For a long time, I’ve been insisting on the fact, that you should get yourself together and start lifting heavier weights, using basic, compound movements.
Let’s say that you’ ve taken my advice seriously and you are already doing squats and deadlifts. Congratulations! I am proud of you. But I wouldn’t be able to sleep, if I leave you thinking, that this is all you are supposed to do, so today I will give you some more food for thought.
The fact that you are doing squats and deadlifts is a huge progress. I know how much it took you, to change the way you think and include these “manly” exercises in your training program.
But I am noticing a trend, when it comes to women, squats and deadlifts. When you finally start doing these two movements, you actually find out how satisfying it is to do them and you start neglecting other movements.
You can’t imagine how often I am forced to disappoint some women, who train with me, when I tell them, that “today” they are gonna do Bulgarian squats, lunges or another unilateral movement, but not traditional squats. I often get the “cow look”, which is pleading me to have some mercy and allow them to squat. After all they’ve been waiting the whole work day to pass by, so they can get to the gym. And now, instead of making them happy, I am disappointing them.
I’ve said it a billion times, but it is really important to structure your workouts in a way, that will assure you a healthy and athletic body, not just some fun in the gym.
A lot of people neglect unilateral movements. In other words movements, which are performed with one arm or on one leg.
And let me tell you, it is no coincidence that unilateral exercises exist. They have a pretty key role in your workouts. Especially nowadays, when almost everybody has some kind of a imbalance between the left and the right side of the body.
Just think about it! I am sure that if you are right handed, you find it a lot easier to perform strength movements with your right hand, because you feel your left hand some kind of weaker. The same is true for your legs.
Often times people do not realize, how when they are doing squats, deadlifts, pull ups or push ups, they compensate for the weakness in one of their limbs, by pushing/ pulling/ standing using predominantly the stronger one.
Just a more experienced lifter could spot this weakness, while he/ she performs a movement. Everybody else needs somebody, who is standing on the side and cuing them to use both hands or both legs equally.
Here, you could turn to unilateral movements, which are a great test, to find out if your left and your right side are developing symmetrically.
A lot of people, especially those who forgot to leave their ego at the door, avoid doing unilateral movements, because these kind of movements, doesn’t allow the use of really heavy weights. Like bilateral movements would allow. Another reason is the fact that not many people like working on their weaknesses.
But as one of my personal gurus Gray Cook, loves saying: “ If you have imbalance between your left and your right side, then you are having a serious problem. You just don’t know it yet!”
My advice is to incorporate in your workouts the following movements: Bulgarian squats, lunges ( and all lunging variations, check them out HERE), pistol squats, one leg deadlifts, single leg hip thrusters, side press, military press with dumbbells, push-ups on one hand, bench press with dumbbells.
Just when you incorporate these movements, you will be able to find out the imbalance you probably have between your left and your right side. And trust me, this really is not good. Most of the pain you feel in your lower back, your knees, ankles are due to the fact, that your weaker muscles on let’s say your left side, are not doing their job to keep your body stable, and the muscles on your right side are working too much.
Just look it that way, If you build a house and its foundations on the right side are stable, but those on the left are not… do you think that the building is gonna be stable? It is just a matter of time, for some problems to occur and for the negative consequences to come.
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And a video from my workout !
