Departure from ‘proper form’ adds some benefits

Time and time again, you’ve heard fitness experts drone on about the importance of maintaining proper form throughout an exercise.

I’ve certainly done my fair share of this over the years, but there are circumstances where “cheating” can be appropriate and beneficial.

This week, I’ll discuss a few of these instances and present an exercise demonstrating the concept.

Ninety-five percent of the time it makes sense to adhere strictly to textbook form during strength training. It’s usually safer, more effective and often produces better results when compared against less strict training protocols.

The other 5 percent is up for debate. I’ve seen instances in which carefully controlled form was exchanged for added effort and it worked out fine.

Although flinging yourself around is more risky than making slow, controlled motions, a seasoned fitness enthusiast can employ momentum from time to time, under the right circumstances.

To determine when to employ the cheater method, you should first understand the form-effort continuum. Generally, your exercise form will deteriorate as effort increases. It’s important to remember this inverse relationship between control and exertion. As you reach maximum effort, you should be mindful of what’s happening to your posture and to what degree you’ve strayed from the textbook version of the exercise.

The next step is to determine whether your form is putting you at risk for injury. This takes excellent body awareness and is normally only found among exercisers accustomed to pushing themselves to the limit on a semi-regular basis. As a general rule, you’ll want to avoid any large departures from form on any exercises that A) involve the knees and B) are closed kinetic chain activities.

“Closed kinetic chain” simply means the end of the body part you’re working stays in contact with an immobile surface. For instance, during the squat, your feet are anchored by the floor, and so a squat is a closed kinetic chain exercise (it also involves the knee joint).

Conversely, a leg extension is an open kinetic chain exercise for the quadriceps - the foot is not anchored to a fixed point.

This week’s exercise is a cool way to knock out a few more pull-ups without drastically changing your traditional pull-up form. You’ll keep the same upper-body movement throughout the exercise, but you’ll use your legs to propel you through the repetitions.

1. Stand below a pull-up bar.

2. Squat slightly by bending the hips and knees.

3. Jump up and grasp the pull-up bar with your palms facing forward. As you grab the bar, try to pull your body upward as far as you can.

4. If you’re able to get your chin to bar-level, lower your body back down by extending the arms, then drop back down to the floor.

5. Immediately squat and leap again, repeating the jump-pull-up combination.

6. Aim for two sets of 12.

This modification is really great for pushing through an extra two or three repetitions right at the end of a set. While it might seem awkward at first, I think you’ll get the hang of it rather quickly.

If you’re unable to complete a full pull-up, simply pull as high as you can. Then drop down and go right into the next repetition. Even if you’re only touching the pullup bar, the jumping will give you quite a workout.

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.

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