5 Reasons You Should Box Squat
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“Why are we squatting to a box? Nobody cares how good my 1RM box squat is!”
That was a legitimate complaint fielded from a client who has been at my gym for seven years.
“I just want to back squat, man,” he persisted.
I had a small laugh to myself for a moment, but then realized it was worth addressing, as I frequently use a box squat with my clients for various reasons and maybe haven’t made it clear enough to them why.
To my client, and to the countless clients out there who just want to back squat, here’s the thing: Box squatting will ultimately serve to improve your back squat.
The same way you can improve your deadlift without actually working on your deadlift, as I explained in this article, you can improve your back squat without back squatting, per se. In this case, you can improve your traditional back squat via the box squat.
So, what makes the box squat useful?
1. The Box Squat Is HarderThe box squat naturally causes your momentum to slow to a halt as you reach the box.
In this sense, it’s sort of just more analogous to life in that it forces you to be more efficient and to find ways to get something done without that useful momentum we like too much.
Practically speaking, what I mean is that unlike the traditional box squat, where you can use the stretch reflex and momentum to drive yourself out of the hole, the box squat forces you to figure out how to drive out of the bottom of the squat without momentum or speed. This will translate into making your drive out of the bottom even stronger once you eliminate the box.
2. Box Squats Promote the Right Muscle FibersThe box squat puts you in a position where you can’t cheat, so to speak, by using just your quads to stand up. Instead, it puts you in a position where you will have to activate more muscle fibers in your glutes and your hamstrings to help get you out of that squat.
3. Box Squats Improve Your Squat MechanicsThe box squat helps improve squat mechanics as it forces you to use more of your muscle fibers in your posterior chain. Furthermore, it allows you to slow the movement down, which gives you an opportunity to truly focus on your mechanics. Stopping on the box provides a chance to double check your mechanics and positioning—Is my chest proud? Are my knees pointed out? Is my shin angle correct? Is my spine in a good position?—before driving out of the hole.
This is why I definitely resort to the box squat for new clients: It’s a way easier way to help them hone their squat mechanics from day 1, which goes a long way in preventing bad habits from forming.
4. Box Squats Save Your KneesFor people with a history of knee pain, or injuries especially, the box squat is a great way to sit back a little further in the squat to reduce loading your quads too much, which can place strain on your knees if your joints aren’t yet as bulletproof as they should be.
5. Box Squats Build ConsistencySimilarly, new lifters (and sometimes even experienced ones) are inconsistent with their depth on a squat, especially as the barbell gets heavier.
The box doesn’t lie. It forces you to hit a consistent depth on every single squat, which helps you develop a more consistent squat once you eliminate the box and return to the more glamorous back squat.
As a final tip, if you have reached a point where your back squat has hit a plateau and you can’t seem to improve no matter how much you squat, try mixing it up and switch to a box squat for 6 weeks. You might be surprised how much benefit it will provide.
Fitness via Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/1GxgPEe August 31, 2019 at 11:45AM
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Bodybuilders and Fans Remember Franco Columbu on Social Media
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For Best Results Train the Mind, Body, and Emotion
https://ift.tt/2UimgXD Have you ever been driving down the interstate when it occurred to you that a sharp turn of the steering wheel in either direction would send you and your cargo flipping to an early grave? Not a pleasant thought, but it is surprisingly common. We all have these moments of recognition where we are reminded and possibly frightened by the immense power we hold. Perhaps you’ve had similar thoughts when holding a newborn or a ladder for a friend. For most people, these thoughts serve as a useful reminder about the focus required for dangerous tasks and are quickly replaced by hundreds of more useful and pleasant thoughts. Yet, for me, it was not always that way.
I had become convinced that just because I had thought it could come true. At the time I could be overwhelmed by a momentary impulse that ruined my life. This then would prompt an internal battle to prove that the subject of my terror could never happen. And with each of these episodes my sense of confidence about the ability to override a destructive impulse diminished. On one occasion while driving from Fort Worth to St. Louis to see my parents for Thanksgiving, I became so terrified that I would lose control that I pulled over at a rest stop and walked until I had the confidence to get back in the car. The rest of the drive I coached myself home like Maverick talking to Cougar at the beginning of Top Gun.
When I was 19, I developed a form of OCD called pure O. My fears grew increasingly bizarre and irrational, far beyond what any logical person would dream possible, until they eventually encompassed every area of my life. It was called pure O, but the brand of my particular form of neurosis was completely arbitrary. This was a manifestation of anxiety that developed as a consequence of adopting norms that went against my most fundamental needs. Having no concept of how to train my mind or understand my emotions, I grew a self-destructive pattern of response to anxiety that fed itself with each of my attempts to explain it away.
While I hid it well, anxiety consumed every experience. Doubt grew as I wrestled with myself in an attempt to force my mind into submission. Over the next few years, I’d pull my way out of anxiety by channeling that obsessive mind towards a study of psychology, philosophy, exercise physiology, nutrition, meditation, history, and the human experience. I began eating better, exercising for health, and practicing mental training techniques that radically shifted my perceptions, expectations, and responses to the world around me.
As challenging as the experience with anxiety was, it proved to be the most instructive trial of my life. By funneling my energy into a passion for self-development I formed a balanced, interconnected understanding of self-mastery and the human needs. And oh, how misunderstood these needs are.
Treating Symptoms Versus Treating CausesToday, experiences like mine are more common than you'd think. In fact, when I wrote a more detailed account of my experience I was shocked by how many people reached out to say they’d been living with similar issues. We all have something calling us to self-development. Even if it isn’t anxiety, it is depression, being overweight, a bad temper, an unsatisfying relationship, or, more likely, a combination of many factors. Yet, our schools gave us no context to train the one thing that really matters in a changing world: ourselves. With no context for self-development, the normal route for creating change tends to follow a failed pattern.
"I’m overweight and unhappy. I’ll start this diet and sign up for a brutal one-hour boot camp class three days a week." But there is more at play than just the body. The mental and emotional realms are equally responsible for your current state. Even more, that calorie-counting diet sucks and, having very little background in training, the boot camp is far beyond what you will actually be willing to stick to. With no understanding of the principles behind these programs, the changes will only be temporary. These efforts are doomed before they even begin.
It is well documented that technology has allowed us to let our bodies go, but it is now promoting the loss of mental capacity and emotional intelligence that are equally essential to any of our goals. The information economy depends on marketers using the latest neuroscience to hack your subconscious and keep you scrolling. Incessant advertising and pop-culture compound to create a culture obsessed with avoiding fears in favor of comfort and seeking possessions or “likes” to fix all internal strife. Our minds are programmed to focus on what is wrong, where we are slighted, and what material wants we “need” to improve our situation. All the cliches about how to live best are still common, but they have no bearing on the patterns that drive most people’s thoughts and actions.
With the development of the smartphone and social media, our mental and emotional stability have both been stretched to the max. Our attention is constantly pulled to a million distractions. There is always the ping of a work email and the demand for more pageantry and self-promotion to keep up with the Joneses. The ability to converse and connect has, ironically, been shattered by social platforms that feed confirmation bias all the while compiling more data to make their advertisements even more irresistible to your specific psyche.
While training the body will assist in inspiring learning and creating a change in emotions, now more than ever, this is not enough. Furthermore, we are less likely to persist in our efforts to train the body if we don't account for the mind and emotions too. For sustainable success, we need to do more and do less.
A Broader Approach to TrainingOur environment is engineered to reduce your productivity and increase your impulsivity. It is engineered to create impulse, not fulfillment. More than ever, our training can’t be reserved for just the body. In fact, physical training is far less likely to stick if it doesn’t include mental and emotional training as well. These three things must be linked.
Amid this world, most people will feel a sense of dissatisfaction, finding life isn’t what they wanted and so they are told to go workout for an hour a day. There are a couple of problems with this, however:
We have to train mind, body, and emotion. Societies have always known this but we lost it in the pursuit of pleasure and comfort. Now more than ever this is the case because transformative benchmark challenges and rites of passage are not typical in our development. Now more than ever we need physical, mental, and emotional training because an industry exists hell-bent on manipulating our emotions and pulling us into sedentary entertainments that preclude the use of mind and body. We’re allowing new technology to fill the needs our mind and bodies once filled and this, more than anything, is crippling our emotional well-being.
At IHD, we’ve long professed the power of three core habits—physical exercise, nourishing self-education, along with gratitude and meditation. These present a daily dose of training in mind, body, and emotion. But as nice as this sounds, the devil is in the details. How do you implement this approach? In an attempt to improve your life, you could quickly overwhelm yourself spending hours each day going through every life hack of the successful all the while wondering if you're doing it right. I picture a life-hacking junkie tweaking out in the corner of a room as they try to rush through more affirmations and calm themselves with more essential oils.
It is so easy to get overwhelmed by the scope of our goals or the immense number of ways we could go about trying to improve. The paradox of our immense number of choices is that this abundance of options has actually been shown to make us less likely to do anything. Paralysis by infinite analysis.
Train Your Body, Mind, and EmotionIn an effort to simplify this process and help you create change that can actually stick, Justin Lind and I have created the 30x30 Challenge. It is a clear, stress-free program for daily training in mind, body, and emotion. There is nothing to plan or research and the steps give room for expansion, but won’t make you bite off more than you can chew. All you have to do each day is turn on the video and follow along as we lead you through 30-minutes of transformative self-development that progress over 30 days to hardwire willpower, create empowered perceptions, and stoke a personal sense of purpose to fuel your days.
The power of physical exercise, gratitude, meditation, and nourishing education are well documented. But finding time for all that can be overwhelming. Changing any one behavior is challenging enough, particularly when you are just trying to change one action without accounting for the principles that underlie that behavior. All training must be supported by mental, physical, and emotional realms. All three are always present, but we typically train one while ignoring the other two. The 30x30 Challenge respects the whole of training and combines each element in a coordinated mutually supportive program where each realm enhances the others. In other words, our program features three core habits, but because of how we’ve structured it, 1+1+1= 5.
The 30x30 Challenge is the challenge that can actually create lifelong change by going to the core understandings that underlie lasting success. The challenge becomes available on September 15th, 2019. You can get on the list for a pre-sale discount now, by heading to the 30x30 Challenge page.
You Can Make The ChangeWe’ve always known that we have to train the mind, body, and emotion, but it is harder than ever to actually do it. Of course, the difficulty we have getting started is the only evidence of how much more important it is now than ever before. Make it easy on yourself. Commit to thirty days of 30 minutes and challenge a friend to join. That commitment will kickstart awesome changes.
Fitness via Breaking Muscle https://ift.tt/1GxgPEe August 30, 2019 at 01:48PM
Two-time Mr. Olympia Franco Columbu Dead at 78
https://ift.tt/2UhF09L ![]() Bodybuilding icon and two-time Mr. Olympia Franco Columbu died on Friday after apparently drowning at sea, according to multiple reports in his native Italy. Columbu was 78. La Nuova, an Italian media outlet, said Columbu drowned while swimming at a beach in San Teodoro in Sardinia. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a close friend and training partner of Columbu’s, wrote on the blog website Medium that the Italian bodybuilder was his partner in crime and that he is grateful for the 54 years of friendship the two shared. “I am devastated today,” the seven-time Mr. Olympia wrote of Columbu. “My life was more fun, more colorful, and more complete because of you.” Columbu was crowned Mr. Olympia in 1976 and 1981, and won the now defunct lightweight category from 1974-76. Know as "The Sardinian Strongman," Columbu was also well-known for his strength, having PRs that included a 750-pound deadlift, 665-pound squat, 525-pound bench press and 400-pound clean and jerk. He also participated on television's World's Strongest Man competition during the 1970s. He and Schwarzenegger met in Germany back in the 1960s, and the two trained together and became inseparable. Columbu was Arnold’s best man when he married Maria Shriver in 1986.
Columbu had small roles in many of Arnold’s movies, including roles in Conan the Barbarian, The Terminator. He also appeared in the bodybuilding classic Pumping Iron. He was a licensed chiropractor, and in 2006 was appointed to the California Board of Chiropractic Examiners by then-Governor Schwarzenegger. This is a developing story, and it will be updated as more details become available.
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Fitness via Muscle & Fitness https://ift.tt/2zjtGBz August 30, 2019 at 01:34PM
Watch: Olympic Lifter Struggles to Complete 507-pound Clean and Jerk
https://ift.tt/2ZpcwAQ Picture this: You’re in the middle of a lift, let’s say the clean and jerk, and you realize that you’ve either put on too much weight or that your form is a little off. What would you do? Most people would probably just drop the barbell and start over. But if you’re Russian powerlifter Chingiz Mogushkov, you work to save the lift no matter what. Take a look at Mogushkov completing—well, sort of completing—a 230kg (507-pound) clean and jerk in this video: Right away, you can tell something’s off. As the lifter begins the clean, the barbell starts to wobble. It looks like he may have tried to change his form at the beginning of the clean, or perhaps his footing wasn't right. As Mogushkov stands up, it looks like he’s about to drop the weight to one side but miraculously he shifts his body to even it out before lifting the barbell over his head. The Russian receives a rousing round of applause for his effort, and rightfully so. Of course, the guy didn’t notice that as he dropped the weight it came within inches of taking off a couple of toes. We don’t think this has to be said, but please do not try this at home. Mogushkov, 33, is an Olympic professional with years of experience andnational records to his name. If you’re ever in this situation, just drop the weights as carefully as possible (watch the feet!). Trying to shift your body or readjust your grip mid-lift could result in some serious injuries. There’s no shame in admitting you’ve messed up, and errors only serve to teach us how to be better. The accolades from your gym bros or Instagram followers isn't worth the risk. Need tips on how to perform the clean and jerk? We've got some.
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Fitness via Muscle & Fitness https://ift.tt/2zjtGBz August 30, 2019 at 12:09PM
Hafthor Bjornsson Shares Highlight Reel from Iceland's Strongest Man
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Hafthor Björnsson / Youtube
Hafthor "Thor" Björnsson won his ninth consecutive Iceland's Strongest Man title earlier this month, shattering the Húsafell Stone carry world record in the process. Björnsson announced his new world record via Instagram shortly after the contest, but video of Björnsson carrying the 409-pound stone for 98.16 meters (322 feet) was nowhere to be found. Just this week, we finally got some footage of the incredible feat of strength, and it looks as taxing as you'd expect. Check out the entire highlight reel below, or skip to minute 19:15 to watch Thor's record-breaking Húsafell Stone carry: Now that we've got a visual on the back-breaking carry that Björnsson managed to pull off, we'd bet that this record will stick around for awhile.
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Fitness via Muscle & Fitness https://ift.tt/2zjtGBz August 30, 2019 at 11:55AM
At 48-Years-Old, Former Wrestling Superstar, Chris Jericho is Still Kicking Ass
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Chris Jericho has been one of the most recognizable names in professional wrestling for more than 20 years. The six-time WWE World Champion is now part of All Elite Wrestling, and will be battling Adam "Hangman" Page on Aug. 31 in a bout to crown the inaugural AEW champion. Muscle & Fitness caught up with Jericho to dicuss his legendary wrestling career, how he's stayed in the game for so long, his music, AEW, and more. You are currently writing a new Fozzy album, how is it shaping up? It’s going great. We have a lot to live up to after the Judas record was so successful, with 30 million views on YouTube. I think we're going to continue to grow from here. It's an exciting time for us. You're set to appear in the Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, which releases Oct. 15. How did you land a role? I have known Kevin Smith (who plays Bob, and will direct the movie) for a while. He asked me to do a movie for him about a year ago, which was a horror anthology, called KillRoy Was Here. Kevin was really impressed and said ‘Next time I do a movie, you’re definitely going to be in it’. Low and behold, I got a call to be in the Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, which is a dream. It’s a great part, with a whole segment of the movie that I have to carry. Pro wrestling fans know you as a master of reinvention. How important is it to keep things fresh for audiences? It’s everything. It’s the David Bowie concept where you're always evolving and changing, but still staying true to yourself as an artist. I think fans live kind of vicariously through what I’m doing to the point where if they don’t know for sure what I’m going to be doing next, it just adds to the diversity of Chris Jericho as a performer. That’s one of the reasons why after 30 years I’m still at the top of the game. If I was doing the same character that I played 15 years ago, I don’t think that’d be the case. You made waves in the wrestling world once again by signing with new promotion, All Elite Wrestling. What does AEW bring to the table compared to the WWE? For the last 18 years or whatever it has been (since they took over WCW), the WWE has had a monopoly on the business, which isn’t a good thing overall. I think it made a lot of fans tune out or accept a subpar product at times. I also think it made WWE lazy. Are we looking to compete, or beat WWE? Not necessarily. Are we looking to give fans an alternative to what they’ve been watching over the last 18 years? Absolutely. You have been training in Dave Bautista’s boutique gym in Tampa recently? I’ve known Dave for 10 or 15 years. He’s a great guy, and he has a gym with a whole mixed martial arts studio upstairs. That doesn’t mean I’m going to join the UFC and choke somebody out, but it’s a whole mindset, and this type of training has me covered in sweat at the end of every session. What’s your diet like? I like to barbecue and I have a fridge full of pre-prepared meals from Nutrition Solutions. For me, I know when its ok to have a treat, and when not to. I keep my carbs very low, keep my sugars low, and just enjoy the food that I have. Any last words of motivation from Mongoose McQueen? In this day and age, you can be like Mick Jagger…so as long as you don’t give up, continue to try, stay in great shape, and stay committed to being the best person you can be. If you do that, your life will be a lot better, I think you’ll live longer, and you will look a lot cooler as well!
[RELATED1]
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Fitness via Muscle & Fitness https://ift.tt/2zjtGBz August 30, 2019 at 11:19AM
Dr. Natalie Azar Talks Opioids, Healthcare, and Medicaid for All vs. Universal Health Care
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We sit down to discuss the field of rheumatology, how millennials are changing healthcare, and how to train with an injury.
This week on the Muscle and Fitness Podcast, M&F executive editor Zack Zeigler (@zraz) and celebrity trainer Don Saladino (@donsaladino) speak with Dr. Natalie Azar (@drnatalietv) about the field of rheumatology, how millennials are changing healthcare, and how to train with an injury. [RELATED1]
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Fitness via Muscle & Fitness https://ift.tt/2zjtGBz August 30, 2019 at 10:22AM
Steve Kuclo’s Instagram Showcase
https://ift.tt/2UgntPj Fitness via Muscle & Fitness https://ift.tt/2zjtGBz August 30, 2019 at 09:04AM
Arnold Schwarzenegger Teases Big News About "Terminator: Dark Fate"
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@Schwarzenegger / Twitter
What could be bigger than the death of three billion people? Well, according to The Terminator himself, the day after Judgment Day will be one for the history books. August 29 marks Judgment Day in The Terminator series (though the date changed in the novels). “Three billion human lives ended on August 29th, 1997,” Sarah Connor says at the beginning of Terminator 2: Judgment Day. “The survivors of the nuclear fire called the war Judgment Day.” In honor of the fateful day, dubbed “Terminator Day” by fans, Arnold Schwarzenegger uploaded a 15-second Twitter video wishing the “greatest fans in the world” a happy Judgment Day, then asks if you’re ready for what comes next. What could he mean? Check it out and try to decipher his cryptic message for for yourself:
“Think about it,” Schwarzenegger tells his 4.4 million followers. Could we be getting a new trailer for Terminator: Dark Fate, or will there be some big news about one of the biggest movie franchises of all time? Whatever the case, the seven-time Mr. Olympia certainly has us wondering what’s next for everyone’s favorite man-machine. Terminator: Dark Fate follows Sarah Connor as she tries to stop a liquid metal terminator sent from the future from killing a small child—wait, that sounds familiar. This time around, her son John is grown and helping her defend the child, Dani Ramos. Schwarzenegger is also back (as he promised) to help the good guys—we swear we’ve seen this movie before. The Twitter account @OnlyFilmMedia celebrated Judgment Day by releasing an image of the good Terminator (aka Arnold) battling the evil one, played by Gabriel Luna.
We’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for whatever comes after Judgment Day. Terminator: Dark Fate is in theaters Nov. 1.
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Fitness via Muscle & Fitness https://ift.tt/2zjtGBz August 29, 2019 at 02:00PM |
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