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Exercise Execution
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General Exercise Principles
Here are some general exercise principles and tips to learn and apply during your training. These items will help to set the base for your success in the gym.
Read and re-read this list often!
Full Exercise descriptions and body part specific guidelines can be found by clicking into the ‘Training Library’ section of the site.
Execution
- Hold the weight(s) with an ʻevenʼ firm grip of the hand (though not too tightly)
- Wrists should remain neutral or back (unless stated specifically), never forward
- Always initiate from the working muscle (try to build tension before executing)
- Aim to fully lengthen and fully shorten the muscle (unless otherwise stated)
- A muscle is fully lengthened when its antagonist is fully contracted (be conscious of this to help establish range)
- Contract through the entire range of available motion (full flexion and full extension)
- Keep constant tension on the working muscle (no pause at the top / bottom unless stated in the workouts)
- Aim to always work in ‘straight lines’ (very few exceptions)
- No extraneous movement / body English
- Ensure form does not degrade in order to complete additional reps; simply work within the range of motion that can still be achieved if you continue on
- Inhale deeply through the nose on the negative, explosively exhale through the mouth while pushing through the positive
Posture (unless stated otherwise)
- Keep head neutral (inline with spine relative to torso), shoulders back and depressed, scapula contracted (allow zero internal / external rotation of shoulders or any arching), abs / core-tight (spine stable), chest ‘proud’ and torso tall
- When upright, your torso should be vertical or ‘very slightly’ forward (approx. 30º) pivoting from the hips, NOT from the spine (stick butt back a little so hips move behind shoulders)
- When standing while working the upper body, contract your glutes and hams to prevent hip sway (shove feet into the floor)
Warm-Ups
- Before beginning an exercise, without using any weight, assess your Active / Available Range of Motion (AROM) – donʼt be surprised if the range you can access differs on a somewhat frequent basis; this is due to built-in bodily protective mechanisms and is to be expected, and MUST be respected! Do not try to force a larger range that you can achieve comfortably as this will greatly increase your chances of injury.
- Perform as many physical rehearsal / warm-up sets as you require prior to executing the first working set of an exercise, the closer to your 1 repetition maximum, the more you’ll likely need. Also, if new to a particular movement, spend more time rehearsing it.
Additional Tips
- The tempo and reps dictate the load you should use! Maintain perfect form throughout – adjust the load accordingly to hit the desired reps, do not adjust the form!)
- For strength-based training (when 6 or less reps is the target), a brief pause to ʻresetʼ at the top and bottom of the movement is acceptable
- When shooting for anything above 6 reps, focus on avoiding rest at any point (unless otherwise stated); keep the motion smooth / almost rhythmic throughout
- Partial reps are acceptable at the end of a set, just so long as tension remains on the working muscle and form / tempo remains intact (within whatever limited range can still be achieved)
- If the weight you selected is evidently a little too light, rather than stopping the set and increasing the load, slow the tempo and squeeze the working muscle as hard as possible in order to create maximum tension
- If you’re about to fall just short of achieving your prescribed rep target, it’s acceptable to use a rest / pause scheme (taking approx. 3 seconds rest between reps) to complete the set – though choose a lighter weight next time around
- If you use a spotter, they should typically only put their hands on the weights in only two scenarios during your set: 1. to save the day if your ego got the better of you and you went way too heavy, 2. if you picked a weight that was very slightly too heavy and are about to fall just shy of achieving your goal reps – in this last scenario, a good spotter will help only as much as is needed for you to maintain the prescribed tempo through to the end of the set
- Spotters should only allow assist you in pushing past complete failure (AKA forced reps) if youʼre an advanced bodybuilder; beginners or trainees learning proper execution should not attempt forced reps
- Incline / decline bench angles are variable unless specifically stated; change them up frequently if equipment availability allows.
