Kelvin Sharp at Fitness1440

Getting the little brother's deadlift up. Here's him doing a plate with ease.

360 squat. Didn't go up as smooth as I'd like because I was sore, but still an increase over last week. Working my way to 405!

Here's Andrew hitting 305 tonight! Next goal is 3 plates. His max was around 225 when we first started so he has come a very long way!

DEADLIFT FORM CHECK
Happy Friday everyone! The following video is from last night, and was one of Andrew's last deadlift sets as he was starting to fatigue. I noticed his backside was raising up just before each rep. The issue with this is that he is changing the angle of his hips just before the start of the movement, which eliminates the whole purpose of the setup. This issue in particular is causing more stress to be placed on his lower back, and is often causing him to round his spine.

Why is this happening in the first place? There are a few different issues that come into play when your hips are shooting up while deadlifting. First of all, if the bar is too far away from you (it's not over your midfoot) then your hips often rise to compensate. This can also be caused by not pulling your lats in which again will allow the bar to drift away from you and cause your hips to rise. The other issue is that you may have weak quads in relation to your hamstrings. If your hamstrings are much stronger than your quads, they will start to dominate the movement and force your hips up.

So what's the solution? Aside from working on Andrew's quad strength, which is something we're always actively doing and I know he doesn't have much of an issue with (he squats almost as much as he deadlifts), the answer is to have Andrew set up much closer to the bar (over his midfoot), and have him pull his lats towards himself like he is trying to pull the bar through his shins. This will keep his body much more tight and force his hips to stay down. I will also be going over bracing techniques with him as this will keep his midsection tight.

Hope you enjoyed today's lesson! If you want your deadlift coached then come see me at Fitness 1440 in York! We are on 3629 East Market Street. We're currently running $0 enrollment and $0 first month! If you want to contact me, my number is 717-318-2161. Shoot me a text or call me any time!

Did some hip work with Kam today! Hips are an often neglected muscle group when it comes to overall leg development. If you're training for any kind of sport, hip work is absolutely essential as these muscles play a crucial role in sprinting, jumping, agility, burst, etc. Even if your goal isn't sport related, hips still play a role in lifting and even every day life. I was having pain in my hips after heavy squatting, started doing some hip strengthening exercises and it cleared right up! They are now a part of my weekly routine.

If you're having hip problems, or you're just looking to reach your health and fitness goals faster, come see me at Fitness 1440 in York! You can also text or call at 717-318-2161!

Did some pause bench yesterday with Andrew! Pause bench press is a great way to develop the bottom portion of your bench press lift. Getting the bar off your chest is usually the toughest part of the motion for a lot of people. Pause bench practices and develops just that.

If you have any questions about other variations or you're wondering which variations could help you with your lifts, come in and see me! We have free enrollment and free first month at Fitness 1440 currently, and as always your first session with me is completely FREE! Stop by today or text or call me at 717-318-2161!

QUICK TIP FOR SHOULDER HEALTH:
When following a weight lifting routine, it's important to regularly strengthen your rotator cuffs! Failure to do this can result in the strengthening of all the muscles around your rotator cuffs while the strength of the rotator cuffs themselves stay the same, sometimes resulting in injury. The exercises you see in the video (thanks to Gavin!) are called "internal rotation" and "external rotation". They are in my opinion the two most important exercises for strengthening the rotator cuffs. I always use a band or cables because they keep constant tension. Do these exercises on your off days or right after doing shoulders!

If you need advice or guidance, I'm always here at Fitness 1440 to help. Right now enrollment for a gym membership AND your first month dues are completely FREE! Your first session with me is also FREE! Come see me today to start taking strides towards your health and fitness goals!!

Deadlift with Shakera La'prece last night. She has really perfected her form! Notice how she keeps the bar as close to her as possible; that's key. She puts it down at the exact same spot she picks it up. Great work Shakera!