Importance of Good Form When Strength Training

Whether you train at a gym, do yoga or play outdoors, there are probably people you watch and think, “Wow.”

Even while lifting heavy weights or doing complex body movements, they’re smooth and efficient. They make it look way easier than it is.

Yeah, it might be that they’re stronger or more flexible. But there’s something else, too. It seems like they were born with it.

There is a right way and a wrong way to lift; can’t tell you how many people I’ve seen in the gym lift incorrectly and use momentum to lift the weights.

An exercise done incorrectly won’t give you the benefits you’re looking for. And can lead to sprains, strains, fractures and other painful injuries that may hamper your efforts.

A hunched back is a common error with bent-over rows.  

Lifting too much weight in bicep curls engages the shoulders and reduces the effort on the biceps.

An ego lifter uses momentum to lift weights because it’s too heavy. That swinging motion is cheating. It’s not strength. It won’t grow your muscles. And it puts too much pressure on the joints.

What-on-Earth? Movements

As I said before there is a right way and a wrong way to lift. And the only thing you are going to gain by lifting with those loosey-goosey movements is injuries.

A few days ago I saw a guy literally swinging his arms holding a 40kg and then a 45kg dumbbell from bottom to top, to get into the starting position for incline DB presses.

A quick look at his shoulders and I could tell he was on juice (roids). But if you continue lifting like that sooner or later you pay the price. An injury is evident.

And with that poor technique, you’d never be able to increase the load. Talk about making progress.

Work on your technique before you increase the load.

Here’s how you get into the position for incline DB press the right way:

  1. Put the weight atop your thighs
  2. Use the push of legs to help push the dumbbell up (1 at a time)

Do not rigidly push/pull the weights. The weights should move as if it’s part of your body.

Any movement should be performed in a slow and controlled manner, going through the full range of motion.

Improving your movement skills and form can address your needs of creating your dream body

Think of the most graceful athletes and movement professionals you know – dancers, gymnasts, acrobats or martial artists.  Now think of their physiques and precision of movement.

There’s a science behind every movement. Even walking straight is a matter of posture: chest out, shoulders back, head high.

Whether you are doing cardio, or any of the push/pull movements with dumbbells/bar/ kettle ball your movement should be flawless. It should look beautiful (full of grace) and not forceful.

Working on your form and developing the precision of movement will put an end to those jerky, forced movements that waste your energy and lead to injury.

What is a Good Form

If you want to build muscle, you should let the muscles do the work.

A good form let your muscles do the work. It doesn’t put any stress on your tendons and or ligament.

A good form employs efficient body mechanics, that maximize the available strength and energy required for the movement.

With good form, the weights and your body work together as a unit, rather than as a collection of parts.

The better your form, the better your results, and the less likely you are to hurt yourself. Efficient movement patterns make training a more muscle and brain-stimulating experience.

You should be the one moving the weights it should not be the other way round. Move with control rather than moving with momentum.

When you move with the intention of control, the stress is funneled to the appropriate areas of the body (target muscles) rather than to regions prone to break down and injury (joints).

Even an untrained eye can spot if someone is performing an activity with a solid technique compared to someone else. It “looks better,” and the aesthetics of proper form shine through, even to the untrained eyes.

It’s not just a professional athlete performing well that catches our attention. A woman on the street that walks with a graceful gait, that completely hijacks it.

Or a bartender that serves the thirsty masses with style and grace, and not a wasted motion.

The body angles and steady execution are simply pleasing to the eye.

Emphasize proper form and reap the benefits of your training. Focus. Learn. And make your form as beautiful and technical as possible and you’d see significant improvement in every exercise or sport you practice.

Don’t count the reps. Make every rep count!

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