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by Jesse Cannone, CFT, CPRS
and Steve Hefferon, CMT
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“Bodybuilding Sins” That Cause Back Pain and Missed Workouts: Part 4
Welcome to article number 4 in our series “Bodybuilding Sins That Cause
Back Pain and Missed Workouts”. In this article we are going to talk
about how bodybuilders tend to create massive muscle imbalances and what
you can do to not be one of them.
If you missed the first 3 articles, you can read them by clicking on the
links below.
Here’s a breakdown of the articles to look for:
Article #1 - Choosing The WRONG
Exercises
Article #2 - Training Variations for
Pain Relief and Maximum Results
Article #3 - Targeted Stretching
Article #4 - Targeted Exercises
Article #5 - Rest, Recovery, and Injury Prevention
Article #4 - Targeted Exercises
What is a Targeted Exercise and Why You Need To Be Doing Them?
While performing three different exercises for each area of the chest
may sound “targeted” and it may work great for targeting the chest
itself… this is NOT what we mean by targeted…
What we are talking about is choosing exercises with more than just size
increases in mind… remember, there is far more to muscle than just how
it looks… You can be really big, but also weak, slow and inflexible.
To drive this point home some more, remember the “Turtle Back Syndrome”
we covered in article #1? So many body builders are plagued with this
gruesome condition and they don’t even know it! Are you?
The Turtle Back condition is a direct result of too much focus on
building up the pecs and lats and not enough focus on the upper back.
Also, the lack of focus on flexibility in the chest and shoulders makes
it even worse…
Not only does this look stupid, but it sets you up for back, neck and
shoulder problems like rotator cuff tears and the like… and I know you
don’t want any of those!
So by targeted, we mean exercises that will not just develop muscle
strength and size, but more importantly work towards correcting muscle
imbalances which will mean less pain and missed workouts, better
performance and function, and most of all better and balanced total body
development!
So How Do You Find Out Which Ones You NEED To be Doing?
As we discussed in the previous article on “Targeted Stretching”, it’s
very important to know before hand what stretches you actually NEED to
be doing… the same applies to exercises…
and the ONLY way to find out what specific areas you need to target is
to perform physical evaluations so you can pin point the weak muscles
that need strengthening and the tight muscles that need stretching.
We have developed a series of simple assessments you can do yourself to
identify the muscles imbalances you have…
and while they are intended for people suffering from back pain or
sciatica, as a bodybuilder you stand to benefit greatly because you
train so hard, you are far more likely to experience injuries like
bulging and herniated discs, rotator cuff tears, knee pain, etc…
Plus, even if you don’t have any pain or injuries now, it would be very
wise to learn how to assess yourself so you can target your training now
before you create an injury, which not only will slow down your training
and progress, but it can also become a life-long struggle with pain and
a serious loss of your strength, size and fitness.
So be sure to check out our website to learn more about how you can
quickly and easily identify and eliminate any muscle imbalances you have
http://www.losethebackpain.com
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Article by Jesse Cannone, CFT, CPRS, CSPN and Steve Hefferon, CMT, CPRS
of http://www.losethebackpain.com. If you’ve got back pain or sciatic
pain, you’ve gotta check out their website.
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