by Cori Lefkowith | Aug 20, 2015 | Blog, Bodyweight, Push Ups, Vs.
Bodyweight exercises can be a great way to work your chest, shoulders and triceps as well as your core.
And two of the best bodyweight exercises you can do to work your chest, shoulder, triceps and your core are the Push Up and the Dip.
While both pressing moves may work the same muscle groups, they work them in different ways, which is why a good exercise program should include both movements.
If you include both pressing movements in your workout routine, it is also important that you include a variety of pulling exercises in your workouts as well.
Because we sit in flexion all day at a desk, it is important that we do enough pulling movements (aka work our back) and don’t simply focus on pressing exercises. If we only focus on pressing movements, we are going to further imbalances caused by sitting all day at a desk, which could lead to pain and injury.
To prevent injury as you include both the Push Up and the Dip in your workouts, make sure to also include Pulling Exercises, such as Rows and Pull Ups, as well as a proper foam rolling and stretching routine.
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by Cori Lefkowith | Aug 12, 2015 | Blog, Exercises, Pain Relief
I’m constantly asking clients during sessions, “Where do you feel this?” “What do you feel working?”
I ask these questions for a couple of different reasons.
One, I want them to focus on the correct muscles activating and working to make sure they are getting the most out of the move.
And two, I want them to build their mind-body connection so they can actually get stronger and more efficient with the movements.
Because, amazingly, just because someone has good form doesn’t mean they are actually activating the correct muscles and forcing them to work.
You would be amazed and surprised by how many people lack a real mind-body connection – a real awareness of what muscles should be working and activating.
Heck, many people can’t even get the correct muscles working and isolated during movements.
Yet they are all out there working out, adding a little more weight or doing a few more reps.
And then they wonder why they aren’t getting stronger. Why their pull ups aren’t getting better. Why they constantly have aches and pains in areas that shouldn’t really be getting as worked as they are.
It’s all because they haven’t established a proper mind-body connection – it’s because they’ve skipped the Activation Step.
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