MASTER CLASS

Training small muscle groups takes thought

While she’s working her obliques and balancing the strength of her left and right sides, Becky Gilbreath can distract her mind from any discomfort by imagining she’s a Rockette.
While she’s working her obliques and balancing the strength of her left and right sides, Becky Gilbreath can distract her mind from any discomfort by imagining she’s a Rockette.

— Strength training of large muscle groups is, for the most part, logical. The muscles you think are working usually are being worked.

But if you begin trying to refine your training regimen to shore up details, you may find yourself stumped on how to train a smaller, less distinct part of the body effectively. That’s where I come in.

This week, I’ll help you problem-solve a training strategy for a couple of less-well known muscle groups. Plus I’ll introduce an exercise that tackles one of them.

The rotator cuff is one of those muscle groups that everyone has heard of, but hardly anyone knows for sure how to train. Comprising four small muscles around the shoulder joint, the rotator cuff is often injured due to overall weakness combined with improper lifting techniques. Simply training the deltoids will not effectively strengthen the rotator cuff muscles, so it’s important to add specific exercises designed to target the rotator cuff to your routine.

photo

Pinky also takes on the Rockette Climber. Watch his video at arkansasonline.com/pinky.

For the most part, you can strengthen the rotator cuff muscles by - you guessed it - rotating the shoulder, internally and externally under resistance.

If you have access to a cable machine, simply hold your elbow at your side while it’s bent to 90 degrees and hang onto a single handle. Without moving the elbow, rotate your forearm inward under a very light resistance. If you don’t have access to a cable machine, this can also be done with a stretch band. Once you’ve done a couple of sets rotating inward, turn the opposite direction and rotate outward (or externally) under resistance.

These rotational movements will certainly put your shoulders in a better position to avoid injury down the line.

The obliques are the other big mystery in strength training. Most exercisers spend their time with situps, crunches and planks as a means of attacking the core. These aren’t bad exercises, but none of them targets the obliques directly. To effectively work the obliques, you have to twist the torso.

In other words, the relationship between the shoulders and the hips must operate inversely under resistance. The hips can twist while the shoulders stay still or vice versa. This twisting motion allows the obliques to function in an ideal pattern.

This week’s exercise is designed to make the obliques do exactly what I just described. The hips will twist while the shoulders remain stable. It’s a fun way to target the obliques without any additional equipment requirements.

  1. Get in the “up” phase of a push-up with your back straight. Contract your abdominals.

  2. Lift your right foot off the floor and “kick” underneath your body to the left as you roll your hips slightly to accomplish this task.

  3. Kick as far up and to the side as you can (pain-free).

  4. Return the right foot to the floor and repeat with the left foot, kicking underneath your body to the right.

  5. Rapidly kick to one side, then the other for 25 repetitions.

I thought the name “Rockette Climber” was a catchy way to remember this one. But the funny Las Vegas showgirl imagery really does help you perform the exercise correctly. Think “cha cha cha” and work those obliques today.

Matt Parrott has a doctorate in education (sport studies) and a master’s in kinesiology and is certified by the American College of Sports Medicine.

[email protected]

ActiveStyle, Pages 32 on 02/18/2013

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