“Behind every big X is a strong Y”

by Kevin Parker

OK boys & girls, today we’re going to solve for X & Y! Ready? Here we go!

*Behind every big squat are strong hip & groin muscles. Some of the best squatters I knew ended their lifting career prematurely by not training these important areas. Heavy squatting alone w/o training these “assistance muscles” that are involved in moving that weight is an injury waiting to happen! Swallow your pride (Men, are you listening?) and go over to the adductor/abductor machine. For some reason, men have a stigma about using this machine. Don’t let your ego contribute to a (weightlifting) career-ending injury.

*Behind every great set of abs (at least on 40+ year olds) is a strong core & lower back. Let’s face it; the older we get the easier it is to put fat on the center of our bodies & the harder it is to take off. Now with a slowing metabolism, that spare tire seems to be a permanent edition. Lower back, as well as obliques, are bodyparts people don’t like to train either because they view them as non-essential or cosmetic-they go away with a baggy t-shirt, right? The truth is behind every sore back is usually a distended belly or untrained core straining it. You can’t train one side of your body to the exclusion of the other & expect to not have an injury or pain.

*Behind every powerful chest press are healthy shoulders including the rotator cuffs. This is another place where age will deceive you. Your shoulders will only take heavy presses so long before they wear out without preventative training. For me it was 10 years before my rotator cuffs gave out under the constant load of heavy training. Again work for balance; there’s nothing wrong with training heavy or cycling up to heavy poundage’s but take care of all the areas that support heavy chest pressing. I use rotator cuff training as my shoulder warm-up & 1st exercise every shoulder day. You don’t realize how important healthy shoulders are until you have an injury & not only chest workouts are compromised but every upper body workout not to mention everyday tasks & activities.

*Behind strong, shapely & functional calves is a well-trained soleus. The soleus muscle is a small muscle that runs up the back of your leg, behind your calf. The soleus muscle is trained directly when you perform calf raises in a seated position & your knee is bent 90 degrees with your lower leg perpendicular to your upper leg. Again, area trained at the exclusion of the other creates an imbalance that you will notice, most especially when you are outside the gym depending on your calves for everyday activities or play.

I certainly don’t mean this to be a comprehensive list; I’m sure you have your own things to add. But at the end of the day, physical success is a product of hard & consistent work applied evenly to your entire body, not just to your favorite body parts. No bodypart is an island, they are connected and you can’t train your favorite ones to the exclusion of body parts you hate and expect to remain injury-free. Like a “heat seeking missile”, an injury will find the weakest link and test you there. Prevent tomorrow’s injury by training your “assistance” muscles today!

Your brother in Christ, Kevin
This article is anecdotal & doesn’t supersede medical opinions or prescriptions.