Most lifters at conventional gyms are more concerned about how much they can lift rather than how they lift. Sure it looks good to others when you have stacks of plates on that barbell. Then you go and lift it and your form is atrocious. Not only does this send a bad signal to the onlookers but it also sends a bad signal through your body. And the more bad signals you send through your body, the more prone to injury you are. Then we’ll see how much you can lift when you’re injured.
At CrossFit Kingston, we talk about depth. We talk about knees open on a squat or chest up on a deadlift. We talk about tempo. But what we really hammer home is your breathing. That deep breath prior to lifting is crucial for successful lifts.
The reason for that deep breath before lifting is to stabilize the core. The supporting musculature, on its own, does not have the strength to support significant weight. When the lungs fill with air, they activate the surrounding muscles. These two things allow the torso to be as rigid as possible.
The athlete should fill the lungs with as much air as possible and allow the abdomen to expand. By only partially filling the lungs or drawing the abdominal muscles in, the support is reduced. The chance for not making the lift increases. Remember, the more muscles recruited, the more chance of success for the lift.
Many back injuries occur from flexion of the spine (as seen in deadlifts) or in extension (as seen with overhead presses). By increasing abdominal pressure, it is much harder to flex or extend the abdominal muscles or back. Try it:
The athlete should fill the lungs with as much air as possible and allow the abdomen to expand. By only partially filling the lungs or drawing the abdominal muscles in, the support is reduced. The chance for not making the lift increases. Remember, the more muscles recruited, the more chance of success for the lift.
Many back injuries occur from flexion of the spine (as seen in deadlifts) or in extension (as seen with overhead presses). By increasing abdominal pressure, it is much harder to flex or extend the abdominal muscles or back. Try it:
- stand relaxed and breathing normally
- bend forwards and backwards (note how easy it is to do both)
- inhale, flex the abdominal muscles and attempt the same movements (more difficult to bend? Absolutely. This is the kind of stability you want when lifting heavy loads in order to protect your back)
Increasing the pressure in your abdomen is known as the Valsalva maneuver. There is a nerve, the vagus nerve, which innervates the organs in the thoracic and abdominal cavities. When pressure is exerted on this nerve a number of physiological events occur. A common event is the slowing of the heart rate. Try this:
- take your pulse while breathing normally for 15-30 seconds
- now take a deep breath, hold it, and flex your abdominal muscles (as if you’re straining on the crapper)
- now take your pulse for 15-30 seconds
- you should note a decrease in the pulse rate with the breath holding
So now that you’ve tried these fun things, I hope you’re not feeling lightheaded or dizzy. These are a couple of side effects of having the vagus nerve stimulated. It’s usually due to a decrease in blood flow to the brain as a result of a slowing heartbeat. Everything should return back to normal soon. Key word should.
Taking that big breath when doing multiple reps at lower weight (like Nancy that has 15 overhead squats at 95#/65#) is not as important as the bigger/heavier lifts. Just breathe. These types of WODs require oxygen to be the fuel for the muscles. If you start to fatigue and you want to get that one extra rep then, by all means, take that breath and hold it through the lift. The Valsalva is a natural response in the body. It’ll probably happen when it needs to happen.
1 comments:
Great article, and nice video too. I now have a better way to catch the bar from presses. :)
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