Exercise Instruction for Proper Form: Lower Back Exercises: Back Extension

This post continues the series instructing about the proper way to perform the most common exercises. It follows up with the chapter dedicated to lower back exercises. Although deadlift and its variations are the main exercises for working this body-part, some alternatives can be used as a complement to them. In particular, this post focuses on the back extension and its variations.

The primary version of the Back Extension starts by lying face down on a hyperextension bench, in a position that allows you to bend at the waist without any restriction, and locking your ankles securely under the footpads. Begin with your body in a straight line. Position your hands either behind your head or crossed on your chest. You can also hold a weight for extra resistance (e.g. a barbell across the back, a plate held behind the head or to your chest). Slowly bend forward at the waist while keeping your back straight (do not round it at any stage of the movement). From the bottom position, slowly raise your torso back until your legs and upper body are in a straight line again. Hyperextension is often referred as a synonym of the back extension, though this exercise suggests extending the back going further than the straight line. Being this hyperextended position a delicate position for the lower back, it is probably better to stay with the regular back extension. Another variation, known as 45° Back Extension, starts by placing the body in a 45º line instead of a straight one. It also requires a special device but it is a nice alternative to the back extension, though less challenging.

There are some aspects on back extension form that should be commented. First, whereas bending at the waist involves heavily the lower back, you can move part of the work to the hamstrings by bending at the hips. Second, hands position play a role in the difficulty of the exercise: the higher in the body the arms are placed, the more challenging the exercise is. This occurs because moving your arms higher also shifts the center of gravity further away from the articulating joint. Third, following the previous comment, it is important to notice that holding weights behind the head encourages rounding the back and stresses the neck. For this reason, these variants should be carefully approached or neglected in favor of those holding weights to the chest. Finally, if a hyperextension bench is not available, back extensions can be also performed in a high bench if a spotter helps you (Hyperextension on a Bench) or using an exercise ball (Weighted Ball Hyperextension).

There are other exercises for working the lower back. Good Morning exercise has the same starting position as the squat, with a considerably lower weight of course, and consists of bending forward at the waist while keeping the legs straight (knees slightly bent) until the upper body is parallel to the floor, and then slowly return to the starting position. As usual, it is important to keep the head up and the back completely straight.

Superman starts by lying face down on a mat with legs together and arms extended out directly overhead. Raise your arms, chest, and legs off the floor and keep that position for a second. Lower the back to the ground and repeat. This exercise has a variation, known as Contralateral Superman, involving only one arm and leg at a time. Using the same starting position, raise left arm and right leg into the air at the same time, also raising the chest slightly off the floor. Hold there for a second and squeeze the muscles of your lower back. Lower your limbs back to the ground and then do the same with the opposite side.

Reverse Back Extension starts by lying face down on an elevated horizontal bench, with your legs off the end, and tightly holding the bench in front of the head. Then, slowly raise your legs until they are parallel to the floor while keeping your head facing forward. Finally, there is a variation of the Cable Seated Row exercise involving also the lower back, in which you lean forward and backward accompanying elbows movement. However, I prefer to use the regular Cable Seated Row for working the upper back, and target my lower back with dedicated exercises.

You can find a more detailed description about these lower back exercises in the article “All Out Back Training” by John Giljum and the book “The Insider’s Tell-All Handbook On Weight-Training Technique” by Stuart McRobert.

Exercise Instruction for Proper Form: Lower Back Exercises: Deadlift

This post continues the series instructing about the proper way to perform the most common exercises by moving to a new body-part, namely the lower back. This body-part is mainly worked using the deadlift and its variations. This is a very demanding power exercise that targets the spinal erectors, but also involves the quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings, traps, and forearms to a great extent.

Starting position of Barbell Deadlift exercise is standing in front of a loaded bar with your feet about shoulder width apart and toes pointing straight forward, or slightly turned out to the sides. At this point, bend your knees, lower your butt, lean slightly forward keeping your back straight (or slightly arched) and hold the bar using an overhand grip about shoulder width apart. You can use wrist straps to prevent that your grip gives out before your back and legs do. Mixed grip (a.k.a. staggered grip, in which one hand is pronated and the other is supinated) is popular among powerlifters. It improves the grip but puts a lot of stress on the biceps of the supinated hand, which could be dangerous.

Lock the back in a straight position, pull the shoulders backwards, look straight forward or slightly up, and maintain this position during the entire movement. This is extremely important, since rounding the back puts a lot of pressure on the spine and can lead you to a serious injury. Now, begin the lift by straightening your legs and, when the bar is around knee level, start bringing your back up, all the while pushing with the legs in one smooth motion. A common mistake is to straighten the legs and then the back, or vice versa. A good rule to remember is that hips and shoulders should ascend together. During the ascent, keep the bar as close to the legs as possible. The finished position should leave you standing up straight, arms down at your sides, and the bar across your upper thighs.

It is not needless to insist on the importance of proper form with this exercise, as bad form (e.g. rounding your back) can lead to a very serious injury. According to this, using a lifting belt can be an option when working with heavy weights in order to take some pressure off the lower back.

There is a deadlift variation, known as Sumo Deadlift, where the feet stance is wider and you grip the bar on the inside of the legs. This moves part of the pressure from the lower back to the legs and can be more comfortable for some people.

The Romanian Deadlift is another variation that is mainly targeted to hit the hamstrings, but it also involves the lower back to a considerable degree, so it is worth mentioning it here. The main difference with the regular deadlift is that in this exercise you keep the legs almost straight (they must be slightly bent at the knees) during the entire exercise while you let your butt move back as you bend at the hips to lower the weight. Again, it is extremely important to keep your back straight throughout the entire movement. Starting position is also slightly different, since your feet are only a few inches apart (at most shoulder width apart).

A final note is that the furthest you lower the weight, the more you involve the lower back. According to this, as Romanian Deadlift aims to target the hamstrings, it recommends to stop lowering the weight when your back forms a 30 degrees angle with the floor. Another variation, called Still-legged Deadlift, suggests lowering the weight all the way down to involve more the lower back. You must be careful if you use it, as this can be potentially dangerous.

You can find further information about all these deadlift variations in the articles “All Out Back Training” by John Giljum and “Deadlifts: Learn Why The King Is Dead!” by Curtis Schultz, and the book “The Insider’s Tell-All Handbook On Weight-Training Technique” by Stuart McRobert.

Exercise Instruction for Proper Form: Upper Back Exercises: Pulldown and Row

This post continues the series instructing about the proper way to perform the most common exercises. It follows up with the chapter dedicated to upper back exercises, focusing now on pulldowns and rows.

Whereas pull-up/chin-up should be the basic exercise on your routine for developing the width of your back, lat pulldowns can be an option when you are not strong enough to move your bodyweight, or just as a complement in your workout. A pulldown is basically a pull-up mimicking movement, but performed in a specific pulldown machine. As pull-ups, it presents several variations depending on your hands position (Underhand Cable Pulldown, V-Bar Pulldown, Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown), having each position a different effect on your back muscles. Refer to the previous post for more details.

This exercise starts by sitting in a pulldown machine with the legs positioned under the kneepads and the feet flat on the floor and grabbing the bar/handle with the desired hands position. Then pull the bar down until it touches your upper chest. Focus on keeping your elbows back as far as possible, while arching your back slightly. Hold and squeeze at the point of contraction, and slowly raise the bar/handle back to the starting position. Do not lean back too far or pull the weight down using your body weight during the movement. Avoid the behind-the-neck version of this exercise, as it can lead you to injury.

Being significantly different from a regular pulldown, the Straight-Arm Pulldown exercise also works the lats. Stand in front of a lat pulldown machine with your arms outstretched towards the bar. With an overhand grip, keeping the elbows slightly bent, the wrists locked, and the torso erect, pull the bar down towards your body in an arcing motion until the bar almost touches your thighs. Then slowly allow the bar to come back until reaching the shoulder level.

Rowing exercises are fundamental for adding size and thickness to the back. Three main categories of rowing exercises exist. The first one comprises the exercises in a bent over position. Bent Over Barbell Row starts by standing over a straight bar with feet about shoulder width apart. Bending your knees, lean over and pick the bar up, with an overhand grip a little wider than shoulder width. Then, while keeping your knees slightly bent, bend at the waist until your torso is at an angle anywhere from 15 to 45 degrees to the floor. From this position, pull the bar straight up to your waist focusing on pulling your elbows back, and then lower the bar back down slowly. It is important to keep the head up and the back straight (or slightly arched) during the whole movement, since rounding the back can result in a serious injury. Furthermore, do not swing or use momentum to lift the weight. This exercise can be also performed using an underhand grip with hands shoulder width apart (Reverse Grip Bent-Over Row).

Another variation is One-Arm Dumbbell Row, which uses a dumbbell, and works each side of the back by itself. For working your right side, you must start resting you left knee and lower leg on a flat bench and then lean forward so that you support the weight of your upper body with your left arm on the bench and you keep your right leg almost straight, and positioned to the rear and out of the way. An alternative setup is to keep your leg foot on the floor well ahead of the right, with the leg slightly bent. For both setup options, grab the dumbbell with the right hand and, keeping the back straight and almost parallel to the floor and the left arm locked at the elbow, pull the weight up as far as possible, by pulling your elbow back. Then slowly lower the dumbbell to the starting position.

The second category comprises the rowing exercises performed in a cable station. Seated Cable Row starts by sitting down at a low-pulley rowing machine and placing your feet against the footrests or platform near the bottom of the weight stack. Keep your knees slightly bent throughout the entire movement to reduce stress on your lower back. Bending only at the waist, lean forward and grasp the pulley handle in front of you. Again, several hand positions are possible (close grip, wide overhand grip, underhand grip, one arm at a time). With your arms stretched out, lean back at the waist until your torso is perpendicular to the floor. This is the starting position. Keeping the back straight and looking forward, bring your elbows back until the handle touches your waist. Then, slowly return to the starting position. There is a variation of this exercise involving also the lower back, in which you lean forward and backward accompanying elbows movement.

The final category comprises the exercises where you lay/sit positioning the chest against the top of the pad and pull the weight up/back until elbows are behind back, without lifting the body off from the pad. This category includes for instance T-Bar Row and Seated Lever Row. Again, you can use a palms down, palms up, or palms in position depending on what part of your back you want to involve more.

You can find further information about all these back exercises in the article “All Out Back Training” by John Giljum and the book “The Insider’s Tell-All Handbook On Weight-Training Technique” by Stuart McRobert.

Exercise Instruction for Proper Form: Upper Back Exercises: Pull-Up/Chin-Up

In previous posts, I have insisted on the importance of performing all the exercises using a strict form (mastering the weight during the whole rep and using a full range of motion) in order to ensure an adequate muscle stimulus and avoid injury. This post initiates a series instructing about the proper way to perform the most common exercises. This first chapter is dedicated to upper back exercises, starting with pull-ups/chin-ups.

A pull-up/chin-up is a compound, pull-type, close-chain exercise (body moves towards resistance), which is commonly referred as a basic exercise for back building. It presents several variations, which share the same biomechanics. All of them start by grasping a bar with a firm grip. Hands orientation and separation depends on the variation you use, as detailed later. With your arms straightened, allow your body to hang from the bar. Next, pull yourself upward until your chest nearly touches the bar and your chin gets over the bar. Pulling to the rear of your head is not recommended as this puts a dangerous stress on the shoulders and neck. While you are pulling, focus on keeping your body straight without arching or swinging. Once your chin is over the bar, you can lower yourself all the way down so that your shoulder blades go up (but without locking the elbows). This gives a full stretch, and allows for a greater range of motion. Nevertheless, avoid relaxing your muscles too much while in this position, since this can place a great deal of stress on your shoulders joints. During the exercise, you can either bend your knees and cross your feet or keep your legs straightened so long as your feet do not touch the floor, but in any case, keep them in line with the torso as much as possible.

Variations differ basically on the used grip. Pull-ups are done with a pronated grip (palms down) and chin-ups are done either with a semi-supinated (palms facing each other a.k.a. neutral grip) or with a supinated grip (palms up). In particular,

Wide-Grip Pull-Up uses a pronated grip with hands separated by a distance roughly twice the width of your shoulders, which emphasizes the lats. This is a great exercise for developing back width. Using a grip with hands shoulder width apart moves part of the stimulus from lats to the biceps, while narrowing it to only 4 to 6 inches hits the lower part of the lats and overloads the brachialis and brachioradialis.

Chin-Up uses a supinated grip with hands shoulder width apart, which shifts part of the work to the biceps. Narrowing the grip to only 4 to 6 inches between the little fingers increases the overload for the brachialis and the elbow flexors.

Close Parallel-Grip Chin-Up uses a semi-supinated grip by means of a V-handle. You should focus on bringing your lower chest to the handle as you pull yourself up. This variation increases the load on the rear deltoids and provides a good stimulus to the rhomboids.

Parallel-Grip Chin-Up uses a semi-supinated grip with hands about 22 to 24 inches apart (with comes typically in multi-station machines). This grip reduces the stress on your wrists, elbows, and shoulders, and it is supposed to position both the elbow flexors and the shoulder extensors in their most effective line of pull.

Sternum Chin-Up involves keeping your torso leaning back throughout the entire movement and arching your spine bringing your lower portion of the chest (i.e. sternum) to the bar. Your hand position can be either pronated or supinated and vary in distance from narrow to shoulder width. Overload on the scapulae retractors is increased in this variation. The beginning of the movement is more like a classical chin, the mid-range resembles the effect of the pullover motion, and the end position duplicates the finishing motion of a rowing movement.

Mixed-Grip Chin-Up uses a mixed grip: one hand pronated, one hand supinated. With this variation, the load focus is on the supinated hand. Make sure to equal sets and reps by reversing the grip on each alternating set.

One-Armed Chin-Up is an advanced variation, which uses one hand in the supinated position while the other hand helps with only balance. This is ensured by placing a towel around the bar and holding on the towel with the other hand, or by holding the working arm on its wrist. The stronger the athlete, the lower the hand is placed on the working arm. Again, you should alternate hands so both arms get a stimulus.

Subscapularis Pull-Up assumes the starting position of the wide grip pull-up, and consists of pulling yourself to the bar until the chest reaches bar, and pushing yourself away from the bar as you lower down to the starting position in a controlled fashion.

Further information on pull-ups/chin-ups (including pictures) can be found on the articles “Improving Chin-Up Performance!” by Charles Poliquin, “Exercise Of The Week: Pull-ups” by Charles Ridgely, and “Chins For Your Back” by Christopher Phelps, and the book “The Insider’s Tell-All Handbook On Weight-Training Technique” by Stuart McRobert.

Bodybuilding Online Supplement Stores

As you know, the supplements industry moves millions of dollars every year. There are countless brands and distributors. According to this, one of the trickiest things for the bodybuilder is finding reliable stores that offer quality brands at competitive prices. In this post, I’ll share with you my personal experience with online supplement stores. Hope this helps.

• Bodybuilding.com
  
  This is probably the most popular store, and this fame is well founded. It offers a lot of variety at very competitive prices (from the perspective of a European citizen). The worst is probably the international shipping, which is only available via International Postal Service (at least to Spain). This results in expensive and slow shipping, and without tracking support.
  
  A word of caution for Spanish customers (in fact, I think that this applies to all the EU customers) that want to shop in this store. Keep in mind that your supplements could be seized by customs. This occurs because it classifies certain food supplements as medicine, especially vitamins and other products with physiological effects. Food supplements classified as medicine cannot be imported without an import license. Only authorized importers are allowed to import medicine. The importer has to provide an import permit issued by the Ministry of Health. The medicine must be registered in Spain, otherwise the importation will not be allowed. Private individuals cannot import medicine unless they can provide a medical prescription from a doctor and a special authorization from the Ministry of Health issued for the respective shipment. If the importer cannot provide an import license (or the private consignee cannot provide a prescription), the goods will be returned to the shipper or destroyed.

Taking into account these customs restrictions, Europeans are forced to search for alternatives within their frontiers. UK stores offer most of the US products, with quite competitive prices for the rest of Europe, especially considering the current euro-pound exchange rate.

• SS Health Foods
  
  Probably the best UK supplement store. Many products of reputable brands such as Optimum Nutrition or Dymatize are available in this store, and offering probably the most competitive prices in Europe. Shipping is fast, but not very cheap.

• MyProtein
  
  An online store from the UK that sells bulk supplements (i.e. generic brand). I typically use it to purchase bulk carbohydrates (i.e. dextrose, maltodextrin, oats …). You can find them in sizes that are hardly available in other stores. A final remark, if you use this MyProtein referral code (MP104567), you’ll get a 5% discount on your first order. Shipping is fast and with a reasonable price.

• Discount Supplements
  
  Another UK store with a good supplement offering. I especially appreciate its variety on multi-vitamins, minerals, and joint supplements. Prices are quite good, though they have stock problems with some products sometimes. Shipping rates are quite cheap (even free for orders over 200 pounds).

These are the online stores I have used so far. In the future, I’ll update this post with my new experiences.

Enhancing Supplements for the Natural Bodybuilder: Amino Acids & BCAA

This post presents a new chapter in the series regarding the best enhancing supplements for the natural bodybuilder. In particular, this post is devoted to amino acid formulas, and in particular to Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAA).

As we discussed in post “Important Amino Acids for Bodybuilders”, amino acids are involved in innumerable physiological processes in the body, in particular those related with muscle building, which makes them fundamental in a bodybuilder’s diet. BCAA are comprised of three different essential amino acids, namely leucine, isoleucine, and valine. Being essential amino acids means that they cannot be synthesized by the body and must be completely taken in the diet. BCAA can be found in many high protein foods, especially in dairy products and red meat. These three amino acids present anabolic and anti-catabolic properties by themselves, but these effects are increased when they are synergistically combined.

Amino acids in general and BCAA in particular play an important role in protein synthesis, hence they stimulate muscle-tissue formation. In addition, BCAA also boost the immune system, play a role in the regulation of blood-sugar levels, and stimulate hormones production. It is also remarkable the BCAA action on preventing catabolic effects in the muscle that occur after intense workouts. BCAA suppress the use of muscle proteins for fuel, thereby sparing the breakdown of muscular protein. This also translates in faster recovery from exercise induced protein damage, which in turn means faster size and strength gains.

Although dietary protein contains a multitude of different amino acids, they do not always come in the ideal amounts or proportions. In addition, the metabolic effects from ingesting free-form amino acids are different from ingesting the same amino acids when they are in a whole protein, basically due to their faster absorption. For these reasons, supplementing with amino acid formulas composed of the essential amino acids and/or with BCAA can help the natural bodybuilder to fulfill his amino acids needs.

Both amino acid formulas and BCAA are best taken just after the workout (i.e. with your post-workout shake) to promote recovery and muscle-formation. Doses typically range between 4 and 10 grams. Depending on your budget, you can add an additional intake prior to the workout to increase performance and prepare recuperation. Powder forms are recommended over pills, though amino acid formulas come also in liquid form, which has a good absorption rate. When choosing a BCAA product, look for a 2:1:1 ratio of leucine, isoleucine, and valine, respectively, which has been demonstrated to be the most effective. Staying in the recommended amounts, no side effects have been reported due to amino acid supplementation.

More details on the benefits of BCAA supplementation can be found in the article “BCAA'S: The Building Blocks Of Muscle” by David Galanis, the article “BCAA Supplementation For Athletes” by Intensity Magazine, and the article “Top 10 Supplements For Bulking” by Big Cat.

Enhancing Supplements for the Natural Bodybuilder: Glutamine

This post presents a new chapter in the series regarding the best enhancing supplements for the natural bodybuilder. In particular, this post is devoted to glutamine, which is a somehow controversial supplement, but which has demonstrated to be highly effective under stressful conditions (very intense and heavy training or dieting phases).

Glutamine is a non-essential amino acid that is present in the body in large amounts. In fact, it is the most abundant amino acid in the body, achieving the 60 percent of the total amino acid pool at some times. Glutamine is a non-essential amino acid because it can be synthesized from other amino acids, namely glutamic acid, isoleucine, and valine. In addition, it is found in many high protein foods such as dairy products, fish, beef and beans.

Glutamine plays a key role in synthesis of muscle-tissue (promoting anabolism) and is a contributor to muscle cell volume. In addition, it boosts the immune system, increases HGH secretion, and is a major building block for DNA. Glutamine also acts as a powerful ammonia scavenger, eliminating it from the body. Ammonia is a highly toxic substance to muscle cells, which occurs as a residue of nitrogen processing. More importantly, glutamine is released from the muscle during times of stress (such as intense workouts) and dieting in order to prevent muscle catabolism occurred due to cortisol action, enhance glycogen replenishment and maintain the acid/alkaline balance (thus reducing lactic acid). This makes glutamine a vital agent for faster recuperation from weight training workouts.

There is some controversy about the need of supplementing glutamine, especially in a bulking phase. In such a phase, you should cover the most part of your glutamine requirements through the diet, though additional supplementation can reap some benefits. While on a dieting phase, supplementing with glutamine is highly recommended, especially to prevent muscle catabolism. Recall that muscle protein can be used as an energy source for the body (via gluconeogenesis) when the supply of carbohydrates is low. In addition, the additional glutamine will allow your body not to break down other amino acids to make glutamine under stress conditions.

Glutamine supplementation is typically carried out using 1-3 doses of 5 grams per day. To exploit glutamine benefits, it is best taken after the workout, with your protein shake, but it can additionally be used first thing in the morning or right before sleep. To get the best absorption, L-glutamine in powder form is recommended. No side effects have been reported due to glutamine supplementation. However, some people experience slight stomach discomfort during the first days of use.

Additional information about the benefits of glutamine supplementation and how to perform it can be found in the article “Supplementation For Maximum Growth: Part 2” by Hugo Rivera, the article “The Benefits of Glutamine” by Nick Nilsson, and the article “Glutamine: The Pinnacle Of Supplements” by David Robson.

Enhancing Supplements for the Natural Bodybuilder: Creatine

As discussed in post “Supplementation for Natural Bodybuilders”, enhancing supplements contribute to optimize your body functioning and in this way accelerate your gains. Creatine monohydrate is probably the most popular supplement in this category. This is a well-deserved popularity, backed up with empirical evidences. This post, which initiates a series covering the most popular enhancing supplements for the natural bodybuilder, describes the benefits of creatine and provides some guidelines for its supplementation.

Creatine is a naturally occurring compound that is present in the body. Under the right circumstances, the body can manufacture it from the amino acids glycine, arginine, and methionine. In addition, small amounts are taken in through food, mainly from red meat and fish. Creatine contributes to regenerate ATP stores in the muscles. This ensures a short-term burst of energy that can increase anaerobic strength levels, enabling you to lift heavier and train harder. Creatine also increases retained water in the muscles. This exerts a temporary size increase but also draws more nutrients in the cell and stimulates protein synthesis, which can contribute to muscle growth.

There is some controversy on how and when to take creatine. One approach consists of cycling the intake. The cycle starts with a loading period (in order to saturate the area surrounding the cells) in which you consume 4 servings a day of 5 grams each during 4-5 days. A possible schedule could be having the creatine with breakfast, mid-afternoon before workout, immediately after the workout, and right before bed. After the loading period, a daily amount of 5 grams for a period of 6-8 weeks is recommended. During this period, bodybuilders can benefit from taking the creatine in a single dose after the workout, which contributes to recovery and stimulates muscle growth, or in two doses, one of them 15-30 minutes prior to the workout, which maximizes ATP stores and increases in this way workout performance, and the other just immediately. Finally, this steady period must be followed by a break for 2-4 weeks, giving the receptors a chance to upgrade again. At this point, another creatine cycle can be started. On the other side, some studies suggest that a low-dose continuous approach works too. In this case, having a daily single dose of 3-5 grams for the long term would be enough.

To get the best absorption, creatine in powder form is recommended. In addition, the presence of insulin in muscle cells is required. For this reason, creatine is best taken with high GI carbs. This is another reason for taking it with your post-workout shake (which includes protein and high GI carbs), or with breakfast on non-training days.

Supplementing with creatine has proven to be safe. However, some bodybuilders have reported dehydration, stomach upset and diarrhea, especially with higher dosages. In order to prevent dehydration, it is very important to drink a lot of water, especially during the loading phase. People experiencing stomach upset and diarrhea can give a try to the continuous approach (without loading period), or even better, use micronized creatine, in which size of creatine particles has been reduced. This allows creatine to be faster absorbed, while avoiding stomach upset. Finally, keep in mind that creatine, once in a solution, destabilizes in very short time, rendering it useless. This is why liquid creatine serums are not recommended. For the same reason, you should take the creatine as soon as you mix it.

More information about how creatine works and how to supplement it can be found in the article “All About Creatine” by Jeremy Likness, and in the following articles by Big Cat: “Top 10 Supplements For Bulking”, “Creatine, Ribose and Insulin Potentiators”, and “Creatine Updates!”.