Finding a Neutral Spine

Quick Tip: Finding Neutral

One of the first “exercises” I have almost all clients do is demonstrate to me what they think a neutral spine is. Generally we’ll do this in a quadruped position (on all fours) but the goal is to understand what a proper spine position feels like so it becomes easier to apply to almost every exercise we do. My goal is to get an immediate correction when I cue someone to “find neutral”. For most people this won’t come naturally so here’s a quick tip to help you understand what it should feel like.




This picture is of a person doing a “cat-camel” exercise which you may or may not have seen before. The middle picture is a good demonstration of a neutral spine. This is the exact method I use to teach core positioning. Here’s how it’s done:

1. In a kneeling position, round your back over as far as you possibly can (camel)

2. Next, create as much of an arch as you can so your belly button is as close to the ground as you can get it

3. Finally, find the middle!

That’s it! By finding the middle of these two extreme positions you are going to be very close to your neutral spine position. Pay attention to what it feels like…now try to recreate this feeling with each exercise you do!

Progressing Sets & Reps

Will Sets and Reps get more challenging?

I was emailed this question from a client a few weeks back and just wanted to address it here.

Each client that starts training with me has a different background, but I can generally place them in one of a few categories. First, there are those that have a lot of experience training under a high-intensity, high-volume program that has contributed in some way to an injury. Their visit to physical therapy is what puts them in front of me in the first place. These can be split into a couple of subgroups; one group that moves effectively and has a solid training background and a second group who has very inefficient movement patterns but pushed through these workouts without knowing any better.

Second, I may get a client who has next to no experience from a training standpoint. They are literally at square 1 and are eager to make changes (I love all my clients but these are some of my favorites!).

In any case, I am a big believer in the MED method to programming (Minimal Effective Dose). In other words, I want to see how little I can give someone and still make positive changes.

At the beginning of a training program, the volume and intensity are so low that someone might even be a little bored during the first week or two. We do this for a couple of reasons. One, I want to introduce new movements the right way to each athlete or client. If I ask too much of them, their form will be sacrificed and we’ll also be hindering results down the road.

Second, I use this time as an extended assessment period. By watching them move multiple times and seeing how each person responds in the 1-2 days following a workout I will have a good sense of how to safely progress them moving forward.

If they move well, don’t break a sweat and are not the least bit sore the day after a training session, it might be OK to progress the volume a bit quicker.

Whether this is the case or not, each person needs to demonstrate movement competency and earn the right to either do more volume (if the goal warrants this) or increase in the intensity.

Another reason we do it this way is for the psychological implications. Let’s say we start with too much volume or intensity and as a coach I know the best thing is to back them off. Many people will take this as a failure as they were unable to do what was asked of them (even though this isn’t the case – this is the coach’s fault). By starting with exercises that are easier, with lower intensity and low volume I am setting the person up for success early on. By mastering these exercises first without putting the athletes out of commission with muscle soreness, we’ve made it easier to progress moving forward. Even though we may end up at the same spot down the road, the feeling of taking steps forward is definitely preferred over pushing too fast, too early and then stepping back.

The goal as a coach is to make things as challenging as they need to be – and no more!

There are fairly complex ways to implement more challenging sets and reps but for the inexperienced trainee we can make a great deal of progress with low volume, simple progressions that ask a little more of you each week.

Part 2 Core Stabilization – What to do?

In the first part of this short summary for training the core, we reviewed the very basics of what makes up your core. Hopefully the difference in function between the inner and outer core (timing mechanisms) was clear. If the inner core muscles aren’t functioning at the right time, other muscles will try to fill in that stabilizing role – pretty cool adaptive capabilities of the body but not a good long term strategy as these compensations will lead to pain or other movement dysfunctions.

The main takeaway is that the core musculature is designed to function as stabilizers of the spine as opposed to prime movers. This distinction is what drives the exercise selection that we’ll go over here.

Before we get into actual exercises it’s a good idea to know what a strong and stable core looks like. To me, a person with a good functioning core is one who is able to hold a relatively neutral spine (from the low back all the way to the neck) while performing other activities. This should happen without thinking about “using your core”. A good inner core will work reflexively.

Here are some cues (other than “turn on your core”) that you can think about:

1. Stay Long through your head/spine
2. Keep your ears in line with your shoulders; Keep a “packed neck”
3. Brace like you’re about to take a punch
4. Breathe deep while staying as still as you possibly can

These apply to most, if not all, core exercises (as well as most strength exercises) that you will (should?) be doing.

When designing programs it’s a good idea to categorize each movement or exercise to help develop a somewhat balanced approach. In other words, we don’t want to have too much of one movement and not enough of another. It’s common to see routines with 10 pushing exercises and only 1 or 2 pulling, for example. If you just pick exercises from a list it’s easy to let this happen…if we pick the movement patterns in a balanced fashion first it then becomes easier to decide the best exercise to use. So for an upper body workout you might decide you are going to do 2 pulling exercises and 2 pushing exercises (we actually like to include more pulling than pushing but for the sake of balancing things out we’re going with 2 and 2). Now we pick 2 different exercises in each category and we’re good to go.

For the core we can break it down into 3 or 4 simple categories. We have 3 planes of motion; Transverse (Rotational - think twisting), Saggital (straight ahead – flexion and extension), or Frontal/Coronal (lateral flexion; think side bends, jumping jacks, etc.).



Since we decided that stabilizing is the best way to train the core though, how do we work these movement patterns without actually moving?

What we need to do is use exercises that create forces that need to be resisted by the same muscles used to create the motions we just identified. We train the core this way by “tricking” the muscles into reflexively stabilizing when they need to.

We have 4 categories of movements that we use for this based on each plane of motion (saggital gets 2):

1. Anti-Rotation (Transverse) – Think obliques
2. Anti-Flexion (Saggital) – Think back/glutes
3. Anti-Extension (Saggital) – think Abs
4. Anti-Lateral Flexion (Frontal) – Think sides

Here’s a couple videos of exercises in each pattern that you can use on your own if you’re new to the game. Refer to the cues above for execution:

Anti-Rotation

1. Tall Kneeling Anti-Rotation Press. The band or cable is producing a rotational force on your back and your job is to resist that rotation. 2-3 sets of 8-10 reps each side OR 3 reps each side with longer holds (10 seconds) are a good start. The narrower your knees, the harder this will be. It won’t take much resistance.



2. Bird-Dogs (Quadruped diagonals). Go slow. The goal is NO movement of the low back. You’ve got a full drink on your back that you can’t spill! 2 sets 6-10 reps each side is plenty in a single workout.



Anti-Extension

1. Front Plank. Hold for 10 second reps and slowly increase the number of reps you do. Keep your nose over your thumbs.



2. Stability Ball Rollout. Slow tempo, 2 sets for 6-10 reps. The further the ball is from you at the start the harder this movement will be.



Anti-Flexion

1. 2 Leg Glute Bridge. 2-3 sets of 10 reps



2. 2 Leg RDL/Hip Hinging Pattern. This is also one of our basic strength moves but the muscles that keep the back extended (actually preventing flexion) are hard at work here.



Anti-Lateral Flexion

1. Side Plank. Similar to the front plank you’ll want to work towards 10 seconds hold if you’re a beginner. Work up to where you can do 4-5 reps of 10 seconds on each side, in each set, before adding time.



2. 1 Arm Farmer’s Walk. Maybe my favorite exercise to program due to its short learning curve, functional carryover to real life, and the challenge it can impose on beginners and advanced lifters alike. Like the others, stay long and focus on keeping the shoulder blades locked down and back. Crush the handle!!!


I got yelled at by the ATC for not having my brace on before filming this

If you hit each movement pattern 2-3 times per week and 2-3 sets of each you’ll be ahead of most gym-goers when it comes to core function. Would love to hear your thoughts, questions, or suggestions on core exercise you like to do at the gym!

Have a great Thursday,
Jon

Core Stability

Core Stabilization Part 1: What is the Core?

In the last 15 years there probably hasn’t been a more over-used and misinterpreted buzzword in fitness than “core strengthening”. There isn’t an exercise program in the world that doesn’t stress the need for improved core function. It’s safe to say that having good core “strength” is important but how do we define it? What is it? How do we measure it? What exercise do we do to improve it? How do we know it’s getting better?

First Question: What is the core?

If you go to any gym and ask the first person you see to describe their core there’s a good shot they would use the term “6-pack” at some point in your dialogue. They might also jump down and demonstrate some high-quality sit-ups, crunches or maybe even some hanging leg raises for the “functional” crowd. It’s no surprise as this is what everyone sees and what the public is bombarded with on the cover of magazines on every street corner. But the 6-pack muscle (rectus abdominis – just 1 muscle that is divided into 6 parts by tendinous structures to give it that look) makes up a small part of what fitness professionals would define as a functioning core.



Through the work of researchers like Stu McGill, Shirley Sarhmann and Physical Therapists/Strength Coaches Gray Cook, Charlie Weingroff and a host of others we have seen a much better definition of what a core is and what it’s supposed to do.

For simplification purposes (or because my understanding of it is simplistic – semantics, right?) we’re going to break the core down into 3 parts: The Spine, the Inner Core and the Outer Core.

Dr. McGill uses a great analogy in his Low Back Disorders text where he compares the spine to a fishing pole that is being held upright by guy wires. Alone, the fishing pole is very flexible and also unstable. When all the guy wires are working together the pole is incredibly stable. Again in simple terms, your Inner Core is made up of these guy wires. These muscles need to work together and at the right time in order to keep your spine (low back, specifically) from losing its necessary stiffness and stability. To achieve this, the smaller inner core muscles need a combination of muscular endurance as well as proper neurological timing. In other words, it doesn’t matter how strong a muscle is if it doesn’t come on at the right time.


Not a great picture but you get the idea


So what’s the right time?

What we know from the research is that in individuals with low back pain/disorders there is a delayed firing of these Inner Core muscles where the Outer core muscles fire first; it should be the other way around. Inner core should be firing milliseconds before the outer core (I’ve tried measuring this with a stop watch but to no avail).

What’s the Outer Core? Again, in its simplest terms it can be thought of as a barrel that surrounds these guy wires. The sides of the barrel are made up of the obvious (“6-pack”) along with internal/external obliques, lats and other muscles that work to extend the spine (help it stand up). To finish the barrel we need a top and bottom though, which can often be forgotten. The bottom of the barrel is your pelvic floor muscles (kegals, ladies?). The top portion is completed by the diaphragm (the muscle you breathe with; not the birth control product).

Back to the mistiming of the inner core; if there is a delay your outer core muscles will take over and try to provide the necessary stiffness to the spine in order to protect it. Muscles that should be doing one thing are now doing another. In the case of the diaphragm if your inner core is not functioning well you can compensate and gain stability by holding your breath.

The chain reaction that is possible when compensations like this occur can have effects all over the body which is why we spend so much time training core stability with proper breathing mechanics. We don’t gain this function from sit-ups and crunches even if the muscles we “want to work” are firing.

Always remember the end-goal with the exercise. Does the exercise work with the goal and are you doing correctly in order to achieve that goal?

In Part 2 we'll look into actual core exercises and how we use them.

Tools - Understand them. Don't be one.

Do you remember the last time you wanted to have work done on your house? I rent so the answer is no for me, but play along.

When you first talked to the contractor the conversation probably went something like this:

You: Hi, I was wondering if you use screwdrivers.
Contractor: We sure do!
You: Great! What about sanders? Saws??
Contractor: Yup!
You: Awesome! How much does it cost? When can we get started?!

Sound familiar? I hope not.

I would hope the first thing you do in this situation is explain exactly what you want done…what result you want to come from their services. You trust the professional to choose the tools best suited for the job.

As ridiculous as that sounds I can’t tell you how many times we hear questions like, “do you do kettle bells?” in the fitness industry.

To (quality) coaches, the “kettlebell” questions sounds just as funny as the hypothetical conversation with the contractor.

“It’s not your fault. Listen to me. It’s not your fault” (Just imagine that in my best Robin Williams voice from Good Will Hunting)

The fact is you are bombarded by so much commercial advertising and gyms promoting whatever their new fanciest toy is in the gym that it’s impossible not to fall into the trap. The best trainers and gyms will promote the same way a contractor would – By demonstrating great results. What do you really want with an exercise program? Is it to use a TRX or to lose 10 pounds of fat? Do you want to do cone agility drills, or improve your defense for the upcoming basketball season? These are not necessarily mutually exclusive but they can be when used incorrectly.

The same holds true for individual exercises and drills – these are all just tools in the toolbox. Until we know the specific goal the tools don’t matter. Almost every piece of equipment, and every exercise, can be used to accomplish multiple different outcomes. Until we know what that outcome is we shouldn’t be deciding on what tools we will be using (or how we will be using them).

There are people making a lot of money by only using a single tool for an entire class/program (TRX, kettlebells, spin bikes, etc). Some of them do a good job using these tools to accomplish specific goals but many of them are simply taking advantage of the latest buzzword and running with it.

So the next time you think to yourself, “I need to do more cardio”, try to boil that down to what you REALLY want at the end of an exercise routine or program. Having a clearly defined goal will make it easier to ask the right questions and decide which tool is best for you.

Individualizing a Training Plan

Many prospective clients come in through our doors and wonder, “how will you make the exercises/training specific to me?” It’s a fair question and one we try to explain well before starting a training program.

Why do we need to individualize programs-can’t we find the exercises that work and have everybody do them? And if not, how do we go about choosing exercises and designing a program that is appropriate for each individual?

The simple answer to the first set of questions is an emphatic “No”, we can’t give the same exercises to everyone. This is what leads to hilarious-if-not-cringe worthy YouTube videos of inappropriate exercises given to ill-prepared clients and expecting the client to make the decision that it’s too intense. To me, this is poor coaching.

There are really no good or bad exercises-only good and bad applications of the exercise to each individual. People are often frustrated when they ask me if a certain exercise is good…my response is almost always, “it depends.” It’s not a cop-out. It’s the truth. Let’s take a quick look into what goes into choosing exercises.

Quick how-to on individualizing programs:

There are three main factors to look at before sitting down to write a program:
1. Injury & Health History/Movement quality (based on assessment)
2. Exercise History
3. Individual Goals

For me, every exercise, movement pattern and set & rep scheme is on the table when someone walks through the door. Once information is collected based on these three categories I can start weeding out certain movements (say, overhead pressing for those that tend to impinge easily, or have poor shoulder mobility).

The same is true for sets and reps; until I know your specific goal the sets and reps are hard to choose. If your goal is simply strength it would make no sense to have you performing workouts in the 15-20 rep range on a regular basis. Conversely, if your goal is strictly fat loss we wouldn’t be spending much time working in the 1-4 range very often.

I’ve had young athletes in the past get a little confused when they see athletes in other sports doing similar or the same exercises. I try to explain that most exercise is not sport-specific but rather species-specific. I stole this from Gray Cook, co-creator of the Functional Movement Screen. From a general training perspective, especially for those with less than 2 years of training experience, movements and exercises will be very general with individualization coming from elimination of movements and exercises along with sound programming from a volume and intensity standpoint.
So, two of you may have the same limitations from an injury history/movement quality standpoint but one may have 3 years of training to fall back on while the other is a complete newbie. In this case, exercise choice (movement patterns) will be very similar but sets/reps & intensity will vary.

The same holds true for metabolic work. Exercises will be similar person-to-person but the work and rest times will vary based on work capacity and ability to recover.

Every exercise we choose has a goal and is based on your ability to do them correctly (if we can’t, we regress) and pain free. So next time you’re trying to choose an exercise, ask yourself what the goal is of doing that specific move is. Does this accomplish that goal? If not it probably doesn’t fit in to your individual program, while it may be perfectly fine for another. If you’re not sure, ask!

Choosing Sets & Reps

Why Do I Choose Specific Set & Rep Ranges?

There’s a scenario that has come up often, and I can remember it happening even with high school football teammates of mine like 100 years ago (I decided there’s no reason to actually count anymore, being 30 and all). It goes something like this: “Coach wants me to do 3x5 (3 sets, 5 reps each set), but that’s only because he thinks I’m weak like everyone else…I’m a bad@** though, so I’ll just do 15 in a row.”

I might be paraphrasing.

The logical explanation or defense to the coach is, “I did the same amount of work in less time, and therefore I’ll get better results.”
Unfortunately, that logic is completely flawed. As a coach, we explain that if you could do 15 reps with a given weight, you should have used more weight to do a set of 5, rest or perform a 2nd exercise, then perform another set, and so forth.

This is satisfactory for most, but some still believe they don’t need rest and can “mentally push their way through it”. The fact is, if you are using the same weight for a set of 15 that you would for a set of 5, you are either cheating on the sets of 15 (too heavy, poor form) OR you are leaving something on the table for a set of 5. We can’t trump physiology in this case. If you are pushing yourself for a set of 5, there is no way you could use the same weight/intensity for a set of 15.

So why do we use different set & rep schemes? Isn’t 3 sets of 10 for every exercise good enough?

The fact is, we choose different sets and reps in order to tailor a program to specific goals and ability levels. We get different responses and results from each (neuromuscular, endocrine and cardiovascular responses are all different with different sets and rep schemes).

Below is a short breakdown of different qualities (goals) we can work on and what set & rep schemes we use to achieve each (For pure beginners this changes; anything will work with a newbie). These are very general and try to think of it as part of a continuum more than a hard and fast rule.

Beginners

No matter what the goal is, most of my beginners will start in very similar set and rep ranges. I generally progress from 1-2 sets of 15 reps at the beginning, and slowly work towards 3 sets where the reps actually drop down. Why?
By starting in a higher rep range, we can focus on form and mechanics but still get a training effect without too much risk.
By lowering the reps through progression we make it easier to increase the intensity (weight, exercise difficulty, etc.) while keeping the volume somewhat consistent (3x10 = 30 reps, just like 2x15 = 30 reps). By using heavier weights for the same number of repetitions, we have increased the total work done. Big win for progress!

I generally take 3 months to work through this progression in order to really hone in on exercise technique but still ensuring progress is made towards your goals. Once movements are more proficient I am more comfortable working in lower rep ranges and progressing things as outlined below.

1. Max Strength *

Set & Rep Range: 1-4 reps

Strength is literally a measure of how much force you can produce in a given movement. To get stronger it is necessary to lift progressively more weight (with proper form of course). The easiest way to do this is in the lower rep range. Why? As you start to add reps, other systems and limiting factors come into play (muscular endurance, mental focus, cardiovascular endurance etc.). At these low rep ranges your entire focus can be on producing as much force as possible.

Why do you need to do it?

Increasing muscular strength is great for many reasons if your goals are more general fitness related. For one, as we age bone density becomes an increasing concern. Strength training will be a huge foundation for curbing osteopenia/osteoporosis. Second, increasing strength will go a long way in increasing your work capacity (essentially you are increasing the size of your engine and it will make work bouts at lower ranges feel easier by comparison). In other words, the stronger you are, the more work you’ll be able to do in your metabolic strength sessions which will mean more calories burned in less time!

Be careful of: This set and rep range is best for advanced lifters and when done well can cause a ton of fatigue on the neuromuscular system. You won’t feel tired, or winded, but your ability reproduce these max effort lifts for the next few days will be compromised.

2. General Strength *

Set & Rep Range: 4-6

Now we’ve added a few reps but are still in a low enough range to focus on strength but is a little less taxing on the nervous system than the max strength range.

3. Strength*

Set & Rep Range: 6-12

This is a range where we can still use relatively heavy weights but increase the total volume and workload performed in a given workout. Example:

On Monday Johnny squats for 5 sets of 3 reps with 200 lbs. Total workload = 15 reps x 200 lbs = 3,000 lbs. This was a max strength-type workout.

On Friday Johnny squats 150 lbs for 3 sets of 10. Total workload = 30 reps x 150 lbs = 4,500 lbs. His total workload was higher, and most likely done in a shorter amount of time, although the weight used was lower.

4. Muscular Endurance*

Set & Rep Range: 12-20 or more

This scheme is reserved for metabolic workouts with lower weight but is extremely taxing in a different way. Here the focus is work capacity, or your ability to repeat a motion with good form, under load. How many times can you produce a given force before your muscles begin to fatigue? Here your ability to produce force isn’t as important as your ability to clear metabolic waste quickly enough to produce more energy to keep the set going without losing form. To elicit the desired response, the weight will be lighter (lower intensity) but still enough to the point where you only have 1 or 2 perfect reps left in the tank at the end.

“Wait a minute, none of those fit in with my goals of gaining muscle/toning/losing fat!”

Given these set & rep schemes, it is important to note that what seems to work best for muscle gain is a good combination of all of these. We’re not really sure why it works, but we know it helps to get a lot of volume, combined with max strength work and everything in between.

The same holds true for fat loss. ALL of these will aid. There will be a greater focus on Metabolic Resistance Training (circuits with higher rep ranges, specified rest periods, etc.) but it is all important to your goals!

So next time you look at your program try to think through each day’s sets and reps to have a good understanding of the “why” behind it!