TonyMc Clure Strength & Fitness

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The Sissy Squat Complete Guide Find out everything you need to know about sissy squats. Learn how to do them in your home gym with or without equipment.

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Eliminating Unsafe Exercises and Highlighting their Safe Alternatives:
Since the onset of the Covid 19 Virus many people have posted their home workouts on Facebook and Instagram, for me being in this profession for over 25 years I have serious concerns about some of the very unsafe routines, practices and exercises that are being posted. Exercises such as Leg Extension, Leg Press, Smith Machine Squats and performing Plyometric Upper and Lower Body drills on cement can illicit unwanted damages to joints and muscles. Starting off with the first 3 leg exercises that I listed each can cause shearing forces to the knees such as Leg Extension and Smith Machine squats. An example of shearing forces using the leg extension occurs when doing full range of motion the weight at the bottom is stretching the ligaments over the bones of the upper and lower leg, the femur, the tibialis and the fibula, much like a rope being pulled and stretched over a rock the rope twine gets sheared and warn down. Smith Machine Squats also increase the shearing forces on the knees by 40% when compared to performing regular back squats, in this exercise the shearing is caused because the lifter cannot break at the hips and sit backwards into the squat as in a regular squat. The Leg Press machine can cause shearing forces on the back especially when the carriage is allowed to go to low and the lifter has to round their back. Sadly another exercise similar to the Leg Press that is being performed with high: intensity and volume is Tire Flipping, just getting into the very low squat position for many individuals is near impossible without severely rounding your back, then adding very high load (many tires are over 185 pounds) compounds these issues. Trying to explosively jerk the tire off the ground in a compromised position is very dangerous, plus the height of the 2nd pull of Power Cleans is executed when the bar is mid-thigh reaching hip height to therefore use the hips as the Power Generator. The very low start position in Tire Flipping is exclusively using the back to lift. Regular Power Cleans would be a much safer alternative, because the start position with rubber bumpers on the bar is mid-shin height and the lifter can precisely track and progress their weights.
Plyometric drills are awesome exercises that teach force production and force absorption but performing them on an unforgiving surface such as blacktop or cement can also cause joint deterioration over time and also when the exercises are not done in a step by step progression, for example depth jumps, the highest intensity plyometric exercise for the upper and lower body, should not even be attempted until: 1- a strength base of 2 to 1 for lower body (squat 2 x’s bodyweight), a 1 to 1 ratio for upper body (bench press 1 x bodyweight) and 2- a proper progression that finishes off at depth jumps, example jumping rope, to small hurdle hops, to tuck jumps, then finish at depth jumps. Much like a developing youngster…they crawl, then walk, jog…then sprint, a progression must be followed or they will not be physically able to perform the exercise and injury will occur. Stackable foams mats are an awesome addition to a training facility, they help measure height attained and landing on them eliminates landing forces. These drills can be performed on rubber flooring or wooden surfaces, plyometric drills need a semi hard surface so the generating takeoff forces are not dissipated, an example of this can be felt while trying to generate forces from a sand pit for takeoff versus leaving ground from wood or rubber. Dr Emily Spilichal has penned an excellent article highlighting impact forces when performing different events for example, walking has shown bodyweight forces 1-1.5 x and gymnastic moves have reached 18 x bodyweight forces. Exercises of this high intensity should not be performed using excessive volume, 3-4 sets of 4 to 10 reps may be more than enough volume.
The same issues regarding training surfaces also applies to activity footwear. Dr Emily Spilichal has also found research stating that solid footwear enhances sports performance while deterring injuries. Shoes that have a soft cushiony sole lead to ankle instability and dramatically increase landing forces, especially as the sole thickness increases. This information seems counterintuitive although research has shown that as the thickness of the sole increases, so do the landing forces. Great shoe choices for lifting are Adidas “Powerlifts” and Velaasa “Shrakes” These shoes have good heal support and a sold base. This same info applies to running shoes, use the soles that have minimal thickness or lift.
Other unsafe practices I have seen from videos are performing thumb less grips while Bench Pressing or Chinups/Pullups. There is a “Reason” why the thumb less grip on any exercise has been termed “Suicide Grip”, your thumb is your last line of attachment to a bar when slipping out, and not having it wrapped only increases chances for eminent disaster!! When performing a single arm pull or push the thumb is always wrapped around the bar, why eliminate the thumb on an exercise when the loads and intensity of an exercise have immensely increased? The only time the thumb is not wrapped is while performing gymnastics exercises. The Bench Press and any overhead lifts many times get a bad rap from the training community that is definitely not warranted, proper technique, such as keeping the elbows at a 45 degree angle when benching and finishing the exercise with a straight vertical push are essential to maintaining a healthy shoulder. A coaching analogy I use is: when watching a boxing match you always see both combatants keeping their arms tucked in by their sides when defending or punching, they stay tight for safety and power and keeping the arms down allows the body to be part of the force delivery application. Another applicable analogy when pushing or pulling is to mind set that the load is 2000 pounds and you must execute movements with the body in a condensed/consise manner to move it.
Two exercises that are basically worthless but they keep getting hyped are the leg curl and bicep curl, when performing sporting movements such as: running, jumping, pushing or pulling the whole body works as a unit from head to toe to create or absorb forces, the body never initiates from a single joint, for example a punch or a kick is not just the arm or leg extending, the walk up step, the trunk twist, hip turn and drive step all are active to generate or dissolve forces, so these movements should be trained similarly. Replacing the leg curl, the Glute-Ham-Gastroc raise is a full hamstring and calf exercise that enlists similar body movements to jumping, Dr Michael Yessis has written a superb explanation in his book “Biomechanics and Kinesiology of Exercise 2nd edition” about why this exercise should be used to train the hamstrings. Another alternative to the leg curl is to perform a leg curl while on a Swissball, this engages the hips and the “Pawback” motion is similar to that used in sprinting. An additional hamstring exercise would be hip height step-ups. The bicep curl is a similar waste of time exercise, I have had 1 athlete tell me their rationale for using this exercise was that this exercise helped them to stiff arm an opponent while playing football, I would be pushing an opponent away from me not pulling them closer!! Chin-ups would be a better choice as a pull exercise and it also works, grip strength and back musculature. A DB Press or Beer Keg Press or using a new piece of equipment to press, “The Band-bell” would be a better “Stiff Arm” choice.
Many times the old conventional lifts such as power cleans, squats, bench press and RDL get negative stigmas attached to them. These exercises should be the main ingredients in your workout because they elicit balance, activate many stabilizer muscles along with the agonists, and when used in a progressive and safe manner they can literally improve your quality of life! In the recent edition of “Science and Practice of Strength Training 3rd edition” Power Cleans especially performing them with a deep squat are touted as helping to prevent ACL injuries as seen from the eyes of Jerry Martin and Andrea Hudy, when they were coaches for the Men’s and Women’s powerhouse basketball teams at the University of Connecticut. Power Cleans are an awesome full body explosive exercise teaching force application and force absorption. There is a reason why these exercises have withstood the test of time!
Situps and many forward flexion trunk exercises have traditionally been heavily trained and used as test markers for trunk strength. These exercises have come under fire due to the research of Dr Stuart McGill, who has deemed these “Unsafe” because of the high compressive forces they place on the back. Excessive volume in sit-ups or crunches have been shown to cause disc herniation. Also added to the trunk “Unsafe” list are Superman’s, with the arms and legs fully extended the back undergoes 6,000 Newtons or 1,300 pounds of compression forces, not a good exercise!! Planks are a better choice of exercise to perform because when performing exercises such as the aforementioned Power Cleans and Squats, the trunk is staying in a rigid position, never flexing forward.
Bottom line……….Choose Your training exercises Wisely!!!

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