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The Weakest Muscle in Your Upper Body (Your SERRATUS ANTERIOR)

The Weakest Muscle in Your Upper Body (Your SERRATUS ANTERIOR)

by | Feb 17, 2025 | Blog, Exercises, Foam Rolling, Functional Fitness, Pain Relief, Stretches, Warm Up

When we create upper body workouts, we map in exercises for our chest, shoulders, back, biceps, triceps…

But we too often don’t include moves for this essential muscle…

The Serratus Anterior.

And while no, this muscle isn’t going to be one we target with super heavy lifts during our sessions, it is a key muscle we strengthen and activate if we want to be able to press or pull more without shoulder injury and see the muscle gains we want from our training.

Honestly this muscle needs far more love than it gets, especially if we have had previous shoulder, neck or even upper back aches and pains.

That’s why I want to break down the important role this muscle plays in our shoulder and scapular health as well as how to make sure your serratus anterior is working so we can see better strength and muscle gains.

Then I’ll go over 3 key moves to activate and strengthen your serratus anterior as well as a few bonus prehab tips to help you get more out of your upper body training in general!

First, why is the Serratus Anterior so important?

The serratus anterior is often called the boxer’s muscle as it is key to a powerful punch and its main function is protraction of the shoulder blades or that movement of the shoulder blades forward around your rib cage.

Not only does this muscle control the movement of our shoulder blade to protract as we press horizontally like in a bench press or punch, but also to upwardly rotate as we press overhead.

This upward rotation of the shoulder blade allows us to use our back correctly to support our shoulders and power the press overhead. Limited movement can lead to us really struggling to press vertically up.

Our shoulder blades can also limit our ability to press overhead and lead to neck, shoulder and upper back aches and pains by being anteriorly tipped.

This is when our shoulder blades don’t sit correctly on our rib cage and the bottom slightly sticks out as the top of the shoulder blade is tilted forward.

This is another function of the serratus anterior – to stabilize the shoulder blade so it does sit correctly and can even posteriorly tilt slightly as we press overhead.

This proper positioning of our shoulder blades due to our serratus anterior being strong is essential for us to be able to lift more and avoid upper back, neck and shoulder injuries, even rotator cuff issues.

And too often, we ignore this muscle and even BLAME our rotator cuff for our shoulder pain instead.

This can lead to us doing a ton of work for our rotator cuff which only makes issues worse through further working an overworked or even restricted muscle because it isn’t allowed to work correctly due to limited scapular movement!

And on top of the role it plays in our shoulder blade movement, the serratus anterior also impacts our breathing mechanics and can enhance our physique when developed creating that nice definition around our rib cage!

Next I want to dive into really locating this muscle to feel it working and even address some common issues we can encounter when trying to strengthen it.

It isn’t uncommon with many basic serratus anterior exercises to feel our upper traps, levator scapulae and even pec minor start to want to work when our serratus anterior is weak.

So where is the Serratus Anterior to be exact and how can I tell when other muscles are taking over?

The serratus anterior is the muscle on the sides of your ribs just under your armpit.

Place your opposite hand on your ribs under your armpit then reach the hand on the same side out as if punching or pressing. Feel that muscle engage.

This is what you want to feel working in the 3 Serratus Anterior Activation Exercises I’ll go over next.

All too often though when this muscle is weak, we start to feel the area at the base of our neck, top of our shoulder blade toward our spine or even our chest into the front of our shoulder working instead.

These areas are us feeling our upper traps, levator scapulae, pec minor and even anterior delt starting to work more to compensate for our serratus anterior being weak.

Our upper traps and levator scapula elevate our shoulder blade or lift it up.

We see this happen with a shrugging motion.

And often we tend to shrug extra when pressing to try to lift heavier and compensate for other areas of weakness.

We can also see our chest, specifically our pec minor muscle, and the front of our shoulder feel like they are working extra to stabilize our shoulder when our shoulder blade isn’t sitting properly on our rib cage.

The pec minor works to protract our shoulder blades so will work extra if the serratus anterior isn’t pulling its weight.

The pec minor also will anteriorly tip the shoulder blades when the serratus anterior isn’t strong enough to fight against it and keep alignment. This is why we can see those neck, shoulder and upper back aches and pains popping up.

This is also why we’re often told to do extra rowing or pulling exercises to balance out our posture and strong chest muscles.

And while strengthening our back can be key, especially if we spend a ton of time seated, hunched over our devices, the extra back work may not be paying off if we keep ignoring our serratus anterior!

That’s why I wanted to share 3 activation moves to help!

3 Serratus Anterior Exercises:

The first is a move great for almost every fitness level, the Roller Serratus Anterior Shoulder Extensions.

This move can be done as a unilateral, or one sided exercise, or with both sides at the same time.

To do this move, I love using a roller against a wall, but you can also use sliders or a towel, especially for the one-sided variation.

Place the roller right below your wrists with your palms facing in. You want to be slightly angled in toward the wall to apply more pressure.

Really push into the roller to even feel your serratus anterior slightly engage from a little movement of your shoulder blades away from your spine.

Then roll up on the wall, reaching overhead. Feel your the bottom of your shoulder blades open out to the sides of your back as you feel around your rib cage work to reach up. Don’t just shrug your shoulders.

While you don’t want to force your shoulders down to limit the movement of your shoulder blades, you want to make sure your shoulders aren’t just moving and you aren’t just shrugging.

The roll up is coming from your shoulder blades moving first.

Really push hard into the wall as you extend up, then pull the roller back down to about shoulder height and repeat.

If you have shoulder pain or limited mobility on one side, performing a single arm variation is best.

Note if you start to feel that base of your neck area or even your chest and front of shoulder working too much to walk in a bit closer to the wall or not extend up as high to start.

Another option to work on this overhead serratus strengthening is a Downward Dog Scapular Press. This can help you focus on that push of the ground away to engage if that cue, pushing away helps or you don’t have something you can use to slide on a wall.

The next activation exercise is the Serratus Anterior Press.

This is a horizontal pressing option which focuses on protraction more while the Shoulder Extensions focus a lot on upward rotation of the shoulder blade as well.

The one thing to really be careful with during this press, is that your pecs or the front of your shoulders don’t take over.

It’s one reason I don’t use the push up plus often for activation for the serratus anterior but will include it in workouts for pure strength building.

But this move is a great way to isolate each side independently and even correct imbalances.

A band or cable work well for this move and you’ll want to standing in a staggered stance.

You’re going to be performing a variation of a chest press or punch with the hand of the leg that is staggered back.

As you press out, feel your shoulder blade move forward around your rib cage and focus on those muscles around your ribs really pulling it forward.

You want to even get that little extra reach out at the end, slightly rotating even.

Then bring your hand back into your chest. Be conscious that even though you may slightly press up as you press out that you don’t shrug at the end.

If you don’t have a band or cable, wall protractions are always an option.

To do the wall protractions, place your knuckles on the wall, palms facing in and make sure you aren’t shrugging.

Then push off the wall, pulling your shoulder blades forward to almost round your spine back.

Don’t just hunch forward. Feel the pull of your shoulder blades around your ribs coming from you pushing away from the wall.

The 3rd activation move I love to include is the Scapular Push Up To Dolphin.

This move strengthens the serratus anterior but also helps you learn to control scapular retraction, the movement of the shoulder blades toward the spine to engage your upper back, as well as your core stability.

That scapular retraction component can really be helpful if you do find your pecs often want to engage.

With this move you’ll set up in a forearm plank with your elbows under your shoulders as your feet close together.

You want that nice plank position. You’ll then pinch your shoulder blades toward your spine to retract before pushing the ground away to protract them back.

Once back in that plank position, you’ll pike your butt up and drive your chest back toward your feet. It’s like a downward dog from your forearms. Feel yourself stretch through your triceps down the sides of your back.

Feel around your rib cage working to press your chest back as you extend your spine.

Then come back into the plank and repeat.

Make sure you don’t shrug your shoulders as you pinch your shoulder blades together or push the ground away. And really focus on that shoulder blade movement then the extension of your spine as you push back.

Now…If you’re struggling to isolate and feel your serratus anterior working, especially with any of these moves, you will want to include these other prehab moves potentially before your activation exercises…

Because that full 3-step prehab process of foam rolling, stretching and activation is key.

Here are 2 foam rolling and 2 stretching moves you may want to include prior to your activation work for your serratus anterior in your warm up routine.

First, Chest Foam Rolling.

Rolling our your pec minor with a ball can help relax this muscle that wants to take over. A ball in a doorway is best as you put that ball right at the front of your arm pit next to your shoulder joint.

Hold in the meat of the muscle as you even reach your hand overhead then back down toward the ground.

The second foam rolling moves is Levator Scapulae Foam Rolling.

You can do this against a wall or the ground. The ground will allow you to apply more pressure.

But find that top edge of your shoulder blade closest to your spine. Put the ball right above that corner and press into the ball.

You can look down and away tilting your head to help stretch the muscle as you hold. You can then even help the muscle relax and release as you hold by moving your arm up and down or back and forth across your chest.

And after including some foam rolling, especially in your warm up, you want to do a few dynamic stretches.

One key one is the Kneeling Thoracic Extension And Lat Stretch.

This stretch works on improving our shoulder and thoracic mobility. A lack of both can also have an impact on our scapular movement.

Especially a lack of thoracic extension can lead to our shoulder blades not sitting properly on our rib cage.

And tight lats can also perpetuate the bad posture that doesn’t allow our serratus to work as it should.

To do this stretch, you can kneel on the ground with your elbows on a bench. You want to sit back on your heels as you drop your chest toward the ground and lengthen through your spine.

Don’t just arch your lower back but focus on pressing your chest down to extend through your mid and upper back, feeling down the sides of your back stretching, not just your triceps.

Then relax out and repeat.

If you can’t kneel, you can even do this as more of a wall hang variation with your hands on the wall as you hinge over and press your chest toward the ground, extending your spine.

The final prehab move that can be key is Suspension Trainer Snow Angels.

This stretch improves your shoulder mobility and works to stretch out your pecs to help improve your shoulder blade alignment.

This is super key if you feel your pecs during your activation work or even your anterior delts.

To do this move, you’ll have a hand in each suspension trainer handle and face away, walking out so there is a bit of tension with your arms down by your sides.

You’ll then slowly bring your arms out and up overhead as if you were making a snow angel in the snow.

Feel your chest stretch as you open up at the top. You don’t want the movement only coming from your shoulders. Then lower down and repeat. You can walk out further to get more of a pull back.

If you don’t have a suspension trainer, you could do one side at a time, sliding your hand up on a wall next to a doorway or do a version lying face up on a foam roller.

But if you’ve struggled to lift as heavy as you’d like especially due to neck, shoulder or even upper back aches and pains, stop ignoring this essential muscle!

This prehab work in your warm up goes a long way!

And the stronger our weakest links and those muscles that really improve our stability, the more we can lift and push our workouts to improve our muscle and strength gains!

For workouts that include prehab in every routine, check out my Dynamic Strength program:

–> LEARN MORE

Own Your Lazy

Own Your Lazy

by | Feb 13, 2025 | podcast

Listen:

Change Requires CHANGE

If you’re feeling stuck and know deep down that you could be doing better, don’t wait any longer. Your life is not going to change until you take action and make a bold move towards your goals. If you’re ready to take control of your life and start moving towards the results you want let us help you achieve your goals. ⬇️

APPLY NOW

Change Requires CHANGE

If you’re feeling stuck and know deep down that you could be doing better, don’t wait any longer. Your life is not going to change until you take action and make a bold move towards your goals. If you’re ready to take control of your life and start moving towards the results you want let us help you achieve your goals. ⬇️

APPLY NOW

Transcript:

Open Transcript:

Cori (00:00):
Welcome to the Redefining Strength Podcast. Everything you need to succeed on your health and fitness journey, even the stuff you don’t want to hear. I am incredibly lazy and I own it, and I actually credit this with the fact that I’ve become more disciplined because of my ownership of my own laziness. So let me explain. We are creatures of comfort and convenience and ease. When we think about the habits that we repeat, they’re often easy. They’re unconscious. They have solved a problem for us, and they’ve become so innate they don’t take any willpower or thought to really replicate. It’s why it’s really hard to break some of those habits, like maybe coming home from work and going straight to the cabinet. We’ve ingrained that pattern so much so that we don’t even think about it. It’s convenient, comfortable, and easy, but this same fact of the fact that we are creatures or comfort, convenience and ease is why new habits are so hard.

(00:53):
Because a lot of times they take thought they’re uncomfortable, they’re different than what we’ve always done. There might be a learning process which is hard involved. And so when we’re thinking about this, the more we can embrace that we are the creatures of comfort, or as I like to put it lazy, the more we can break down those new habits we’re trying to implement, and even the habits we’re trying to unlearn in a way that allows us to steer into this and make it more comfortable, easier. So when we think about habit change, it’s the unlearning process of habits that might be there and the learning process of new habits. New habits might be easier to implement because there isn’t an unlearning process that has to go there. So if you’re trying to implement a totally new habit that you don’t have any bad habits with, you might be like, okay, great.

(01:33):
I can easily do this new thing. It fits in right away. It’s comfortable enough and convenient enough, no problem, right? There’s no unlearning. Unlearning is what makes things often hard in that we have to make that conscious break that pattern as we’re creating that new pattern, which often also clashes with what is easy, comfortable, and convenient. So when we think about this, the first step might be to make things so small that we make that habit. We’re repeating that we want to stop a little bit harder because by just doing that, all of a sudden we’re building towards the other habit. Or by implementing the new habit, we might want to break it down into such a small component that it also helps us stop the other one. So things that really can work are shifts in our environment, especially for old habits and routines.

(02:15):
You might’ve heard me use this example in the past, but it’s something that’s so silly in nature, but made such a huge impact. So we don’t have to think about these things being super dramatic, but I had a problem with what I called the one more game where if I started eating a piece of candy and I had multiple little mini candy bars, I felt like I just always ate the entire bag. And so I wanted to stop this pattern. So when I did get it and I wanted to have a few pieces, I would put some now out in the cabinet and instead of leaving the container of all the other candy, the bag of the candy in the cabinet as well, I put in the freezer. Candy in the freezer tastes just as good, if not arguably better than in the cabinet. But just shifting that so that it was in the freezer, I felt like it was there whenever I wanted it would last.

(02:56):
Now eons even longer. It stopped me from feeling the need to have more of it, and sometimes now I still take it out of the freezer and eat right from there, but I’m not as tempted because it’s a different pattern interrupt for me, it’s a change in my environment, which may not work for you may seem very silly because again, it’s still just as good, if not arguably better. But that changed the routine from being something unconscious to enough of a discomfort, a new hard, just a little bit more difficult and a little bit more out of mind that it helped me. Same thing with learning new habits. You might say, Hey, for my goal to see results as fast as possible, I know tracking macros is great, but it’s overwhelming. It seems tedious. It seems just like something I can’t do. It’s so hard.

(03:37):
So you mentally resist it, even if you could potentially physically do it. So instead of just going straight to trying to force that which ends up making you feel restricted, you push it back even mentally more, which makes it even harder and uncomfortable. Think about what is the easiest, most comfortable thing to do with that. Maybe you’re like, Hey, I’m okay tracking as long as I don’t have to actually make any changes to start. Or, hey, maybe I’ll write down my food or maybe I’ll take pictures of my food, or maybe I’ll even focus on specific things at each meal to hold myself accountable and track in that way. One habit doesn’t have to be done in one way and won’t be done in one way by everybody or even by ourselves over the course of our life. But we want to think about how we can make those habits we want to break harder and the habits we want to implement even easier.

(04:19):
Recognizing even maybe the ideal habit we want to build towards knowing we’re taking those steps because the more we just go right against that hard, we bash our head into a wall. Basically trying to make that habit change the more we are going to push back against it and not want to do it again. Owning our own laziness, what can I be lazy with? Hey, I want to hit macros, so I’m going to map out one day of macros and track one day and create meal prep or even buy meal prep to make it real easy. I love having meal prep. Yes, I do like cooking. I think it’s great to working all these different things, but I also know that I am lazy and at the end of the day, if something takes longer than five minutes to microwave, there are days I won’t do what I should do, what I really want to do in terms of my goals, and I’ll make a choice that I won’t be proud of later.

(05:00):
So instead, I have that frozen meal prep. I can microwave in under five minutes and I can go. So the more you think about, Hey, I’m lazy, let’s own this so that my energy can go to the priorities I really want to focus on. The more you’re going to find ways to make those habits that you want to break a little bit harder and those habits you want to implement a little bit easier, and then find the fun in it. If something is feeling like too much effort, how can you break it down? Because maybe your priorities have shifted. How can you find something new to invigorate it? Maybe you don’t like foam rolling, but you really love listening to the podcasts. Listen to the podcast as you foam roll. Connect those habits, but find ways to steer into making things a little bit more comfortable, convenient, and easy when you want to implement them or a little bit harder uncomfortable and just not as convenient when you want to break them, but own your own laziness and see your discipline actually skyrocket from this.

 

*Note: This transcript is autogenerated there may be some unintended errors.

10 Years Of Fat Loss Advice In Under 10 Minutes

10 Years Of Fat Loss Advice In Under 10 Minutes

by | Feb 9, 2025 | Blog, Diet, Exercises

I wanted to lose fat and get ab definition for the longest time and struggled hard. I blamed it on willpower. My love of food. My genetics.

But I realized it was that I didn’t fully understand these 10 hard truths I’m going to share with you now.

Because I want to help you jump ahead using what I learned over more than a decade!

Starting with the fact that faster results mean CHOOSING to make more sacrifices.

Think of it this way, we all have a budget.

The more motivated we are, the more comfortable being uncomfortable with the changes we are, the greater our budget. The more “in pain” we are, the greater the cost we’ll pay to see results happen faster.

We’ll embrace harder changes. We’ll choke down that chicken and broccoli if you need. The COST is worth the reward.

But if we aren’t as motivated, the goal isn’t as important, other priorities are in the way and we really aren’t comfortable with the changes needed, our budget will be smaller.

The cost of some of the changes, working out 5 days a week, may not be worth it for you.

We need to recognize our budget when we determine how we want to make changes. We need to OWN that we choose how to spend it!

And owning we have a smaller budget isn’t a bad thing, it just helps us manage expectations.

This can help us recognize if we do want faster results, we may have to increase our budget!

And with habit change, what we like to do and need to do often aren’t one in the same.

We may LIKE follow along workouts. We may LIKE not eating protein at every meal. But your goals don’t truly care what you like.

I’m not saying to force yourself to constantly repeat habits you hate. Those won’t last.

But we need to recognize when we’re saying, “That won’t work” to a new habit, or “I don’t like this” and we’re not truly considering, “Is this what is needed to reach my goal?”

You’ve got to ask yourself, “Would I really care if I had to do (insert thing you don’t like here) if I reached my goal?”

Because many of the daily habits we do to have the life we want aren’t things we love. We just do them.

Give new habits TIME to really feel what they are like. Set a firm testing length to allow yourself to fully embrace them and see how they work.

To lose fat and maintain a new physique you can’t just eat and train in the way you always have.

Because your results are the sum of your habits.

That being said, we are creatures of comfort and convenience. The harder a new habit is, the less likely we are to embrace it. The easier an old habit is, the harder it is to break.

That’s why hard truth #3 is Adjust don’t eliminate.

The more we can ADJUST what we are doing over eliminating things, the easier and more sustainable the changes feel.

Instead of just cutting out foods you love, first start by seeing how you can…

Adjust portions of these foods at meals, maybe two oreos and greek yogurt over 4 oreos.

Or B. Making healthier swaps to the recipes or dishes, like baking sweet potato french fries instead of frying them. Or even making a pizza at home loaded down with veggies and protein.

Yes, there are more and less nutrient dense foods, but we need to own our lifestyle if we want to change our lifestyle. Change is a process that doesn’t happen overnight.

So if you enjoy pizza and french fries and ice cream, instead of just telling yourself these things are bad and that you can’t have them, find a balance working them in.

Same thing goes for macros. We need to stop demonizing any specific macro.

Fats will not make you fat. Carbs are not going to cause you to store belly fat.

Both of these macros are key and the exact amounts you need will vary based on your activity level, health concerns and age.

Even cycling macro breakdowns that are low carb or low fat may improve your fat loss results.

While fat is key for hormonal balance, and going lower carb can help us deplete glycogen stores to tap into our fat stores, we also want to note the more active we are, the more carbs we may need.

Carbs are protein sparring, improve our thyroid health and create that anabolic environment for muscle growth. They can be key to us getting that definition especially when training hard.

And by cycling higher carb after higher fat/lower carb ratios, you may benefit from what is deemed the “Whoosh Effect.”

If you’ve ever felt like you looked SOFTER while going lower carb, your fat cells may be holding on to water.

When we increase carbs after a lower carb period, your body can often release this water, helping you see the definition you want as your body feels it is then getting the immediate fuel it needs to stop basically protecting your fat stores.

So stop demonizing any macro. They are all key and should be cycled!

And while all macros matter, hard truth #5 is protein matters most for fat loss.

When we create that calorie deficit, we even want to think about 40% of our calories coming from protein.

This extra emphasis on protein when in a deficit not only helps you lose fat but keep your metabolic rate higher through protecting the lean muscle mass you have.

We need more protein when we’re in a deficit to not only fuel muscle mass growth and retention but also to rebuild and maintain the health of our other body tissues and processes.

If we don’t focus on protein, especially while training hard, our body is going to seek out those amino acids for repair from wherever it can. And our biggest and easiest to use reserves are our current muscle tissue, which we don’t want to lose!

So focus on protein!

This can also help you feel fuller and create a greater calorie burn even at rest as protein requires more energy to be digested!

And going hand in hand with increasing protein is focusing on our hydration!

As we increase our protein, we also want to increase our water intake to help our body process the protein efficiently.

Water is also required for many metabolic and hydrolysis reactions meaning that water helps our bodies burn fat and keeps our metabolic rate higher.

Lipolysis, the process by which our bodies break down fat to make it absorbable and usable, is also dependent on water.

So staying hydrated means better fat loss results. And with getting enough water, make sure you aren’t ignoring the importance of electrolytes to maintain that balance, especially if you are lower carb!

And if we want the best results possible, our diet and our workouts need to work together.

But often when we want to lose fat, we turn to doing more cardio because we often not only feel like we’re working harder, but we see that higher calorie burn on our tracker.

However, this desire to burn more calories in our workouts and out exercise our diet or even create a bigger deficit through our training holds us back.

You need to STOP trying to out exercise your diet.

Have you ever thought…“I workout so hard consistently but I’m not losing fat. I don’t get it…”

It’s your diet. No ifs ands or buts about it.

And you can say you eat well or eat clean all you want, but you can still overeat or eat portions not in line with your goals while eating quality fuel.

You can’t just rely on doing more in your training to burn more calories and make up for any deviations in your nutrition. You can’t just have a cheat day then hit the treadmill to make up for it. While this may have once worked, it’s what’s going to sabotage your metabolic health long term so you start to blame age for your weight gain.

You also have to recognize when you are creating an even greater deficit from your training and then NOT eating enough to fuel and repair. This can also prevent your fat loss results and lead to muscle being lost.

Training should be about moving well, staying functionally fit and healthy and even improve our muscle mass to keep our metabolic rate higher, not just be a time we try to burn as many calories as possible!

When we try to burn as many calories in our sessions as possible, we also often turn our strength workouts into purely cardio sessions. Stop doing this!

While this may make your workouts feel hard and you feel destroyed, this is preventing you from truly lifting heavy enough to promote those optimal muscle gains.

So if you’re feeling super out of breath from your lifting sessions while cutting out rest then complaining you aren’t building muscle, this may be part of the problem!

The cold hard truth is strength workouts are honestly more beneficial for fat loss than cardio especially if we want to truly look more defined and maintain our results long term.

When we build muscle, we help ourselves maintain metabolic health and improve our insulin sensitivity and so much more that only makes losing fat that much easier!

So while cardio has benefit, and shouldn’t be demonized, emphasize strength work for fat loss!

Now some of these truths may not sound fun and I do like to emphasize the hard so we recognize that change isn’t easy.

But if we don’t find ways to make our lifestyle changes FUN, we won’t stick with them long term.

While you may not enjoy doing a specific habit directly, try to connect it with other things you enjoy or allow it to lead into those things so you can change your mindsets about it.

If you like cooking, get yourself some new macro friendly cookbooks.

If you like listening to podcasts and hate meal prepping, get to listen to extra podcasts because you’re meal prepping as you do it.

Even get yourself new exciting tools to make what may feel like a boring habit more fun. Things like new leggings can make you want to workout. Or a fun water bottle can help you remember to hydrate!

But find ways to help yourself make habits more fun, if not at least tolerable!

And then…Fight the urge to do more.

When we want results faster, it’s tempting to do more in an attempt to try to speed things up.

This almost always backfires. It can not only physically but mentally burn us out. It can lead to us doing completely unsustainable habits.

The more you feel the mental resistance against a change, even one I’ve listed here, the more you need to break it down to find the smallest step forward you will embrace.

When I say increase protein to 40%, if you’re hitting like 15% of your calories from it, first shoot for 16%, maybe 20.

But realize that an ideal may be the goal…eventually, but you have to meet yourself where you are at now over always trying to do the maximum possible!

For a custom plan and guidance to help you rock those results and create LASTING changes, check out my 1:1 Online Coaching.

–> Apply and Schedule A Consultation Call

The Habit Rock Pile

The Habit Rock Pile

by | Feb 6, 2025 | podcast

Listen:

Change Requires CHANGE

If you’re feeling stuck and know deep down that you could be doing better, don’t wait any longer. Your life is not going to change until you take action and make a bold move towards your goals. If you’re ready to take control of your life and start moving towards the results you want let us help you achieve your goals. ⬇️

APPLY NOW

Change Requires CHANGE

If you’re feeling stuck and know deep down that you could be doing better, don’t wait any longer. Your life is not going to change until you take action and make a bold move towards your goals. If you’re ready to take control of your life and start moving towards the results you want let us help you achieve your goals. ⬇️

APPLY NOW

Transcript:

Open Transcript:

Cori (00:00):
Welcome to the Redefining Strength Podcast. Everything you need to succeed on your health and fitness journey. Even the stuff you don’t want to hear, habits are like rocks we’re trying to carry across the field. So I was trying to think about making habit changes as we set new goals and how we usually approach habit change and why we often find that we can’t maintain the habits we’re trying to create and the times that we actually are successful. Not to mention even recognizing why certain bad habits are so easy to keep repeating and so hard to break. In thinking about all this, I came up with this visual that really helped me and I wanted to share it with all of you. It was this idea that we have these different size, big rocks, medium stones, small stones and pebbles all sitting in a pile, and we have this bag that we can use and carry about five pounds across this field, and we need to get ’em across the field to reach our goal, and we want to do this as efficiently as possible.

(00:59):
Most of the time, we don’t want to take extra long to reach our goal. So looking at this pile, I think a lot of times we go, okay, well I’m going to carry the big rocks across first, get as many as I can, and that way I’m doing it when I’m freshest, I’m getting these heavy things out of the way. So if we go to picking up the big rocks, which are those habits I think are often hard, most outside our comfort zone. They’re the ones we think, well, I can do this right now. So motivated. They’re the ones that are sacrifices that we feel like we’re kind of will powering our way through. It’s tracking macros when we’ve always said tracking macros is so overwhelming and we’re going to do it perfectly. It’s the two a day workouts. It’s some of these really intense changes that we make.

(01:34):
This all or nothing attitude type habits, those are the big rocks. And so we go and we put a couple in the bag and either A, we can’t pick it up, so we never actually get started. So overwhelmed with the weight of it, or we get halfway across the field and all of a sudden the bag ripped because it couldn’t carry that weight, and now we can’t even go back and start carrying the other rocks across in any efficient manner. That’s how we often approach habit changes, trying to do these big, overhauling heavy changes that weigh us down and ultimately sabotage us when we run out of that initial motivation and willpower. It’s like we had all this passion and then this passion bomb exploded on us and we couldn’t do anymore. So if you go back to that pile, we now have the medium stones, the small stones, the small pebbles, the medium and small stones we could carry a lot more of, but still, again, it might take us a little bit longer to go across.

(02:22):
These habits are things that might be a little uncomfortable but easier to do, or they might take a little bit more effort, be harder to do, but are more comfortable for us. So thinking about things like if you say working out, working out is technically hard, but if you like doing it, you might be like, this is the thing I can always do. I can’t change my diet, but I can change my workouts. Well, you’re comfortable being uncomfortable in that way. It’s technically a hard thing. You’re just comfortable making changes. So we have habits like that. We also have habits that for some reason we really just don’t like doing. We’re not comfortable doing, even though they’re so easy to do. Not even fitness related. I equate this to doing laundry. It’s not really that hard to do, not even that time consuming, but I hate doing it.

(03:05):
So we all have those habits. It might be meal prepping for you, it might be drinking more water, but those are sort of the medium stones and small stones, and we can get those across. But if we’re only carrying those across, it’s not that efficient. There’s times where we put too much weight in and we bog ourselves down or results don’t happen fast enough, so we lose motivation and we give up because we feel like we’re not there yet. Same thing can sort of be said for those small pebbles. These are the habits that barely push your comfort zone. They’re the really easy 1% changes, and while they can really add up, but we might even be able to carry a whole lot of them across in one go. This is often where we’re like, unless we’re really embracing sustainable changes, we’re like, Ugh, nothing’s adding up because these aren’t sexy.

(03:45):
They don’t feel like these massive changes for us. So it doesn’t give us that feeling of doing more. It’s often the things we really need to do, but again, it makes us not as efficient or create as fast a change. It’s sustainable, but we still have those other hard habits we might need to embrace. Sometimes it can help us work our way up to them, but we still have all this diversity of habit change we have to make. And we have only so much willpower. We have only so much motivation. We have only so many ways we can shift our priorities. So how can we manage to make habit changes that actually last? This is where you have to think about efficiency in that bag. What’s one hard habit change you can make? Put that into the bag. How can I fit some medium stones and small stones of bear on that big rock?

(04:28):
So how can I include some habit changes that are maybe a little less comfortable but easy to do technically or a little harder to do, but I’m more comfortable with sort of around that? And then how can I put in some 1% changes around that for maybe one of the other big rocks I can’t carry yet? So I’m using all that space efficiently. If I’m combining all these different types of habits into one bag, I’m going to make it across the field as fast as possible. And I might even be able to then say, Hey, I can actually take two of these big rocks. They’re not quite as big in the next go. And you might be able to do a little bit more, be willing to make a few more sacrifices. You are really motivated, or you might hit a time of year, be a little fatigued carrying the rocks across and recognize, Hey, I don’t have the same focus and intensity.

(05:12):
I’m fatigued mentally, even fatigued with the habit changes. I’m going to carry a few more small pebbles in this go. But that way you’re always moving across and you’re moving across as efficiently as possible. You’re keeping that forward with momentum towards your goal. Well, recognizing that different habits have different hard for us and that we can’t just always go at one speed, carrying only one weight of a habit, and that that’s also what sabotaged us. And along the way, we might get lucky and even find a sledgehammer where we can break down some of the big rocks into smaller stones that are more manageable for us to get across. But the more we look at our habit changes not just as one size, one type of habit, but as this diversity, the more we can really assess who we are, what we need, even at this stage season of life, time of the year, to be able to carry across those habits, to be able to use those habits to move forward towards our goal in the most efficient manner possible.

(06:05):
Love to hear your thoughts on this. Hope this really helped you embrace habit changes and even assess some of the habits you’re currently doing to see are these big rocks that are really hard and am I doing too many of them to sabotage myself and overwhelm myself and run out of willpower? Or am I only sticking with the small pebbles? And that’s maybe why, yes, this feels sustainable, but I’m not seeing results snowball as fast as I’d like, and I’m losing motivation because of that. Can I incorporate some of the small stones and some of the medium stones into this to really be efficient in how I’m seeing results happen and be able to get everything moving forward towards my goal a little bit faster?

 

*Note: This transcript is autogenerated there may be some unintended errors.

Are Bulgarian Split Squats Overrated?

Are Bulgarian Split Squats Overrated?

by | Feb 2, 2025 | Blog, Exercises, Functional Fitness

The Bulgarian Split Squat or Balance Lunge is a move you see all over social media. It’s even a staple in many standard gym training routines. Many say it is a “must-do” exercise or the “best” unilateral leg moves.

But honestly, it’s slightly overrated BECAUSE it is so often done INCORRECTLY.

It’s a move that’s far more advanced than we realize and many of us haven’t earned the variation we’re using.

So we don’t see the full benefit of the exercise. And even end up injured from it.

We wobble around and let our front knee cave in. We don’t lower down to the ground using the full range of motion. We rush through as we lose our balance.

Our training should feel hard with purpose. We want every move to truly pay off and yield the best results as fast as possible.

That’s why I wanted to share my favorite static lunge variation to start with and even variations of the Balance Lunge you may use instead.

But before I do I wanted to share 3 key form tips if you are using the Balance Lunge to make sure you’re getting the most out of the exercise!

#1: Set up at the BOTTOM of the lunge.

By setting up at the bottom of the lunge, you can make sure your feet are not only in the right position but also make sure you are truly able to work through a full range of motion.

Because the value in doing the Balance Lunges is in the range of motion. You’re increasing the range of motion to create more of a challenge and progress the exercise.

This increased range of motion puts muscles under greater stretch while loaded to help you see better muscle and strength gains.

It also helps you maintain a bigger range of hip motion. So if you’ve been doing that mobility work, you need to make sure you’re doing moves to fully strengthen through the range of motion you built.

Too often when we do Balance Lunges we aren’t actually going through the full range of motion completely defeating part of the purpose of using them in the first place!

We also aren’t stable in our set up because our feet are at odd widths. This set up at the bottom, allows you to focus on pushing the ground away and set up at a stance you can control.

You can choose to flex or relax your back foot based on your toe and ankle mobility. But make sure you’re creating that tension down into the bench or box either way to stabilize.

While more load will be on that front leg, you want tension through your back foot to balance as you focus on your front foot pushing down into the ground like a tripod with two points in the ball of your foot and one in your heel!

This helps you truly activate the muscles of your leg and even helps with knee alignment so that it isn’t caving in!

#2: Use torso and shin angle to your advantage.

We think of form as this very set binary thing – good or bad. But with so many moves, there are tweaks to form you can use to emphasize the muscles you want to work and even better suit your unique build.

With the Balance Lunge, you can change your shin angle and torso angle to help you emphasize more quad or more glute.

You can also use these two things based on ankle mobility and knee issues to work around aches and pains.

A more vertical shin angle will help you emphasize your glutes especially when combined with a slight more hip hinge or a slight lean to your torso.

Allowing your knee to move a bit more forward over the all of your foot while maintaining a more vertical torso position will emphasize your quads more.

Which you use will be based on your goals for the exercise. Everything should be included with purpose.

Also you may find that previous knee injuries or even ankle mobility issues impact the postures you use.

If you have issues with knee pain or ankle mobility, even due to previous ankle sprains, you may find you need to use a bit more of a vertical shin angle although you can play around with torso angle a bit.

#3: Adjust your depth!

The higher the bench or box you use, the harder this lunge is, creating more instability and a bigger range of motion. You need to be more mobile and stronger as you increase the range of motion you’re working through.
This makes changing the height of the box or bench a great way to progress this move potentially without adding weights. But it also means the height of the bench is something you need to EARN.

Yet so often we just think Balance Lunge and we just go to any bench around instead of finding one that fits our needs and fitness level.

Don’t be afraid to adjust the height based on your mobility and height. Also don’t be afraid to adjust the height to progress the movement without adding loads.

And if you do want to focus on lifting more, don’t be afraid to even go LOWER than you have in the past to progress and add instability while going heavier. There are so many ways to create progression through how we combine range of motion, stability and resistance!

The importance of the height of the box or bench we are using is too often not appreciated and recognized, which is why I feel so often this lunge is overrated and misused.

Because if you don’t work through the range of motion you’re creating, you’re better off doing a different lunge variation instead and really learning to control it with loads.

Results come from quality of movement.

That’s why I love to start with the Split Squat and even return to this move to focus more on progression through adding heavier and heavier loads while maintaining mobility.

Because lunges are a great mobility and stability exercise for our hips especially when included at the level and in the variation that matches our fitness level, needs and goals.

The split squat is the most basic static lunge variation. But instead of your back foot up on a bench or box, you’re doing this move fully off the ground.

If you can’t yet lower your back knee to touch the ground, or hover right above it, you haven’t earned increasing the range of motion further.

If you aren’t yet able to go to the ground, you can also reduce the range of motion you’re working through to build up.

You can place a block under your back knee and lower to that over going all of the way to the ground. This is a great way to slowly build up that range of motion and hip mobility and leg strength but in a way you can control.

With this split squat, I love to set up at the bottom and focus on maintaining that even pressure between both your foot and back foot, whether you’re doing it off the ground or from the block. This push down into the ground to help you drive up centered is key to helping you balance and really engage your legs.

And like the Balance Lunge, you can adjust torso and shin angle to impact what muscles you activate more.

You can add load to this move as you can control that full range of motion.

And this is where there is extra opportunity in the options and variations of the split squat that you can even use to tweak the balance lunge to fit your needs.

With adding resistance, it isn’t just about going directly heavier all of the time.

You can change where you hold the weights from down at your sides to allow yourself to focus on your legs and grip and go heavier to up at your chest in the goblet position to target your core more.

You can even unilaterally load the weight and hold it on one side to work on core stability. Even holding a weight in the opposite hand from your front leg can help you target your glute medius more especially with that torso lean and vertical shin angle.

You can even change how you’re applying resistance by using a mini band over dumbbells.

The key is understanding there are options to really make this move fit your needs and goals.

And with the Balance Lunge, we so often only increase range of motion by placing our back foot up.

However, you can also progress the basic split squat by raising your FRONT foot up as a deficit split squat.

Even if you love the Balance Lunge and can work through that full range of motion, you may include this to emphasize different muscles and even create progression through the same but different.

Just like you return to the split squat to go heavier while having the more limited range of motion.

With the Deficit Split Squat, some may find this easier to control while getting the benefits of working through a bigger range of motion.

And a very small elevation can have a huge impact. It may even feel better for some with longer femurs or upper legs.

The deficit split squat can keep that front leg in more of a working range of motion and put the glute under greater stretch in that front leg. And unlike the Balance Lunge, you won’t have more of your weight in that front leg, making it potentially easier to balance with full pressure between both legs and feet.

So as you build up and progress, see opportunity in the options. But don’t just include a move to use it because someone said it was the “best” or a “must-do.”

Make sure every move you use has purpose and that you can use it for quality reps!

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