As of Friday, I’m a year older. Am I a year wiser, though? Post your questions here and we’ll find out tonight!
EC
EC,
Happy Belated Brithday!
I have posted a few things about my shoulder(impingment/weak serratus) in the past. I am doing the exercises you presribed, but am still getting alot of soreness which I attribute to inflamation.
Can you give me any tips with using icing? For what time duration and how often? I regularly also use advil. Is that okay or are the disadvantages to regular use?
Thanks,
Soco
Whats your recommendations for a person wishing to improve speed (absolute) for rugby.
I’m 175cm and weight 76kg. I’m sorry I don’t know my absolute lifts in most exercises. I can bench press 80kg.
Strength deficit is the difference between maximum strength (current ability) and absolute strength (potential maximum ability). Stabilization deficit is the difference between your current stability versus its potential. So the best question you can ask is, "How much strength and stability do I need to bench/dead/squat a certain level?
- Can you elaborte on these two topics.
Thanks for spending time with us young whipper snappers, eric.
when standing or sitting or attempting to express power, my right foot is more pronated and farther back than my left (i couldn’t say how much exactly). the ass dimple on my right side is more pronounced than on the left. my right hip seems to stick out to the side farther than my left.
when i do back intensive/back stability intensive work my right side, somewhere around the meeting of erector and bone and glute on the right side, aches and gets pumped worse than my left side. if i try natural glute ham raises with hip and back completely extended my left glute is contracted while my right one isn’t (i can consciously contract it though that doesn’t seem to aid anything).
earlier in life i had an inguinal hernia on the right side. sometimes, more often after a big meal but not always, i get a pain where the abdominals meet the hip flexors (close to where an inguinal hernia surgery incision goes). when standing or sitting, the middle of my spine looks like it’s to the left of center. when standing or sitting i can get pain to the right of my spine in the middle of my back.
when slightly stressed while standing or walking for a while i get a pain in my right upper trapezoid. the pains in my back and trap have moved around over the years, but stayed in the same general area.
upon waking, ive noticed that my right upper trap is very tight. my right lower trap seems to be longer and thinner than the left one. my left arm can reach my upper back but my right arm can only slide up to mid back. my right shoulder is closer to my neck than my left when i raise my arms above my head (and my right shoulder pops at those last couple of inches of shoulder flexion).
that forearm muscle that is a bump when the arm is in flexion is more pronounced on my left side. at first i thought this was because i use to deadlift with a switch grip with my left arm pronated, and i developed imbalanced arm muscles because. i no longer think that it is a muscle imbalance because while comparing arms in an elbow flexed position the tricep on the right seems more pronounced than on the left. these two factors led me to believe the im just seeing small pieces of my entire postural placement.
also, my entire left side is stronger than my right, except crushing grip (but im right handed).
there are many more postural nuances ive noticed that i can’t really explain. i know this is a lot of information and you may not be able to help me because much more information may be necessary in order to, or this may be out of your area of expertise or interest.
should i ask this question of Dr. Ryan?
any advice or exercises you can give me that could help my structural malfunctions are appreciated.
thanks!
Hey EC, I’m helping out one of the local highschool teams with their S&C this summer (itll probably be a joke because they dont have to go), and i was wondering if you’d let me know what you think of what I’ve put together.
The lifting will basically be the same as Joe Defrancos Westside for Skinny Bastards - Mon ME upper, Weds ME lower, Fri Rep upper.
I was going to do deceleration and agility work on Mon and Weds and some strongman or other GPP stuff friday, try to work it out as a competition as much as possible to keep them interested. I’d do Tempos on Tues and Thurs for whoever would be willing to show up.
[quote]Soco wrote:
EC,
Happy Belated Brithday![/quote]
Thanks!
[quote]I have posted a few things about my shoulder(impingment/weak serratus) in the past. I am doing the exercises you presribed, but am still getting alot of soreness which I attribute to inflamation.
Can you give me any tips with using icing? For what time duration and how often? [/quote]
10-15 minutes after activity and 1-2 other times per day.
I’m not a fan of it, although it depends on the scenario. Here’s a Q&A I wrote up elsewhere on the subject:
Best of luck in getting back to pain-free training as soon as possible!
EC
[quote]Springcoil wrote:
Whats your recommendations for a person wishing to improve speed (absolute) for rugby.
I’m 175cm and weight 76kg. I’m sorry I don’t know my absolute lifts in most exercises. I can bench press 80kg.[/quote]
It depends entirely on the person. The single-most valuable thing I could do is watch you run. It may be technical or purely related to your position on the static-spring proficiency continuum. Some need purely maximal strength work; others need to work on reactive ability. Some split times would also help me make determinations in this regard.
[quote]mattrose wrote:
Strength deficit is the difference between maximum strength (current ability) and absolute strength (potential maximum ability). Stabilization deficit is the difference between your current stability versus its potential. So the best question you can ask is, "How much strength and stability do I need to bench/dead/squat a certain level?
- Can you elaborte on these two topics.[/quote]
Sure. You can work to reduce the strength deficit with more maximal and dynamic effort lifts. Neuromuscular adaptation in this regard is essentially a product of repetition; it’s the reason that strength peaks later in life than one would typically expect (and why you see a lot of damn good lifters in their late 30s and older). Lift heavy and lift fast.
To my knowledge, Paul Chek introduced the term “stabilization deficit” with respect to a lifter’s belted vs. non-belted lifting strength. His rationale was that the greater the stabilization deficit, the more likely the probability that there is less MU recruitment by the CNS. I outlined my views on belt use in “Debunking Exercise Myths” a while back, so I’m assuming that you’re referring to how often one should train with the belt in order to find a medium between proficiency with equipment and over-reliance on something that could in fact cause weakness. I’ll speak only from my own personal practices. My belt is used for three purposes:
-
On roughly 50% of my DES days simply because I need something to hold my squat briefs in place (I only wear them 50% of the time). On these days, the belt is worn VERY loose; I really don’t get any poundage out of it, although it does help me to reinforce the concept of bracing the core.
-
When I use my bench shirt and need to hold the extra material down. This is 1-2 times per month, and it really doesn’t make a difference (loose, as above).
-
On max effort days, for the last ~2 sets only. I’ve done quite a bit of working up to get to these attempts, so I’m not going to “undo” the favorable/healthy neural programming by taking a few max lifts in the belt. From a specificity standpoint, this is ideal, as it gives me an idea of where my competition maxes stand, and allows me to train in my competition equipment.
My left one hangs lower than the right one. Do I need orthotics.
You’re doing a great job, BTW.
[quote]wufwugy wrote:
Thanks for spending time with us young whipper snappers, eric.
when standing or sitting or attempting to express power, my right foot is more pronated and farther back than my left (i couldn’t say how much exactly). the ass dimple on my right side is more pronounced than on the left. my right hip seems to stick out to the side farther than my left.
when i do back intensive/back stability intensive work my right side, somewhere around the meeting of erector and bone and glute on the right side, aches and gets pumped worse than my left side. if i try natural glute ham raises with hip and back completely extended my left glute is contracted while my right one isn’t (i can consciously contract it though that doesn’t seem to aid anything).[/quote]
Probably tightness in your right QL, which is hiking your right pelvis up and causing you to use substitution patterns that take your right glutes out of the equation.
Get some pictures and drop me an email; we’ll figure out what’s going on.
Trapezoid, huh? 
It’s all related; you’re compensating in the upper body for what is going on in the lower body.
[quote]upon waking, ive noticed that my right upper trap is very tight. my right lower trap seems to be longer and thinner than the left one. my left arm can reach my upper back but my right arm can only slide up to mid back. my right shoulder is closer to my neck than my left when i raise my arms above my head (and my right shoulder pops at those last couple of inches of shoulder flexion).
that forearm muscle that is a bump when the arm is in flexion is more pronounced on my left side. at first i thought this was because i use to deadlift with a switch grip with my left arm pronated, and i developed imbalanced arm muscles because. i no longer think that it is a muscle imbalance because while comparing arms in an elbow flexed position the tricep on the right seems more pronounced than on the left. these two factors led me to believe the im just seeing small pieces of my entire postural placement.[/quote]
Right on the money.
The grip thing is just specificity of training related to you using the alternate grip.
[quote]there are many more postural nuances ive noticed that i can’t really explain. i know this is a lot of information and you may not be able to help me because much more information may be necessary in order to, or this may be out of your area of expertise or interest.
should i ask this question of Dr. Ryan?
any advice or exercises you can give me that could help my structural malfunctions are appreciated.
thanks![/quote]
No problem. Get those pictures to confirm or refute what I’m thinking, and we’ll go from there.
[quote]BobCat50 wrote:
Hey EC, I’m helping out one of the local highschool teams with their S&C this summer (itll probably be a joke because they dont have to go), and i was wondering if you’d let me know what you think of what I’ve put together.
The lifting will basically be the same as Joe Defrancos Westside for Skinny Bastards - Mon ME upper, Weds ME lower, Fri Rep upper.
I was going to do deceleration and agility work on Mon and Weds and some strongman or other GPP stuff friday, try to work it out as a competition as much as possible to keep them interested. I’d do Tempos on Tues and Thurs for whoever would be willing to show up.[/quote]
Don’t worry about the deceleration and agility stuff just yet. They’re kids; that’s probably all that they’ve been doing thus far! In other words, they’re going to be proficient with reactive strength. You can effect the most favorable changes right now with some structural-based training (think prehab) and pure strength work to teach them to recruit MUs. They’ll get faster and more agile without doing any sprinting!
I’d have them training lower and upper body twice a week. Try to integrate some of the strongman stuff into some of those sessions, and use the off-days to let them play their sports, build work capacity, or just relax and be kids.
[quote]tom63 wrote:
My left one hangs lower than the right one. Do I need orthotics.
You’re doing a great job, BTW.[/quote]
No pics needed on this one. I’d recommend a wheelbarrow! 
Thanks!
EC in one of your articles you mention “buckling” and how it’s a bad thing. Now I know the common “oh my knee buckled” but I was wondering if we could get the EC explaination of buckling and why it’s bad
Damn bro, can’t believe I missed your b-day; I’m such an ass! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
Stay strong
MR
- Can you elaborate on these two topics.
Sure. You can work to reduce the strength deficit with more maximal and dynamic effort lifts. Neuromuscular adaptation in this regard is essentially a product of repetition; it’s the reason that strength peaks later in life than one would typically expect (and why you see a lot of damn good lifters in their late 30s and older). Lift heavy and lift fast.
To my knowledge, Paul Chek introduced the term “stabilization deficit” with respect to a lifter’s belted vs. non-belted lifting strength. His rationale was that the greater the stabilization deficit, the more likely the probability that there is less MU recruitment by the CNS. I outlined my views on belt use in “Debunking Exercise Myths” a while back, so I’m assuming that you’re referring to how often one should train with the belt in order to find a medium between proficiency with equipment and over-reliance on something that could in fact cause weakness. I’ll speak only from my own personal practices. My belt is used for three purposes:
-
On roughly 50% of my DES days simply because I need something to hold my squat briefs in place (I only wear them 50% of the time). On these days, the belt is worn VERY loose; I really don’t get any poundage out of it, although it does help me to reinforce the concept of bracing the core.
-
When I use my bench shirt and need to hold the extra material down. This is 1-2 times per month, and it really doesn’t make a difference (loose, as above).
-
On max effort days, for the last ~2 sets only. I’ve done quite a bit of working up to get to these attempts, so I’m not going to “undo” the favorable/healthy neural programming by taking a few max lifts in the belt. From a specificity standpoint, this is ideal, as it gives me an idea of where my competition maxes stand, and allows me to train in my competition equipment.[/quote]
I had read some things on strength deficit and they were talking about your max eccentric versus your max concentric strength. Using bench press as an example if you could safely lower 300 lbs in 4 sec and your normal controlled bench was 290 more time should be focuses on hypertrophy but if your controlled concentric bench was 250 and your eccentric was still 300 more time should be focused on neural adaptions.
Regarding stabilization deficit I was refering to major imbalances between horizontal pushing versus horizontal pulling some say that your horizontal pull should equal your horizontal pressing weight. Another thing I had read was that if your rotator cuffs were weak it would shut down your prime movers as a defense mechanism
Any other thoughts on this subject.
Congrats on being a year older!
Thanks for doing this fine civil duty to the members of T-Nation, even as you age in years!!
Anyways, here’s one or two for you.
I have taken a very long time off of doing the bench press (flat) for a long time and just worked hard on rows and close grip declines with a powerlifter position on my chest. Though my shoulders, triceps, and DEFINITELY back have grown, my chest is lacking.
I had originally stopped doing bench press because my shoulders became too tight for boxing and jiu-jitsu. I also seem prone to ant. delt / biceps strains (I think I also might have a SLAP tear right now, but it is too soon to tell as it is not 24 post acute traumatic injury).
With all that in mind, I would like your opinion on a reintegration of chest workouts while still avoiding any problems with injuries and keeping as high a degree of shoulder flexibility as possile. I am trying to get as much power as possible while still maintaining the above parameters while still making my chest large (esp. clavicular fibers) Your thoughts?
I have a friend who can’t squat properly, and I would like to help him. When he back squats (powerlifter style) his hips round underneath him at just above parallel.
When attempting to front squat, he can’t balance at all, and seems to come crashing forward everytime due to ant. ankle tightness.
Also in regards to front squats, he loses all power and balance if he can get to parallel. If he is holding on to a power rack while trying to bodyweight squat, he just drops once he hits below parallel and doesn’t have any strength to get back up. When he drops down, the only way he can get back up is by coming up onto his toes.
I have tried to increase hamstring and lowerback flexibility while increasing core strength, but wanted your opinion.
Once again, thank you for your time, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY EC!!
[quote]bigpump23 wrote:
EC in one of your articles you mention “buckling” and how it’s a bad thing. Now I know the common “oh my knee buckled” but I was wondering if we could get the EC explaination of buckling and why it’s bad[/quote]
Well, it’s bad because it’s indicative of some sort of structural/functional problem such as a torn meniscus.
[quote]Mike Robertson wrote:
Damn bro, can’t believe I missed your b-day; I’m such an ass! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
Stay strong
MR[/quote]
No worries, buddy; they all feel the same now, anyway! Thanks!
[quote]mattrose wrote:
I had read some things on strength deficit and they were talking about your max eccentric versus your max concentric strength. Using bench press as an example if you could safely lower 300 lbs in 4 sec and your normal controlled bench was 290 more time should be focuses on hypertrophy but if your controlled concentric bench was 250 and your eccentric was still 300 more time should be focused on neural adaptions.[/quote]
This isn’t the traditional form of strength deficit, which is actually a comparison of maximal involuntary (EMS) contraction and maximal voluntary contraction (essentially the most force your muscles could potentially generate compared to what they really can generate).
As for the eccentric vs. concentric strength deficit, I don’t see it as being influential in terms of what one should be doing from a hypertrophy standpoint. Rather, it speaks to what neural properties should be prioritized based on type of muscle action (eccentric, isometric, concentric). If your concentric and eccentric are even, then you need to do a lot more heavy negatives to teach your body to recruit maximally. If your eccentric strength is more than 20% greater than your concentric strength, then you need to do more concentric-only work.
[quote]Regarding stabilization deficit I was refering to major imbalances between horizontal pushing versus horizontal pulling some say that your horizontal pull should equal your horizontal pressing weight. Another thing I had read was that if your rotator cuffs were weak it would shut down your prime movers as a defense mechanism
Any other thoughts on this subject. [/quote]
I’ve never bought in to the bench = bent-over row strength. The former exercise has five points of surface contact, while the latter has two. Greater stability equates to greater strength, so you’d be comparing apples and oranges.
Yes, weak external rotators can be a limiting factor with respect to strength development in the prime movers; it’s called reciprocal inhibition.