The Mechanics - Personal Trainer Community - Forum

[Allycat]

As a new personal trainer I have found my greatest dificulty is in properly describing the mechanics of certain exercises. I have clients who constantly lift their front heel off the ground during a lunge, or can't grasp the concept of how to do a proper squat. What comes naturally to me does not come naturally to many of my clients. So, I am wondering if there is a course or manual of some sort, which would help me better explain the mechanics of certain exercises and provide simple explainations I could pass on to my clients.

[Chris_78]

Forget explanations. You need to find a way to train the movement patterns, first and then worry about loading them, second.

So, how do you teach a person to squat? Well, first, I'd highly encourage you invest in a couple of really good books - Athletic Body in Balance by Gray Cook and Movement by Gray Cook et al. While these books primarily discuss Cook's functional movement screen, they also go into some interesting detail about fundamental patterns of movement as well as movement in general.

One of the things that Cook highlights and that is highlighted in most motor development books is the idea that we don't squat from a top-down - instead, we squat from the bottom-up. If you don't believe me, watch a little baby that is first learning to walk - what do they do? They roll over, push themselves up, and eventually get into a squat before they stand and attempt to walk.

So, for the squat - train it from the bottom up. My method is to have people perform a sit-to-stand. Sit them on a chair or on a bench and have them stand up. They can put their arms out in front for balance. When they go to sit back down, instructor them not to move their feet. Most will want to "break" at the knees to initiate the movement and rely solely on their quads. This may show weakness in the posterior chain - the glutes and hamstrings, but it may also just be a learning thing. So, good cues might fix this immediately. The movement should be initiated at the hips and so the client should be instructed to "sit back" into the chair. Since they cannot move their feet, they'll start to better understand the movement. To load the movement in the learning stages, just have them hold a 5 or 10 lb plate in front of them as a counter-balance. Not only will this act as a counter-balance, but it also challenges the core. Don't believe me? Try it

As for the lunge, many do not have the mobility/flexibility to get into a lunge position. Often the rectus femoris is quite tight on the back thigh. This will cause numerous compensations ranging from external rotation of the down/back leg thigh to an anterior shift as you're describing (heel coming up...suggests that they are leaning forward because the back thigh cannot sufficiently get perpendicular to the ground) to an anterior tilt of the pelvis.

So, step 1 is to work on that range-of-motion in an unloaded condition. Again, I've had more success starting from the bottom-up versus a top-down approach. So, have the client kneel down into a lunge 90-90 position and then have them push through the heel of the front foot and raise up. So, basically, have them first perform a static lunge or what is also referred to as a split-squat. But, perform it from the bottom. I've learned through experience that this registers much easier conceptually with folks. If they are extremely tight in that back thigh, they'll really feel it as they are moving up and down. The hips should stay centered and rise up and down and try to get them to squeeze the glute on the side of the down leg. This helps to keep the pelvis posteriorly rotated and puts more stretch on the front of the thigh since the rectus and other muscles attach there. Also, encourage them to "stay tall" and to actively "brace" the core.

There is no cookbook for this stuff. You just have to read, read, and read some more. There is a ton of great info on the web if you go look for it. I'd start by doing a google search for these guys - Mike Robertson, Eric Cressey, Bill Hartman, Tony Gentilcore, Mark Young, Nick Tumminello, Lyle McDonald, John Berardi (nutrition), Alwyn Cosgrove, Mike Boyle, Charlie Weingroff, Mike Reinold, etc. You'll be able to find links to others' sites from these peoples' sites.

Good Luck.

[Allycat]

Thank you so much. Everything you said makes sense. Looks like I've got my work cut out for me, but I am eager to learn.