New Interview with Bill DeSimone

I've been a great fan of Bill's work since I first came across him via Doug McGuff's site.  I've interviewed him, featured his videos and reviewed his books.  Indeed I need to get a more extensive review up of his new book - Congruent Exercise.

Anyway, Dave Durrell has just posted a great 1 hour plus interview with Bill over on his site High Intensity Nation.

Do yourself a favour and check out some innovative and inspiring thinking. 

Congruent Exercise 3: Injuries are to be avoided

One of the basic precepts in Bill DeSimone's Congruent Exercise (I'd encourage everyone to get a copy) is that :

"The absolute first priority for anyone training with weights should be to avoid a catastrophic injury."

Bill notes that this should be obvious, but points to a series of tragic and disabling accidents that have left people dead or disabled.

I thought this when reading some on the weird thing that is T Nation the other day.  It is a set of tales of catastrophic injuries including a powerlifter who shatters his spine while his pals laugh and triceps torn while benching, trying to present these dangers as acceptable, things to be overcome in a macho drive to success.    Actually it comes across as stupid.  Why the hell glory in disabling movements?

strange.


As I have said before:  KEEP IT SAFE

Congruent Exercise 2: Just because you can doesn't mean you should

I'm still planning my full review of Bill DeSimone's excellent new book Congruent Exercise, but I saw a video the other day that made me think of one of the things he says in the book:

"Just because you can move a limb in a certain way, doesn't mean that you should, and it certainly doesn't mean you should move it that way with extra weight."

Bill talking about safe exercise choice but his words came back to me when I saw this.  Surely this guy shouldn't keep doing this!

Congruent Exercise - Part 1

It is rare that I am truly excited by a book, that writing will really stimulate me intellectually, with sets of ideas that connect and make sense.  I like it when that happens, when you find something "new" but which makes so much sense because it is not really new, it is obvious when you put the pieces together.  It is the logic of it I like, when things hold together in consistent ways.

Bill DeSimone's new book, Congruent Exercise, is exciting me!  I will put up a proper review in a few days, but I am really savouring it at the moment.  As I read each page there is a pencil in my hand and I am marking up key paragraphs.....then I find that I am marking the whole thing!

In this new book, Bill is covering much of the same material that was in his first book - Moment Arm Exercise - but he has refined his presentation and the whole argument is very clearly presented.

Moment Arm Exercise fascinated me and I used to study it like a text book, I still dig it out to check out the worth of different movements.  Congruent Exercise is more like a manifesto, a simple pulling together of premises to give a clear and logical prescription for exercise.  Safety is key to all this, designing movements that reflect proper joint and muscle function, informed not by "feel" or dogma, but anatomy and mechanics.

As I say, I'll put up a proper review in a few days, but for now suffice to say that this is the best book I've read this year.  You can get a copy at Bill's eBay store here, or read about the book on its Facebook Page.

I intereviewed Bill way back here and it is  interesting to see that some of the things we touched on in that interview are developed a bit in the new book - such as the role of postural muscles.


You can see some of his videos here.

Bill Desimmone's presentation at the 21 Convention

from Anthony Johnson's 21 Convention (I interviewed Bill here)



you can buy all these on DVD as well

Optimal Exercise Guide Bodyblade Plus

I had something up from Bill about this the other week.  Here he explains more:



Once again, the guide is now available from Bill.  Anyone interested in buying a copy of "Optimal Exercise Guide: The Bodyblade Plus":  can get it, Paypal $20 US, $27 outside the US, including Priority Mail, to optimalexercise@comcast.net.)

What is progress when the normal way is down?

I've been re-reading the post I put up yesterday from Bill DeSimmone and there are some elements that have been prompting some reflection.  I think it is worth re posting part of that post alone to highlight the particular issues that he got me thinking around:

...... being obsessed with “progression”  (is no good if it)  leads to injury or makes you dread training.

For me, “progress” in terms of amount of weight lifted is an obsolete standard.  As we age, “normal” is to decline; so, if the weights I handle stay the same, I’m ahead of normal.  The only way to maintain is to train regularly, and the way to train regularly is to avoid injury.

 In the early stages of training, weight and reps are perfectly valid standards.  But once you are strong enough and big enough, you have to weigh the possible marginal benefits of increasing weight and reps vs. the additional discomfort and strain.  For me, I find it a lot more useful to “progress” in terms of control of muscular actions, and the Bodyblade®, Bosu®, and ball are ways of addressing this.

 I think this is a really interesting and important point.  Sometimes the way in which exercise is presented, the idea seems to be that you can forever keep on progressing in terms of weight or reps....obviously that is untrue or else given time we would all be deadlifting 1000lb or whatever.    There is a ceiling.  How do we handle it? 

Bill has an interesting approach in changing the metric.

Optimal Exercise Guide: The Bodyblade Plus

More from Bill DeSimone. 

I had an interview with Bill back in 2009 and his approach has always fascinated and impressed me.  (Anthony is another fan and he had Bill speak at his 21convention last year).  Anyway, since that interview i've remained in touch with Bill and he has shared with me some of his developing thinking.  One of the things we corresponded about was prompted by the Max Pyramid Protocol that John Little developed and wrote about last year - that particular protocol is designed to maximally and safely stress the muscles....at their strongest points when the most fibres are engaged.  A static contraction, or series of them, at the point of maximum moment arm is (are) used to deliver a deep inroad.  I've played with it a bit and it is really useful.


I chatted to Bill about this and he explained that he was looking at other ways of challenging peak muscle torque while both not stressing the joints and actually working the postural muscles appropriately.....


He has now developed those ideas.  I'll quote from Bill:

I've  been using the Bodyblade, Bosu, Ball, and most recently the heavy rope in my studio in NJ for a few years now, both for myself and clients.

The instruction was all in my head and scraps here and there; never had a good reason to clean it up and make it presentable.

Recently I've been working with a martial arts instructor on the Gracie Combatives.  He was having some knee and shoulder trouble, I showed him what to do, and it gave me the excuse to organize the material as a manual for studio clients:  "Optimal Exercise Guide: The Bodyblade, Plus".

That guide is now available from Bill.  Anyone interested in buying a copy of "Optimal Exercise Guide: The Bodyblade Plus":  can get it, Paypal $20 US, $27 outside the US, including Priority Mail, to optimalexercise@comcast.net.)


Bill has provided me with an exclusive extract from the Optimal Exercise Guide to whet your appetite:

How I Stumbled upon the Bodyblade®

I had successfully ignored the Bodyblade for several years.  I was aware of it, usually spotted in the corner of a physical therapy practice; but whenever I asked about it, I only got vague responses.  “It’s for functional training”, “It’s for the core”...but that was about it.  Since I was comfortable with Nautilus-influenced strength training, I saw no need to pursue it further.

I had a similar response to vibration training; again, successfully ignoring the ads in the trade magazines and studies in the NSCA Journal.  The price tag on the vibration machines didn’t help spur my interest.

At the same time, I had some observations about my own training.  After 30-plus years, I knew that the amount of weight I could lift had pretty much topped out.  On a given exercise, I could build up to a maximum amount of weight; but then, at the slightest increment above that weight, the form broke down and the amount of discomfort in the joints went up dramatically.  I could give myself the illusion of progress, by accepting sloppier form or changing exercises, but that inevitably led to an injury or hitting the same dead end. 

Unfortunately, I had a bit of a contradiction in play, in that I still liked to train hard.   With weights, this seemed to lead to more joint aches, especially in the shoulders.  A few years back, this and other musculoskeletal issues had led me to the biomechanics textbooks, eventually resulting in the Moment Arm Exercise manual and the series of You Tube videos.  And, while I did refine the weight training exercises and techniques that I used on myself and clients based on that work, I still didn’t completely eliminate the nagging aches. 

So, in mathematical terms:

Frustrating approach to training + more refined biomechanics + willful ignorance of alternatives= nagging aches.  Not exactly the result I was looking for.

Hedge-clipping

So one day I’m being the nice older brother and helping my sister with some hedge trimming (Hi Liz!).  I use a portable, electric trimmer, with alternating saw blades, which must weigh about 5 pounds.  I use it for about three or four hours in the morning, break for lunch, then fall asleep.  For the entire afternoon.  I was completely exhausted, my upper body quivering, completely spent, and wondering if I stumbled onto a new, debilitating disease.   

Apparently not, but a 5-pound tool should not have taken this much out of me.  Then it dawned on me: it was the vibration.  As the blades alternated to cut, the unit shook.  In order to control the trimmer, you had to steady yourself against the vibration of the unit.  And rather than turn it on and off,  I left it running the whole time; so not only did I have the steady the unit as it cut, I had to control it just holding it between cuts.

Where were those vibration studies again?

Excerpts from selected studies

As usual with studies: the more you read, the less certain the results.

Effects of Vibration Training on Muscle Strength: A Meta-Analysis.  Pedro J. Marin and Matthew R. Rhea.  Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 4: 548-556, 2010.

“Vibration training or whole body vibration (WBV) constitutes a mechanical stimulus that enters the human body via hands when gripping a vibration dumbbell or bar, pulley system, via feet when standing on vibration platform, or applied directly to the muscle belly or the tendon of muscle by a vibration unit…The use of platforms represents the most common form of vibration exercise…Most treatment sessions consisted of short bouts (30-90 seconds) with ~60-second rest between sets…

“Different mechanisms have been suggested in the literature how vibration stimuli can have effect on the neuromuscular system such as stimulation of Ia afferents via spindle…little basic scientific research has examined vibration exercise effects on the function of different physiological properties…Of additionally paramount importance, contraindications have been reported, including erythema, itching of the legs, edema, and shin pain…

“…vibration exercise was shown to compare with traditional resistance training in terms of overall strength adaptations…this tool should be viewed as a potential mode of training in appropriate exercise settings.”

Vibration Training: Could It Enhance the Strength, Power, or Speed of Athletes?  Ian M. Wilcock, Chris Whatman, Nigel Harris, and Justin WL Keogh.  J Strength Cond Res 23: 593-603, 2009.

“It is well known that an acute effect of mechanical vibration on muscles is that it can elicit a muscular reflex called the tonic vibration reflex…in theory, vibration causes the afferent neurons from the muscle spindles to become more sensitive to muscle stretch, which increases the activation of alpha motor neurons…may lead to increased motor unit recruitment, increased firing frequency, and/or improved synchronization, allowing a quicker and more forceful muscular contraction when the muscle is rapidly stretched…

“There has been considerable research into the effects of long-term exposure to vibration in the workplace from an occupational health and safety perspective.  Long-term exposure has been shown to be detrimental, with the effects of WBV and handheld vibration causing vascular, peripheral, and central neurological, bone, joint, and muscle disorders…it seems that WBV training can be undertaken safely, although it is prudent to note the detrimental effects reported in the workplace because overexposure may see athletes reporting similar problems in the future…may need to be monitored for possible adverse effects of vibration training when their overall training volume and/or intensity is high…

“Overall, there does not seem to be any detrimental effect on performance with the controlled use of vibration training in athletes.  There is some evidence that chronic vibration training by athletes may provide small benefit to maximal strength and power…The practicality of vibration training also should be taken into account in terms of time, cost, and reduction of other training for what we have observed to be a small benefit.”

Acute Enhancement of Lower-extremity Dynamic Strength and Flexibility with Whole- Body Vibration.  Patrick L. Jacobs and Patricia Burns.  J Strength Cond Res 23, 51-61, 2009.

“Whole-body vibration (WBV)…is characterized by oscillating motions delivered to the entire body that are hypothesized to elicit muscular activity via activation of stretch reflexes…

“…the enhancement of power by WBV may have been induced by increased synchronization of the motor units, improved coordination of the synergist muscles, and/or antagonist inhibition…

“Whole-body vibration seems to serve as a simple, effective, and time-efficient method of preparatory activity as compared with the warm-up strategies commonly recommended by leading fitness organizations…WBV has shown…immediate benefits in muscular performance, suggesting that this approach could effectively prepare an athlete from a resting state to a competitive state of readiness for either athletic training or competition.”

The Effect of Acute Applications of Whole-Body Vibration of the iTonic Platform on Subsequent Lower-Body Power Output During the Back Squat.  Matthew R. Rhea and Joseph G. Kenn.  J Strength Cond Res 23, 58-61, 2009.

“Complex training…the performance of a resistance exercise followed quickly by a plyometric exercise has been concluded to be as effective, if not more so, than strength and plyometric training done separately for the development of power…One issue that may arise in the conventional use…is muscular fatigue…To take full advantage of any benefit, muscular fatigue would need to be avoided…The use of WBV may be useful in elevating neurological performance without resulting in significant amounts of muscular fatigue…it seems that WBV has a significant effect on the neuromuscular system, such that the rate of force development is immediately enhanced…the vibration stimulus seems to influence the nervous system, increasing muscle tissue activation and synchronization.”

Effects of Mechanical Vibration Applied in the Opposite Direction of Muscle Shortening on Maximal Isometric Strength.  Hosanna R Silva, Bruno P Couto, and Lexzek A Szmuchrowski.  J Strength Cond Res 22, 1031-1036, 2008.

“Among the adaptive responses of the muscle, the neural responses play an important role in the strength gains resulting (from strength training)…Training may cause a decrease in impulses that inhibit the neuromuscular system, permitting improvements in muscle strength…Most studies about human responses to mechanical vibrations discuss whole-body vibrations and vibrations applied perpendicularly to the tendon or muscle…

“Considering…that in eccentric activities, reflex mechanisms influence the production of strength, we hypothesized that vibration exposure in the opposite direction of muscle shortening may produce short eccentric effects that could add up to maximal voluntary contraction (MVC), increasing muscle strength by improvement of neural adaptation…one group performed conventional isometric strength training and another group isometric strength training with the addition of mechanical vibrations applied in the opposite direction of muscle shortening…

“Despite the fact that we observed a significant increase in strength, in absolute terms, in both groups, group 2 (training plus mechanical vibrations) reached a significantly greater index of maximal isometric strength increase…which allows us to conclude that training with vibrations added resulted in higher neural adaptation than conventional isometric training…the improvement of strength obtained after training with vibrations was probably caused by optimization of involuntary mechanisms of muscle action through sudden and consecutive periods of eccentric action.”

Summarizing the Studies

• Too much vibration (industrial and occupational levels) can cause problems.
• Limited amounts of vibration, 30-90 seconds in the exercise context, might cause problems, but seems to be generally safe. 
• Vibration seems to offer at least similar benefits to conventional training, and maybe slightly better.
• The benefits that come from vibration training are on the “neuro-“ side of “neuromuscular”.
• The repeated, rapid switching between eccentric and concentric contraction, as the muscle tries to dampen the vibration, seems to be the unique aspect of this kind of training.

For me, this wasn’t convincing enough to buy a several thousand dollar platform; but I was willing to take the general ideas and apply them to far less expensive tools like the Bodyblade ®, Bosu ®, and ball.

How I Applied the Information

Getting back to me, remember, my interest has been in more joint-friendly ways to train hard.  One of the benefits of vibration training not mentioned above is increased circulation to the joint.  As the vibration runs along the bone to the joints, the deep muscles that stabilize that joint contract to dampen the vibration and hold the joint together.  I wrote earlier that they contract “and relax”; actually, no.  They contract eccentrically, then concentrically, as opposed to contracting statically.  Conceptually, just like a biceps pumps as you raise and lower a curl, the circulation would increase in the deep muscles.  My thought was, do a vibration-type exercise (VTE) to increase the circulation to the joints, prior to the weight training exercise.  Another thought was since deep muscles have different functions based on limb position, more than one exercise was necessary.

Learning curves being what they are, I started with doing the vibration-types separate from the weight routine.  Once I got the hang of the moves, I decided to try mimicking the weight training exercise, based on the idea that the best warm-up is a specific warm-up.   Using some of the ideas from the studies, I held back a bit on the pre-exercise, before going into the work set.  I was surprised to see how easy the work set became, but the studies do suggest why.  I found double benefit: the joint aches seemed to go away from the pre-exercise, and I was able to add weight to the work set.

This, however, came back to haunt me, as I started to add so much weight, my joints started to hurt again!  So, another adjustment:  hold back on the work set, then add another set with the VTE for the maximum muscle effort.

Why should this work?  Well, the discomfort during the work set with weights wasn’t in the first few reps; it was near the end, approaching “failure”.  “Failing” with the weight meant stalling, so the muscle effort was  applied against the joint, not to moving the weight; and usually accompanied by other muscles trying to substitute for the exhausted prime mover.  By putting the weight down, and resuming the same movement with the ‘blade, the joint stress was relieved, and since the weight of the ‘blade is negligible, the substitution stopped.  And since the ‘blade matches the effort of the prime mover (by flexing more or less based on your effort), it has the same effect as a partner-assist or weight reduction.  To use a dated term, it becomes “isokinetic”: it moves at a set speed and matches your effort.  Unlike isokinetic machines, however, there is no impact with the ‘blade.

And In Conclusion

I can’t honestly claim that this training has dramatically enhanced my physique or made me a better athlete.  I suspect diet and practice would be better options.

I can say, however, that this type of training allows me train as regularly and as hard as I want, with a lot less joint stress.  I get the sensation of high effort, which registers as “a good workout” for the superficial muscles.  I protect the joints by theoretically increasing circulation to the joint and minimizing the mechanical disadvantage.  And if there is a benefit to the “neuro-“ side, in terms of coordination, quickness, or reflexes, more better for me.

Exercise is only so useful if being obsessed with “progression” leads to injury or makes you dread training. 

For me, “progress” in terms of amount of weight lifted is an obsolete standard.  As we age, “normal” is to decline; so, if the weights I handle stay the same, I’m ahead of normal.  The only way to maintain is to train regularly, and the way to train regularly is to avoid injury. 

 In the early stages of training, weight and reps are perfectly valid standards.  But once you are strong enough and big enough, you have to weigh the possible marginal benefits of increasing weight and reps vs. the additional discomfort and strain.  For me, I find it a lot more useful to “progress” in terms of control of muscular actions, and the Bodyblade®, Bosu®, and ball are ways of addressing this.

Get the new Guide

Once again, the guide is now available from Bill.  Anyone interested in buying a copy of "Optimal Exercise Guide: The Bodyblade Plus":  can get it, Paypal $20 US, $27 outside the US, including Priority Mail, to optimalexercise@comcast.net.)

Bill DeSimone video.....

Anthony (Dream) Johnson introduces Bill DeSimone to talk about the Leg Press and Squat......we are not built to barbell squat......  UPDATE - 13 January - Check out Bill's new manual, with an extract here



You will remember that I did an interview with Bill here, and I have something special coming from him shortly......

Training for the long term

More good stuff from Bill He is outlining what he will be speaking about at Anthony's 21 Convention in Orlando Florida. Bill speaks July 25th .

The congruent chin

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!

An interesting new protocol

John Little - co-author of Body By Science - is developing a new training protocol that is based on some interesting ideas.



He has called it The Max Pyramid Protocol - blending isometric /static contractions , high intensity training and also the congruent exercise ideas of Bill DeSimone.

There is some discussion of the idea in the comments here

For some background I have previously interviewed John Little and Bill DeSimone.

I have some thoughts on this and may share later...

How to shovel snow!

This video from Bill is appropriate to the UK at the moment. Here is a photo I took on a scary drive south last week. I wanted to get to my parents so that I could accompany them to a hospital appointment - more on that later maybe - but the state of the roads almost prevented that. After the first 30 odd miles things improved, but I almost turned back a couple of times.

Any way, here is the great Bill DeSimone on how to shovel snow properly!

Bone Rhythm

Another thing from the weekend is the idea of bone rhythm.

This is explained a bit in this video



The idea as I understand it relates to thinking about the femur as a lever. There is a hinge at the knee and hip. To move efficiently you want both ends of the lever to be moving as the same speed. For example in a squat your knee and hip should start moving and finish moving at the same time. That makes the lever more efficient? If the knee locks but the hip keeps going for example or vice versa then the lever is not operating as efficiently as it could do with matched speeds.

mc explains it thus:

Bone rhythm effectively means that one gets the top and bottom of a prime mover bone move at the same speed in an action. In a push up, we see this when the shoulder and the elbow finish the move together - both in the press up and in the descent. This move tune alone is worth the price of admission. In the DVD both upper and lower body drills are taught, as well as how to cue another person to get the ryhthm.

I wonder.

I am pondering how /if this fits with Bill DeSimone's approach in Moment Arm Exercise. Bill uses some limited ranges of motion to address the levers, focussing on matching maximum moment arm with the position of the muscles maximum strength. I wonder if you could see the limited range of motion as facilitating better bone rhythm?

Levers.....moment arms

Congruent Exercise: An Interview with Bill DeSimone

A couple of times on this blog I have featured Bill DeSimone and his Moment Arm Exercise approach to training. Over the last few days I’ve been reading the book and it is fascinating – the product of incisive research and analysis from someone who thinks deeply about exercise, movement, anatomy and mechanics. This is not a review but I would seriously recommend the book to you if you are a bit of an exercise geek. It is not the easiest read – and Bill admits this – but it will repay some serious study and I understand that Bill is drafting a new more accessible text.

If you are new to the ideas I would recommend that you first of all watch the video I posted here.

There are already a couple of good interviews with Bill on the internet – from Doug and Anthony – but as I was reading the manual I kept on coming up with other questions and Bill has agreed to answer them…..so here we go:


[UPDATE-check out the video of Bill here and his DVD available here]



Posture and deep muscles

The book looks at ideal (congruent) exercises for the superficial muscles. Indeed, you make the point that you should avoid loading the "deep" muscles in your exercises - once that happens you are no longer focussing on the target muscles.

What I wrote exactly was “Resistance that is challenging for the superficial muscles with their greater muscle torque is probably excessive for the deep muscles to try to move”.

Key word being “move”. You are loading the deep muscles [simply] by holding them steady while the superficial muscles move the load

An example of the point I was trying to make is, if you are doing a squat, hold your spine steady while the glutes and quads lift, compared to flexing and extending the spine under a squat weight. The primary concern is not straining the deep muscles,
secondary is to keep the superficial muscles loaded.

Do you think there is any need for exercise for the deep muscles, e.g. the postural muscles? I’d be thinking of something like the plank for example?

Interesting that you should pick up on that. I let that thread dangle, and you’re the first person in the five years to ask.

As I get older, and experience a much smaller margin of error when it comes to overuse injury, I’m tempted to unequivocally say “Yes”. But other guys my age seem to be able to continue to handle heavy weights in big movements at high intensities, so it may be an individual thing.

What about “posture”? Could we analyse healthy posture in terms of maintaining appropriate levers. I was thinking about someone who is hunched over – the spine is concave and there will be a whole series of additional axes through the vertebrae that could not be there with a more upright posture. Does that make sense?

Sure, but bad posture becomes problematic with the maintaining activities of daily living, much less weight training and sports.

Body By Science


I may be being unfair, but there seems to be an axiom in what you are proposing that we are focussing on muscles rather than movements? For example Doug McGuff’s "Big 5" seems to focus on moves – horizontal pull, horizontal push, vertical pull, vertical push and leg push. Your routines go through exercises for chest, shoulders, triceps, lats, traps, biceps, quads, hamstrings etc. individual muscles....Why the difference? Are all those moves necessary or could we consolidate?

John Little and Dr. McGuff have been extraordinarily gracious in allowing discussion of the Moment Arm Exercise material on their Body By Science board. Dr. McGuff was an early supporter of the manual back in 2004, and his referral gave me instant credibility with HIT guys at the time. John Little and I spent an hour on the phone this summer, and for someone with as many accomplishments in print as him, he also was very receptive and constructive.

Again, you have an interesting take here. Compared to the “functional” school of thought, neither Dr. McGuff’s nor my exercises would be characterized as movements.My take on a consolidated routine (e.g. leg press, chest press, pull down, press, row) is that if the trainee is satisfied with what they get from it, fine. If most non-trainees stayed with leg press-chest press-pulldown, they would probably get most of what they will [ever] get from weight training.

But my read of the biomechanics suggests that if you are trying to develop a particular muscle, you have to do at least one exercise for which that muscle is the prime mover. The body will select the largest muscle in a chain to bear the brunt of the work as an energy saving tactic; so if you are only doing chest presses and would like to try to develop more triceps, you have to do an elbow extension.

“Necessary” for what purpose is the key.

Relating to HIT

One of the moves that you recommend is the wall sit - a static squat. This got me thinking. That move is basically an isometric contraction of the thighs - in the position of maximum resistance movement arm and maximum muscle torque – but it is an isometric contraction. Could that principle be extended? How about a routine consisting of isomeric contractions – incidentally with no momentum - but ensuring that in each one the muscle is placed in the most appropriate position – i.e. maximum moment arm and maximum muscle torque?

A related idea - one thing that isn’t that clear from your book is the idea of the appropriate range of motion. Does it matter? Would it be appropriate to exercise with a very limited ROM as long as the move is around the point of maximum torque and maximum moment arm? Not isometrics....but very small movements around the ideal point? your videos seem to show quite a big range of motion.

Very perceptive questions. Theoretically, isometric or very limited range motions around the joint angle for peak muscle torque should be the most efficient way to load a muscle.

Practically, I do think there is a value to some range of motion, although not “full”.

Weight training, at its best, is hard on the joints. Due to the lever system, the internal forces are always dramatically higher than the weight in the hand, as I explain in the manual. My speculation is that by using as much range as is effective (i.e. no zero moment arm, not loading the joint at full stretch), you disperse that internal force over more of the joint articulation rather than at the same point all the time.

What is your view of negatives? As long as the move is a congruent exercise is negative accented or negative only exercise appropriate? For example if someone is not strong enough to do a chin up in the style that you recommend could they do it as a negative only move?

That would be an appropriate use of them. I’d be more inclined to do pulldowns or weight assisted chins, just to avoid undue soreness.

There is no magic to negatives; it [just] takes less energy to release cross-bridges than to create them, so your reps can last longer and you’ll have more by-products of fatigue to process. But you’ll always be “stronger” negatively than positively, whether you specifically do negatives or not.

What is your view as regards the appropriate cadence for exercises? Judging by your videos you move slowly – to eliminate momentum - but not “Superslowly”. TM?

Correct; the speed that minimizes momentum is the right speed. Specifying a specific number of seconds to perform the positive or negative is an interesting tool, but not definitive.

Would a long range movement like a squat be done for the same time as a short range one like a shrug?

Regardless of timing, it’s clear in biomechanics texts that slower speeds allow for greater force generation; if you’re using conventional weights, of course, the load has to be there.

The concept of failure for you seems a little different from that normally proposed by the HIT school. Could you explain more how you understand failure?

Failure apparently is more complex than we assumed, judging from the different interpretations by different HITters.

To one, the slightest form discrepancy terminates the set.

To the other, form discrepancy is something you work through to get to failure.

Where you fit in that continuum really depends on your motivation and preference.

Wherever you are in that, the trick is to balance effort with fatigue. Stopping the set because your muscles burn too much is not the same as a one-rep max; ideally your set is somewhere in between, maybe slightly more towards effort.

Personally, I prefer to start sets in strict form, and allow some extra effort towards the end of the set, depending on the motivation for that day, without letting it deteriorate into something dangerous. I don’t want to interfere too much with the trainee’s enthusiasm.

Moment Arm Exercise and the real world

Thinking about your principles – of trying to adopt movements which go through the most biomechanically correct joint motions – how do these ideas apply to everyday movements?

Do you see any daily movements – squats, bending, twisting etc as inherently risky due to their biomechanics?

One motion that interests me with respect to sports is “twisting”: rotation around the hips. It comes up in martial arts – punching – but also in things like the tennis serve, the golf swing etc. If I am to strengthen the muscles that are responsible for this motion, what do I do? Nautilus and others have rotational torso machines. What would you recommend as a congruent exercise?


I suppose the questions could be extended to sports – are some sports especially dangerous because of the biomechanics that they require?

Physical workers have two clichés: “Lift with your legs, not your back”, and “Turn, don’t twist”, both grounded in solid biomechanics. Sports coaches say “Get your hips into it”.

All three encourage keeping the hips and back in the same plane, and using the glutes and quads for power. The biomechanics are clear: the spine allows bending and twisting, for mobility, but flexing/extending/twisting the spine against load are steps in a risky direction.

A more congruent exercise than "twisting" would be a turn against resistance: standing, knees bent, pelvis and lower back kept in the same plane. Resistance (cable, tubing, medicine ball) held by the upper body, then pivot on your feet, maintaining the same pelvis/back position.

Quality sports technique actually utilizes proper biomechanics. Aside from the collision/contact/submission sports, the issue is that, with fatigue and competitive urges, technique gets sloppy and you end up using poor biomechanics.

Do you think you could have avoided your injuries if you had been aware of these principles earlier?

Absolutely yes, although it would have had to be 25 years earlier.

I’m absolutely convinced that if I had only done congruent exercises from the start I would have saved myself much time, effort, and later aches and pains. Rather than using every exercise and technique in the books and magazines, only to have to cut them back over time, I would have been better off doing what I do now all along.

What about the general population? Yours is quite a "geeky" text with some quite deep ideas.

Guilty about the geeky text! I’m not a writer, so this wasn’t an assignment. This was me, figuring out how to work around my injuries, writing for myself. Others like me picked up on it. The videos are an attempt at making the material more accessible, and hopefully that process will lead to a more mainstream presentation.

For the average Joe who is not interested in exercise but would benefit from doing something, what does your approach have to offer? How would you apply your stuff to the 99% who don’t train?

I apply it by separating the manual from the approach.

With clients, friends, relatives, my wife, my son, I simply instruct the exercises without explaining what they don’t need to know to do them. Take away the explanation of the science, and you have a sustainable routine that is perceived by the client as meaningful without being exhausting.

A related question – could a hypothetical guy (me for example!) – get a decent, effective workout at home with just a set of dumbbells?

An unintended benefit of the approach is that since your muscles and joints go with you, you can pretty much apply the principles to any equipment you have access to, including dumbbells.

Using the ranges shown in the manual, your routine would be:

• chest press,
• one arm row,
• side raise,
• split squat,
• heel raise,
• curl,
• triceps,
• deadlift,
• hammer curl;
• plus whatever posture/stabilization work you may need.

Bill, thanks so much for answering those questions.


There are other interviews with Bill here and here and if you are interested in his book you can order from his ebay store.

Here are two new videos he has just posted on applying his principles to Chest Training:

Moment Arm Exercise...

I had ordered this guy's book and it arrived in the post yesterday. It looks like a demanding read but I am looking forward to digging in to it. There are some interesting ideas.



There are a couple of interviews with Bill from Anthony and Doug.

What interests me is that he has developed this approach prompted by his injuries, in an effort to keep the muscles and joints in safe positions.

I may try to interview him myself too. You can get the book here if you are interested.