24 Nov When Stepping Out Of the Box Is Your Only Option
By Danny Bellmore
Following a major injury that resulted in a 3 level fusion to my lumbar spine in 1998, I decided to step away and took a 10-year hiatus from powerlifting.
[wa-wps]
As I returned 10 years later, there were many changes that intended to improve the safety of the sport. The thickness of the squat bar was one of those major changes. For me, the addition of 3/8” to the bar circumference was my most challenging obstacle, to say the least. I for the life of me, could never keep the bar from rolling down my back during the squat decent. I spent about five years, and multiples shoulder surgeries – including (but not limited to) and a torn bicep tendon trying to figure this all out.
During a seminar at Catalyst Training Center, I experienced the same bar rolling issues as always. I was highly frustrated, not for lack of effort or trying to fix the bar roll, but because nothing we tried seem to work. The set up was always tight grip, shoulders pulled back and lats fully engaged. Bar placement had been changed from high to low but the bar always went where it felt like going.
Later that night Brian Carroll and I were discussing the issue over some super healthy food at Arby’s. What we had come up with was totally different than what we preach at seminars or in coaching, and different than what was preached to us. We decided it was time to step out of the box and try some stuff that we usually debunk as not-so-good of lifting form. As we were talking about the roll and the typical shelf that I don’t have for the bar to sit in…we decided to make a drastic change: we went with a medium grip, dropped the pinky and flared the elbows up and out.
The next morning before we started to bench press, I got into my squat suit and just worked a few light sets. Everything felt more solid right off with this new “out of the box” setup. This form also placed me in a straighter up position that generated more power out of the bottom of the lift.
During the seminar, Brian was asked about another coach that had contradicted himself. Brian in return stated that it may seem like a contradiction but everyone has different leverages and weaknesses and injuries……nothing is a cookie cutter approach. No one size box fits all.
I believe that sometimes you must look beyond what is SUPPOSED to work – and find what DOES work for you as an individual. Having a good coach and different sets of eyes on you, to look at things from another perspective, is a critical key to forward progress.
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