A Must-Do Exercise for Those Benchin' Fools

  It's Monday, aka National Bench Day. Arched backs, foot tapping, body squirming. Yep, looks about right. While these he-men are getting their swole on, can you guess what else is happening? An imbalance is likely being created, an imbalance that may well end up as an injury. What is it, you ask? Ah, the dreaded 'My shoulder hurts, and I don't know why' syndrome. One sure-fire remedy is the face pull, one of my favorites to perform before any upper-body workout. If you aren't doing this, you need to add it yesterday. Seriously.

You Should be Doing Face Pulls

by Bryan Krahn – 5/2/2013

Guys are seemingly bullet proof when they first start lifting weights.
Bench press three days a week? Hell yeah. A full hour of variations of the cheat curl and triceps extension? Bring it. Heavy behind the neck presses with a spotter? It's all you, bro!
Then, something lame yet predictable happens. Progress slows to a standstill, and frustration starts to dampen newbie enthusiasm. Sometimes nagging pain or even injuries start to pop up.
And then it hits you, as you look around the gym for answers – the really big and strong guys don't train like you.
They follow structured workouts, vary their intensities, and don't just train what they can see in the mirror. In fact, most do a few exercises for no discernible benefit except injury prevention and "structural balance." How boring is that?
An excellent example of the latter is the face pull. A staple in powerlifting circles, this bad boy has since trickled down to the general lifting population, where it's been a godsend to legions of guys stricken with jacked-up shoulders due to poor programming choices when they first started out.
By serving to help offset all that horizontal and vertical pressing, the face pull can rejuvenate your lifting (or at least pressing) career while conditioning the rear delts, rhomboids, and external rotators. It can even help make your posture decidedly less Neanderthal-like, which is a plus unless you're dating a woman who's into the sloped-head, knuckle-dragging type. (I'm told they're out there.)
Unfortunately, there's a problem. The typical gym rat performs face pulls so poorly it's a miracle they don't injure themselves further.
The face pull is not a "power" exercise, and it certainly isn't an ego lift. Here's what you should do:

• Attach a rope to a pulley station set at about chest level.
• Grasp both ends of the rope with a pronated (overhand) grip.
• Step back so you're supporting the weight with arms completely outstretched and assume a staggered (one foot forward) stance. Bend the knees slightly for a stable base.
• Have a partner (optional) place their fingers along your spine at about the mid-back height. This helps remind you not to use the low back to move the weight.
• Retract the scapulae (squeeze your partner's finger with your shoulder blades) and pull the center of the rope slightly up towards the face. A good cue is to think about pulling the ends of the rope apart, not just pulling back.
• As you near your face, externally rotate so your knuckles are facing the ceiling.
• Hold for one second at the top position and slowly lower.

Notes

• Avoid using too much weight. Going too heavy forces you to involve the lower back to complete the rep, completely defeating the purpose of the exercise and ratcheting up the potential for injury.
• Don't push your head forward to meet the rope. This bastardization looks like you're trying to fellate the Invisible Man. For the sake of the children, please don't do it.
• Don't drop the elbows. Keeping the shoulders-elbows-wrists in a straight line keeps the emphasis on the upper back musculature; dropping the elbows into "low row" position involves more lats.
• Don't go too fast. I know many big, strong bastards blast through their face pulls explosively, but for most this is a movement best hit with a slower, controlled tempo, especially at first.
• If you don't have a partner to keep your back in check, try filming a set to verify your technique. You might be surprised just how ugly your form really is.
• According to an article by Hartman and Robertson, an underhand grip may be a better choice than an overhand grip. If nothing else, I suggest playing around with both variations.
• Stretch the pec minor between sets. The standard "doorway pec stretch" will suffice.

Wrap Up

There's a reason the monthly muscle rags run arm training and bench press articles every month – this is what the average ham and egger gym guy wants to read, and it's certainly what they want to train.
But you're not a kid anymore, and you're supposed to be wise. And a big part of training wisdom is knowing that what you need is more important than what you want.

Get Your Ass Moving!

  One of the biggest issues I see is that people are unable to fire their glutes. Can this be fixed? Of course! This is a great article from Bret Contreras, the Glute Guy. Enjoy!

Glute Training, Low Back Reconditioning

How to Fix Glute Imbalances

by Bret • January 12, 2013 • 83 Comments

Glute imbalances are very common – much more common than you’d imagine. Out of all of the email inquiries I receive from my readers pertaining to the glutes, the topic of imbalances comes up the most often. If you comb the web, you won’t find much good material on this topic. In fact, a Google search of the term “glute imbalance” yielded several links on the front page to threads from some of the most popular strength & conditioning forums – yet no comprehensive answers could be found.  The reason why strength & conditioning experts shy away from this topic is because the answer is complicated. In this article I will first discuss the reasons why you may have a gluteal imbalance, and then I’ll discuss potential solutions.
Causes of Gluteal Imbalances
1. Asymmetrical Human-Nature

By nature, we are asymmetrical beings. Our anatomy itself can be asymmetrical, for example right to left pelvic and hip asymmetries and leg length discrepancies are common. However, of perhaps greater importance is that our daily movement is markedly asymmetrical in nature. We tend to shift to one side when standing for prolonged periods, and we develop comfortable, asymmetrical patterns for common daily tasks.

In sports, it’s natural to rely predominantly on one side during a particular pattern. For example, when we kick, most right-handed individuals will plant off of their left leg and kick with their right leg. For this reason, most right-handed individuals are actually more stable on their left leg and therefore are initially better on their left leg compared to their right leg when learning single leg exercises. In rotational sports, most athletes swing or throw from the same side, which uses the rear glute to a much greater degree than the front glute. It comes as no surprise then that one glute or region of the glute might be stronger and more coordinated than the other.
Therefore, non-significant gluteal imbalances should not necessarily be thought of as dysfunctional, they might just be a natural consequence of life. Significant imbalances of approximately 15% or more, however, should be actively targeted for correction.

2. Inactivity
When considering the human body, we know that some muscles are more prone to inhibition than others, and the glutes are one of these “easily-inhibited” muscles. Several decades ago, physical therapists such as Vladimir Janda noticed that the glutes are quite prone to inhibition, and in the last decade strength coaches for professional teams began to notice that their athletes’ glutes were not functioning optimally.

There are a few reasons why the glutes could shut down. Neural and mechanical inhibition involving opposing muscles can interfere with gluteal activation. For example, tight or shortened hip flexors may lead to what’s been coined “reciprocal inhibition” of the gluteals. There may even be inhibitory consequences to excessive sitting, as compression slows down vascular function and interferes with nerve function. We’ll learn below that pain inhibits muscle contractility and is a major player in glute inhibition. Moreover, gluteal inhibition can negatively impact posture, and poor posture can further inhibit the glutes, thereby creating a downward spiral in gluteal function.
However, probably the biggest reason why the glutes shut down is due to inactivity. If you fail to consistently activate a muscle, and you fail to regularly activate a muscle to high levels of capacity, it will inevitably quit working properly.
If you study electromyography (EMG), you learn that many muscles get highly activated from common, everyday movements. For example, the quads get highly activated every time you stand up from a chair, pick a box up from off the ground, or climb stairs. The erectors are highly activated when bending over to move furniture or perform yard work. The triceps receive sufficient stimulation when posting up to get up from a prone position or to push open a heavy door. The calves are highly activated when climbing stairs, and the abdominals are highly activated when sitting up from a lying position.
However, the gluteus maximus fails to achieve high levels of activation during each of the aforementioned everyday movements. In fact, the nervous system only activates the glutes to around 10% of maximum capacity during the sit-to-stand, especially in the manner in which most sedentary individuals rise from a chair, and gluteus maximus activation is even less during gait at normal walking speeds. Only heavy or explosive movement such as squatting, deadlifting, lunging, hip thrusting, jumping, running, and swinging highly activate the gluteus maximus. The problem is that most people fail to perform any of these activities on a regular basis in the modern-day world.

If we were to examine the muscle density achieved via maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) of 100 sedentary individuals, it is likely that 95 of them would be able to produce significant tension in their quadriceps, calves, abdominals, and triceps musculature, to name a few. However, perhaps only 33 of these individuals would be able to achieve high levels of tension in their gluteus maximus. This is why strength coaches and physical therapists alike have gravitated toward prescribing simple, low-load glute-activation drills to their athletes and patients. They are seeking to counteract the natural tendency of the glutes to shut-down and to teach the glutes to fire fast and hard when needed during functional movement.
3. Pain, Prior Injury, and Structural Issues

I mentioned above that pain is a huge inhibitor of the gluteus maximus. This is a big deal. Research shows that the glutes can become inhibited with just about any lower body or spinal injury. How many of you readers have stubbed your toe? This inhibits the glutes. How many of you have sprained an ankle? Glute inhibition. Hurt your knee or your hip? Pulled a groin or hammy? Fell on your tailbone? Experienced sciatica? Tweaked your low back? All of these injuries decrease glute activation. Is this a bad thing?

Not exactly. The glutes are major propulsion muscles. They produce powerful locomotion. Inhibiting the glutes will cause an individual to slow down so they can heal. Back in the day, you would not have survived long if you were forced to hobble around for the rest of your life due to injury. So from an evolutionary survival standpoint, this is a wise strategy.
The problem is that the glutes don’t necessarily turn back on automatically. They must be reactivated, restrengthened, and recoordinated back into every day movement and activity. How many people sprain their ankle, and upon healing, perform glute activation drills and utilize a progressive approach to reintegrate their glute into functional, high-force, and high-velocity movement? The overwhelming majority do not.
Following injury, most folks simply keep on keepin’ on, and their movement patterns suffer. Rather than experiencing proper glute function during movement, they rely on other muscles to get the job done. This is why you see pelvises dropping to the side and knees collapsing inward during gait, backs rounding over during lifting tasks, and an over-reliance on the hamstrings for hip extension. The body is resilient and will find a way to prevail, and people can become very fit despite using the wrong muscles or displaying faulty movement patterns. Next time you go for an early morning drive, pay attention to the joggers. You’ll notice that not many of them appear athletic or possess good running posture. Sadly, most look like they’re “speed-limping.” But even advanced athletes often have faulty glute function. One study examining strongmen showed that the best heavily incorporated the glutes during lifting tasks, whereas the less-skilled relied predominantly on the back musculature.
Finally, we must consider morphological structural issues that could contribute to diminished glute function. To list some examples, let’s say that you have lost the natural arch in your right foot, or you have bone spurs in right hip, or you have scoliosis, or you have excessive anterior pelvic tilt, or you damaged the lateral meniscus in your right knee. Each of these could create glute inhibition. To confuse matters, some of these could have been caused by glute inhibition (remember the downward spiral I referred to earlier?). So structural changes can cause or be caused by gluteal inhibition.

But don’t be alarmed – these conditions don’t guarantee glute dysfunction. An athlete could possess any one of these maladies and yet still possess sound-functioning glutes. In fact, perhaps the best pound-for-pound deadlifter in powerlifting history had severe scoliosis, and a majority of sprinters have “excessive” anterior pelvic tilt.
Solutions for Restoring Gluteal Imbalance

As we noted above, glute imbalances can be caused by dysfunction brought upon by pain or inactivity and are therefore a “dysfunctional consequence.” However, they can also be caused by everyday life and sports and are therefore a “functional consequence.”

I do not know why YOUR glutes are imbalanced. Let’s say that we had a consultation and I learned your entire athletic and injury history – at best I could only speculate as to why you have a glute imbalance. Maybe when you were in high school you hurt your left knee, which caused your left glute to shut-down, and since you never rehabilitated properly, your body memorized sub-optimal movement patterns and has been relying on faulty motor control ever since. Maybe in your twenties you quit playing sports and quit going to the gym and pretty much sat on the couch for 3 years. During this time, perhaps you rarely used your glutes, and the only times you did anything that used the glutes to any substantial degree, you relied predominantly on the left leg, causing the right glute to shut down while keeping the left strong. Maybe your favorite sport was highly asymmetrical and you swung a club or threw right handed, strengthening your right glute to a much greater degree than your left.
Whatever the case is, it usually doesn’t matter as the solution is often the same. During the “re-education” process, it’s important to have proper perspective. You might have been walking around with a gluteal imbalance for over a decade, therefore it’s going to take some time to rewire your motor circuitry. If it takes a few months for the problem to normalize, so be it. Each session you’ll be a little bit closer to your goal so be patient. Also recall that we want to strengthen the “neuromuscular” unit. There’s a neural and muscular component to fixing the issue. Right now your dysfunctional glute is weak and doesn’t want to activate. You need to get it easily-excitable through neural reeducation, and then you can focus on increasing strength and hypertrophy.
Wait for Pain to Subside
When pain exists during movement, the brain is trying to shut down the glutes, so this is not a good time to try to be teaching the glutes “motor learning.” There simply will not be much learning going on in the gluteal motor. So wait until pain subsides to start attempting to fix the dysfunctional glute.
Assuming pain is gone, there are six strategies that you may choose to employ. Depending on your situation, you may want to stick to just some of the strategies, or you may employ all six simultaneously. It all depends on your situation. Here are the six strategies:
1. Isometric Contractions for the Weaker Glute

The first thing you want to do in order to try to fix a gluteal imbalance is perform a bunch of extra work for the weaker glute. What you need to do is establish a solid mind-muscle connection (MMC) with the dysfunctional glute. One great way of going about this is to perform isometric contractions. Here is a good series to perform on a daily basis:

• 10 sets of 3-second maximum contractions with the weaker glute from a standing position
• 10 sets of 3-second maximum contractions with the weaker glute from a seated position
• 10 sets of 3-second maximum contractions with the weaker glute from a prone position

* Rest 5 seconds in between isoholds

You can do these isometrics anywhere as they don’t require equipment. In fact, you can even do them while you’re at work. It’s unlikely that anybody will notice, unless the person is staring right at your butt. Don’t be afraid to perform these multiple times throughout the day.
2. Low-Load Dynamic Drills for the Weaker Glute

In addition to the isometric contractions, you want to perform a variety of dynamic movements for the weaker glute so you target all the glute fibers through their multiple roles. The goal is to choose very simple exercises that aren’t challenging. This way, you can steer the neural flow to the gluteus maximus and prevent it from flowing excessively to the hamstrings or other synergists. You do not want to go to failure when performing sets of these exercises. Five to seven days per week, you want to perform a 5-10-minute motor-learning routine for the weaker glute consisting of:

• 2 sets of 10-20 reps of side lying abductions with the weaker leg
• 2 sets of 10-20 reps of side lying clams with the weaker leg
• 2 sets of 10-20 reps of quadruped hip extensions with the weaker leg
• 2 sets of 10-20 reps of single leg glute bridges with the weaker leg

* Rest 30 seconds between sets
* Perform the exercises in circuit fashion; first the abduction, then the clam, then the quadruped, then the bridge, then repeat
* Don’t do any of these drills for the stronger leg/glute

Remember, the focus is on quality muscle contractions. You want to feel these movements as much as possible in the gluteus maximus of the dysfunctional side. Tinker around with your form and figure out how to maximize gluteal recruitment during these movements. Positioning for maximum gluteal recruitment varies from person to person so I can’t give you the exact recipe here – you need to figure it out for your body. Don’t add load in the form of bands or ankle weights, don’t perform more challenging variations, and don’t perform more than 20 repetitions. You’re not going for progressive overload – you’re aiming for gluteal reeducation.
3. Low-to-Medium-Load Symmetrical Bilateral Movements

You don’t need to completely shy away from squatting, deadlifting, hip thrusting, or back extensions. Just don’t worry about load for a while and instead focus on symmetrical movement and feeling the glute muscles work equally on each side. You’re going to be blending your newfound increased glute activation into your motor programs for each movement, so this is an important element to your success.
In fact, strengthening the glute alone will not solve your issue. Your neural circuitry has been wired for asymmetrical movement patterns and muscle recruitment. It has built a “motor engram,” or a memorized movement pattern, and you’re trying to rewire the circuitry. You need to learn to activate the weaker glute, you need it to be stronger, and you need to build up its hypertrophy, and you’ll do this by hammering the weaker side. But this alone will not provide a complete fix.
You still need to learn to perform bilateral movements properly. Every repetition of squats, deadlifts, hip thrusts, and back extensions you perform with perfect symmetry while feeling the weaker glute activate properly is a PLUS. Every repetition of squats and deadlifts you perform that is not symmetrical in movement and activation is a MINUS. It’s up to you to learn your loading threshold and stick to loads that allow for proper motor programming. For some, this equates to bodyweight loading, and for others, 70% of 1RM might be okay. However, even if your imbalance is not that significant, you definitely want to shy away from anything above 90% of 1RM for at least a month.

When you go too heavy, your body WILL find the path of least resistance in order to get the job done. One of your glutes is weaker than the other and if you push the envelope your body will work around it by using other muscles and contorting the body (i.e.: shifting to one side, rotating at the hips). So please remember: good reps take you forward; bad reps take you backward and cause stagnation!
Gradually increase loading over the course of several months. If you ramp up too soon, you won’t progress as you’ll just confuse the weaker glute and prevent reintegration. You may wish to start off with easier variations such as goblet squats and RDLs. Take your time and be patient.
4. Bilateral Movements with Resistance Bands Around the Knees, Ankles, or Feet

Bodyweight squatting and bridging patterns with resistance bands around the knees are very effective for gluteal reeducation and should be performed during warm-ups. In addition, various types of band walks can and should be performed. These have different names, such as x-band walks, sumo walks, and monster walks. I recommend placing bands around the mid-feet and performing both crouched and upright walking movements. I also recommend performing these walks both forward and backward as well as from side to side. Just pick a couple of these band exercises each session and perform 2 sets of each during the warm-up. Again, don’t go for PR’s and progressive overload, go for activation. Think QUALITY, not QUANTITY.

5. Single Leg Movements and Core Stability Drills

Here’s the deal. You don’t want your strong leg to get weaker, and you don’t want the glutes, hamstrings, adductors, and quads on the good leg to shrivel up. What you do want is for the glute on the weaker side to catch up as quickly as possible so it matches that of the stronger side. Performing low-to-medium load bilateral movements will prevent the hip and thigh muscles on the dominant side from experiencing significant atrophy, and you won’t lose appreciable amounts of strength either. So let that give you peace of mind.
However, you can still perform some traditional single leg work (think Bulgarian split squats, step ups, reverse lunges, single leg RDLs, single leg hip thrusts, and single leg back extensions) or core stability work (think Pallof presses, side planks, and band hip rotations) with two caveats:

• Don’t go too heavy to the point where you no longer feel the weaker glute doing the brunt of the work. If you can’t accomplish this with bodyweight loading, then don’t do them – they’re too advanced for you and will prevent you from progressing. Assuming you do feel these movements working the weaker glute properly, then you can indeed incorporate them into your programming, but the set stops the second form breaks down or the second you stop feeling the glute doing the work.
• Do twice the volume for the weaker side compared to the stronger side. If you do 10 reps for the weaker side, stick to 5 reps for the stronger side. This will also prevent strength and hypertrophy losses for the dominant side while allowing the weaker glute to catch up.

If you play an asymmetrical sport that’s in season, I advise you to not do any work for the dominant side as it’s getting plenty of work during the sport and practices themselves.
6. Self-Myofascial Release (SMR) and Static and Dynamic Stretches
It is very important for your hip mobility to be symmetrical. You should test your hip flexibility for each leg in all possible directions. You want to test your hip flexion, hip extension, hip abduction, hip adduction, hip internal rotation, and hip external rotation flexibility for each hip. If you have a marked asymmetry in any of the motions, then you should attempt to restore balance as quickly as possible. While the strengthening movements can help with this goal, some SMR and stretching is synergistic and will expedite the process. Often you will find that hip rotation imbalances exist (external or internal). If so, you will benefit from performing a combination of foam rolling, static stretches, and dynamic stretches to help achieve balanced flexibility. Stick to 5 minutes of SMR and flexibility work for the affected side.

Automaticity is the Goal
Your goal is to eventually reach automaticity and quit having to “think glutes” all day long. Sure, any good lifter has to remind him or herself to squeeze the glutes on maximal hip extension exercises such as when locking out a deadlift. But both of your glutes should fire automatically when you extend the hip (or conduct any other movement that relies on the glutes). Within six-months of gluteal reeducation, you should be able to balance out your strength and movement patterns – hopefully even quicker.
You eventually want to be able to perform high-load movements such as maximal squats and deadlifts and explosive movements such as jump squats, power cleans, kettlebell swings, plyos, and sprints, with symmetrical and properly functioning gluteals. As you progress in your gluteal reeducation you will begin to ramp up in loading and perform more challenging exercises. As this occurs, you will begin to wean yourself off of isometric contractions and low-load glute activation drills. For less-serious cases of glute imbalances, this process might take 4 weeks. For more serious glute imbalances, the process could take 3-6 months. It’s impossible to tell. Just be consistent and diligent and you should be able to restore proper function.

Conclusion

I hope that this article has shed some light on gluteal imbalances and provided you with solutions to your problem. In summary:

• Don’t train in pain
• Perform lots of extra work for the weaker glute in the form of isometric and low-load dynamic glute activation drills
• Perform lighter bilateral movements such as squats and deadlifts with perfect symmetry
• Utilize resistance bands placed around the feet, ankles, or knees to perform squats, bridges, and various walking movements
• Perform extra volume for the weaker leg when busting out single leg and core stability work such as lunges, single leg RDLs, side planks and Pallof presses, and
• Perform SMR and flexibility work if you have hip flexibility imbalances.

Always think quality over quantity, and focus intensively on reprogramming the weaker glute and developing a proper MMC. In time, you should be able to solve your problem, reach automaticity, and possess a balanced booty.

Are you this guy???

  This is a classic piece from Eric Cressey from a few years ago. He is one of the absolute brightest coaches in the business and Cressey Performance in Boston is one of the top facilities in the country. Do some of these apply to you? I admit some have applied to me! Read on...

6 Lost Lifters
by Eric Cressey

I'm normally somewhat of a bookworm and science geek, although – to blow a little sunshine up my own butt – I have to say, I'm getting better at reading people.
T-Nation has been great for me in this regard. Your ordinary trainer might be exposed to 20 different clients in a week, and a typical collegiate strength coach might encounter 100 to 150 athletes over the course of a week. Like many others in this biz, I've been fortunate to experience both of those realms.
However, I do have a few legs up on my colleagues in this regard. I routinely get dozens of emails each day from readers, and have the opportunity to interact with the T-folk on our Author's Locker Room threads and at seminars. I can also chat with other coaches, trainers, writers, and therapists on a daily basis.
So, effectively, I get a broader pool of athletes, coaches, health care professionals, rehab patients, and ordinary weekend warriors from which to form my perspective on things. Sounds like a lead-in to my memoirs, huh?
Shut up and get to the point already!
Okay, you don't have to tell me twice. On the six-hour drive back from the D.C. T-Fest, I spent some time pondering who the typical T-Nation reader is. Hell, I'm writing articles for this typical lifter, so I might as well stop to consider what he really is.
After a few hours, it came to me: there is no "typical" T-Nation reader!
In fact, based on all the individuals I encountered in D.C., it was readily apparent that while all these folks had come to D.C. because they obviously wanted knowledge to help them achieve their goals, they all needed to be told different things – even in the broadest sense.
With that in mind, I came to identify six types of lifters that I see on a daily basis. Below, I'll describe them and offer some suggestions on how to get the ball rolling if you realize you're one of these lost individuals.

The "I'm Not Concerned with Strength" Guy

This one just has to go first.
There I was, sitting between two of the best strength athletes and coaches in the world, and it all came to a head. I almost lost it.
It had been said several times already over the course of the weekend seminar in D.C., and I had just shrugged it off each time, hoping it was just a slip of the tongue from some unsuspecting audience member. "Just give 'em a mulligan and move on," I'd tell myself.
There I sat on the end-of-the-day roundtable discussion with Dave Tate on my left and Dan John on my right. Both had just finished lively, entertaining presentations that absolutely blew the audience away. At the ripe ol' age of 24, I was feeling pretty damn honored to be sitting between these two guys. However, I wasn't too "star-struck" to overlook the abominable, yet nonchalant comment that was to follow from an audience member:
"I'm really only interested in size, not strength." To me, it was the spoken equivalent of a fart in church. As far as I could tell, many of the members of the roundtable shared my distaste for the statement.
Alwyn Cosgrove buried his head in his hands and muttered something about ancient Scottish execution traditions. Anthony Roberts set down his beer and pondered the fate of the universe. Joel Marion wiggled uneasily in his chair. Dave Barr almost choked on the three Pop Tarts he had stuffed in his mouth. Dan John stared off into space in disbelief, and I could practically feel the steam coming out of Dave Tate's ears. Dr. Ryan Smith even lost neutral spine for a second and sunk into a position of dangerous lumbar flexion. The entire panel was "quietly" up in arms.

I'm the guy in the white shirt on the far right whose daydreams about deadlifts were just interrupted by the sudden urge to vomit in my mouth.

How could the guy who made this statement not see that size and strength are intimately related? Have we not done a good job of relating that over the past eight years at T-Nation? Even if size and strength weren't related, how could anyone not care about strength? I don't care whether you're deadlifting 700 pounds or carrying a bag of groceries, it's fun and functional to be strong.
I could've jumped right up and given him a sermon on how a lack of maximal strength will have a ceiling effect on other motor qualities; about how power and strength endurance will peak without maximal strength; about how you can't expect to be progressively more successful in traditional hypertrophy training zones without training them with heavier loads over time.
Call it whatever you want: resistance training or weight training; in both cases, the first word implies that you actually have to put some damn weight on the bar. For reasons that are beyond my comprehension, I kept my yapper shut at the time.
Some Recommendations for the "I'm Not Concerned with Strength" Guy: Shit or get off the pot, dude! We're lifting heavy things here! Stop measuring the effectiveness of a session by how much blood is in your biceps, and more by how much weight is on the bar as compared to the last session.
Set up an Excel spreadsheet on your hard drive. Pick eight lifts: four upper body, four lower body. Put down your 1RM on each of those movements. Do everything in your power to add 10% to each of those lifts over the course of six months. Get stronger and you'll be amazed at what happens to your body. You might even put on some of that size you covet so much!

The "Too Much, Too Soon" Guy

This is the guy who veterans should all love to help. He's enthusiastic about lifting and really wants to learn everything there is to know about training. Unfortunately, he also wants to try everything, usually all at once! One or more of four things happens:
1. He overtrains and winds up feeling like absolute crap all the time. In the process, he begins to assume that this is how lifting is supposed to make you feel, and writes it off forever. Basically, he burns out on something he never understood.
2. He starts off with bad lifting technique habits because he hasn't established a foundation for safe form. He might have a weak core, tightness in his hips, and no frontal plane stability, leaving him squatting with a rounded back and knocked knees. He either establishes bad habits that'll be difficult to break down the road (if he breaks them at all), or he winds up getting hurt. Either way, he's off to a bad start.
3. He piles too much weight on the bar or does too much volume, and winds up with a traumatic or overuse injury.
4. He makes good gains with some volume, and immediately assumes that more volume will equate to more gains. This might be the case as a newbie, but it's a bad impression to have going into the intermediate and advanced stages of your training career.
Some Recommendations for the "Too Much, Too Soon" Guy: Your enthusiasm is admirable; don't lose it! However, do lose the quick-fix mindset and learn to love the process as much as the destination.
Find a good lifting crew or more experienced training partner to watch over you as you get started. Post often on forums where there are a lot of experienced lifters. Show that enthusiasm and a willingness to learn, and always thank them for their advice. If you do so, they'll almost always point you in the right direction.
Also, remember that just because you can lift a weight on a given day doesn't mean you should lift it on that day. Rest is as important as training, and you need to know when to take back-off weeks. Lastly, form always comes first; lift in good technique and the weight will come.

The "One Step Forward, One Step Back with Injuries" Guy

I've always felt that maximal strength is a lifter's single most precious commodity. However, one flaw in my logic was that there's one thing that's completely foundational to being strong: your health.
We've all been down the injury road, so it's fair to say that we've all been in this category at least once in our training careers. I can't tell you how often I get emails from people saying that they were making incredible progress with their bench press or squat until they got hurt, and now they're back to square one.
In the context of this classification, the factors that separate frustrated lifters from successful lifters who "escape" from this category in the long-term are:
1. The ability to recognize the injury immediately and take an appropriate course of action. "Train through it" isn't an option unless you're a really big time athlete on the brink of a really big time competition/game. Curt Schilling in the 2004 ALCS would be a good example.

I just had to take a shot at Yankees fans.

Short-term therapeutic modalities include soft tissue treatments (e.g. ART, massage), ultrasound, cryotherapy, compressive wraps, and the abhorred rest.
2. The ability to understand how to train around the injury in order to avoid detraining during the downtime you must take.
3. A knowledge of how dietary and supplemental factors influence recovery. Just because you're hurt doesn't mean you should be comforting yourself with an entire gallon of ice cream.
4. An appropriate progression when the time comes to return to lifting. For example, when someone is coming back from external impingement and wants to bench again, I use the following progression:
Body Weight Push-up Isometric Holds > Body Weight Push-up > Weighted Push-up > Cable Crossover from Low Pulley > Cable Crossover from Hip Height > Neutral Grip DB Floor Press > Neutral Grip Decline DB Press > Pronated Grip Decline DB Press > Barbell Board Press (gradual lowering) > Decline Barbell Press > Flat DB Press > Incline DB Press > Barbell Bench Press > Barbell Incline Press
Basically, I know that I want to go in the order of:

• Closed-chain (e.g. push-up) before open-chain (e.g. bench press).

• Arms below shoulder level before arms at and above shoulder level.

• Traction (pulling the humeral head away from the socket, as with a cable crossover) before approximation (forcing the humeral head into the fossa, as with a bench press).

• Dumbbells (allows freedom of motion in humeral rotation) before barbells.

• Isometrics and long eccentrics before "regular" speed movements.

All the while, the individual would still be addressing all the factors that led to the injury in the first place. In this case, I'd be looking to continue strengthening the scapular retractors and depressors and the humeral external rotators.
He'd also continue range of motion and soft-tissue work on the upper traps, levator scapulae, pecs, lats, anterior delts, subscapularis, and teres major while paying close attention to his posture. I'd recommend icing after exercise and ART as often as possible to get that shoulder back on track. Obviously, this is just one example, but it should give you a picture of the thought process that should go into returning from an injury.
5. A fundamental knowledge of how to prevent recurrence of the injury.

Now here's a guy who could've used Eric's help rehabbing.

So, with these five considerations in mind, how are you going to avoid becoming one of the frustrated ones?
Some Recommendations for the "One Step Forward, One Step Back with Injuries" Guy: First, you need to take care of your soft tissues. It's important to address soft tissue quality with soft-tissue treatments like ART and foam rolling , and then address soft tissue length. Dynamic joint range of motion ("active length" that's neurally mediated) should be addressed with dynamic flexibility/mobility training, while passive flexibility ("feel good" range of motion that's particularly good in rehabilitation) can be addressed with static stretching.
Second, you need to keep the diet clean during recovery. Increase your intake of healthy fats, keep overall calories high enough to facilitate healing, and don't indulge in junk carbs.
Third, take back-off weeks in your training. It's impossible to go full throttle year-round; many injuries are simply the result of tissues "giving in" to a chronic stress. If they're given a break, they have time to adapt and come back stronger. If you hammer on them mercilessly, you just continue to make them more susceptible to injury. Your nervous system will thank you, too.
Fourth, warm up properly before training. You can kill two birds with one stone and get your warm-up and dynamic flexibility work in simultaneously with the drills outlined in Magnificent Mobility.

Insert shameless plug here. (I have student loans to pay off, ya know?)

Fifth, train with structural balance. To keep this discussion very simple, balance all your pushes with pulls, and then add in a bunch of rows, external rotations, and single-leg exercises.
Sixth, know the limits of your knowledge. If you don't understand how the human body works, seek out the help of a qualified professional to help you design a "return to action" plan. Trust me, it'll be worth the money in the long-run!

The "No Goal" Guy

The word "training" implies that you're preparing for something. If you don't have something for which to prepare, you're really just working out – and that doesn't distinguish you much from the housewife on the abductor machine next to you.
Sure, you probably look better in shorts than she does, but at the end of the session, you're both just one hour closer to dying. When I leave the gym, I know I'm one hour closer to an elite total. Just some food for thought.

This Guy "Works Out"	This Guy "Trained"

Some Recommendations for the "No Goal" Guy: I can't tell you what your goal is supposed to be, but you need to decide on one. It might be powerlifting, bodybuilding, strongman, intramural soccer, or pocket pool. Whatever it may be, put it in writing and tack it up somewhere you know you'll see it every day. Here's the dry erase board on my refrigerator reminding me of the squat-bench-deadlift number I need for Elite in my next meet.

I've seen this each time I've walked past the fridge since November... and I eat a lot.

I also get a reminder with every lift at South Side when I look up at my previous best total that's on the record board. You can't plan for something if you don't have a goal!

The "No Plan" Guy

Often, this is someone who has progressed from being a "No Goal" Guy to having a goal, but not determining an appropriate course of action to achieve it. Conversely, it's not uncommon for the "No Plan" Guy to be in this situation because he really doesn't know exactly what he needs to do to get from Point A to Point B.
I've always said that the toughest person for whom to write programs is oneself. There's a natural tendency to prioritize your favorite lifts instead of those you need the most, and you can never get an accurate assessment of where you're erring in your ways when you're lifting.
Some Recommendations for the "No Plan" Guy: If you think you know what you need to do, write it down and do it. You might also consider bouncing it off someone whose opinion you value with respect to training, nutrition, and supplementation.
If you haven't the slightest idea what to do, you've got several options. As noted above, find someone with whom you've trained to throw some ideas your way. Post some thoughts on the forum here at T-Nation to get feedback from others. Read up on what others have done before you set out to accomplish the same goals.
You'd be wise to find a good training partner or crew to help you brainstorm a plan and put it into action. If that's not feasible, consider online coaching with someone who can tell you what to do and how to do it. It's generally cheaper than even a few sessions per month with your local bonehead personal trainer.

The "No Attitude" Guy

Entire articles have been devoted to this topic, but the truth is that most people who don't have attitude already know that this is their problem! The secret rests with finding something that will light a fire under this guy's ass as he steps into the squat rack – if he ever makes it there in the first place.
Some Recommendations for the "No Attitude" Guy: First up, find a good training partner. Make sure that he's completely devoted and preferably strong, experienced, and butt-ugly (you won't find many "pretty" guys who are strong).
Second, find a hardcore gym that allows chalk and plays loud, belligerent, "my mother didn't love me" music. Powerlifting gyms are great for this purpose – even if you aren't a powerlifter per se. You can find a decent, but certainly not extensive, list of suitable U.S. gyms HERE.
Likewise, the guys over at Elitefts.com will always help you find some good training partners if you're looking to get into the sport. Just throw a post up on their forums and they'll help to get you on track. Or, you can simply throw an inquiry up on the forums here at T-Nation. You'll be surprised at how many small, hardcore, dungeon-like gyms can be found not too far from where you live.
Third (and this piggybacks on my last recommendation), find a good training crew. If they won't toughen you up, nothing will.
Fourth, figure out what music it is that fires you up, and make sure that you have that music playing on the ride to the gym and once you get to the gym.
Fifth, go rent Braveheart and Gladiator and eat some red meat.

A Brief Word in Closing

Don't get me wrong, I don't feel that everyone falls into one of these categories. There are plenty of people out there who really have it together, and others who falter for reasons other than the ones I mentioned. This is just my observation of the most common problems.
I'm certainly interested in hearing T-Nation's opinion on what other "types" need to be included in this discussion. I encourage you to throw out some ideas in the replies to this article. It sounds corny, but the more we know, the more we grow!

About the Author

Eric Cressey, M.A., C.S.C.S., has helped athletes of all levels achieve their highest levels of performance. He earned his Master's Degree in Kinesiology from the University of Connecticut, where he was involved in varsity strength and conditioning and human performance laboratory research. An accomplished competitive powerlifter, Cressey trains at the world-renowned South Side Gym in Stratford, Connecticut. You can email him at ericcressey@hotmail.com and purchase Magnificent Mobility through the Biotest Store.

Know your limitations!!

Awesome article! Know the difference and why many of us cringe at the idea that anyone can perform these lifts. Enjoy.

The Fallacy of High-Rep Olympic Lifting

by Mark Rippetoe – 8/26/2013

Here's what you need to know...

• High-rep snatches or clean and jerks can be done safely by very experienced Olympic lifters. But they wouldn't do them anyway because there's no purpose.

• The average person who does high-rep Olympic lifts is a walking encyclopedia of bad, unsafe, and unproductive form.

• Snatches and clean and jerks, as technique-dependent lifts, fall apart easily in the presence of fatigue.

• There's a time for conditioning, but there are better ways to do it than to perform the Olympic lifts like a jackass.

The use of high-rep snatches and clean and jerks for conditioning must be evaluated in the context of the program. Are we using them for exercise or training? And does it really matter?
First, if an experienced Olympic lifter wants to use snatches and C&Js for conditioning or on a dare, sure, go ahead. An experienced lifter actually knows how to do them correctly. And he has had back position and lockout technique hammered into his head enough that these important factors will not erode that much with fatigue – the reps will just be rested longer in between.
So, for an experienced lifter, high-rep snatches won't be a problem. But such a person won't do them anyway, since high-rep snatches don't accomplish anything productive.
For casual exercisers, CrossFit-types and the like, the calculation is a bit different. The vomit I see on the internet – complete lumbar flexion, everything pressed out, everything intentionally rebounded from the floor, all done under the watchful eye of some moron saying "Nice!" – makes me of two minds.
Part of me hopes the fools hurt themselves badly (after all, orthopedic surgeons gotta eat too), and part of me hopes their incompetent, stupid-ass coaches all die in a great Job-like mass of infection (boils, abscessed hemorrhoids, lungs full of fluid, etc.).
It's both an embarrassment to watch and a testament to the fact that apparently tens of thousands of people don't know what the fuck they are doing, and have no apparent desire to learn.

But Are They Good for Conditioning?

But the real question here is this: what do you hope to accomplish by doing high-rep snatches, done either correctly or incorrectly? And in either case, is there a better alternative, and why?
"Conditioning" is the use of high-intensity, longer-duration glycolytic exercise to elevate heart rate and respiration rate for the purpose of adapting to this type of work. Conditioning is a type of stress to which the body quickly adapts.
You know this is true if you've been paying attention. It doesn't take an already-strong person more than three or four weeks to get back into very good condition if he has somehow lost it. But it takes a distance runner a couple of years to get strong if he's never been strong before.
The task of getting strong vs. the task of getting in condition presents a problem, since the two types of adaptation compete for resources within the organism in a predictable way: conditioning interferes with strength acquisition, and strength training improves work output without doing any conditioning.
If conditioning is important to you, being stronger should be more important, and getting strong is made a slower process if you try to do conditioning – work that interferes with getting stronger – while trying to get strong. There will be time for conditioning, later. After you get strong.
Using high-rep, light-weight "snatches" and "clean and jerks" for the purpose of conditioning is rather pointless, in that these two technique-dependent movements break down under fatigue, especially for a person for whom technique and strength has not been previously established.
For everybody that does them, doing high numbers of reps with light weights and bad form adapts you to doing precisely that: lots of very light reps, done wrong. So doing them this way can't possibly make you better at doing snatches and C&Js, it can't make you stronger, and there are much better and safer ways to do conditioning... when it's time to do conditioning.

So Why Do Them?

Because the "WOD" says so? Because they're "fun"? Because everybody else in the class is doing them, so you have to? Because they "gas" you? Because you want to get "smoked" with a movement that isn't boring, because you're not "tired" of doing them yet because you haven't practiced them enough to really even have any idea at all about how to do them correctly?
If this is the case, you're not training the snatch and the C&J anyway. You're just exercising with them.

From Exerciser to Trainer

What's the difference? I'll refresh your memory. Briefly, capital-"T" Training is the process of driving a physical adaptation in a specific direction for a specific purpose, while capital-"E" Exercise is what we do for the way it makes us feel today: before, during, and after the workout itself.
For most people – housewives, car salesmen, fat people, the dull and torpid – Exercise is enough. It's better than sitting on your ass. But at some point, some of these people will graduate to Training, and when this happens, planning must occur.
Planning means that there will be lots of days when your workout doesn't make you feel like you want it to, but because you're now Training, you do it anyway, because it's part of the process that generates the result for which you planned.

Effective Conditioning

If you want to do conditioning effectively, push the Prowler, run some hills, or do some sprints. They're easier to dose accurately, they don't make you look like an inexperienced fool, and they lack the injury potential of rounded-back, incorrectly-locked-out-overhead, bounced-off-the-floor barbell movements.
They are a much better alternative because they can be programmed into your Training. If you want to do some explosive conditioning work that won't be detrimental to your shoulder and back health (and your self-worth), do some kettlebell swings or some dumbbell snatches. Leave the Olympic lifts to the Olympic lifters.
But if you just want some Exercise, enjoy yourself, make sure you pay your gym dues, and everybody will be happy.

Debunking the Protein Myth

  One of the longest ongoing debates has been, how much protein is too much? Here, Brad Schoenfeld delivers a concise, scientifically-based article that supports the theory that it is quite hard to overeat this macronutrient. Looks like there will be a part 2 as well. Enjoy!

High Protein Intake: Myths and Misconceptions About Safety (Part 1)

Read pretty much any academic nutrition text and you’ll get the same-old same-old about high-protein diets being harmful to your health. The concerns center around everything from cardiovascular disease to kidney function to bone resorption. Question is, are these claims grounded in science or are they mostly hyperbole?

We can dismiss the cardiovascular claims offhand as they are based on consumption of ketogenic diets. The issue here is not with protein intake per se but rather with saturated fat. Let’s be clear: you can have a high protein intake without consuming large amounts of dietary fat. They are not necessarily tied to one another. Lean poultry, fish and beef have a low fat content. So any discussion about cardiovascular issues should be relegated to dietary fat consumption irrespective of protein intake (and for the record, there is much dispute as to whether saturated fat actually plays a role in atherosclerosis – but that’s a topic for another day).
That out of the way, I’ll delve into the other areas of contention. In this post I’ll cover the effects of a high protein intake on kidney function. In Part II I’ll explore the impact on bone. Okay, let’s dig in.
The claim that a high protein intake is detrimental to the kidneys has been attributed to Dr. Barry Brenner, a physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. A little background is in order to understand the purported issues. The metabolism of protein entails a complex sequence of events for proper assimilation to take place. During digestion, protein is broken down into its component parts, the amino acids (via a process called deamination). A byproduct of this occurrence is the production of ammonia, a toxic substance, in the body. Ammonia, in turn, is rapidly converted into the relatively non-toxic substance urea in the liver, which is then transported to the kidneys for excretion. The excretory process initially takes place in an area of the kidneys called the glomerulus, where waste is filtered through a large network of capillaries.

Brenner proposed that the associated urea production from excessive protein intake overloads the glomerulus, thereby causing renal injury and dysfunction. This became known as the “Brenner Hypothesis.” Brenner’s work in the area was published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine and the hypothesis subsequently became gospel in academic nutritional circles.
Here’s the rub: Brenner’s hypothesis was based on data from animal studies and those with existing renal disease. And as any good scientist knows, you cannot necessarily extrapolate such results to a healthy population.
An examination of the literature shows that, within wide limits, there is no evidence that a diet high in protein has any detrimental effects on those with normal renal function. Healthy kidneys are readily able to filter out elevated amounts of urea. In a review of research, Martin et al. concluded that “we find no significant evidence for a detrimental effect of high protein intakes on kidney function in healthy persons after centuries of a high protein Western diet.” These findings are consistent with those in a review on the effect of high protein diets in an athletic population. Studies have examined protein intakes in excess of three times the RDA without noting ill-effect. And in case you want to argue that the negative effects of protein intake on renal function take a long time to manifest and thus may not be detectable in shorter-term studies, a recent study by Lowery et al. found no markers of renal damage over a nine-year period in a cohort of healthy resistance trained subjects who consumed an average of 2.5 g/kg/day. It should be noted that increased protein consumption does lead to increases in renal size over time. However, studies show that this is a normal adaptation that has no adverse effects on kidney function.
Can a healthy person over-consume protein? Theoretically yes. Beyond a certain point the liver is unable to upregulate urea cycle enzymes to effectively handle the excess nitrogen load. This was displayed in early American explorers who subsisted exclusively on a diet of lean meat. Persistant adherence to such a diet led to a condition known as “Rabbit Starvation Syndrome” where these individuals developed severe nausea and diahrrea, and ultimately died shortly thereafter.
So how much is too much? It has been postulated by some researchers that an intake greater than ~4 to 5 g/kg/day may exceed the body’s ability to convert the excess nitrogen load to urea for safe excretion. Thus, a 165 pound male would theoretically fall into the safe range at anything up to about 300 g/day; a guy weighing 220 pounds would have an upper limit of ~400 g/day. That’s *a lot* of protein! In actuality, this recommendation is probably a bit conservative. A portion of the protein you consume does not require deamination since it is directly utilized for structural remodeling of bodily tissues as well as production of hormones, enzymes, and other functions. Thus, safe levels of intake conceivably would be somewhat higher than previously thought.
Bottom line: High protein intakes may be detrimental to those with existing renal dysfunction, but there is no evidence that any negative effects are seen in individuals with healthy kidneys. Consumption of up to approximately 4 g/kg/day appears to pose no increased health risk when kidney function is normal. It’s been well-demonstrated that resistance-trained individuals require at least twice the amount of protein compared to non-lifters (although the benefit of consuming more than ~2 g/kg remains questionable from an anabolism standpoint). Moreover, higher protein intakes are beneficial for fat loss, both in terms of promoting satiety as well as reducing muscle catabolism during times of caloric restriction.
Stay tuned for Part II where I’ll discuss the claim that high protein diets are harmful to bone.
Stay Fit!
Brad

Think you're a bad ass?

  Here is a great podcast from Mark Devine, former Seal and current trainer. This is brought to you from Will Brink. Enjoy!

BrinkZone Radio

US Navy SEALs: Exercise training, eating, and supplements.

The US Navy SEALs are some of the most elite special operations units in the US military. How do they train, eat, and supplement during their training to become these elite level soldiers? This week we go to the source for that information, speaking with Mark Divine. Mark was an active SEAL for almost a decade and has been involved with the ongoing training since retiring. How has it changed since he was in the SEAL teams to modern day? In this show, you’ll find out the real deal from the legit source on how they train, eat, and supplement to survive the training.

Listen to show click HERE

Tabata??

The Tabata Delusion

Tony Gentilcore is one of my favorite writers because of his humorous yet truthful style. Here he addresses something that I have totally agreed with for a long time, the misuse of the word 'Tabata'. That, along with 'bootcamp', drives me nuts! Comments please...
  Anyone in the strength and conditioning realm, or general fitness for that matter, has at one time or another come across the name ‘Tabata’ during their various fitness related rendezvous.
Most common would be those interested in interval training for fat loss.  Back in 1996 Dr. Izumi Tabata and his colleagues submitted what is now a well renowned (and often misinterpreted) study that revolutionized the fitness industry.
In fact, as my good friend, Mark Young, noted a while ago, “this study created such a rage that now hundreds of thousands of trainees around the world now include “Tabatas” as part of their fat loss programming.”
You name it, people have Tabata the shit out of it.  You have your garden variety bike and sprint intervals, which most people equate Tabatas with and are most familiar with. And now it’s not uncommon to see people performing Tabatas with the Olympic lifts (borderline asinine), deadlifts, squats, kettlebell swings, push-ups, pick your poison and it’s been done.
Hell I wouldn’t be surprised if Tabata cow tipping has entered the foray somewhere.  Anything to feel the burn, right?
Well now it seems it’s gaining steam elsewhere, and I suppose it was only a matter of time before it happened.
My other good friend, Emily Socolinsky (which many who read this blog consistently should recognize), posted the following picture on Facebook wall yesterday:

After ungluing my face from my keyboard, I couldn’t help but think to myself, “poor Mr. Tabata.”
You see what many out there think is Tabata training is anything but, and jives AGAINST what the actual study demonstrated.
Rather than try to explain it myself, I’m just going to defer to Mark Young again who wrote THIS post a while ago on some common Tabata Myths:

Despite the widespread use of this system, most people have absolutely no idea what the actual Tabata protocol is.  In the often cited (but rarely actually read) study, one group performed moderate intensity (70% VO2 Max) steady state cardiovascular exercise for one hour on 5 days per week.  This would be along the lines of what most people would be accustomed to doing in the gym.
The other group used the Tabata protocol which consisted of a 10 minute steady state warm up followed by 7-8 sets of 20 seconds at 170% VO2 Max on a mechanically braked cycle ergometer.  Subjects were given 10 seconds of rest between each set.
One more interesting part?  On 4 days of the week the Tabata group performed this exact protocol.  On the fifth day they actually did 30 minutes of steady state exercise at 70% VO2 Max followed by 4 Tabata style intervals.

So over the course of a week the Tabata group also did a total of 70 minutes of steady state exercise as well!

But here is where most people mess up.  VO2 Max is determined (in this case) by having the person ride the ergometer while measuring their oxygen uptake and gradually increasing the wattage until the person’s oxygen uptake no longer continues to rise.  This is considered 100% of their VO2 Max and it is often associated with complete exhaustion and/or vomiting.
Now imagine increasing the resistance on the bicycle to increase the wattage to 170% of that value.  That is the intensity required for a true Tabata interval.  Each interval is completed with maximal effort.
Despite what you’ve been told, front squats, resistance bands, or any other bodyweight routine you might be doing may replicate the time sequence of the Tabata protocol, but it is NOT a Tabata interval.  If your first set is performed at a submaximal weight that becomes maximal by the final set this does not even come close.  It might be hard, but it isn’t a Tabata.

Now I know what some of you may be thinking:  ”what the hay Tony…..why are you chastising people for wanting to work hard, and what’s more, why are you playing semantics?”
Listen I’ll never downplay anyone who wants to work hard and take steps to improve their health. Moreover, I don’t necessarily care how they go about doing it.  Sure I have my own biases as to what I feel are the most ideal, time efficient, and most important of all, SAFE, ways to go about things given one’s goals and ability level; but in all, if someone is taking steps to improve their health, I’m all for it.
Who am I to judge?
I just think it’s funny (and by funny, I mean the exact opposite of funny) that the word Tabata has grown to encapsulate what mounts to, well, everything.
Tabata burpees; Tabata apple picking; Tabata recycling; Tabata Dating………..I’ll keep going!  I’ll do it!
And I’ll just add as an afterthought my fingers are crossed that there’s some semblance of assessment (and regression/progression system) to ascertain one’s ability level before starting one of these classes.
The last thing Dick from accounting, who’s 40 lbs overweight and hasn’t exercised since Patrick Swayze made stone-washed jeans cool, needs is to jump into a 30 minute class of mountain-climbers and lunges on day one.
I’d argue that if most people placed a premium on getting stronger, were CONSISTENT, didn’t automatically feel that they have to resort to 30 minutes of “HIIT” training to the point where they can’t feel the left side of their face, stopped crushing Frappuccinos, and actually went to bed at a decent hour (and drank more water), they’d be surprised with their results.
But I digress…