Tip of the week: Keeping your elbows in

[TheMac]

<font color="red"> <font color="pink"> </font> While doing any sort of freeweight pushing or pulling exercise always try to keep your elbows in line with or closer to your body than your wrists. Doing this will limit the work your triceps and biceps need to do to keep you stabilized allowing you to generate more force. If your elbows flare out you are missing out on some serious gains! </font>

[kmoney]

good advice man, got anymore for squats or anything?

[TheMac]

[ QUOTE ]
got anymore for squats or anything?

[/ QUOTE ] i'll try to think of something good for next week on squats /forum/images/graemlins/wink.gif

[Venom]

Great post, Mac! Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

[Bahir]

If you always keep your elbows in, for exercises such as tricep presses and bicep BB curls, you woulnt be able to vary your grip as much, and not hit diffrent sections of the muscle as well. Right?

[TheMac]

[ QUOTE ]
If you always keep your elbows in, for exercises such as tricep presses and bicep BB curls, you woulnt be able to vary your grip as much, and not hit diffrent sections of the muscle as well. Right?

[/ QUOTE ]

Well first off i was speaking in terms of pushing or pulling exercises which will mainly be back and chest movements where we actually want our biceps and triceps to do less work than needed rather than extension and flexion(or curls) where they are designed to make them do more work as they are the primary muscles being worked.

To answer your question though there are very few exercises i can think of when it comes to arms where your elbows should flare out(other than elbows out extensions and such designed to train that motion). BB curls should be done with elbows tucked no matter what, i have actually stuck plates in between trainies arms while doing this movement to ensure no cheating is done. Change your grip all you want but try to keep your elbows tucked during most exercises.

[hercegovac]

hmmm

this whole time i thought proper bench press form was to have the elbows come out to the sides

[Mavrick]

yeah, the bench part reallly confuse me, but i dont think he ment it to apply to ALL freeeights, just the ones where its possible

[TheMac]

This deffinately applies on bench press (it's one of the main exercises that will require this).

I think you guys are misinterpreting the statement:
[ QUOTE ]
keep your elbows in line with or closer to your body than your wrists

[/ QUOTE ]

No matter what style you use ("T" style or safer better leverage umbrella "/|\" style) your elbows should be closer to your body than your wrists or else your triceps will need to contract harder to keep it stabilized. Think of it like this, you don't want to be doing a partial elbows out extension while you are bench pressing.

[STEVEsteveSTEVE]

Great tip Mac, thanks!