Leg Day before the holidays

Got some new CDs for Christmas... working out to music helps me bust get to new levels.



Planned workout for today before I head to Louisville for a couple days then Georgetown.

Back squat
135 x12
185 x10
225 x8
275 x8
315 x3
365 x6
405 2x6



front squat
225 x8
265 2x8

RDLs
275 3x12

leg ext and leg curl= as many as possible with stack on machine, superset 4 sets with no rest

say what you want but these guys have mastered their craft (sing'n and make'n the beat)...


shouldn't you? if you are going to train, train right

LEG DAY

the plan for today is to become nauseated while doing legs. I am going to do 6 sets of back squat, leg press, and THEN front squat... although I don't expect to be worth much by the time I get to front squat.
I was relatively happy with deadlift on Tuesday. I haven't done any deadlift in *gasp* about a month and a half but I hit 365 for 6 then 8 and then 405 for 6, which are all good for me. About a year a half ago I tried 405 on deads and just got it twice with terrible form. My form was better this week and hopefully the good dead day is followed by a solid leg day today.

There will be a lack of twitter updates, I can't seem to get to the site from this computer.

Check out an article on rest periods or rest in general from Dan John here. I don't time my rest periods, but I also don't like for my workouts to last longer than an hour and a half so I push myself to keep a quicker pace. Coach John has some very useful comments about sleep, training, and life... you should check it out.

STAY STRONG

Back Squat versus Front Squat

I was doing some random searches on research engines through UK's library today and I came across some pretty useful information comparing front squat and back squat. (Pictures from http://www.stadion.com/)

Both are very useful in building knee and hip extensor muscles (quadriceps and glutes) as well as strengthening your core muscles. However, "performing back squat results in a higher amount compressive forces on the spine and knee extensor movements" according to Gullet et al in this study.

A higher amount of compressive forces could possibly be harmful in the long run, with a higher probability of spine or disc problems in someone with incorrect form. Gullet et al (2009) found no substantial difference in the amount of shear forces generated in either variation of the squat. Shearing force is physical stress that is perpendicular to the horizontal surface of an object where compressive force is the amount of force running down through an object.

(above) Compressive Force (http://www.back.com/)

Shearing Force-->

Gullet et al found that "front squat was as effective as the back squat in terms of overall muscle recruitment, with significantly less compressive forces and knee extensor moments... the results suggest that front squats may be advantageous compared with back squats for individuals with knee problems such as meniscus tears, and for long-term joint health."

However, in a study by Yetter and Moir (2008) that examined front and back squat's ability to improve 10 through 40m sprint times they found that the heavy back squat group not only had significant increases in speed time found when compared to the control group for the 10 and 20m distances... BUT the heavy back squat group also had significantly better sprint speeds times than heavy front squat at the 40m distance. Nonetheless, I would have liked to have seen a higher number of subjects than 10. Yetter and Moir's study.

For functional ability as far as strengthening your knee and hip extensor muscles as well as your core I would prescribe a person to participate in both front and back squats, as long as their form is correct. For any one with meniscus tears, bad form that has yet to be corrected, or previous back problems, I would recommend front squat. For an athlete I would throw into their program some front squat early in the off-season to continue to confused their muscles and give their backs a different type of force to deal with while still training the same muscles. Once the pre-season approached I would transition the athlete back to back squat.

STAY HUGE

References

Gullett, J., Tillman, M., Gutierrez, G., & Chow, J. (2009). A Biomechanical Comparison of Back and Front Squats in Healthy Trained Individuals. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 23(1), 284-292.

Yetter, M., & Moir, G. (2008). The Acute Effects of Heavy Back and Front Squats on Speed during Forty-Meter Sprint Trials. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 22(1), 159-165.

Update on max out numbers and Super set routine

I completed a one rep max on back squat and front squat yesterday... I hadn't maxed out on back squat since May, but my strength has stayed fairly consistent. It actually has to have gone up. In May I got 375 on back squat with a belt, and yesterday i got 375 BUT the study that was being done called for the lifters to not use a belt.
Using a weight lifting belt increases intrabdominal pressure, allowing a lifter to lift more and is a lot safer than to max out not using a belt. But since using a belt increases the pressure in your abdomen, it allows your body to stay more rigid, which would allow you to lift more weight... up to 15% more! So getting the same weight that I did in May just without the use of a belt means that I have increased my strength, so nothing to be pissed about.

I had never maxed out on front squat before. I usually work out with 185 or 195 for 4 sets of 6-8. BUT I was able to get 275, so i am amped about those weights.

For another study he wanted me to complete a 10 rep max on leg curl, deadlift, and back squat. I did the leg curl and played around with a couple weights before getting 150 ten times. I also had to follow the protocol of one second concentric, two seconds eccentric (one second up, two seconds down), so I know that I was moving the weight in a controlled manner.

On a completely different note, I was training one of my most motivated clients last Tuesday... He is wanting weight loss and increased strength. While the two are very difficult to achieve at once, because to achieve greater strength you have to build muscle whcih means you have to consume more calories that you burn, and he wants to lose weight, which is the exact oppostie of the formula to build muscle mass... I believe when working with a detrained person, the two are possible to achieve at once. His body is in such a state of shock at the workouts, that all the calories he is burning lifting weights and strengthening his core with me, will help shed the fat off of him while his strength has already improved substantially.

His work out this past week was:
leg press
DB chest press
Lat pulldown

3x 10 on all and each set of these exercises was supersetted with the following core developing exercises:

Medicine ball wall throws 3x 10 with a ten pound ball
Supine Medicine ball chest throws 3x10 w/ a ten pound ball
Alternating supermans 3x 12 each side

I hope he continues his current regimine of lifting twice a week and running the other days to eventually prepare for a marathon. He has the drive for a total body transformation.

I posted a poll, take it and see the results. Let me know if you need anything.