[quote]BEAR BORN wrote:
[quote]jskrabac wrote:
[quote]Professor X wrote:
[quote]jskrabac wrote:
[quote]chimera182 wrote:
[quote]jskrabac wrote:
I’m not sure I follow the logic of how these are any risk to your bicep tendon. That’s analogous to saying you risk a trap tear from back squats. [/quote]
Not trying to be a dick, but don’t you think holding a large amount of weight in a flexed position might be more dangerous than say, holding a weight on muscles that are stable?[/quote]
Well, I’m just trying to wrap my mind around it. Your traps are also contracted in order to shelve the barbell on a squat. In both cases, the muscle is fully contracted. Tears happen when fully extended. [/quote]
The risk is in resting that much weight on the tendon itself. Biceps tears are not uncommon in bodybuilding or powerlifting…so avoiding things that put you at risk of damaging the area might be of interest to certain people. Acting like this provides no risk at all makes no sense. Comparing a very weak structure like the biceps tendon to a very strong structure like your traps is missing the point.[/quote]
So you’re saying the risk would be if I were to, for instance, turn around and go for some heavy deads with an over-under grip right after beating the hell out of them on zerchers?[/quote]
I’ll say I’ve never heard of anyone tearing a bicep or damaging a tendon doing zerchers and I’ve been around a good number of high level powerlifters and some strongmen and a spattering of fighters for a long time. I’d say you’re at greater risk doing an under over grip on any exercise in terms of risk of damage to the bicep. If you were tremendously thin there might be pressure on the tendon itself but if you have any kind of mass on you there is enough subcutaneous tissue to make them uncomfortable at first but nothing like dangerous.
But that’s just my opinion I’ve never done anything over 405X3 with Zerchers and I wouldn’t recommend this lift in a lower rep range than that unless you were VERY comfortable and experienced with the motion but I have never felt any kind of tendon or muscle pain in the bicep region just discomfort from the bar digging in to that mass of muscle in the crook of your bent elbows.
I would also say on heavy Zerchers when form breaks down a little the bar drifts in to rest closer to the body and puts more pressure right on the brachialis but nothing I would consider dangerous and if legitimate pain or too much disconcerting pressure was noticed in the brachialis further hip extension can be used to take pressure off the elbow and let the bar rest somewhat “into” the body. I won’t say they are dangerous to the bicep or surrounding structures until I see evidence to the contrary.
I’ve also never heard of a strongman injuring an unhurt bicep doing conans wheel which places a good deal more strain on the elbow flexors than zerchers albeit in a similar position for a prolonged period.
I am a college graduate with a degree in exercise science and a decent lift or two to my name and I will say for me zerchers are awesome and if I had a serious trainee or athlete who needed a posterior chain exercise and hated damn near all of them or needed to learn to keep their knees out/back tight/sit back/ not cry about pain when squatting or was training for general strongman events I would teach the lift as a progression starting as squats from the rack moving to lower boxes and finally to the floor.
It’s just another tool, I can vouch for it’s effectiveness in more cases than just myself with damn strong people and have never seen any evidence to suggest that it is more dangerous than any other heavy compound lift. End 2 cents.[/quote]
just straight zercher squats or taking it from the ground for posterior development?
