A great video from Bill DeSimone (I interviewed him here if you want more ideas on his approach) Superb stuff, you will not find anywhere else!
I mentioned a few weeks ago that I was taking part in "Dry January". I didn't make a big song and dance about it, but I decided to go for a calendar month or so with no alcohol. A few people have asked me about my experience, so here are a few points. Why take a break from drinking? Alcohol is an interesting topic. As a drug it is widely accepted in society, central to so much of our socialising and leisure. There seem to be lots of health benefits - so we are told - yet there are also a lot of problems in terms of health, relationships and lifestyle that come from drinking. Over a few years I'd begun to become aware and then concerned that I was drinking too much and too regularly. I am in a busy and stressful job and sometimes a glass of wine after work to relax is really helpful. But over time, one glass became two. Two glasses became ....I might as well finish the bottle. A habit got established....and was starting to get too e...
Comments
This makes it pretty clear that a kipped chin is pretty stupid if one cares about long term shoulder health.
Bill would have to respond for himself, but I suppose my response woudl be that we are not monkeys. We would have to get into comparative anatomy but I would suspect that our shoulders are different. Just as we do not have the gut of an ape that lives on leaves, we do not have the shoulder of a quadruped that swings through the trees.
Bill is explaining how to do a certain exercise as safely as possible given our anatomy. on the basis of his explanation I cannot see brachiation as being healthy for our human shoulders in the long term.
I would offer up this challenge. Establish a baseline of how many chin ups you can do. Then stop doing them entirely and do nothing but rows for two months instead. Then see how many chin ups you can do. I am confident in predicting that you will see no loss of strength in the chin up and your shoulders will be much better off for it.
I agree that we are not monkeys who move by brachiation and that Bill’s approach is a good one. However, I do think that a full hang with a little swing is a completely natural motion which any kid does spontaneously when they see a bar. Therefore I think the arm is designed to do this. I’m sure it is potentially more stressful than what Bill is advising here - but in the same way that a leg press is safer than jumping – which is also a natural motion but a potential way to cause wear and tear.
Interesting discussion, but I think we have to be careful of context-switching, the whole "natural movement" idea. Maybe monkeys do end up with rotator cuff problems, how would we know? ;)
i remember in Army ROTC, 30 plus years ago, hand walking across a horizontal ladder was one of the fitness tests. The guys who hung and swung did consistently slower times than the ones who kept bent elbows and tight shoulders.
Chris is right, but he doesn't go far enough, safety is the first step. I don't think anyone will have a catastrophic injury with the hang, but I do think it would contribute to some unnecessary wear. Avoiding unintended consequences is more the point.
Thanks,
Bill