The deadlift - and all of its wonderful variations - easily tops my personal favourites list (for the gym, that is). Eric Cressey embarks on what promises to be a terrific journey.
Results matching “Bird”
As Jim Wendler, Rick Walker and others have noted; traps maketh the man. Even if the rest of your body is comparatively small, huge traps are downright impressive.
In his article The Yoke, Wendler pointed out :
We live in a society that judges on physical appearance. Having big legs is ok, but no one notices. Big arms make you seem too narcissistic. A big chest makes you look like Captain UpperBody; a superhero no one wants to dress up like during Halloween. So that leaves the yoke as the essential body part to develop.
Besides which, a well-protected neck is always a good thing to have.
What is the yoke?
To a tailor measuring you up for a shirt (OK, imagine you're getting married or something; you can't wear t-shirts ALL the time), the yoke refers to the section from one shoulder to the other. Not around the back, but up and over the top. Bigger neck = bigger measurement.
To anyone who loves the iron, the yoke is simply the collection of muscles that sits around the neck and makes it look as though you're permanently wearing one of those inflatable travel pillows. Those muscles help protect your neck from all sorts of damage (which is why you'll often see footballers, wrestlers and MMA athletes working them seriously).
For a slightly more anatomical look at things, the yoke consists of :
Traps (Trapezius)
If the first exercise that came to mind when you read the word 'yoke' was the humble shrug, join the club. Listed below are several other ways to hit the traps, but the shrug is at the top of the list for a good reason - it works.
The traps help with several movements of your arms above your head (picture the movement of a pull-up, for starters). The top shelf always gets a little harder to reach after a solid deadlift day.
Rear Delts (Posterior Deltoids)
These are simply the muscles at the back of the shoulders, and help to raise your arms behind you (think of a rear lateral raise).
Neck (Several muscles, all designed to rotate and tilt your head in various directions)
This probably brings to mind helmets, neck harnesses and formula one racing drivers (if that last one surprises you, think about the G-forces those guys are repeatedly subjected to as they go around corners). There are several muscles involved, but they have a common purpose : to help protect the cervical spine. And rotating/tilting the head of course.
Another great week here on Straight to the Bar; the fun just keeps coming :
- Articles : Dr Fuhrman notes the benefits of growing your own food (especially when you have kids), Mehdi takes a look at Hans Selye's Stress Model and I take a look at that old favourite - the Barbell Hack Squat.
- Videos : I stumbled across a superb collection of old-time strongman videos on Sandow Plus, Dominic Lacasse struts his stuff with a great compilation of flags and Tom Furman pointed to the hilarious Asian Squat piece.
- Grip : Mike Amos fires up a great conversation on grip training, Nick McKinless reviews this year's British Grip Championships and Jedd points to a video of Chad Woodall pinching 3 × 15kg plates (unsupported). Amazing.
- Sites : Charles Staley starts up Masters' Performance (squeezing out the last drop for the over-40 lifter; not too far away in my case), Fawn Friday becomes the Yoganator and Guillaume Dargaud blends two
obsessionsinterests of mine in his Climbing photography tips 'n' tricks site. - Bonus : Jump Westminster - a great documentary on the origins and growth of Parkour. Enjoy.
Via Dave Whitley : A slightly lighter take on the May 2007 Danish RKC certification; put together by Thomas Andersen. Featuring some great moves; including the DuCane Press (pictured). Enjoy the video [streaming, 8mb .flv download].
Blaine just pointed me in the direction of Alwyn Cosgrove's blog, which notes a particularly amusing Red Stripe commercial : Legs [streaming, 580kb .flv download]. Love it.
Mehdi at StrongLifts.com takes a brief look at a fascinating topic - General Adaptation Syndrome (in particular Hans Selye’s Stress Model). Definitely one to think about.
Another interesting exercise idea from Physical Subculture - Alternating Windmills.
Brian Carson takes a brief look at German strongman Hermann Goerner. A very interesting guy.
Sandbag snatching at the Ice Chamber.
Rightshape points to a partial list of competitors for this weekend's Muscle Beach International Classic. If you're in the area, head over there for a great bodybuilding show. The best part? It's free.