IM
POWERBUILDING
How Important Is ROM?
Your devotion to range of motion should vary on the exercise.
By Tucker Loken
PHOTO: BINAIS BEGOVIC; MODEL: JAYE HARDBODY
When strength athletes eventually morph over into bodybuilding( and it happens a lot more than you would think), they always want to do full range of motion( ROM) on their movements because that’ s what they were taught and that’ s what they have practiced for years and years. And a full ROM is definitely important on your squat, bench, and deadlift, as well as several other exercises. However, what about other movements when it doesn’ t serve such a good purpose?
Adherence to a full range of motion has improved in guys over the years, thanks to the popularity of online powerlifting-based programs for the fitness everyman, as well as CrossFit, which tries to adhere to strict movement standards. And keep in mind that 90 percent of the time I’ ll tell someone I’ m training to use full range of motion on their exercises. However, below are a couple reasons why a maximum ROM can hinder your progress rather than help it.
Loss Of Muscle Connection When you’ re using dumbbells or machines, you’ re not being tested on your strength; you’ re trying to train your stability and muscles rather than a movement pattern. Let’ s use a machine pec flye as an example. Since everyone is built differently, some people have better connectivity in certain muscle groups than others. I’ ve always been a shoulder and triceps dominant presser, so my chest development has lagged. When I allow the handles to come too far back, my chest stops engaging and my front delts take the brunt of the movement. It took me years to realize this, and when I finally did I had to drop my ego and find what worked for me.
I started with little baby movements for my little baby chest. I only did as much as I could feel. I dropped the weight and kept the ROM very short. I probably only let my hands come open two feet and then I pushed them back together. If you have to do this, don’ t worry! The situation will improve. The more mature, stronger, and bigger a muscle is, the easier it is to feel. I worked for a couple weeks only letting my hands open two feet, then I tried a little wider and I was able to feel it, so I moved on to three feet. Over time I was able to get my arms back to being just about parallel with my body. It’ s stuck there for a while, but as I’ ve continued to develop the muscles and nerves that activate them, I’ ve made progress and can now bring them back a little bit farther, and I’ m still be able to feel my chest muscles. These types of training adaptations are important to powerlifters because everyone will have lagging bodyparts, and learning
70 JUNE 2017 | ironmanmagazine. com