Inch Dumbbell Overhead (Photo by Joe Mugovero)

One of my main body strength goals for 2012 was improving my Overhead Pressing ability, so I really began to look at all the contributing factors to a big press. Things like a strong core, lockout strength and speed off the shoulders were some of the things I looked at most heavily, because when I was doing strongman training, those were the things I focused on most often for building the press.

However, one of the things I did not take a real close look at, at first, was my flexibility and mobility in my shoulders and torso. To my surprise, working stretching into the routine has proven to be the absolute biggest factor in my increase in pressing strength recently.

It’s kind of ironic that including the simple practice of stretching would have such a big effect. I remember watching Lee Haney videos on ESPN when I was a teenager, so it’s not like this is the first time I ever heard of the concept.

My absolute neglect for stretching and any kind of range of motion or mobility maintenance came when I started studying NSCA materials. The literature stated that if you performed exercises with a full range of motion, then there would be no worry for loss of it.

More recently, several proponents of Biofeedback/Gym Movement have even spoken of their lack of use of stretching and mobility work in their routines.

Well, here is the problem with all those organizations and belief systems, from Lee Haney, to the NSCA, to GM: they are only referring to lifting and NOT what is going on the other 22 hours in the day.

For me, and maybe some of you reading this, the most important factor for my flexibility and range of motion status (aside from sheer genetics), I feel, is my positioning during those 22 hours.

The amount of time I am in a seated position, whether it is working, driving, or just lounging around is staggering. Sometimes, it seems as though if I am not walking to or from my car, or if I am not training, then I am sitting on my ass, and getting more and more locked up.

In relationship to my pressing numbers, I posted a few weeks back how I was able to make incredible jumps in pressing strength with some stretching and soft tissue work prior to and during my pressing workout. That post is here: What’s Working Now – Improving Overhead Press.

Now, although the improvements I saw in that workout were impressive as far as the actual weight jumps from one workout to the next, the numbers were still not where I would want them because in the past I have been capable of much more.

So, I began going back through some old video clips of myself pressing, and one thing I noticed was that several years ago I looked much more fluid. These days in my videos, I walk like Frankenstein, as if my spine is fused and when I press, I have almost zero lean in the thoracic region of my back at all. In the past, my thoracic mobility was far greater and a real strength of mine, so I knew I had to do something to get back there. Once I began incorporating drills right into my workout, I began instantly seeing some good results, thus the post I mentioned above.

And once I started seeing progress, I began trying out even more movements to see what would work the best. I’ve come up with three movements that I have gotten continued good results from and I want to share them with you so you can try them.

Pipe Roll Thoracic Arch

Squat Cage Doorway Stretch

Squat Cage Shoulder Point

These three movements have proven to have the biggest benefit for me in my training, of the dozens I have tried. If you think you are lacking in the mobility department for your thoracic spine, or if you think your shoulders are inhibited in some other way, then you should give these a try.

If these drills don’t seem to do anything for you, then I encourage you to do some experimenting. We are all different and have different limitations, so in turn we will all need to do different things in order to address those limitations.

Results From 8 Weeks of Concentrated Mid Workout Stretching

Barbell Military Press – Recent PR

In recent memory, in the Barbell Press out of a cage, my best has been 215. I have gotten that number so many times I have lost count. That really irritates me, because it is about 40 lbs under my best strict press on a barbell.

Without stretching or soft tissue work, I was topping out at 215 whether I did overhead press first or if I did Bench Press first. And that little factoid irritates me because you would think that after benching the triceps would be too tired to match my best PR, but it has seemed to have no effect whatsoever.

So, here is a recent video of some new high water marks for the Barbell Press out of the cage.

Barbell Military Press – Old Working Set

I am not sure if you can tell in the video clips, but I am able to get a bit more extension in my thoracic spine in the new PR video (I could certainly feel the difference that day). In the working sets video from a few months back, I don’t get anything at all. The benefit to getting this fluidity in the thoracic portion of the spine is that each repetition feels better, and feel less like I have two baseball bats running from my shoulders to my glutes, restricting me. Being able to bend ever so slightly back near the shoulder area lets me press much easier.

Take note, I am not talking about bending the lumbar spine like a 1950′s Olympic Press, as shown above. That is something that you should try to avoid. I played Russian Roulette with that too often back in the day and have no desire to go back to it. What I am looking to improve is my thoracic spine, the mid to upper torso (shown below)

Dumbbell Military Press PR

My numbers in this had been so bad, that I was pretty much stuck at 50′s. Then with time working on my ROM and soft tissue, I was gradually able to work up to 70′s and now 85′s is becoming my new standard. Below, I hit a set of 6 with 85′s, a set which felt so easy up until the last set, it is hard to put it into words.

In the video above, I think it is a bit easier to see the extension I am getting in the thoracic spine. This video was shot two pressing workouts after the Barbell Press workout where I pressed 235.

To sum things up, although my upper back/torso issues are not so bad that I walk around with like Quasimodo or have scapular winging, I still have issues with tightness in the shoulders and lack of thoracic mobility. Like an addict with a gambling problem, it took my a long time to admit to having these issues, but now that I have owned up to them and begun addressing them, as well as seeing the results, I feel I will be able to continue to improve.

Look for more updates coming down the pike on this. Until then all the best in your training.

Jedd

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If you take out questions about Grip Training, one of the most common questions I get is how to set up a program in order to put on muscle.

With this post, I want to list a few principles I follow in my training. Next week, I will cover some how to select the right movements and how to program them.

3 Keys to Building Muscle

These are the three main keys I follow in my training when it comes to exercise selection. Now, of course there are other things that go into it, but these are the main three things.

1. Multi-Joint Movements

If you want to put on muscle and develop strength, then you have got to get lots of muscle involved in order to do so. The best way to get lots of muscle involved is to select exercises that involve movement over more than one joint. Examples are Bench Press, Overhead Press, Squat, Deadlift, Bent Over Rows, Clean, Snatch, and other movements that are similar in movements to these.

Now, if you take a look at the exercises I listed, you will see that there is often movement taking place at two or more joints. For instance, with the Bench, there is movement at the shoulder and at the elbow, plus if you approach the movement like a Powerlifter does, you are using even more muscle across other joints as well.

Movements such as the Squat, Deadlift, Cleans, and many Olympic lift breakdown drills involve even more joints. With these we are working over the knee, hip, back and possibly the ankle, shoulder and elbow, meaning even more muscle is being involved.

In other words, select movements that are working larger portions of your body and keep isolation movements to a minimum.

2. Train for Power and Speed

I like to incorporate exercises of increased speed in my training. What I am referring to is explosive movements that produce an increased power output, such as Cleans, Jerks, Snatches, Stone Lifting, and other movements where virtually the entire body is working together in order to move large loads very quickly.

Another way I like to accomplish this is with Accommodating Resistance using exercise bands. I have bands of many different strength levels in order to be able to use this concept on different movements.

The Bench Press is a good example of how to employ bands in your training. Remember when using bands that the purpose is to move the bar quickly against the resistance in order to train the fast-twitch muscle fibers to fire quickly. These muscle fibers need to be stimulated like this, but most guys are missing this aspect. I say this, because when I ask people who email me about this they say they have either never heard of this type of training or haven’t bought into it. I am a firm believer in it and have been experimenting with how to incorporate it in different ways aside from just with barbells in my training and with my clients (these guys kick ass).

3. Work in Balance

One of the recent times someone wrote in, they wanted to know how to put muscle on their chest and shoulders and I asked them what they were currently doing. Their answer? Bench Pressing two days a week and Shoulder work on another day. Essentially three Upper Body Pushing days and each one was balls to the walls intensity.

One of the things I always tell people is that if you are trying to fill out your shirt, you’ve got to remember there are two sides of it to fill. You don’t want to be like Tom Cruise in the movie Knight and Day and look like your back muscles are non-existent.

There needs to be a balance between your pushing and pulling exercises in order to pack on muscle on the upper body, and do it safely. Remember, we are doing something that is supposed to be good for us, not something in order to set ourselves up for imbalances, poor posture and pain down the road.

What I suggest people do is for every movement where you are pushing something, try to also incorporate a movement where you are pulling. If you can pick out complementary or contra-specific movement patterns, that is a bonus as well. For instance, a complimentary movement pattern for the Bench Press would be Bent Over Rows or Seated Cable Rows (although, I’d suggest the Bent-Over variety in order to have a Ground Based Movement – another post for another day).

One other thing to think about with Balanced Training, keep in mind that if you are going all out for maxes on the Bench every time you do it and then you do Bent Over Rows with a fraction of the weight, that doesn’t count as balanced. The loading and effort need to be similar in order to realize benefits.

One good way to do this is to perform your Upper Body Push and Upper Body Pulling movements on the same day and match up the loading and effort that way. If you do it like this, it is easier to monitor than if you do it on different days.

Do You Have Muscle Imbalances, Currently?

If you have been following traditional programs and have not taken things such as antagonistic balance into account with your program, you could be headed for some issues. Unfortunately, imbalances can develop from more than just the way you program you workouts and your exercise selection.

Time seated in a car, time at your desk, time at home in chairs, and other considerations that affect posture can really do a number on you.

If you think you run the risk of having imbalances because you slouched in your seat in high school for years (like me), spend a lot of time at a desk at your work (like me), or have muscular imbalances due to an injury or something else, you should consider checking out Rick Kaselj’s Muscle Imbalances Revealed – Upper Body Edition.

I recently made Rick’s acquaintance on-line and began following some of his work and he has an impressive background. A few months ago he came out with a 2.0 Program for lower body and now he has updated his Upper Body Edition as well.

The sizable clientele he has worked with and the expert backing he has gotten is unbelievable. I strongly suggest you give his program a look if you are a candidate for imbalances. Here is my link: Muscle Imbalances Revealed by Rick Kaselj.

All the best in your training and look for Part II coming next week.

Jedd

This past weekend, I traveled to Slippery Rock University to speak at the 3rd Annual Pennsylvania Strength Clinic. The clinic was organized by Tony Tridico (Titusville) and the on-site organizer was Dr. Jonathan Anning (Slippery Rock).

The entire clinic was designed around the premise of how to build a solid strength and conditioning program and each speaker presented with this in mind… (more…)

Get Lean/ Get Strong

By John Alvino

It has been stated that a non-chemically enhanced lifter cannot get stronger while on a fat loss program.

The popular justification for this claim is that in order to lose fat, you need to create a caloric deficit through dieting and higher volume training. And caloric deficits are NOT conducive to gaining strength or building muscle.

This is why when most people want to get stronger and/or bigger, they go on a high calorie diet and reduce their training volume. Unfortunately, this usually results in unwanted gains in body fat. It’s a classic catch 22 scenario.

Then, when they try to drop their recently gained body fat, they usually follow a typical fat loss protocol (low carbs/low calorie diets, high intensity cardio, high volume resistance training), and although they may lose some fat, they can kiss their strength gains goodbye. And then they are right back where they started.

Does it have to be this way? Or can you lose your unwanted body fat while INCREASING your strength simultaneously? The good news is yes: you can (and should) increase strength while decreasing body fat.

In order to accomplish this, you must focus on three different aspects. Here they are:

1) Target the nervous system with your training - To a large degree, your strength is a function of the efficiency of your nervous system. This is because your nervous system is responsible for synchronizing and activating your motor units. For those of you who don’t know, a motor unit consists of a bunch of muscle fibers and a motor nerve cell.

Increased synchronization and activation basically means you will be able to utilize more motor units per contraction. This phenomenon will increase your strength dramatically.

How do you target the nervous system? Well, there are two ways to make significant neural gains.

The first is to lift heavy weights. In fact, the weights must be 85% or more of your 1 rep max. This will result in performing sets of 1-5 reps each.

The second way is to move the resistance at high speeds. Any type of explosive movement will do the trick here. Examples of explosive movements are jumping, plyo pushups, Olympic exercises and various med ball drills.

It is important to note that the nervous system can take up to 10 times longer to recover than the muscular system can. Therefore, in order to maximize this training technique, you should be sure to get near full recovery in between sets. For an experienced lifter, this could result in up to 4-5 minutes between sets.

2) Maintain or increase your lean muscle mass. This is critical, because even if you make neurological gains, you can still compromise your strength if you lose muscle tissue.

There are two things you must do to increase muscle mass during your fat loss program.

The first muscle boosting trick will involve your nutrition. The key is to NEVER stay sub caloric (below maintenance level of calories) or carb depleted for more than 3 consecutive days. Obviously you will need to reduce calories in order to lose fat.

Just don’t keep them low every day. Keeping them low everyday will result in losses in lean muscle mass. Instead, lower your calories and carbs on light training or off days and then INCREASE both carbs and calories on HEAVY training days.

The second trick is to include some hypertrophy sets in your routine. Hypertrophy sets involve using a weight which allows you to get 6-10 repetitions. The key is to keep the volume low on these sets.

Do not exceed more than 4 total hypertrophy sets for each movement pattern. More than that can result in overtraining and/or muscle loss.

Additionally, these sets should ALWAYS follow your heavier neural sets.

3) Stay hydrated and nutrient loaded. Training at high intensities while dieting can result in dehydration. This will decrease your strength and thus negatively impact your workouts and future gains.

The obvious way to try and combat this is to drink plenty of water. Be sure to drink a daily minimum of half of your bodyweight in ounces of water. Although drinking a sufficient amount of water is important, it is not enough all by itself to maintain a high level of strength performance.

Additionally, 30-45 minutes before your heavy workouts, consume a liquid meal consisting of 30 grams of protein, 500 mg of magnesium, ¼ tsp of salt, 5 grams of glutamine, 5 grams of BCAA’S and 60 grams of carbs.

This will help jam nutrients into the body, thus improving workout performance.

I have used this protocol with great success with many of my clients. But just recently, I put this protocol to the test on myself for 6 weeks. Here are my results:

Starting weight – 211lbs

Finishing Weight - 202lbs

Starting Body Fat% – 13%

Finishing Body Fat% – 8 ½ %

Trap Bar Deadlift Starting Max – 505lbs

Trap Bar Deadlift Finishing Max – 545lbs

I also did a Trap Bar Deadlift rep test. The test was simply 405 for max reps. At the beginning of this program, I was able to get 11 reps. After just 6 weeks, I was able to pull 20. Here is the video:

405lb Trap Bar Deads for 20 Reps!

I also performed a similar before and after test using a Military Press.

Standing Military Starting Max – 175lbs

Standing Military Starting Max – 205lbs

Those were the only two exercises I took maxes on. These are very good results. For strength athletes, the benefits of this protocol are obvious. But this is incredibly beneficial to anyone who looking to lose body fat as well. Give this protocol a try, You’ll be glad you did!

About the Author

John Alvino is a strength And Conditioning Coach, Fat Loss Coach, Vegetarian, Fitness Author, MMA Junkie, Ex Convict and Pit Bull Advocate from Morristown, NJ

Get his killer new FREE report at www.johnalvino.com

I got my butt kicked!

This past weekend was my family’s annual family clam bake to celebrate my parents’ birthdays. They fall within a couple days of each other, so right around that time we steam a bunch of little neck clams and drinks some assorted beverages and just enjoy each others company with a few other members of the extended family.
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