• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Adverticia

Advertising Strategies for Today's Media World

  • Home
  • Topics
    • Business Tips
    • Construction
    • Family
    • Fitness
    • Furniture
    • Health
    • Swimming Pools
    • Technology
    • The Arts
  • Ask a Question
  • Contact

Muscle Focus

Last updated on January 16, 2020 by Sozo Staff Leave a Comment

man working on muscle strengthening exercises

When you do a resistance exercise, do you simply try to move the resistance from point A to point B . . . or do you focus the effort into the muscle(s) targeted? If you’re not focusing the effort into specific muscles, you’re missing a lot. Allow me to explain how to begin doing this.

man doing lat pulldown exercise in gym

In order to illustrate this, I’ll pick an exercise that is commonly performed and show you how to get more out of it. Lat pulldowns are routinely done in gyms across the U.S.  The vast majority of people I have watched are simply trying to pull the bar down to “somewhere around chin level” and then allow the weight to quickly pull their arms back overhead. The effort isn’t focused on any muscle or muscle group, and the arms often end up becoming the prime movers for this movement. Your biceps are much smaller than your lats, and they will give out first ending the set. This means your back won’t receive the work you had planned for it. Most “gym goers” don’t realize this, don’t care as long as it’s getting done, and haven’t noticed that their back looks virtually the same as it did when they began training. YOU CAN DO BETTER.

I often begin by incorporating an isolation exercise for the lats prior to the pulldowns to temporarily render them fatigued enough that the arms will not be a limiting factor. Secondly, I instruct my clients to concentrate intentionally on pulling the shoulders back and down when pulling the bar down and reverse that on the way up. I also tell them to attempt to drive their elbows into their sides during the movement.

My clients have heard me say, “pull your shoulder blades together” and, ” drive your elbows into your sides” many, many times. It probably can become annoying – especially when you thought you were done 3 reps ago! I also instruct them to “think of your arms as hooks” — not the movers of the weight, just the attachment TO the weight. Finally, I usually will touch the tips of the middle 3 fingers of my hands on their working lats during the exercise. This is known as “cueing” and is done to help clients focus directly on the muscles they are supposed to be using as the primer movers for this exercise.

When I practice these procedures during pulldowns, the effort is usually felt in the lats, and the results begin to manifest themselves soon after. When I decided to write this article, deciding on which exercise to illustrate was like picking an ice cream flavor at Baskin-Robbins — there are so many to choose from. Many exercises lend themselves to this practice, but most people don’t know about it and, of those, very few ever use it and reap the benefits. My clients do and you can be one of those who learn the safest and most effective techniques around by contacting me. I stand ready to help!

Dave – Your Harford County, Maryland Personal Fitness Trainer

Results are what you’ll get when you train with me. I’m conveniently located in Forest Hill near the center of Harford County, Maryland. Clients come to me from Fallston, Jarrettsville, Bel Air, Forest Hill and Baltimore. I’ve got the experience, the ability, the knowledge and the success stories of my students to testify that my training is result driven and result based. Visit my webpage for more information.

Filed Under: Fitness, Health

Additional Articles

healthy dieting and exercising but in vain
When Dieting & Exercise Don’t Work
young woman who lost significant fat
Tips on Losing Fat from a Certified Personal Trainer
value of a personal fitness trainer
When to Hire a Personal Trainer
young adult woman jogging to lose weight and fat
A GOOD Fat to Have
personal fitness instructor in fallston maryland
Personal Fitness Trainer – Serving Bel Air, Forest Hill, MD
man eating a protein bar after exercise regimen
Pre and Post Fitness Workout Eating Tips

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

1 + 14 =



Primary Sidebar

Fitness workout
X10 Home Automation

Featured Articles

  • Certified Personal Fitness Trainer in Harford County, MD
  • When Dieting and Exercise Don't Seem to Work
  • A Good Fat to Have
  • Tips on Losing Fat from a Certified Personal Trainer
  • Train for Swimsuit Season Now
  • Keeping Your New Year's Fitness Resolutions
  • Reduce Your Sugar and Corn Syrup Intake
  • Certified Personal Trainer in Bel Air, Maryland
  • Free Gym in Harford County, Maryland?
  • A Fitness Trainer's Thoughts on the Paleo Diet
  • Harford County, MD Personal Training Consultations
  • Pre and Post Fitness Workout Eating Tips
  • When to Hire a Personal Fitness Trainer
  • Beach Bodies Are Built Now
Lyon Financial
Pushups

Popular Articles

  • Stop Hiding Your Phone Number, Walmart.com
  • Dance Studio Management Software Review
  • Should I Use Ipe or Teak?: Two High End Lumbers Explained
  • How do They Get Those Surgical Instruments So Clean?
  • Are Your Shoulder Blades Crooked?
  • Septic Tank Pumping in Mooresville, NC
  • Maxtrix: Bunk Beds with Unlimited Options
  • Top 3 Household Hazards for Kids
  • Getting Started with X10 Home Automation
Home exercises

Reader Feedback

  • Norie Rie on 3 Options for Pool Heating
  • Afton Jackson on Wood Flooring: Environmental & Economic Benefits
  • Zoey Bac on 3 Options for Pool Heating
  • Karen M. on 3 Options for Pool Heating
  • Jacky Clemente on 3 Options for Pool Heating
Weight lifting

Copyright © 2023 Sozo Firm Inc · Privacy Policy · Disclaimer · Sitemap

Adverticia.com does not provide medical advice, treatment or diagnosis; content on this website should not be utilized for medical treatment or diagnosis. The information provided is intended for general consumer information and should not take the place as a substitute for professional medical advice.

FTC Compliance Disclaimer: Adverticia.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com; proceeds from product sales help cover the operational & maintenance costs for the site.