Rant and Tip for July 5th 2011

Good morning. First let’s thank Brian for a great post this weekend. I have to agree with him on form. It is more important to do it right and avoid getting hurt, then trying to attempt more weight than we are ready for. This is why I continue to work on my form. I also find that as my form gets better, I am able to push or pull more weight. By improving your form, you can actually increase your performance without being stronger. Today it is back to the grind, and that means work and working out to achieve my goals. I will continue to try to ignore my imaginary boundaries. Last night as I was working on my bench press, I tried to press 315. As I lifted the weight off the rack I made sure to keep my form tight, which included taking in a deep breath and holding it to start the press. As I hit my sticking point, I continued to press and locked out the weight. As I posted last night, I do not reccommend lifting without a spotter. I did not have someone spotting me last night, however I did have the benefit of benching in my squat rack. When my chest is not full of a deep breath and I do not arch my back, the bar can rest on the rails without it touching my chest. The rack behaves as a spotter. The down side to not having a human spotter is you have to take my word for it. Time to put the camera in place again. This Wednesday I will record my squats at Albany Strength so I can view them afterwards. It really is important when working out to have someone you can speak to about form. I often have to workout in the evening by myself. When I do this I sometimes record the lift and have one of my powerlifting friends critique my form. Let me tell you some of these guys can be brutal and I am glad they are.
Have a great workout!
Tip:
Since I first started going to the gym, I noticed how horrible some people’s forms would be when they perform an exercise. I’ve seen people get hurt and I’ve also seen in time people get injured due to repetitive use of bad form. It’s not about how much weight you do; it’s about how you do it. Make sure you are concentrating on using proper form otherwise it could come back and bite you. I know you just heard it from Brian, However I feel that this is an important topic to the forefront of our mind.