lower back) locked in extension as you do your push-ups and rows. When you feel like you’re starting to arch, call it a set or reset your hips.

Benching…?

Bench pressing can help improve my overextended posture?! No, I doubt it. However, I’m throwing it on here for a couple reasons 1) A lot of us are probably going to bench anyway. 2) It may be part of your team’s strength program for high school, college, or beyond.

Many trainees (including myself) prefer to bench with an arch. It helps to get into a position of better leverage and feels a bit smoother on the shoulders. When setting up to bench with a significant arch there is going to be some extension in the lower back, but you should try your best to emphasize the arch coming from the thoracic spine. If you cannot get into an arched back position on the bench without discomfort you still have options. You can simply bench with less of an arch, and by elevating your feet on weight plates you will be able to get a flatter back posture more comfortably. Another option you have is... don't bench. What?!

Floor Press

Take it to the floor! Bring your feet in and keep your back flat against the ground. That should quench your thirst for supine barbell pressing.

Anterior Core Work

Always throw in some work for your abs. Stronger abs will help pull that pelvis up in the front and decrease that anterior tilt. Anti-rotation presses, reverse crunches, roll-outs with a stability ball or an ab-wheel, and stir-the pots are all good options. One of my favorites is a plank. Boring you say? Load it up! Start stacking plates on your back and try to PR every time.

Fin That’s it for now. Can’t guarantee a part III, but you never know!

Lights Out

Lights Out As the lights went out in the 2nd half of the Super Bowl, many began asking how the players would maintain their focus. When uncontrollable distractions throw you off your game-plan what do you do? Do you start thinking about disadvantages? Do you start buying into the idea of momentum? Do you start thinking about the outcome rather than the process? Do you lose control of your energy?

The key is to make sure that you continue the same controlled routines that you use in any other breaks--pre-game, timeouts, halftime, etc. Routines help us direct our attention to a purposeful approach rather than useless distractions. Whether it's a 1 minute timeout or a 35 minute delay, go back to your routine so you are prepared for when the lights come back on.