A note on Range of Motion (ROM)

Range of Motion is probably one of the most frequently messed up aspects of lifting, especially squats. I'm going to talk about ROM for specific exercises but, as a general rule, more ROM is better. Not only does a full ROM make the exercise more effective, but when comparing times/weights it is important to use the same standard, i.e. the same ROM. It is true that when doing WODs for time there is a tendency to be lax with the ROM. Try to avoid this and maintain the same ROM/form at all speeds, but don't worry too much.

I could just try and describe everything, but that get's long-winded and confusing, so I'm going to be posting a lot of video examples. Please watch them.

Push ups: Face/nose and chest touch the ground at the same time at the bottom. At the top, extend your shoulders all the way with you arms straight.

Pull ups: Think of them as chest ups. Full ROM is chest to bar/elbows behind center line of the body. Palms towards/away doesn't matter. These guys are crazy, but their pull ups are good. Kipping (the leg swing some of them do) is fine and it's up to you. Just realize that kipping makes pull ups easier.

Squats: The crease of your hip should be below your patella at the bottom. Your hips should be all the way open (straight) at the top. This is especially important with air squats (BW squats). Also on BW squats it is okay to squat on the balls of your feet. This is the only time! Never squat on your toes with weight! Weighted squat here, air squats here and here.

Just for fun, here's a video of a running/squat workout we'll do. The squats are pretty good, especially when they're demonstrating.

Deadlift: Start with the bar on the ground, finish with your hips and knees all the way extended. Kind of long, but very thorough video from Again Faster.

That's all I have for now, back to homework.

Oh, except for this: 3:37 of Ross Enamait (rosstraining.com) being crazy.

-Phys