Squatting and your Knees

On more than one occasion in the past year, I have overheard other trainers in the various gyms I have worked in and trained mention that they believe squats are bad for the knees. More specifically that "squatting below parallel is bad for the knees."

It's just a bunch of nonsense. So by that rationale, going to the bathroom is "bad?" Most people go below parallel when they go poo. Additionally, I was spending time with my niece (a little over two years old) and nephew (just turned five not too long ago) yesterday and they were able to repeatedly perform a picture perfect squat with no harm to their knees. I don't hear people telling them not to go below parallel.

IMO, what's "bad" for the knees is squatting with a limited range of motion. In this case, I am referring to partial squats (ie: what most people do when you see someone squatting in the gym). Partial squats put ALL the emphasis on the quadriceps and knees, totally neglecting the hamstrings and glutes. To all those people who say that squatting below parallel is bad for the knees, let me ask you a question. Which joint do you think would be able to handle a greater load: the knee or the hip?

Hopefully you answered the latter. By learning to squat the RIGHT way, and with a full ROM, you allow the hips to take more stress OFF the knees, hence saving them. Conversely, I feel that for those people who want full leg development, training with a full ROM only makes sense.

***Side Note: I am NOT referring to powerlifters here, so relax.

In the end I find it comical that many personal trainers will go off on how squatting is so bad for the knees, yet have no issues with using a BOSU ball to teach clients to squat "the right way," which only reinforces atrocious squatting mechanics (ankle eversion, knee valgus, etc) and just makes people weaker in general.

RD's and Protein (again)

Usually when I hear some RD (Retarded Dietician)....haha, did you catch that? I said retarded dietician, instead of registered dietician. Get it? Okay, shut up....I thought it was funny.

Anyways, whenever I hear some RD say something like "I wouldn't want to be your kidneys" in response to the fact that I advocate high(er) protein diets for myself and for my clients, I usually have to fight off the urge to put them in a half nelson and have them cry "uncle, uncle" before I let them go.

I find it comical that certain RD's "know" that high protein diets are dangerous or damaging to the kidneys; especially considering there is absolutely no scientific proof stating otherwise in healthy individuals. So the next time you come across this dilemma here is your retort:

"If you sprain your ankle, it will hurt when you walk; does that mean walking is bad and we should all stop doing it?"

[enter crickets chirping]

***Thank you to Miserere (from the t-nation forums) for that awesome analogy.

Awesomeness....

Totally un-fitness related, but this is awesome. I am so making a workout video out of this.

Prison "Thriller"

Fat Loss Troubleshoot

It's no secret that I like simple. And it's safe to assume that the majority of people who read this blog like simple as well. Losing bodyfat isn't rocket science, yet many people out there make it seem that way.

Leigh Peele has written a superb e-book titled "Fat Loss Troubleshoot" that makes fat loss about as simple as it can be. Everything is covered in this book; from which foods you should be eating for fat loss (and how to shop for them) to how to make a meal plan specific to your own individual needs. She also details which exercises you should be performing to bust through fat, and details what many personal trainers and fitness professionals do WRONG to hurt one's overall metabolism.

More importantly, what I like about Leigh's approach is her practicality. There are no "smoke and mirrors. All in all it's a great product for many first time trainers and/or general public who want simple, yet effective advice on fat loss. Check it out.

Don't Be Scared to Load

Try not to treat your clients as if they're patients. Often times we forget that people NEED a training effect. Sure, corrective exercise is important and is often a necessity. But I don't feel that an entire training session needs to be dedicated to corrective exercise alone; which is a mistake that a lot of trainers make.

More often than not the majority of one's corrective training is going to come from modalities such as foam rolling or dynamic flexibility drills, which can be done in less than ten minutes. If I need to spend a little more time on scapular stability or some glute activation with certain clients, I can usually "sneak" some extra work in between rest periods. So while they are "resting," they're also doing something productive.

I often see a lot of trainers spending 30-35 minutes on "little" things. Sorry, but doing 30 minutes of glute med activation and "core" work is not going to help your client shed those 30 lbs. And repeat after me: "BOSU balls are crap."

Long story short, don't be afraid to load your clients. Getting them stronger will undoubtedly be corrective in nature. This is not to say that there aren't special cases where you have to hold people back, but lets give these people a training effect too.

Busy Busy

Sorry for the long delay in getting another post up, but to say that things are crazy right now would be an understatement. I won't let the "cat out of the bag" (did I actually just use that phrase!?!?!) at the moment, but needless to say....some MAJOR changes are in the works. And by major, what I mean is Cressey Performance Center. Details soon......;o)

On a side note, I went and saw the latest Harry Potter movie last week. I had to go to this one alone because Katlyn (my girlfriend) just started reading book #1 and has never seen any of the movies (lame, I know....no worries, she's now officially hooked and has the HP bug). Needless to say, the movie was fantastic. Very dark and very cool.

Squatting Mishap

This blog is dedicated to a client of mine. As personal trainers, we LOVE to have clients who work hard and are consistent with their training. We also love to have clients who won't let something like ripping their pants while performing a set of Anderson squats get in the way of finishing their training session.

On her second set of Anderson squats, one of my female clients split her pants wide open. I wouldn't be surprised if someone across the gym heard the tear (over the lame John Mayer song playing in the background no less). I couldn't help but laugh my ass off and told her it was a right of passage. She racked the weight and then proceeded to put a towel around her waist and was perfectly content with finishing what I had planned for the day that way. How awesome is that?

Luckily the assistant fitness manager was kind enough to let her borrow a pair of extra pants we had back in the training office, and we finished our session.

I just wanted to give her kudos for being a champ. Not many clients would have a "screw it" attitude and want to train with a towel around their waist for an hour. That just made my day.

Q: In Mike Boyle's last article for T-nation (as well as this article from his site: http://michaelboyle.biz/documents/articles/Is%20Rotation%20Necessary.pdf) he pretty much stated that he has taken all exercises and warm up movements that involve lumbar rotation out of his programs, including scorpions, spinal erector stretches, bent knee twists etc. This has left me feeling a little unsure about how to train my clients, as obviously some of the stuff he doesn't like is stuff that is directly recommended in Magnificent Mobility, which I always use to design my warm up routines. What's your take on the whole deal?

A:

#1. Mike Boyle is one smart dude and probably the most quotable coach ever. The article linked above is a fantastic read. On a side note, I once ate an entire pizza at his house. I rule!

#2. I too use Magnificent Mobility for the bulk of my warm-ups with my own clients. As you well know, this industry is ever evolving and changing (it never stays the same). What was "good" for us at one point (the "low fat" craze in the 80's and 90's), is now "bad" (boy was that retarded). The thing about many fitness products and books that come out, is that information is often outdated within 6-12 months because of new research or data that comes out. This is why there are 2nd, 3rd, even 4th editions on some books.

The same can be said about Magnificent Mobility (and Inside/Out for that matter). I know for a fact that both Eric and Mike would exclude "some" of the movements advocated in the dvd (prone scorpions, and bent knee twists come to mind) based off a lot of the new data that exists which say that the lumbar spine should be trained with STABILITY in mind, and not MOBILITY.

That being said, it's STILL one of the best tools out there as far as learning how to properly warm-up. And I wouldn't be at all surprised if we get a MM 2nd edition soon.

#3. And lets remember to not throw the baby out with the bathwater here. I know there are a lot of trainers out there who are now reluctant to have their clients perform cable woodchops or any other movements that include rotation. Personally, I like to make sure that clients are able to PREVENT rotation before I train rotation (healthy dose of planks, Pallof Presses, etc etc). But that's not to say that I don't train rotation to some capacity; I mean come on....it IS a normal part of human movement. It's inevitable.

Cable Woodchops are perfectly fine, so long as the client is rotatating "through the chest" and NOT the lumbar spine. Stretching the lumbar spine is "okay" so long as it fits the needs of the client (someone who has Anterior Pelvic Tilt for example) AND they DO NOT go into HYPER-extension. Big difference. The latter point being one of the main reasons I am not a big fan of yoga.

All in all, certain liberties have to be taken into consideration and it speaks volumes that you're keep up-to-date with current literature and data. We need more trainers like you out there.

Working Out vs. Training

Lets try to differentiate between "working out" and "training."

Someone who "works out"

1. Actually says, "I am going to the gym to workout." This would be followed by
2. Wears gloves and/or complains about getting callouses.
3. Always does what is easy. IE: has done the same routine and looks EXACTLY the same as (s)he did three years ago.
4. Carries their cell phone with them into the gym. Unless you're a brain surgeon and/or Reggie Jackson (who I actually did see in the gym talking on his cell phone, but he's Mr. October and you're not, plus his forearms are the size of Kansas), you can live without your phone for an hour.
5. Carries a newspaper or magazine with them to read in between sets (worse yet: reads a newspaper or magazine DURING a set). Huh, I wonder why you're still fat?
6. Uses the term "I don't want to get big a bulky" whenever anyone mentions squats or deadlifts.
7. Spends 45 minutes training biceps while wearing UnderArmour.
8. Sorry ladies: yoga is not a form of working out. It's a form of crap.
9. Is ecstatic when the new ellipticals arrive.
10. Will never know what it's like to be in shape.

Someone who "trains"

1. Has a purpose and mission each and every day (s)he steps into the gym.
2. Is proud of their callouses and has a pet name for each and every one of them.
3. Is mad when it's NOT squat or deadlift day.
4. Knows there's more to life than three sets of ten. Matter of fact, anything over six reps is considered cardio.
5. Is in and out of the gym in less than 75 minutes.
6. Needs nothing but a power rack and a barbell to kick his or hers' own ass.
7. Doesn't use straps for lat pulldowns
8. Doesn't feel that women and men need to train differently. IE: she doesn't get intimidated by the guys in the free weight area.
9. Brags about their "battle scars" on their shins.
10. Actually looks like they lift weights.

Have bum knees? Want to know how to fix them?

Q: I must first say that I am a complete novice when it comes to fat
loss. I was just wondering if there really is a need to change one's
program for fat loss? I am following the Precision Nutrition guidelines, and keeping
to at least 90% compliance. I'm trying to drop about 5-8lbs of fat to
get myself down to my weight class. (I had been on a rather
aggressive clean bulk, before I knew better).

Anyway I was wondering, is there a need to use a program more focused
on fat loss (assuming I am on a caloric deficit). Or can I
achieve the same effect by staying on my current programming (I'm
currently using a westside-like template), with the same caloric
deficit?

I'm asking this also because I hear a lot that fat loss is achieved
with proper nutrition. But if this is so, then why is there a need
for many experts to develop specific fat-loss programs?

A:

Here's a direct quote from Alwyn Cosgrove:

"There's pretty much nothing that can be done to out-train a crappy diet. You quite simply have to create a caloric deficit while eating enough protein and essential fats. There's no way around this. Several trainers have espoused that the only difference between training for muscle gain and training for fat loss is your diet. I think that's a massive oversimplification, but it does reinforce how important and effective correct nutrition is toward your ultimate goal."

I couldn't agree more with Alwyn (like that's a big surprise). I tell ALL my clients that if fat loss is their goal, they CAN NOT out train a piss poor diet. You HAVE to provide some form of caloric deficit to lose fat. I would say that upwards of 80% of fat loss will be a direct result of your nutrition.

That being said, it IS a massive oversimplication to say that the only difference between training for muscle gain and training for fat loss is one's diet. So what we're trying to say is that a 300 lb powerlifter who needs to lose a bit of fat to make weight (but keep his lifts up) and a 175 lb weekend warrior who's trying to get up to 190 lbs are going to be training the same way, it's just their diet that's different? That's absurd.

All in all, if you're fat, you're fat. Using a more "advanced" program for fat loss will not speed up the fat loss process. I think someone in your situation (who is only looking to lose 5-8 lbs of fat, and has a bit more training experience) something like Alwyn's programs would work. Shoot, I would just throw in a few complexes at the end of your training session or some added med ball circuits/sprints and I am sure you could drop the fat quickly. But yes, nutrition IS fairly important