Survival of the Fittest

[photo courtesy of shoeboxin on flickr]

I cannot be stopped. From writing about pull-ups, anyway. I can be stopped all-too-easily from actually doing them.

But after this post, I promise to try to attempt to consider writing about pull-ups less often. (Sorry — as far as promises go, that’s the best I can do right now. Kelly at Fitness Fixation and Crabby at Cranky Fitness are talking about pull-ups, too, so that reeled me in all over again.)

If you’re new here, please allow me to inundate you with previous pull-up posts so you, too, can choose between feeling irritated or inspired: “How to Do a Pull-up (or 15),” “Pull-Ups Ad Nauseam,” “Tomorrow’s Work Out: Pull-Ups” and “Lax in L.A.”

After “How to Do a Pull-up (or 15),” my former rugby teammate and longtime friend Halvo left a comment announcing that not only can she do 37 consecutive pull-ups, but that she’s recently been working toward one-armed pull-ups. (What?!) To add insult to injury, she then advocated trying pull-ups with added weight. Which is great advice, don’t get me wrong — if you can already do at least a handful of pull-ups. Or more than a handful.

But many of us are struggling to get to that point, so I wasn’t surprised when I received an indignant email from a reader saying, “Who IS that girl, anyway?!”

[Pull-ups are whatEVER.]

WHO IS HALVO? She’s a Mensa-belonging, Wedge Co-op-loving, rugby-playing, sweet-as-pie fitness freak who occasionally likes to break things in dark alleys. (Things people put out as trash. And she cleans up her mess afterward.) And she will be visiting Philadelphia next weekend, so if you’re in the area and you’d like to feel her biceps, let me know.

At my request, she took some video of herself doing her thang on the pull-up bar, and she sent me three videos in all. One of her cranking out some very impressive almost-one-armed pull-ups; one of her doing a few with added weight; and one of her doing a superhuman number of pull-ups. Pretty amazing stuff, even if you don’t bother with pull-ups yourself. Something is up with the last video, so you’ll have to settle for the first two.

Single-Armed Halvo

Warning: She appears to attack the videographer afterward, so the camera gets a little Blair Witch Project for a second there. Get your barf bag.

Heavy Halvo

Warning: Extreme jealousy may ensue after watching this video.

Halvo says: “I started really working on pull-ups about a year and a half ago. I think I could already do 12 in a row, but my form was probably pretty bad. I do pull-ups two or three times a week, on the same days that I lift my shoulders, back and biceps. I do three sets of as many regular pull-ups as I can, resting 30 to 60 seconds in between. Interspersed throughout the rest of my workout, I do a set each of wide-grip pull-ups, parallel-grip pull-ups, chin-ups (underhand grip), one-armed pull-ups and L-pull-ups. I add weight to all but the L- and one-armed pull-ups.”

If you didn’t get that barf bag yet, might want to grab it now. Oh, to be that strong … [wistful sigh] (But take heart — she has little bitty stick legs.)

IN PURSUIT OF THAT KIND OF STRENGTH — or at least the kind of strength it takes to do a single pull-up, which is enough of a feat — Experience Life published the article “Clear the Bar,” which features an exercise progression that, if all goes well, will result in your doing an unassisted pull-up.

If you recall, the photo shoot for the article was held in L.A., at the gym where the reality TV show Work Out is filmed. (Yes, I met Jackie Warner, and as with most celebrities, she’s tiny in person.)

The night before the shoot, I was informed that we would be shooting some accompanying video of the exercises, and that I would be providing commentary.

This is what I said: “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooo!”

This is what my editor said: “You’ll be great. Good luck!”

Well, I was decidedly NOT great. The idea of being in front of a camera wipes my brain perfectly clean, which I proved with take after (mis)take where I appeared not to know my own name or where I worked.

The only thing I could have answered for sure was the question, “Do you like being on camera?” (NO.)

Regardless, the finished product can now be found in Experience Life’s video section (who knew we had one of those?!). Also posted below. No promises about the quality — it’s literally our art director Lydia holding the camera and me reading the descriptions from the article as our fitness models Megan and Kaese did the exercises. But sometimes it’s just nice to see exercise demos, and the video serves that purpose adequately enough.

Experience Life Pull-Up Series

Warning: I should have introduced myself by saying, “Hello, I’m a giant toolbox.”

Oh, and since in the video I completely forgot to introduce each exercise, they are as follows: standing lat pull-downs, assisted L-pull-ups, resistance-band pull-ups, eccentric (or negative) pull-ups and partner pull-ups. Enjoy!

[Pull-ups can be scenic.]

Yes, I’m still going on about pull-ups. (Mainly to postpone doing the work I should be concentrating on instead.) But hey, if you’ve grown weary of the topic — if you don’t want to learn how to do this bang-for-your-buck bodyweight exercise better — you’re welcome to leave.

Wait! I didn’t mean it! Please don’t leave. It’s just … wouldn’t it be nicer if we did this together?

[winning smile]

Confession time: In my current state of fitness, I can only do 2.5 pull-ups without assistance. OK, 2.25. In my last post, when I said, “For instance, tuckered after two?” I was talking about myself. Sigh.

A couple years ago, I could do seven, and at the time, I thought that was pretty decent, but now I’ve got to take my old number and double it. Oh, and add one more (see this post for the herstory of this madness).

THE FOLLOWING WORKOUT PROGRAM has been ripped off seven ways from Sunday, so allow me to trace its path so everyone involved gets credit. My friend Liz sent it to me, as her friend Dre had sent it to her. Adam Campbell, editor at Men’s Health, likely wrote about it over there at some point, but by the time we got our grubby mitts on it, the article was posted here on Active.com. The trail doesn’t end there — the technique originated with Michael Mejia, CSCS, former U.S. Navy Seal and author of The Special Ops Workout. (Not to be confused with Mark De Lisle’s Special Ops Fitness Training: High-Intensity Workouts of Navy Seals, Delta Force, Marine Force Recon and Army Rangers.)

Mejia recommends doing the following routine two or three days a week, resting at least a day between sessions. The original copy set the goal at the Rangers’ lofty-enough goal of 12, but I’ve altered it to reflect the U.S. women’s rugby backs’ standard of 15. Because that seems reasonable.

THE SPECIAL OPS’ PULL-UP PLAN
The Goal: 15
The Plan: Take the most pull-ups you can do at one time and divide that number in half. Now perform sets of that number of repetitions — resting 60 seconds after each set — until you’ve done at least 15 pull-ups. Each workout, reduce your rest between sets by 5 seconds, until you’re down to zero rest and able to do 15 consecutive pull-ups.

Pretty simple, really. Hypothetically, say you can do four consecutive pull-ups max. Halve that so you’re doing sets of two with 60 seconds rest in between until you get to — well, 16, because these numbers don’t crunch perfectly. Let’s call it mandatory extra credit. In total, you’ll do eight sets of two. That’s reasonable, right?

And each workout will take less time than the last, which is hugely motivating (to me, anyway). Especially since I’m starting with sets of one, and this thing is going to take me forever at first. Oooh, I’m whiny today, and I think my Door Gym (like the one pictured at right) is mocking me. I guess I should be thankful that a creepy batwoman isn’t hanging on mine. That would be awkward.

IS ANYONE ELSE being haunted by encounters with pull-ups lately? I mean, besides by me. Ha! I can’t seem to escape them, and thus, neither can you. That’s the way this works.

Take, for instance, last night. My friend Kim invited me to do a workout with her at Velocity Sports Performance in Cherry Hill, N.J., and being a sucker for performance gyms, I took her up on the offer. I nearly collapsed after the seemingly extra-dynamic warm-up, but considering there seemed to be no escaping the evil, Justin Timberlake-lookalike trainer, I hung in there — literally.

We ended the hour with three sets of 10 partner pull-ups. (For how to do partner pull-ups, see “Clear the Bar” in the May 2008 issue of Experience Life.) And even as I was thinking, “Whyyyyy?!” I was also thinking, “Why not?” It’s fun to be strong.

This past weekend, I attended a rugby camp for the U.S. women’s 15s team, and the topic of pull-ups came up. Often. A lot like the way pushups keep coming up lately. (See here, here, and here for examples.)

Granted, the rugby camp attendees are probably a skewed sample of individuals — many of them were discussing how to meet the national team’s strength and conditioning standards for the exercise. The requirements vary by position, but the minimum runs from 10 to 15. Players in my position, wing, need to be able to do at least 15 consecutive pull-ups. (May I just say, Gaaaah!)

But this emphasis on bodyweight exercises extends far beyond rugby campers — as part of their 2008 predictions, the American Council on Exercise (ACE) cited bodyweight and equipment-free workouts as emerging fitness trends.

While pull-ups aren’t entirely equipment free, they certainly don’t take much — a tree branch, football goalpost or jungle gym will do just fine.

SO HOW APPROPRIATE IS IT that in the May issue of Experience Life, Krista Scott-Dixon wrote an article called “Clear the Bar” — all about how to do a pull-up. Or 15.

Take a look for exercises that will help you meet your goal, from standing lat pull-downs and negative pull-ups to resistance-band pull-ups and L-pull-ups using a bench.

Even if you can already do full bodyweight pull-ups, the exercises Scott-Dixon covers can be used to boost your number. For instance, tuckered after two? Have your workout buddy jump in to assist with some partner pull-ups. (See pics in the article.)

On the other hand, if you’re itching for more advanced maneuvers, check out her other article on the topic, “Mistressing the Pullup,” on her women-oriented fitness site, Stumptuous.com.

FOR THOSE OF YOU who asked about my dear friend Stubot’s progress on our Pull-Up Challenge (see this post for details), she hasn’t even started yet. But she swears she’s about to. Any minute. Regardless, she could probably use a few words of encouragement, so kindly leave yours in the comments section.

So … no one outside the Experience Life staff knows this yet, but former — and possibly future — karate world champion Elisa Au will be gracing our cover in June. Now you know, too. Shhh.

A little background: Au (pronounced “Ow” — go to town on that one) is the only American woman to have won a world championship, and remains the only person in the world, male or female, to win more than one world title at a single world karate championship. The only person in the world. Can you imagine being able to say that?

If you want to read more about her, check out the links here, here and here. (Highlight from the last one? She recommends people not try the fictitious “crane technique,” pictured at right, from the movie Karate Kid.) There are lots more articles about her, but I’ve grown weary of pasting the links. These days, she’s training in Chicago, where she owns and operates three martial arts schools with her spankin’-new husband, John Fonseca (no slouch himself when it comes to karate accolades — to see a video of Fonseca, click here).

I interviewed Au several weeks ago, and before we hung up, she promised to share her favorite workout on my blog. (A very, VERY big thank you to her for sharing!)

HERE’S THE WORKOUT SHE SENT ME over the weekend — if you try it out, please tell us how it goes in the “comments” section! I tried (albeit half-heartedly) to find photos or video demonstrations to go with at least some of the exercises below, but if you’re having trouble figuring one out, post your question(s) in the comments.

FROM ELISA:
I’ve chosen exercises from my training in karate and with my personal trainer, Corey Shackelford. These exercises do not require any equipment — they rely on your body weight for resistance and focus on the core muscles, which are most important for a strong body.

You can definitely start with less reps if the moves are unfamiliar to you. Or, you can add for reps and sets in order to challenge yourself.

1. Warm up! [For an article on the benefits of warming up and cooling down, see “Gradual is Good” from the March 2007 issue of Experience Life.]

2. Charlie’s Angels Lunges — Lunge sideways with your left leg, feet parallel, arms straight out and parallel to the ground in front of you (in a gun-shooting position). Twist your upper torso to the left so that your arms rotate 90 degrees, then back to starting position. Step up and repeat on right side. 10 reps on each side.

3. Burpees — Squat down and place hands on the floor, shoulder width apart. Kick your feet back into a push-up starting position. Bring feet back under you and immediately jump up in a star position (arms and legs all extended). Repeat 15 times. [For a video demo of how to do a burpee, click here.]

4. Arm Shuffles — Start in push-up position. Shuffle your arms so that your body moves clockwise like a hand of a clock. Try to keep your feet at the middle position as your arms move from 1 to 12. Do 2 times clockwise, 2 times counter-clockwise.

5. Superman — Lay on your stomach. Lift your legs and arms off the ground and hold position for 30 seconds to a minute. [For pics, see here.]

6. V-Ups — Lie on your back. Lift your legs and arms/shoulders off the ground to create a V-shape with your body. Lower your arms and legs without letting them touch the ground. Do 15 reps. [Pics here.]

7. Plank Positions — Place elbows/forearms on the ground, feet in push-up position. Be sure your shoulders are directly above your elbows so that all body angles are 90 degrees. Hold this position for 1 minute. Point right arm straight ahead, parallel to the ground. Hold this position for 20 seconds. Switch arms and hold for another 20 seconds. Repeat with extended right and left legs, each for 20 seconds. Lastly, extend right arm and left leg, hold for 20 seconds, then switch to other side for the last 20 seconds. You will total 3 minutes. [See a basic plank pose here. You got the rest through the description, right?]

For the next three exercises, use small pieces of tape stuck to the floor. Mark 5 points like the 5-side of a die. The outer points should be about shoulder-width apart on all sides.

8. Hourglass — Start on the bottom two points with feet shoulder-width apart. Jump to the middle point to bring feet together, then jump to the top points to get back to shoulder-width position. Jump back to the middle point, then back to starting position. Repeat 15 times.

9. Figure 8 — Keep your feet together the entire time on this one. Start at the bottom left corner. Hop to the middle point, then to the upper right point. Continue on to the upper left point, middle, bottom right, then back to the beginning at the bottom left. You have made a figure 8. Repeat 8 times this way, then 8 times the opposite way.

10. Around the World — Stand on the middle point with one foot. Hop to the bottom left point then back to the middle. Continue to the top left then return, top right and return, bottom right and return. Repeat in this clockwise position 5 times, then 5 times counter-clockwise. Repeat with other foot.

11. Cool-down and STRETCH!

~Elisa

My friend Kathy (strange to call her anything but “Sausage” — aren’t rugby nicknames great?) pasted a link to this CrossFit workout in a comment she left in response to my last post.

She says, “I just read the article in the mag on [the Tabata Protocol] … never thought 4 minutes could be so painful until I met a workout called ‘fight gone bad.’”

Indeed, I would not want to meet this workout in a dark alley.

Originally designed for mixed martial artist B.J. Penn, with the metabolic demands of ultimate fighting in mind, “Fight Gone Bad” is an intense, five-minute weightlifting, plyometrics and cardio circuit that’s repeated three times, with a one-minute break between rounds (just barely enough time to be able to breathe again … sort of). So, 17 minutes total. If you live that long.

After watching the video of the workout, I can see how the first five minutes could do you in. And I have yet to make it through one four-minute Tabata round on the treadmill (although I have muscled through it on the stationary bike now). But still … does anyone else want to work out right this minute?

It looks like you can rig up a similar circuit at nearly any gym (that is, you don’t have to be at a CrossFit facility) as a way to build your work capacity without courting your slow-twitch muscle fibers — fast-twitch types, rejoice!

UPDATE: As I was perusing the workout and exercise list at CrossFit.com (some really amazing stuff there), I came across a Tabata version of the “Fight Gone Bad” workout! See the video here (complete with music from Culture Club).

… but please show your might by doing them right! (Photo above ganked from www.withfitnessandhealth.co.uk.)

This morning, I read Tara Parker-Pope’s Well blog entry “The Art of the Pushup” in The New York Times, and thought, nice topic! Pushups — not to mention pull-ups, squats and other old-school calisthenics — are excellent markers of strength (often, even those who look strong can’t handle their own body weight).

Plus, pushups (also known as press-ups) help keep your scapulae positioned correctly — important for avoiding shoulder injuries.

After skimming the blog entry, however, I clicked on the embedded link to this pushup calculator, which “tell[s] you how many push-ups you should be doing,” and thought … not so nice.

And then I watched the accompanying video called Drop and Give Me Twenty! after which I cringed and hid under my desk for a while (see the video here; scroll down just a bit).

WHY WAS I SO AGITATED? The answer is two part.

1) Because of this particular distinction in the calculator’s form guidelines:

Male subject
-forefoot or toes on floor

Female subject
-knees on floor or mat

All calculations are based on these guidelines.

I mean, really? There’s no third measurement option for women who do pushups on their toes? We are all automatically relegated to doing modified, or “girl,” pushups, which, as Alwyn Cosgrove points out in The New Rules of Lifting for Women (Avery, 2007), take your core out of the movement? (The book points out you’re better off starting with 60-, 45- or 30-degree pushups, placing your hands against a wall or on a bench. For a nice pushup progression, see Krista Scott-Dixon’s “Mistressing the Pushup.”)

2) And also because the pushup form of the women in said video is utterly atrocious. (Think I’m exaggerating? Watch it.) Not a good example among the bunch — heads hanging low, backs swayed, elbows barely bending, and even, at minute 3:01, an especially gruesome attempt at a clapping pushup from a woman who is essentially starting from her hands and knees, rear high in the air.

But not a word about these form indiscretions is uttered in the video — just woman after woman in a Crunch fitness class, committing every pushup no-no in the book. (There are, however, several readers who express their disdain in the comments section.)

I FELT … MISREPRESENTED. And angry. I mean, not a single example of a woman doing pushups on her toes?!

Parker-Pope’s full column on the topic, “An Enduring Measure of Fitness: The Simple Push-Up,” again makes the case beautifully for pushups being an effective and worthwhile full-body exercise. But then, again, we return to the gender divide. As quoted in the article:

“It’s sort of a gender-specific symbol of vitality,” said R. Scott Kretchmar, a professor of exercise and sports science at Penn State. “I don’t see women saying: ‘I’m in good health. Watch me drop down and do some push-ups.’ ”

Perhaps some Penn State women’s rugby players would like to swing by and visit Kretchmar during office hours, just to enthusiastically demonstrate their pushup prowess?

Something else that comes to mind is the 30-second pushup test that’s often part of the fitness testing at U.S. women’s rugby tryouts. If you don’t get to at least 25, you’ve missed the mark. I’m trying to picture what would happen if a player asked to do pushups from her knees….

BUT I WONDER if I’m just out of the loop on this. Are pushups, done on your toes and with perfect form, a point of pride in women? Or do I hang out with too many jocks?

For those of you who like to partake in the many variations of the pushup, such as clapping (or plyo), stability-ball, medicine-ball, dumbbell, rear-elevated, weighted, Hindu, fingertip, knuckle, one-armed and handstand, here are some exercises.

For women and men alike.

From the “Join the Movement” Web Extra, April 2007:
Stability-Ball Pushup
Assume an elevated pushup position with your hands on a stability ball. Lower your chest to the ball while concentrating on maintaining stability in your core (avoid bending at the waist). Press back up to the start position. Complete 10 to 12 pushups.

From “Jump To It,” December 2004:
Plyo Pushup
Assume the pushup position, hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart and elbows bent. Push off the ground explosively, so that your hands lose contact with the floor, and attempt a clap while your upper body is in midair. Land with your hands in the starting position and immediately push off again. Work up to repeating five to 10 times. Do three sets with a one-minute rest in between.

Depth Pushup
Assume the pushup position, but this time with both hands on a 5- to 8-pound medicine ball, elbows fully extended. Quickly remove your hands from the ball and drop down, catching your fall with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, elbows slightly flexed. Absorb the shock on your wrists and elbows by allowing your elbows to bend and your body to drop into pushup position until your chest touches the ball. Then immediately and explosively push up by extending your arms forcefully. Try to achieve maximum height so your hands leave the ground and then land back on the ball. Repeat the movements immediately three to eight times. Complete three sets, with a one-minute rest in between.

From “Man Alive,” September 2004:
Dumbbell pushups
Kneel on the floor with a pair of dumbbells in front of you. Grab the dumbbells, spacing your hands shoulder-width apart, palms facing back toward your legs. Keeping your grip on the dumbbells, get yourself in the classic pushup position. (Your arms should be straight, elbows unlocked with your legs straight out behind you, feet together.) Lower yourself down, then push back up until your arms are straight once more, elbows unlocked. Perform as many repetitions as possible.

In search of snow, I set off to the Poconos after work Wednesday night. It was Ladies’ Night at Blue Mountain Ski Area, and with the weather warming up in Philly, it seemed high time to seek altitude.

Now, I grew up by Fun Valley Ski Area (which I just found out has discontinued its winter activities; I’m nearly inconsolable, though I haven’t been there in 15 years), and until I hit high school, I had a season pass most winters.

But fond as I am of the place, I have to admit the runs were pretty consistent with the gently rolling plains of Iowa. Plus, they were short! Just a straight, 20-second shot to the bottom of the hill. You could wear yourself out if you tried very, very hard, but it took all day.

Which means I wasn’t fully prepared for the sheer length of the trails the other night (or during a college vacation to Breckenridge, but that’s another story). My legs were already feeling a little thrashed from the leg-intensive workout program I’ve been following, and in no way, shape or form were my quadriceps up for the challenge.

But that was the thing: As I skied, only my quads became fatigued. No other muscle groups seemed fazed, but my thighs burned with the intensity of a thousand suns. Were they the only muscles doing anything?

THAT GOT ME THINKING ABOUT some stuff I read about what the strength ratio between quadriceps and hamstrings should be, and how many of us — especially women — are quad dominant.

I picture my own quads as ultra-chivalrous gents, gallantly shooing off the right muscles for the job at hand: “No, no, allow me to get the door for you,” or “Need help across that puddle? Please, take my arm.” Or maybe they’re more like martyrs, hissing, “Do I have to do everything by myself? Fine, why don’t you just rest.”

In any case, if your quads are significantly stronger than your hamstrings, you’re essentially playing ratio roulette, because you’re far more susceptible to knee or hamstrings injuries.

In fact, one of the neuromuscular factors leading to the higher incidence of ACL injury in women and girls is likely this particular muscle imbalance. From Experience Life’s September 2006 article “Weak in the Knees” (which I’ve referenced before):

Women tend to have stronger quadriceps relative to their hamstrings, which may decrease the hamstrings’ ability to stabilize the knees. The general recommendation for a healthy hamstrings-to-quadriceps strength ratio is for the hamstrings to be at least 60 percent — and ideally closer to 80 percent — as strong as the quads.

My friend Sara Wiley, CSCS, associate director of strength and conditioning for athletics at the University of Minnesota–Twin Cities (who is also, might I add, a fine rugby inside center), takes it a step further, saying she likes to see hamstring strength at 80 to 90 percent of quad strength.

Here, a little Q and A with her on the topic.

Me: Why are women more likely to have a quadriceps-to-hamstrings strength imbalance?

Wiley: There’s some debate about whether this is genetic or due to activity choices. As girls mature, it appears they develop quad strength more quickly than hamstrings strength. My thought is that it’s not really that we develop all that differently physiologically, but that we engage in activities that don’t require us to engage the posterior chain in the same way as males of the same age.

I say this because we know that after training, females can exhibit quad/hamstrings strength ratios similar to males, and retrain motor patterns so that the hamstrings fire with strength and in coordination with the quads.

I say this also because I grew up in the Midwest on and near farms, and the farm girls I train now seem far sturdier with respect to the posterior chain. I think they grew up playing and working outside, where the boys and girls played the same games and did similar chores. Maybe they should market a “Posterior-Chain Barbie” … just kidding [see bottom of post for contest]. Obviously, it’s difficult to make sweeping generalizations, but there is something to be said for modeling behaviors (think the little boy watching Favre and emulating his throwing style) and motor patterns set as a young child.

Me: How can you tell if you’re quad dominant?

Wiley: I don’t know of a standard method of self-assessment, but one idea is the hamstring hip lift, which can be performed as follows:

1. Lie on your back with your feet hip-width apart, the soles of your feet on an 18-inch bench or step.
2. Push down into the bench with your feet, lifting your hips up high. You’ll feel your hamstrings working. Do not lift your shoulders or neck off the floor, and keep your upper back down flat.
3. Lower the hips back down until your butt is just off the floor, and then push down into the bench and raise your hips again.
4. Continue for 15 repetitions, rest for 45 seconds, and then complete two more sets.

It’s just a hamstring exercise, but a person with decent hamstrings strength should be able to handle it. If, on the other hand, you struggle, you should work on those hammies.

Do this exercise once or twice a week. When you can do three sets of 20 reps, try doing one-legged hamstring hip lifts. Start with three sets of ten, and build to three sets of 20. For further challenge, you can try these on a stability ball; first double-legged, then single-legged.

It’s a great exercise for runners.

Me: How do the pros measure quads-to-hamstrings strength?

Wiley: You can measure quads-to-hamstrings strength isokinetically using a specialized machine called the Cybex Test, which is set to move at speed versus resistance. This allows you to compare peak torque at extension (quads) versus flexion (hamstrings) at similar speeds. The problem is, it’s not real-world applicable or related to actual function.

That said, it’s still the best way to compare the two while eliminating uncontrolled factors (technique, for instance), and it’s still a standard and accepted test/measurement system, though many are trying to improve it.

Me: Are having quads that are much stronger than hamstrings more common than vice versa? Do you ever see vice versa?

Wiley: Quad dominance is much more common. Can’t say that I’ve really seen the opposite. That’s not to say it couldn’t or doesn’t happen, just haven’t seen it myself.

Me: Why you think this type of imbalance is so prevalent?

Wiley: Most people engage in quad-dominant activities for one reason or another — they like them more, or they’re directed to do certain exercises by their trainer. Or maybe because you can’t see your hamstrings in the mirror? Sometimes I think people just don’t consider whether they are doing balanced activities in workouts, or they don’t know if they are or aren’t.

I rarely train athletes based on muscle groups (i.e., we don’t do “hamstring workouts” or “quad workouts”). But, I do evaluate my programs to make sure that lower body pushing exercises [which activate the quads] are balanced with lower body pulling exercises [which activate the hamstrings], either within that workout or within the week.

Lastly, form and technique play a role. For instance, when doing a squat, if you don’t dip below 90 degrees, you aren’t engaging your hamstrings.

Me: Any other factors that might come into play?

Wiley: Muscles don’t operate in a vacuum, and there are other factors that can have implications for injury. For example, while it’s important to have hamstrings that are strong, they must also be able to coordinate their efforts with the quads or the risk of injury still exists. An example would be a soccer player planting a leg to decelerate — there is a powerful quad contraction, and the hamstring must also fire at the right time to counteract this force, or the ACL is at risk.

This is why jumping/plyometric exercises are a significant part of ACL-injury-prevention programs.

It’s also why compound movements that require movement at multiple joints and coordination of muscle groups are superior to isolated movements. Poor eccentric hamstring strength compared with concentric quad strength can manifest itself as hamstrings strains in runners, because the leg comes through into a foot strike out in front of the body.

Excessive tightness in other areas may also affect the hamstrings. Tight hip flexors may lead to inhibition of the glutes, and if the glutes aren’t doing their job, the synergistic muscles (hamstrings and low-back muscles) have to take over to perform hip extension. The most common result of this is usually low-back pain.

Me: What exercises should people should do if they’re quad dominant?

Wiley: Pulling exercises, such as deadlifts. They are for everyone! Learn to do them right! Deadlifts with a wide grip put further emphasis on the posterior chain. Try also Romanian deadlifts and good-mornings. (Generally, think BENDING EXERCISES.)

I think people are sometimes scared of this category of exercises because they work the posterior chain, which involves the low back. But when you learn to do these correctly (flat back, wide chest, tight core) they might also (GASP!) prevent back pain.

As I mentioned, you can also do hip lifts on a stability ball. Obviously, machine leg curls work the hamstrings, but they don’t work them where they cross the hip, only at the knee. It’s important to work both — so do machine leg curls and stability-ball leg curls.

CONTEST: Five bucks to the reader who submits the best illustration of what Posterior-Chain Barbie would look like. Email entries to jsinkler@experiencelifemag.com. I’ll post the winner at the end of next week.

Bright-n-early tomorrow morning — well, early, anyway — I’m heading to Sky Sport gym in Beverly Hills to assist on a photo shoot for an upcoming article on learning to do a pull-up. Or, better yet, many pull-ups. (Sky Sport also happens to be where Bravo’s reality show Work Out is filmed, so you’d better believe I’ll be on reality-TV-star watch.)

The article is slated for publication in the May issue of Experience Life, and it’s one I’m really excited about. Pull-ups are one of the very best indicators of strength-to-body-weight ratio (also known as “relative strength”), and I hear too many women say they could never do one. Horse hockey. Or pucky. Or whatever.

My friend Stubot has agreed to take on what the two of us have dubbed the Pull-Up Challenge. (I offered to use only her initials in this post to afford her at least pseudo-anonymity, but her response was, “I want the glory.” I remain unconvinced there’s much glory to be had, but there it is. Bask away.)

The deal is, I’m going to send her the exercise progression from the article now, and she’s going to embark on a mission to crank out her first-ever pull-up. She may even invest in a Door Gym. Worth every penny, in my book.

So. Please join me in wishing Stubot luck, and once the article is online, let me know if you decide to give the progression a try yourself. I’d love to hear how it goes.