i’ve been weighttraining for 7 years now, but teh last few months i noticed something weird. it’s like my schoulders are coming forward and my traps and upper back are really tight.
a friend of mine said i was doing too much bench presses and too little horizontal rowing, but my pecs really suck. he also said that my tight upper back could be because
of my work, i work a lot with a computer.
is there anyone who can help me with there problems?
I think you got good advice. And keep in mind that benching alone doesn’t always give you good pecs. Depending on how you bench, you could be giving your tri’s and front delts more work (or as much work) as your pecs. Read the “321 Shoulders” article in the current issue of T-mag (online). Sounds like that article was written exactly for you. As for your work, just make sure you’re following all the rules of posture - eyes forward, not looking down, etc.
Kenny i work as an ergonomics and occupational health and safety advisor in aus. Simply put using the computer extensively shouldnt cause rounded back - do the following:
ensure that your monitor height is such that the first line of type on your screen is at eye level
adjust your chair to ensure that the lumbar support is in line with the natural curve in your spine
your hips should be at or around 90 flexion -your knee’s should be just below your hips according to the guidleines in front of me.
also look at altering your posture by using rest pause type exercises throughout the day
ensure that your forearms are supported on the desk when you are typing, your shoulders should be neither depressed or elevated - try to keep them neutral
a good tip is to get someone to look at you while you work and check out your posture or if you like get someone to take a side on photo and check it yourself
for other t readers simple changes to your workplace can have a massive affect on your posture - all that training only to have a long term injury because of shitty work postures would be a fuckin waste
if anyone’s interested there are quite a few good texts i can reccomend
I have also heard that the imbalance caused by too much horizontal pushing and not enough horizontal pulling can cause this problem. Make sure you do just as many sets, if not more, for back as you do for chest. Posture is also key, all day long.
id recomend more rows (although not to many bent bb ones,) and lots of snatch DLs. The snatch DL would then be the main lift that you are focusing on that taxes your lower back.