Starting Strength Cincinnati member Pam does her best impression of Coach Tony Maldonado SSC while he coaches Lisa through her deadlifts. [photo courtesy of Luke Schroeder]
Maeve manages EDS and dysautonomia—conditions that impact her mobility and stamina. Recently returning to Starting Strength Boston after a setback, she is currently squatting three sets of five at 45 pounds. Her training focuses on rebuilding the physical baseline required for her upcoming role in a community theatre production. [photo courtesy of Max Sucee]
Robert Santana coaches a lifter through the squat at the recent training camp held at Weights & Plates Gym in Phoenix. [photo courtesy of Nathalie Summerville]
A lifter sets up for the deadlift at the recent training camp led by Robert Santana. [photo courtesy of Nathalie Summerville]
Zach Tabler completes his fives for press on a Saturday morning at Starting Strength Columbus. [photo courtesy of Paul Jackson]
landonhoj
Hello, I wanted to know if I could replicate an aspect of linear progression in basketball by using weighted balls?, would that be a smart idea or a tasking one?, I just finished using a 3lb ball for practice last night, now im thinking of resting until my arm feels better and trying a heavier ball mybe 6lb's. I am 5' 5" most I ever benched was 180, squatted 315, deadlifted 315, pressed 135 all that at 180lb, I havent lifted in 5 months now getting back to the gym, not interested in lifting again to be honest but I do want to put the principles I learned to practice again in basketball. I currently weigh 172lb.
if my expectations are erroneous please let me know and please point me the right way. thank you for you time
Mark Rippetoe
What would you do with a 20-pound basketball?
Jason Donaldson
Progressive overload alone does not comprise the whole of the Starting Strength principles. Exercise selection criteria, the strength/recovery/adaptation cycle, novice/intermediate/advanced, strength as a general adaptation, and so on are also integral to the method.
An important question: What do you intend to accomplish?
Subby
Evaluation and comparison of electromyographic activity in bench press with feet on the ground and active hip flexion
This study was shared in a group aimed at Physiotherapists that I couldn't resist sharing. I know Mark frequently references the study where bench pressing on a bosu ball was compared to a flat bench. Well so does this. Frequent citations are made to that research by these intrepid authors. The science has evolved. Bosu Balls are out, flat benches are back in, except now the floor is made of lava. They recommend benching with your legs held in the air.
The bench press exercise with active hip and knee flexion at 90° significantly increased activation of the pectoralis major (clavicular portion, sternal portion, and costal portion), anterior deltoid, triceps brachii (medial head), forearm (flexor digitorum), rectus abdominis, external oblique, and rectus femoris muscles (quadriceps) muscles compared with the bench press exercise with the feet on the ground, with the same load (kg) in both positions. For this reason, to perform the bench press exercise with flexed hips could be recommended for training in sports where the upper limbs and hip flexor muscles are required.
Fortunately there is still hope, they do caution against this new and improved bench press, but not for the reasons you think.
"Therefore, considering these methodological premises, it would be possible to conclude that performing the bench press exercise with active hip and knee flexion at 90 ̊ could be discouraged due to body position instability and vertebral stress increases" They spend quite a few words agonising over the increased shear forces that the hip flexors place on the spine due to lifting their own leg.
Apparently the journal charges by the word so the authors had to prioritise the important information. So they take great pains to detail the procedure taken to shave participants chests, however they were not able to specify the weights lifted.
As laughable as this article is, I do have an actual question. I'm new in my career and have only really paid attention to "the literature" for the past year. My question is how often does crap like this come around? it is a cyclical fad every 5-10 years or is it a continual stream of crap of like this? And is it worth tilting at that windmill? In the group I saw it posted I mentioned that it was one of the dumbest things I've ever read, after a couple of dozen people had responded to it positively without comment. Presumably someone is going to ask me why it's so stupid and I would struggle to find where to begin. Is it worth trying to challenge silly shit like this or just ignore it and do my own thing?
This is pretty standard stuff for PT journals. People who don't actually do the lifts themselves writing about the "research" they do on the lifts, it's hard to take them seriously. So we don't.
James Rodgers
According to the article, they also hook gripped the bench press for some reason.
Andrew Lewis
This all comes back to the same critical stuff.
1) What is strength?
2) What is the best way to increase strength? In other words, what is the best way to train for strength?
3) What selection criteria for exercises will best allow us to train for strength?
These concepts are almost never addressed by these kinds of studies.
Also, the sample size was 20 and the mean 1RM bench press was 187lb. Okay then.
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